WWE Smackdown Officially Moving Back to Three Hours In January

It is official: WWE Smackdown is returning to a three-hour show to kick off 2026, as announced on Friday. It was reported last month that WWE was planning to move back to a three-hour show in January. Michael Cole revealed the news on Friday night’s episode of Smackdown.

The move mirrors the start of 2025, when Smackdown went to three hours for the start of the year. It returned to two hours in July.

It is not yet clear if the three-hour move will be permanent or again revert to two hours in the back half of 2026. The first three-hour WWE Smackdown of the new run will take place on January 2nd, 2026.

Breaking: SmackDown will be 3 hours once again starting 1/2! #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/wUQsg6GIht

— USA Network (@USANetwork) December 13, 2025