WWE champion's reign ends after 63-days on SmackDown before Night of Champions 2025
WWE Night of Champions is only a day away from emanating from the Kingdom Arena in the rich city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. WWE built much hype for the Premium Live Event in the same venue by presenting the June 27th edition of Friday Night SmackDown.
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It featured three top title matches on the card. While two titles managed to stay with their respective titleholders, a major championship changed hands following a highly spectacular showdown that captivated the Riyadh audience.
Which WWE Championship changed hands on SmackDown before Night of Champions 2025 Premium Live Event?
On the June 27th edition of WWE SmackDown, Zelina Vega was scheduled to defend her WWE Women's United States Championship against Giulia. The international sensation had been having multiple encounters with Vega over the last few weeks since she was called up from WWE NXT.
After Vega defeated Pipe Niven in a match with Giulia's help, she immediately turned on her and held the star-spangled prize high. This clearly hinted at her intentions, and the match was made official for SmackDown taking place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The duo clashed in an epic encounter that was a thrilling sight to witness. The Beautiful Madness unleashed her fury on the defending champion, who fought through it valiantly.
From stunning drops to power-packed moves, Vega and Giulia stole the show. Towards the final moments of the title match, Giulia clearly had the upper hand, launching a pair of knee strikes. She put a conclusion to the bout by delivering a Northern Lights Bomb on Zelina Vega and pinned her shoulders to the mat for the three count.
With that win, Giulia became the new WWE Women's United States Champion, marking her first singles title on the main roster. It was a sight of similar success being replicated by Giulia that she did when she arrived in NXT last year. While Zelina Vega did her best, her effort ultimately fell short at the hands of The Beautiful Madness. With Giulia winning her first major championship in WWE, it will be interesting to see her title reign on Friday Night SmackDown.
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