Tonight’s WWE SmackDown in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania is the last stop before Saturday Night’s Main Event. John Cena himself is not scheduled to appear on SmackDown, but on the eve of his last match ever, WWE will take a special look back at the 17-time World Champion’s career.

Barre. John Cena tribute before retirement, Drew McIntyre suspension decision, Ilja Dragunov defends U.S. Title.

Hello everyone and welcome to Khel Now’s HIGHLIGHTS, GRADES, and RESULTS of the WWE Friday Night SmackDown (December 12, 2025).

John Cena has his final opponent. After a yearlong retirement tour and a 16-man tournament to decide who he would stand across from in his finale, it is complete. Gunther will be the man who gets the chance to retire one of the legends of the industry at Saturday Night's Main Event on Dec. 13.

SmackDown opened with a video recapping the events of Survivor Series before we got the usual shots of people walking backstage. Nick Aldis was shown telling Drew McIntyre he was still suspended and ordered him to leave, but Cody Rhodes attacked him in his truck.

You can also catch all the action live on USA Network as WWE SmackDown telecasts there in the United States. For international viewers, Netflix will remain the exclusive streaming platform of Friday Night SmackDown. You can sit back on your couch and tune into the show at your regional timings.

You can stream “WWE SmackDown!” live or on demand without a cable subscription by using several streaming platforms that offer USA Network, including DirecTV (free trial) and Sling. fuboTV is currently not a viable option, due to the ongoing dispute with NBCU causing NBC-owned channels to be blacked out on the service.

WWE SmackDown saw a decrease in viewership on December 5. According to Jed Goodman, SmackDown averaged 1.063 million viewers on Friday. The show drew a 0.24 rating in the 18 to 49 demographic. The viewership is down from last week’s episode,

Tonight's episode of WWE SmackDown will be the final stop before Saturday Night's Main Event. The show is set to take place in Wilkes-Barre, and the company has announced a stacked lineup for the event. Cody Rhodes has been the central figure of the blue brand for more than a year, and he is advertised to appear on tonight's show as well.

TheSportster’s rating system will take a look across the entire card of SmackDown this week to determine the best match of the night, the worst on the show, and how everything else ranked up in between.