This week’s episode of SmackDown was taped on December 19th in Grand Rapids as part of a double taping of RAW and SmackDown. On the show, Ilja Dragunov put the United States Championship on the line against Carmelo Hayes once again. On the December 5th episode of SmackDown, Ilja Dragunov retained the United States Championship against Carmelo Hayes due to interference from Tommaso Ciampa.
Dragunov and Hayes tore the house down in Grand Rapids. The match would go over 20 minutes with the final moments being Hayes countering a coast-to-coast into a First 48 and finishing Dragunov off with a Nothing but Net to become the new United States Champion.
This is the first main roster championship for Hayes. Earlier this year, Hayes won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. Hayes is previously a 2x NXT North American Champion and 1x NXT Champion.
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