WWE has announced the lineup for next week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown, which will air on the USA Network.
The show is scheduled to start at 8 PM ET from the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, and it will also be available for international viewers on Netflix.
In a highly anticipated singles match, Shinsuke Nakamura will face MFT’s WWE Tag Team Champion, Tama Tonga. This is the only match announced for the show so far. The match was established during a backstage segment in which Tonga confronted Nakamura. He mocked Nakamura for losing to AJ Styles on last week’s show and boasted about winning the WWE Tag Team Championship while Nakamura was losing. Tonga further taunted Nakamura, suggesting he should retire, prompting Nakamura to challenge him for a match next week.
Nakamura and Tonga have crossed paths numerous times in their careers, particularly during their time in NJPW. Nakamura was part of the CHAOS faction while Tonga was with the Bullet Club. They faced each other in a singles match only once during that period—on NJPW’s 40th Anniversary tour in 2012, where Nakamura emerged victorious. In WWE, they have competed against each other twice: first in a tag team match and then in a Survivor Series-style elimination match in late November, with Tonga winning both times.
Be sure to tune in every Friday night at 8 PM ET for live coverage of WWE SmackDown results.
