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WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT
JULY 10, 2026
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA AT PAYCOM CENTER
AIRED LIVE ON USA NETWORK
REPORT BY ERIC CORBRIDGE, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett
Ring Announcer: Mark Nash
Attendance: As of Friday morning, WrestleTix reported that 6,162 tickets were distributed headed into the show. The arena has a capacity of 18,203 spectators when configured for basketball.
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[HOUR ONE]
– The path to Summerslam ran through Oklahoma City this week. Back from administrative leave for his recent backstage altercation with Gunther, Smackdown General Manager Nick Aldis was in the ring to start the show. The crowd chanted for C.M. Punk. Aldis started by saying that he had been officially reinstated to his position and that he took accountability for his actions, though he still felt justified in them. He asked the fans to welcome the new Undisputed WWE Champion C.M. Punk. Punk came out wearing jeans, a new black “punk” shirt, and the title belt around his waist, along with a huge smile and a shiner. In the ring, Aldis welcomed him to Smackdown, shook his hand, and handed him the microphone. Aldis left the ring.
Punk told the crowd that he missed them over the last two and half months because he was “negotiating” with WWE management, NBC Universal, and the USA network, spearheaded by Nick Aldis, to bring him to Smackdown. Punk said that those plans got expedited on Monday night when he was offered the title shot against Sami Zayn. In a callback to his foreshadowing statement to Cody Rhodes from the night after Wrestlemania, Punk said that “when title opportunities fall out the sky”, he’s there to catch them. And after winning the title, Punk gave his “is it great to be alive in…” line. The crowd chanted his name again. He said he isn’t like other wrestlers, and that he intends to wrestle on television and defend the title any chance he gets, because when he calls himself the “best in the world” he does it to put pressure on himself. He said the locker room is filled with hungry individuals that want what he has. He challenged anyone in the back to come and get it. Punk said he heard Sami Zayn’s rant on social media (basically saying he got screwed) after their title match and that he understood how he felt. Punk offered him a rematch. He asked the crowd who else was in the locker room. He named Gunther, and while admitting he may regret saying his name, he also knew that he could beat him because he’s done it before. The next name he mentioned was Finn Balor, then Royce Keys, Damian Priest, Trick Williams… cue Cody Rhodes’s music. Punk smiled.
Cody Rhodes came out wearing nice clothes as always, but minus a jacket and tie. So, I guess he was dressing down. Rhodes grabbed Punk’s face to check out his black eye in a friendly way. Rhodes asked about the eye and Punk said it looks worse than it feels, but asked Rhodes what he really “wanted to talk about.” Rhodes also called back to the night after Wrestlemania, when they were in the ring together and Punk made his “title shots falling out the sky” comment. Coincidentally, that night Rhodes had the black eye. Rhodes said that there were also championship matches that have been building for years, which Punk correctly assumed meant Punk versus Rhodes. Punk said he hadn’t name dropped Rhodes earlier because he was trying to maintain their friendship, and that he’d thought that them facing each other would happen as the main event of Wrestlemania. They both acknowledged that they can’t stay away from each other any longer now though. Rhodes again called back to their last conversation and reminded Punk that he’d told him to just “say when” he wanted a title shot. Rhodes questioned whether that still applied in reverse now, and before he could even finish Punk said “when?” Rhodes said Summerslam. They shook hands as Nick Aldis returned to the ring and made it official.
(Corbridge’s Analysis: A lot to unpack in a long opening segment. Aldis is back pretty quickly from his forced administrative league. In the fictional world it would make sense, since getting C.M Punk signed to Smackdown would be a big coup. Still waiting to figure out who he trade to Raw for Finn Balor though…
The biggest news is of course that Punk vs. Rhodes is official for Summerslam. I believed Punk when he said that he thought they’d wrestle in the main event of Wrestlemania. I’d been saying the same thing too. I’ve firmly believed that the two main events at Wrestlemania 43 would be Punk vs. Rhodes and Reigns vs. Rollins. Now we are getting them both at Summerslam. It makes me wonder if the rise of Oba Femi and the desperation to increase Summerslam attendance triggered the expedition of both matches.)
– Cathy Kelley asked Jade Cargill why she requested a match with Alexa Bliss tonight. She said since Charlotte Flair wants to play games, then Jade is going to kick her friend’s face in. Michin talked about how they stomped Flair out already, while B-Fab said she would have front row seat to watch her friend get beat up. Jade claimed that she couldn’t be held responsible for what happened to Bliss tonight and that it would be Flair’s fault.
– Finn Balor entered for the opening contest of the evening. [c]
– Tama Tonga came out to new music with Talla Tonga in tow. Tama still wore the angry panda bear face paint.
(1) FINN BALOR vs. TAMA TONGA (w/Tonga Loa)
Balor wasted no time, going after Tama as he was taking off his jacket. Barrett mentioned the long history (in Japan) between the two men and pointed out that they know each other’s strengths and weaknesses. It started off with a rapid pace as Balor hit a basement dropkick and clotheslined Tama to the floor. Balor was about to vault over the ropes but Talla grabbed his foot, distracting him and allowing Balor to club him from behind. Tama with a neckbreaker and sliding clothesline to a seated Balor. Tama covered for a two-count as they went to a split-screen. (c)
Tessitore reminded the audience that Tama said last week that he was closing the books on everything from his past. Balor executed a Russian leg sweep and both men were down. Balor hit a flying forearm and called to the crowd for support, which they happily obliged. Balor got caught in a leap frog but escaped with a reverse DDT and covered for a nearfall. Tama gained control with a spinning side slam for another two-count. Balor nailed Tama with a Slingblade, shotgun dropkick, but missed a Coupe de Grace after a brief hesitation as Talla argued with the referee . Tama hit the running forearm to the back of Balor’s head and followed up with a spinning pedigree(!) and covered for the one…two…Balor kicked out. The crowd erupted with “Let’s go Balor” chants. Balor trapped him in a small package for the one…two…Tama kicked out.
Balor hit a somersault over the top rope onto both Tongas. He rolled Tama back in the ring and hit the shotgun dropkick again. This time he hit the Coup de Grace and hooked the leg for the three count.
WINNER: Finn Balor won by pinfall in 10:00.
(Corbridge’s Analysis: A much-needed win for Balor on Smackdown. He looked good in the ring and the crowd was really into the match by the end.)
– The always busy Cathy Kelley asked Carmelo Hayes to acknowledge Trick Williams and Lil Yachty’s comments that he need to prove he deserved a title shot. Hayes said that all he’s done is prove that he deserves. Hayes said that Yachty’s “hit songs” were only features and that Trick can have all the aura and stardom in the world and it won’t help him beat Hayes because he is “him.”
– R-Truth paid Fraxiom money because he apparently bet on the United States Men’s soccer (football…I know) team to win. The War Raiders walked up and were still mad that a date hadn’t been set for their title unification match. Jimmy Uso and Jacob Fatu interrupted to ask Truth if he knew where Solo Sikoa was. Truth said that Solo’s kids “yeeted” on themselves so he was home babysitting. Jimmy shook Truth’s hand and said if he saw Solo to let him know Jimmy was looking for him. Fatu asked Truth if he’d seen Royce Keys. Truth said he’d never seen him before a day in his life, but if he did see him to hide his change. Damian Priest walked up and said that Keys was there. Truth looked away, caught in his fib. Jimmy and Fatu left. Truth was upset with Priest but Priest reiterated that Keys wasn’t their problem. [c]
(Corbridge’s Analysis: It was nice to see Truth still be goofy, but not completely ridiculous. He clearly lied to Fatu to protect Keys. The complex dynamic between Priest, Truth, Keys, Fatu, Solo is still interesting because it’s been built well.)
– Nick Aldis talked to Sami Zayn on the phone. Aldis said that he’d granted Zayn a mental health break for the night. Zayn was mad that Aldis made the match between Rhodes and Punk for Summerslam. Gunther stormed into Aldis’s office so he hung up on Zayn. Gunther told Aldis that he made a big mistake and he was going to give him a chance to fix it because he deserved to be in the title match. Guinther said he would give him till the end of the night to fix it. Aldis said he would take it under consideration.
(Corbridge’s Analysis: It may seem like a little thing, but it was very believable that Zayn would call Aldis to complain at this exact time during the show. If WWE had a logic and continuity coordinator, I think they might be surprised at how much it improved their product, and even more how well fans responded to it.)
– Jimmy Uso and Jacob Fatu were in the ring. They called out Solo Sikoa right away. Royce Keys came out instead. Jimmy asked Keys what he was doing there. Keys said he had an issue with Jimmy because he kept mentioning his name. He said that Jimmy’s “family business” is starting to affect him. Jimmy said that tonight was all about OTC business. Fatu stepped up and reminded Keys that they were tight and wanted to keep it that way, so Keys needed to stop mentioning the OTC. Keys said it didn’t need to be like that. Jimmy said it had nothing to do with Keys. Keys restated that blood doesn’t make someone family; loyalty does. Keys said that Fatu knew that Keys didn’t have any family besides Fatu, who he refused to let fall. Jimmy responded that “out of respect” he wanted to let him know that Keys was going to cross a line that he couldn’t come back from. Keys said he didn’t come here to fight tonight, but there was a line right in front of him and he just crossed it.
Jimmy laughed and said that he and Fatu would put the worst beating on him that they’ve put on anyone. Fatu grabbed the microphone and questioned the “we” comment. He said that this one was on Jimmy because he was out. Jimmy stepped up and called for Aldis to send out a referee. Jimmy tried for a sneak attack but Keys caught his arm and tossed him to the floor. [c]
(Quick plug: I created BadWill, a workplace dramedy comic series about a thrift store that only accepts donations from failed relationships. Episode 1 is available now at badwillcomic.com, and on July 14 I’m launching a Kickstarter pre-order campaign for Episode 2, where readers can pre-order and help fund the production and printing of the book. If you’d like to be notified when the campaign launches, you can follow it here: Kickstarter- BadWill Episode 2 I’d love to hear what you think!)
[HOUR TWO]
(2) JIMMY USO vs. ROYCE KEYS
Jimmy started with a headlock that Keys easily pushed off from and dropped Jimmy with a shoulder block. Jimmy hit a thrust kick and went for a suplex that Keys reversed. Keys covered for a one-count. Tessitore and Barrett gushed over the power of Keys. Jimmy sidestepped a charging Keys on the floor, who then went shoulder first into the ring steps. Jimmy rolled him back in and his a cross-body off the top that earned him a nearfall. Jimmy with an enziguri that Keys didn’t really sell much. Jimmy sent Keys to the floor and hit a dive through the ropes, then tossed Keys over the announce desk. [c]
When they came back from the break Keys hit a very awkward powerslam and covered for a two-count. Jimmy stay down for a while from that and bailed to the floor. Keys slammed him on the announce desk twice and returned to the ring to stop the ref’s count. Keys went back to the outside but Jimmy escaped a shoulder breaker attempt and pushed Keys into the ring post. Jimmy was leaning on the barricade while calling for a timeout and Solo Sikoa showed up behind him. He was about to hit him with a Samoan Spike but Jacob Fatu’s music played so Solo stopped and waited for Fatu to run down so they could go after each other. Solo locked in the Tongan Death Grip and threw Solo over the barricade. Back in the ring, Jimmy hit a spear on Keys and covered for the win.
WINNER: Jimmy Uso via pinfall in 10:00.
– After the match, Fatu beat down Solo in the ring. Keys pulled him off and they talked to each other. Fatu protested but eventually hit a superkick and senton. He then wedged Solo’s head in a chair as Solo was down in the corner. Fatu ran at him like he was going to hit the running hip attack but he stopped short. He leaned in and told Solo that he better listen to him because next time he won’t stop.
(Corbridge’s Analysis: The Keys and Fatu relationship finally came to a head and Fatu chose his blood family over the “loyalty” family. Fatu also delivered a message loud and clear to Solo, so it will be interesting to see if Solo finally falls in line now. It’s all been very well told, though I legitimately have NO idea who is a babyface and who is a heel anymore.)
– They aired Sami Zayn’s reaction on social media after losing the WWE Championship on Raw. They obviously bleeped out the expletives.
– Cathy Kelley asked C.M Punk about Gunther’s insistence on getting the title shot. Someone caught his attention. It was Candice LeRae, with husband/comatose planking enthusiast Johnny Gargano face down on a crate next to her. She yelled at Punk for screwing over Zayn since Zayn was the only person who hadn’t given up on her husband. She said Zayn was the real “voice of the voiceless.” She said that Zayn holding the title was hope for the underdogs. Punk congratulated her for having hope for nine days. He said that Gargano needs to get back to being “Johnny Wrestling” and that LeRae needed to get back in the ring too because whatever they’re doing now wasn’t working. Punk walked away and right into Finn Balor. Balor said, “welcome to Smackdown champ,” smiled, and walked off.
– Alexa Bliss, accompanied by bestie Charlotte Flair, entered for the next match. [c]
(3) ALEXA BLISS (w/Charlotte Flair) vs. JADE CARGILL (w/B-Fab, Michin)
Early on, Bliss tried to chop Jade down with some distraction interference from Flair. Cargill used her power to take over before they went to a very quick break. [c]
Bliss fought back and continued trying to cut Jade down. She hit a Natural Selection and covered for a two-count. Jade caught her out of mid-air but Bliss reversed into a Sister Abigal set-up. Jade escaped that. Flair dropped Jade’s face across the ropes leading to Bliss rolling her up for a good nearfall. Michin ran at Flair and caught a boot in the face for her trouble. B-Fab took out Flair from behind and got up on the apron. Bliss knocked her off, but that allowed Jade to hit her with a pump kick and the Jaded, then covered for the pin and the win.
WINNER: Jade Cargill via pinfall in 7:00.
(Corbridge’s Analysis: Basic match with a lot of interference and a finish any WWE viewer has seen 4,815,162,342 times .)
After the match, the heels used their numbers advantage to beat down the two babyfaces. Jade tried to break Bliss’s elbow using a chair and seemed to do so.
(Corbridge’s Analysis: The famously double-jointed Bliss sold that well. Perhaps Bliss is taking some time off.)
– Trick Williams was upset in the back because he couldn’t find his title belt. He thought Ricky Saints stole it. Lil Yachty walked in and said he got him a “Legacy Title.” He gave him a new United States Championship that had white fur around it. Yachty said in return he needed Trick to give Carmelo Hayes a diamond butt-whooping.
– Carmelo Hayes entered for the main event match of the evening. [c]
– Flair helped a sobbing Bliss, who was holding her arm, into the Doctor/Trainer’s office backstage.
– The United States Champion Trick Williams entered.
(4) TRICK WILLIAMS (w/Lil Yachty) vs. CARMELO HAYES – Non-title Match
Trick stomped on Hayes early as Saints watched on a monitor in the locker room. Hayes used his athleticism to rally with a springboard clothesline but then walked into a flapjack. Trick kipped up and slapped Hayes. [c]
Hayes hit a Dirty Diana and covered for a two-count. They each countered a standing switch and Trick hit a couple leg lariats. Trick hit a Bookend for another nearfall. Hayes hit a leaping DDT off the ropes for yet another two-count. Trick with a jumping neckbreaker and covered again to no avail. The story of the match was that it was back and forth with each man trying to hit a knockout blow. Hayes hit a big frog splash and covered, but once again Trick kicked out. They showed Saints watching from the back again. Hayes attempted a First 48 but they ended up trading pinning predicaments instead. Hayes went back up top and missed a frog splash. Trick hit a spin kick and covered but Hayes somehow kicked out again. Hayes knocked Trick into Yachty on the floor, which knocked Yachty down. Back in the ring, Hayes connected with the First 48 and was about to go for the Nothing but Net. Inexplicably, Baron Corbin knocked him off the top rope, causing the referee to call for the bell.
WINNER: No contest in 9:00.
Post-match, Corbin beat down both Trick and Hayes, hitting the End of Days on both. Corbin grabbed the new “white fur” Legacy United States Championship. He looked at it and dropped it on Trick. Corbin left as Tessitore remarked at what a stunning development that was. [c]
(Corbridge’s Analysis: Well that really was a surprise. I’d heard the rumors of a Corbin return but assumed he was going to be “Giant-hausen”. My conspiracy hat wants me to believe that there hasn’t been a reveal of what’s under Danhausen’s cover yet because WWE changed their mind on who will be under it and decided to bring Corbin back this way instead.)
– Gunther walked to the ring to find out what Aldis decided about his adamance that he should get a WWE Championship match. He called out Aldis who came out right away. Aldis said he was going to give Gunther a match at Madison Square Garden at Saturday Night’s Main Event in a tag team match with he and Zayn against Punk and Rhodes. Gunther was not happy about that and said it didn’t fix Aldis’s mistake. Aldis said his only mistake was bringing Gunther to Smackdown. Aldis said that the Summerslam main event would remain Punk versus Rhodes. Gunther attacked Aldis, leveling him with a clothesline. Gunther locked in the sleeper hold as officials stormed the ring to pry him off. Gunther broke free, gave Aldis a big boot, and locked in the sleeper again. Barrett yelled about Gunther’s total disregard for authority, while Tessitore said it was horrible watching Aldis grasp for breath. Gunther put Aldis in the sleeper four separate times. Barrett screamed for Gunther to release the hold.
Cody Rhodes ran (well… he actually took his sweet time to take off his jacket first) to help Aldis as the show went off the air.
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