The road to WWE SummerSlam 2026 continues tonight in “The Empire State,” as WWE SmackDown is live at 8/7c on USA Network and Netflix from the MVP Arena in Albany, New York.
Gunther Kicks Things Off
‘WWE Then. Now. Forever. Together.’ kicks things off. We then see highlights from last week’s show. Live inside the arena, Gunther’s music hits and out comes “The Career-Killer” to kick off this week’s show. Gunther says he prides himself for being a professional but since he’s come to SmackDown, he’s been mistreated.
He suggests Nick Aldis is jealous of him and that he should be the champion right now and we all know it. Gunther says Aldis is the reason he isn’t champion and that Aldis has made this personal. Gunther is being forced to team with Sami Zayn to take on CM Punk and Cody Rhodes at Saturday Night’s Main Event.
Gunther says Zayn is beneath him and this is unacceptable. Adam Pearce comes out and tells Gunther he has heard enough and says Gunther should be thanking Aldis for saving his job. Pearce says if Gunther was on RAW and did what he did, Gunther would be fired.
Pearce talks about the stipulation Aldis had added to the match which is if Gunther’s team wins, both he and Zayn are added to the SummerSlam match but Gunther attacked Aldis before Aldis could get to telling Gunther the stipulation. Cody Rhodes’ music hits and he runs out to the ring and attacks Gunther.
Rhodes punches Gunther sending him out of the ring and then gets on the mic. Rhodes tells Gunther he won’t make it past Saturday but today it’s Friday night and we are on the road to Saturday Night’s Main Event and Rhodes wants a match against Gunther tonight. Pearce makes the match official as our Main Event for tonight.
WWE Women’s Interim Title SummerSlam Announcement
We get a video package letting us know there will be a ladder match at SummerSlam for an interim Women’s Champion while Rhea Ripley is injured. The winner will then defend the Women’s Championship until Ripley is healed and at that time the interim champion and Ripley will battle in a unification match.
Finn Balor vs. Talla Tonga
Back inside the arena, Finn Balor’s theme hits and out he comes for the first match of the evening. As he does, the show shifts gears and heads into a quick pre-match commercial break. When the show returns, Talla Tonga is in the ring and the match gets underway.
Tonga wants to do a test of strength but Balor dodges him and starts punching Tonga in the corner. Tonga tosses Balor into the corner and Balor chops Tonga and starts chopping at Tonga’s leg. Tonga takes down Balor with a shoulder tackle and starts to stomp on Balor.
Balor is whipped into the corner and Tonga then hits Balor with an uppercut. Balor is choked on the middle rope and Balor fights back with punches. Tonga smacks Balor and Balor gets Tonga on the apron. Tonga and Balor battle as Tonga is on the apron. Tonga slams Balor into the turnbuckle and clotheslines him and we cut to a commercial break.
The show returns and Tonga strikes Balor in the corner. Tonga hits a running powerslam and covers Balor for a near fall. Balor strikes Tonga and kicks him in the knee. Balor hits a double basement dropkick on Tonga and then drops Tonga. Tonga gets up and hits a Samoan Drop and levels Balor.
Balor rolls to the apron and kicks Tonga from the apron. Balor climbs the ropes and Tonga gets up and grabs Balor and goes for a chokeslam but Balor counters and DDTs Tonga. Balor runs at Tonga and Tonga kicks Balor down and covers him for a near fall. Tonga ties Balor up in the ropes and headbutts him.
Tonga runs at Balor and Balor breaks free and gets caught up on the ropes and Balor nuts him. Tama Tonga runs at Balor and Balor hits Tama with a slingblade. Back in the ring, Tonga is hit with a shotgun drop kick and then Balor hits a Coup de Grace and then hits another Coup de Grace for the victory.
Winner: Finn Balor
Backstage
Adam Pearce is on the phone and CM Punk approaches him and asks about the stipulation for his match tomorrow. Punk is also concerned about Cody Rhodes’ match against Gunther and says he’ll go talk to Rhodes.
As Punk leaves, Damian Priest comes up to Punk and says after SummerSlam, he’s going to be waiting for Punk and his title. Punk leaves and R-Truth jumps up from behind Priest and they joke around.
Interim Women’s Championship Ladder Match Qualifier
Tiffany Stratton vs. Jacy Jayne
Back to the ring we go for a high stakes ladder match qualifier for the interim women’s title tilt at WWE SummerSlam. Henley and Reid attack Stratton before the bell. Jayne gets involved and it’s three on one. Brie Bella and Paige run down and take out Henley and Reid.
Reid, Bella, Paige and Henley battle to the back and the bell rings. Stratton strikes a distracted Jayne and slams Jayne’s head into the turnbuckle. Jayne kicks Stratton and Stratton chops Jayne back. Stratton trips Jayne and runs into her on the ropes and then hits a double stomp and covers Jayne for a near fall and we cut to a commercial.
The show returns and Jayne covers Stratton and Stratton kicks out at two. Jayne strikes Stratton several times and misses a Senton. Stratton and Jayne collide in the middle of the ring and both women are laid out. Stratton and Jayne trade punches in the middle of the ring.
Jayne kicks Stratton and knocks her down. Stratton runs at Jayne and connects with some clotheslines and a spinning elbow. Stratton hits an Alabama Slam and Stratton then climbs the ropes and Jayne gets up and punches Stratton on the top rope.
Jayne hits a draping twisting neckbreaker and covers Stratton for a near fall. Jayne goes for Rolling Encore and Stratton counters and hits a springboard cutter and then hits her Prettiest Moonsault Ever and gets the victory to advance to SummerSlam.
Winner and ADVANCING: Tiffany Stratton
Baron Corbin Update
Now we see a video package with Baron Corbin. Corbin puts the Blue Brand on notice and calls out Trick Williams and says he’s first on Corbin’s hit list. The show moves on from there.
Backstage
Jackie Redmond talks to Trick Williams backstage. Williams responds to Baron Corbin saying Williams is first on his hit list. Williams makes fun of Corbin being bald and Carmelo Hayes walks in and Williams wants an apology. Hayes says Williams hesitates around him because they both know Williams is not better than Hayes.
Williams says Hayes has been on SmackDown for a long time and has barely done anything whereas Williams has been here for much less time and has done much more than he has. Williams tells Hayes to quiet down when the grown men are talking and leaves Hayes laughing as the show moves on to another commercial break.
Interim Women’s Championship Ladder Match Qualifier
Jade Cargill vs. Nia Jax
The show returns from the break and we gear up for another interim women’s title ladder match qualifier bout for SummerSlam, this time with Jade Cargill going one-on-one against Nia Jax. The entrances take place and the bell sounds to get things started.
Immediately Cargill goes for a pumpkick but Jax moves out of the way and hits a Samoan Drop and splashes onto Cargill and covers her for a near fall. Jax misses a legdrop and Cargill drops Jax with a Spinebuster. Charlotte Flair shows up and takes out Michin and B-Fab and then gets in the ring and kicks Cargill and the match ends.
Winner by DQ and ADVANCING: Jade Cargill
After The Match
Once the bout wraps up, Flair tries to break Cargill’s arm like Cargill did to Alexa Bliss last week. B-Fab and Michin save Cargill before Flair can.
In the ring, Jax is pissed Flair cost her the match and she attacks Flair and leaves. Cargill, B-Fab and Michin get in the ring. Cargill clocks Flair with Jaded and the trio pose while Flair lays in the ring.
Backstage
Gunther warms up backstage, Jackie Redmond comes by and asks him about his match tomorrow. Gunther says he will be rationale into Cody Rhodes tonight and tomorrow he’ll win and compete at SummerSlam. Candice LeRae wheels Johnny Gargano in and LeRae tells Gunther they need this win tomorrow.
They need to win because then Sami Zayn will be competing at SummerSlam. Gunther tells LeRae to tell Zayn to show up and do his best and he leaves. Blake Monroe attacks LeRae from behind and introduces herself to LeRae and then tells Gargano he needs a haircut and leaves to end the segment.
Backstage
Nia Jax and Lash Legend yell at Adam Pearce backstage for Charlotte Flair ruining her match. Pearce lets Jax compete again in a qualifier next week against Flair.
FrAxiom vs. The War Raiders
Back to ringside we go for tag-team action. Frazer and Erik start and Erik slams Frazer down. Frazer flips around the ring and rolls up Erik who kicks out at two. Erik slams Frazer down and tags in Ivar. Frazer is double teamed and Frazer is flattened.
Ivar elbows Frazer in the corner and Erik is tagged back in. Frazer punches Erik and Erik knocks Frazer to the mat. Frazer kicks Erik and tags in Axiom. Erik is double teamed and Ivar runs in and is sent to the outside. Frazer flies out and gets caught and Axiom then moonsaults out onto The War Raiders.
On that note, the show heads to a mid-match commercial break as the action continues. Frazer climbs the ropes and Erik moves out of the way of a Phoenix Splash. Ivar is tagged in and he slams down Frazer and Axiom. Frazer is sat on and Ivar puts Axiom on Frazer and then goes to moonsault onto Fraxiom but they move out of the way.
Ivar is double teamed and covered and he kicks out at two. Axiom is tagged back in, Ivar clotheslines Frazer and catches Axiom and then kicks Axiom down. Erik is tagged in and Erik throws Ivar onto Axiom. Erik slams down Axiom and Frazer flies in off the top rope and breaks the pin.
Axiom kicks down Ivar and Erik and Frazer is tagged in. Frazer flies through the ropes and Axiom follows suit and they take out Ivar. Frazer takes out Erik and in the ring, Ivar strikes down Axiom and climbs the ropes. Frazer tags in and they both climb up on the ropes with Ivar and superplex Ivar.
Frazer hits the Phoenix Splash and Erik breaks the pin. Erik and Axiom are tagged in. Erik and Axiom go back and forth and Ivar gets tagged in. Erik and Ivar flatten Axiom and Frazer with Ragnarok and gets the victory. The show moves on from there.
Winners: The War Raiders
Backstage
Backstage, we see Undisputed WWE Champion CM Punk talking to Cody Rhodes backstage and tells Rhodes he has Rhodes’ back tonight. Rhodes tells Punk to have his back from the back and Punk tells him that he will see him tonight. We head to another commercial break.
Jackie Redmond Interviews Danhausen
Backstage, Jackie Redmond talks to Danhausen in is lab. Redmond asks Danhausen about his match against JD McDonagh and she asks him how he will neutralise Dominik Mysterio. Danhausen says he has a secret weapon and shows us a toy cat in a cage. Things start to spark in his lab. “Run!” Danhausen says.
Gunther vs. Cody Rhodes
It’s main event time!
Now we head to the ring for our final match of the evening. It will be “The Career Killer” Gunther going one-on-one against “The American Nightmare” Cody Rhodes in a bout set up at the start of tonight’s show. As Gunther comes down to the ring, he is jumped by Cody Rhodes.
Rhodes beats Gunther down to the ring and then slams Gunther’s head into the ring apron and into the steel steps. Gunther is thrown into the barricades and punched some more. Rhodes slams Gunther’s head into the announce desk and then throws Gunther in the ring and we get the bell.
Rhodes takes Gunther down and punches him. Gunther throws Rhodes over the ropes to the outside and we cut to a commercial break as the action continues. When the show returns, we see Gunther chops Rhodes and then kicks him in the gut before smacking him to the mat with a chop to Rhodes’ chest.
Rhodes hits a springboard cutter and then delivers some punches to Gunther. Gunther is slammed down with a scoop slam and then hits The Disaster Kick and then another springboard cutter. Rhodes goes for Cross Rhodes but Gunther counters and starts kicking Rhodes around the ring.
Gunther slams Rhodes’ leg into the ring post and CM Punk’s music hits and he comes out to the ring. Punk pumps up Rhodes and tries to get Rhodes back on his feet. Rhodes and Gunther both hit each other with a double clothesline and we get another advertising time out.
When the show returns this time, things begin to pick up in the final minutes of the broadcast. Gunther powerbombs Rhodes and Rhodes kicks out at two. Gunther gets Rhodes in a half crab trying to take out Rhodes’ leg. Rhodes breaks the hold and Gunther runs at Rhodes but collides with the turnbuckle.
Rhodes takes Gunther down with a DragonScrew and gets Gunther in a Figure Four Leg Lock. Sami Zayn comes out of nowhere and attacks CM Punk outside the ring. Punk is tossed over the announce desk and Rhodes’ attention is on Zayn allowing Gunther to get Rhodes in a sleeperhold.
Rhodes breaks free and suicide dives out onto Zayn. Zayn attacks Rhodes and the bell is called for. After the match, Gunther and Zayn go to double teamed Rhodes but Punk makes the save. Punk and Gunther battle around the ring and Zayn and Rhodes fight.
As they continue to brawl in the ring, we see officials run out to break the men up – all four men are fighting in the ring. Now it’s Punk and Zayn going at it and Rhodes is fighting Gunther. As this continues, the show goes off the air. Thanks for joining us!
Winner via DQ: Cody Rhodes
