Nia Jax and Lash Legend Upset RHIYO to Claim WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles
nia jax and Lash Legend captured the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships on SmackDown, pinning Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY in a decisive finish that snapped RHIYO’s title reign. The title change came 24 hours ahead of Elimination Chamber 2026 in Chicago, immediately altering the landscape of the division going into next week’s television show.
Nia Jax delivers the decisive Annihilator and celebrates title milestone
The match ended after Nia Jax landed an Annihilator on IYO SKY and Lash Legend followed by the Lash Extension to pin Rhea Ripley. That sequence produced the victory that made Jax and Legend the new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. Backstage, Cathy Kelley spoke with the new champions, and Jax declared this her third run with the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles while Legend recorded her first title win in the company. Fireworks punctuated the celebration inside the arena as the Irresistible Forces marked the change of hands.
RHIYO’s 53-day reign and the Louisville setback
Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY’s partnership, collectively known as RHIYO, saw its top-title run end after 53 days when they were overwhelmed on SmackDown in Louisville, Kentucky. Observers noted that repeated offensive bursts from Nia Jax and Lash Legend left Ripley and SKY unable to sustain momentum; Ripley in particular was described as not fully engaged, a factor the Irresistible Forces exploited. The onslaught culminated in the pinfall that stripped RHIYO of the belts and closed a reign that had spanned just over seven weeks.
The loss arrives after Lash Legend and Jax had been on a mission following a previous setback: the team had been cheated out of the titles by The Kabuki Warriors a couple of weeks earlier, a development that the new champions said fueled their urgency. Their comeback victory sets up a celebratory appearance on the first SmackDown episode after Elimination Chamber in Chicago, which the duo promised they would mark in style.
Implications for SmackDown and the tag division
The timing matters because the title switch occurred a day before a major pay-per-view weekend, compressing storyline options and forcing teams to adjust plans on short notice. With the belts now on Lash Legend and Nia Jax, challengers who had been plotting against RHIYO must pivot to a new target, while the champions will have to defend their newly won gold under heightened scrutiny.
What makes this notable is the speed of the turnover: a 53-day championship span and an immediate post-Elimination Chamber spotlight promise a turbulent period for the women’s tag ranks. The decisive finishing sequence — Jax’s Annihilator on SKY followed by Legend’s Lash Extension on Ripley — provided a clear causal chain from attack to pinfall that left no ambiguity about why the titles changed hands.
Promoters and performers now face a condensed schedule that will quickly test whether the Irresistible Forces can sustain momentum or if RHIYO will mount a rapid bid to reclaim the straps. For now, Lash Legend and Nia Jax enter the division as the reigning champions, their first title run together beginning with a commanding victory that reshapes the division’s immediate picture.
