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WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT
NOVEMBER 13, 2026
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA AT AMERANT BANK ARENA
AIRED ON USA NETWORK
REPORT BY ERIC CORBRIDGE, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves
Ring Announcer: Mark Nash
Attendance: WrestleTix reported as of this morning that 7,383 tickets were distributed so far. The arena has a capacity of 23,000 spectators when configured for concerts.
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[HOUR ONE]
– On the heels of Crown Jewel and with Survivor Series merely three weeks away, Smackdown emanated from Fort Lauderdale this week. Superstar arrivals were shown including Cody Rhodes, Sami Zayn, and Tiffany Stratton
– John Cena came out to a massive ovation. He was wearing Miami Hurricanes inspired green and orange gear and was still introduced by Mark Nash as being the “Greatest of All Time.” The gaudy John Cena Classic spinner belt was sitting on a table in the ring. Cena, in his usual energetic and exaggerated hype man style, he talked about the John Cena Classic that will take place on December 14. Cena said that night on Raw there will be the most NXT debuts ever. And the biggest “opportunity” would be for the fans to have their voices heard. He shifted gears to tonight and called out the next invitee to the John Cena Classic, which was Charlotte Flair.
Flair and Cena hugged. Flair soaked in the “Woo’s” from the fans and told Cena that she tends to get emotional just like her father. She told Cena that for ten years she had tried to get into a “storyline” with Cena. Yes, she said the word storyline. She said that Ric was at a bar with a bunch of tv’s on, and probably bawling his eyes out. Flair said she was trying hard not to cry because her makeup was fabulous right now, but it meant a lot to her to be part of Cena’s legacy. She said told a story that two years ago, after Wrestlemania 41, she saw Cena after his match. She was lost and sad because she’d been hurt and didn’t know if she even wanted to be in WWE anymore. She said that Cena asked her that night what had happened in Chicago. The fans tried to start a chant but Flair told them to wait because she was saying something important. She said that she basically had a bad night that night in Chicago. Cena told her to stop trying to be perfect and own who she is. She said that ever since that night she was able to put on her big girl pants, reinvent herself, and actually gets cheered now, though she acknowledged that she doesn’t even consider herself a fan favorite. Flair thanked Cena for believing in her, when she didn’t even believe in herself. She had to compose herself because she was tearing up. The fans chanted “you deserve it” for her. Flair interrupted, telling the fans that “you guys I need to hit my punchline for John.”
Flair said she was going to be excellent in the John Cena Classic and win it because she was the greatest champion of all time. She Woo’d and the fans cheered.
Cena said he was going to go over his time but he didn’t care. He ran down Flair’s history, saying that a lot of people thought she had it easy. He mentioned how Flair had to bear the weight of her dad’s legacy, her brother’s death, and still try to rebuild the women’s division and give opportunities to the Superstars of today so they could have classic after classic after classic. Cena said Flair made it look easy. He reminded of the times he’d said he needed to win his 17thworld championship because one day he’d be shaking the hand of the person who won their 18th and said he was always talking about Flair. He hugged her and said he’d see her at the Classic.
(Corbridge’s Analysis: I don’t want to be too hard on Flair here, because on one hand she gave a very compelling, and seemingly real heartfelt promo. It was very sympathetic and it was clear she was trying to speak from her heart. However, there were far too many “this is real people talking and not your phony wrestling” comments for my liking. I cannot accept someone referring to a “storyline” in canon on a wrestling show. In her defense, Flair did seem to realize it and try to correct her phrasing, but it was too late.
And my biggest fear, is that this was just a hint of things to come for the John Cena Classic, since “winning over the fans” is what will matter. I watched this type of experiment happen on Big Brother U.S. Season 1, waaaaay back in 2000. Look it up kids. It was a miserable failure because the outcome of that social experiment was determined by a fan vote. That led to the contestants being on their best behavior so the fans didn’t want them to be eliminated. It also led to a very boring television show. Let’s hope the Cena Classic is better than that.)
– Smackdown General Manager Nick Aldis talked to Rey Mysterio and Cody Rhodes in his office. Rey said he had his eyes on someone tonight to be on his Team Mexico at Survivor Series. Rey left. Aldis asked Cody if he was okay after punting Randy Orton in the head at Crown Jewel. Cody said he was shifting his attention to being the captain of Team U.S.A. at Survivor Series. Aldis asked how that was going and said that they were all counting on him. Cody said he had some ideas and that C.M. Punk also had a list of possible teammate. Cody said that after it was over that he wanted to talk to Aldis about who should be number one contender again. They shook hands and Cody left.
– Tama and Talla Tonga, the MFT, entered for their title defense. They were accompanied by Haku as always. [c]
(1) TAMA TONGA & TALLA TONGA (c) (w/Haku) vs. BAKUSAI (Shinsuke Nakamura & Kyoki) – WWE Tag Team Championship
Kyoki used his speed to gain an initial advantage against Tama, but Tama soon cut him off with a nice dropkick and tagged in Talla. Talla chopped Kyoki hard to the mat multiple times and tagged back out. Tama also gave multiple chops but Kyoki begged for more, with Michael Cole speculating that Kyoki was enjoying it. Kyoki escaped a powerbomb attempt with a hurricanrana and then gave Talla a sidekick when the latter tried to interfere on the apron. Haku took Kyoki’s legs out with his magical walking stick. [c]
Kyoki escaped Tama’s clutches with a dragon screw and made the hot tag to Nakamura. Nakamura hit several kicks and stomps (sort of) in the corner, followed by a running knee. Nakamura knocked Talla off the apron and lined up for the Kinshasha. Tama avoided it and hit the Cutthroat running elbow. Both grapplers were down on the mat. Nakamura backdropped him. All four men ended up in the ring. Bakusai clotheslined Talla over the top rope to the floor. Kyoki gave Haku a baseball slide through he apron that knocked him into Talla. Back in the ring, Nakamura hit the Kinshasha and covered (the first cover of the match), but then The War Raiders ran in and broke it up, leading to an immediate disqualification.
WINNER: Bakusai via disqualification in 8:00. Tama Tonga and Talla Tonga retained the Tag Team Championship.
After the match, the War Raiders beat up both team, culminating in a Ragnarok on Nakamura in the middle of the ring. There were massive boos.
(Corbridge’s Analysis: It was an okay match that seemed to just be a showcase for Kyoki’s unhinged frenzied character. My hunch is that this will lead to either a 3-way title match at Survivor Series or possibly a traditional elimination style match if they add another team to it. Possibly Fraxiom?)
– Cathy Kelley talked to former real-life boyfriend Finn Balor some backstage hallway, who was finally facing Gunther tonight. Balor called Gunther a whiny bully who cowers away when someone stands up to him. He said that tonight Gunther would be getting the real Finn Balor. Redmond wished him luck. [c]
(2) DAMIAN PRIEST vs. AXIOM
Priest immediately dropped Axiom with a big boot. Nathan Frazer was not with Axiom. Priest splashed him in the corner and called for the chokeslam. Axiom tried to rally with a couple dropkicks to the knees. Priest shut it down but missed another corner splash. Axiom kicked Priest to the floor and hit a moonsault off the top rope to the floor. It looked like Axiom hit his arm on the announce table, which Coery Graves noted. Priest clapped Axiom’s head, which apparently rang Axiom’s bell. From the apron, Axiom gave Priest a leg whip and followed up with a missile dropkick. He went for his finish but Priest stopped him and dropped him with a straight right hand that Cole sold hard. Axiom escaped the Razor’s Edge with a hurricanrana but Priest quickly leveled him. He went for it a second time and hit it. He covered for the easy win.
WINNER: Damian Priest via pinfall in 3:00.
– After the match, Nathan Frazer ran out to come to his partner’s aid. Priest didn’t like that and gave him the South of Heaven chokeslam.
(Corbridge’s Analysis: Priest is mean to smaller people. He’s like big Cass with a personality.)
– Jacy Jayne clapped as she and Fatal Influence approached John Cena in the back. Jayne told Cena he wasted a spot in his Classic on Charlotte Flair. Lainey Reid and Fallon Henley got a few lame digs in. Jayne criticized Cena for not noticing them and only showing up whenever he felt like it. Cena said they were right and that the Classic needed their type of Ruthless Aggression. He invited them all to the Classic and shook their hands. They were happy.
(Corbridge’s Analysis – They are trying to get across that to Cena heels and babyfaces don’t matter. No one is excluded from his Classic. Somehow that all just makes perfect sense for Cena.)
– The Undisputed WWE Champion Sami Zayn went to the ring. His buddies Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae were with him. The crowd booed, but Zayn begged for more. He told Gargano that there were some “bitch-ass haters” in there tonight. They chanted “you suck.” Zayn asked how many of them were there to ride with the last real good guy. There was a mixed reaction to that. He talked about how Roman Reigns gave him the respect he deserved, demanded, and commanded at Crown Jewel. He said he got Reigns to acknowledge him, and if Reigns was willing to respect him then it was the bare minimum that he expected from the fans moving forward. Cue Kevin Owens to a huge pop.
Owens told Zayn he was glad that Zayn had been able to right some wrongs over the last few months. Owens said he was able to do that too by beating C.M. Punk last week. He told the crowd that if they knew Punk, then they would want to punch him in the face with a chain too. He told Zayn that he was one of the best to ever do it and that he deserves his championship and respect. He told Zayn that he was proud of him. Zayn was choked up and started to respond but Owens told him he wasn’t done. Owens said that while he sat home for 17 months wondering if he’d ever wrestle again, he didn’t know what to think. And then when he was able to finally come back on Aug 21 he wasn’t able to get the job done because of Zayn. He pie-faced Zayn and told him that he needed to take the title from him.
[HOUR TWO]
Gargano got in the face of Owens and told him that it was the worst year of his life. He said that the only person that showed him the respect he deserved was Zayn. He also said that Zayn was working to get him a title match. Owens told Gargano that he respected him and LeRae but added that Gargano laid on a crate for six months and literally got a title match as soon as he stood up. Owens said this had nothing to do with Gargano. He stepped past him and got into Zayn’s face. Gargano attacked Owens from behind and stomped on him while Zayn watched. LeRae smacked Owens in the face hard. Zayn patted Gargano on the back as if to say, “I approve and you know what you have to do”, then left. Gargano beat down Owens a big more until Owens hit him with a Stunner. Owens yelled at Zayn on the ramp and said that Zayn’s title reign was on borrowed time. He launched Gargano over the tope rope to his wife below on the floor.
(Corbridge’s Analysis – That was great. Owens was passionate and obviously he and Zayn’s long history always adds a personal flare to every encounter. The added wrinkle of Zayn’s new selfish, delusional, overconfident character takes things to a new level .)
– C.M. Punk and Cody Rhodes were shown watching what just happened from a monitor. Punk said he still hasn’t received his rematch. Rey Mysterio walked up and introduced the newest member of Team Mexico – Rey Fenix. Fenix walked into frame and said he was honored to be in the match and would be doing it for his country, family, and the love of lucha libre. Punk asked how to say “good luck” in Spanish. They wish each other luck. Cody said he had a plan for recruiting new members to Team U.S.A. But Punk handed him a list of names, just in case.
(Corbridge’s Analysis – Who edits these shows? This segment was clearly supposed to go before the earlier one with Cody and Nick Aldis, where Cody literally said Punk had a list of people they could recruit! Le sigh.)
– Jacy Jayne entered for the next match. [c]
(3) JACY JAYNE vs. CHARLOTTE FLAIR
Jayne mocked Flair’s strut and went for a corner splash, but Flair caught and dropped her. Flair hit her relatively new move where she has her legs wrapped around her opponent’s head (ala the Devil’s Kiss) and flips them over multiple times. It doesn’t look like it hurts at all, but I digress. Jayne whipped Flair into the corner, but Flair flipped over it and hit a cross-body off the tope rope. Jayne kicked out of the cover at one. Flair gave Jayne a big boot over the tope rope, knocking Jayne to the floor. Flair hit her cannonball off the apron, prompting Reid and Henley going to ringside. Flair got distracted, which allowed Jayne to kick her in the face from the apron. That led to Alexa Bliss and Tatum Paxley coming out to even the odds. [c]
Flair leveled Jayne with a big boot and covered for a nearfall. She went for a back suplex but Jayne escaped and hit a neckbreaker. Jayne hooked the leg but Flair kicked out at two. Flair caught a charging Jayne and sent her face first into the corner buckle. She stepped over Jayne and went up top for a moonsault. She hit it well and hooked the leg for the one…two…Jayne kicked out again. While Flair sat with a smile on her face for some reason, Jayne almost caught her with a couple quick pin attempts because apparently Flair’s moonsaults don’t hurt. Flair bridged out of the second attempt and tried to lock in the Figure Four, but Jayne caught her in a small package for a one…two…Flair kicked out. Flair went for a backslide but Jayne rolled through and hit a knee to the face for yet another two-count. Henley and Reid tried to encourage Jayne who went for a spinning forearm but ate a spear for her troubles.
Henley and Reid tried to stop Flair from leaping off the top rope, so Bliss and Paxley went over to cut them off. The four women brawled on the floor. Michin and B-Fab ran in from the stands and attacked too. Jayne hit a superplex in the ring. Bayley ran down with a kendo stick and took out all the heels until Jade Cargill showed up and took out Bayley. There was a pyro blast and Stepanie Vaquer walked out. Michin ran out to meet her but Stepanie stole her pet kendo stick and committed violence against its owner. Back in the ring, Flair hit the Natural Selection and hurriedly covered Jayne for the one…two…three. Flair pointed out at Vaquer to thank her for the assist.
The announcers mentioned that no one expected Vaquer to show up. In the ring, the babyfaces said, “on three…1, 2, 3, WAR GAMES!”.
WINNER: Charlotte Flair via pinfall in 12:00.
(Corbridge’s Analysis – It makes sense to add Vaquer to the War Games match since they needed a fifth babyface. That’s really the only reason.)
– The five babyface women talked to Cathy Kelley in the back. Vaquer said she joined them because Flair had called her.
(Corbridge’s Analysis – Hey! I was wrong. They gave a real reason. Works for me! And now you know that I don’t edit my analysis because I would have erased that to make myself seem smarter.)
– New WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton came out to brag about her Money in the Bank cash-in against former friend Chelsea Green at Crown Jewel last Saturday. There was a graphic showing that she was the first woman to successfully cash in twice. Stratton said that everything looked better on her as she held up her title. She dedicated this title reign to her ex-BFF Chelsea Green. Cue Green.
Green walked to the ring with a smile on her face and slapping hands with the fans. Green noted that she was “ex-BFF”. Green wanted to confirm that they were never really friends, even when Green told Stratton that Crown Jewel was going to mean so much to her. She said that Stratton wanted to steal her moment and congratulated her for doing it. Green said when she goes to sleep at night she will sleep soundly knowing that she will go down in the history books as the Crown Jewel champion, while Stratton would be a thief. Green demanded the ring back since it belonged to her.
Stratton was angry and said that Green stole HER moment at Summerslam when she was supposed to win the championship. She said that Green has gotten too comfortable thinking she was in the same league as her. Stratton said she only corrected a mistake at Crown Jewel. She told Green to take her ring, then dropped it on the mat. Stratton said, “enjoy the rest of your career in catering, bitch.” Green attacked but Stratton got the best of her. She put the ring on and punched Green with it. Stratton held the title over Green’s head. The ring was lying next to the dazed Green.
(Corbridge’s Analysis – That was very effective in giving Stratton’s views on why she turned on Green, while making it personal to escalate the feud. I was happy to see Green mention that the Crown Jewel ring and “championship” still belong to her, since Stratton couldn’t cash-in to win ALL of them. Stratton, a notably horrible actress, was very effective in being a jerk.)
– Paige tried to console Chelsea Green in the back. Blake Monroe walked up to rub it in her face that she lost the title. Paige asked Monroe how many title she’d won in WWE. Monroe said all her were ahead of her, but asked Paige if she could say the same?
(4) GUNTHER vs. FINN BALOR
Cole mentioned that Balor was at a crossroads in his career. As soon as the bell rang, Gunther charged at Balor with a boot to the gut. Gunther pummeled Balor right out of the gate. He dropped Balor with a huge chop. Graves ran down the list of the men that Gunther has retired. Balor hit the basement dropkick, then knocked Balor to the floor with a forearm. Balor catapulted over the top rope onto his prone opponent on the floor. [c]
Balor blocked a superplex attempt with body shots. Gunther headbutted him. Balor kicked him in the face to knock him to the mat. But Gunther recovered and chopped Balor off the top rope, then bullied him in the corner. Balor tried to attack Gunther’s legs but, Gunther slammed him to the mat. Balor countered into a side Russian leg sweep and both men were down. Balor valiantly hit a big forearm and a huge chop of his own. Gunther tried to mount a comeback but Balor stayed on the offense with kicks to the chest. Gunther snatched him into a powerbomb position but Balor turned it into a hurricanrana to the floor. Balor went for a kick to the face but Gunther swept his legs out on the apron. Gunther gave Balor a back suplex on the barricade as they went to a split screen. [c]
Gunther repeatedly chopped the soul out of Balor. I think I actually felt one too. Gunther even asked the official to ask Balor if he quits. Gunther went for the sleeper but Balor reverse into a pinning combination for a two count. Balor hit the Slingblade and the crowd erupted. Balor escaped another sleeper attempt but Gunther hit a dropkick and went for a powerbomb again. Balor countered again with a cradle for a one…two…Gunther kicked out. Gunther destroyed Balor with a clothesline and stacked him up for the one…two…Balor stayed alive! Graves said that must have been an instinctual kickout. The crowd was whipped into a frenzy at the physical match.
Gunther talked to Balor while he lay prone on the mat. He pleaded for Balor to move on and not embarrass himself any further. He turned Balor onto his back and indicated that he was going to the top rope. Gunther went for a splash but had to roll through because Balor moved. Balor hit the basement dropkick. Balor urgently went up top and went for the Coup de Grace but Gunther moved, so Balor had to roll through. Gunther shoved Balor into referee Charles Robinson and then chopped Balor in the back. Gunther kicked Balor below the belt while the referee was dazed, then hit the powerbomb. He stacked up Balor as the referee counted to three.
WINNER: Gunther via pinfall in 18:00.
(Corbridge’s Analysis – That was a phenomenal, hard-hitting match. I was admittedly surprised at the outcome since the scuttlebutt lately was that Gunther was in the WWE doghouse. But it was a pleasant surprise. I look forward the rematch too because Balor and Gunther have great chemistry.)
Like wrestling, the best stories are built around memorable characters. BadWill is my workplace-comedy comic about the employees and customers of a thrift store in Maryland that only accepts donations from past relationships. I hope you’ll check it out, cuz I’m very proud of it. Episodes 1 and 2 are available now at BadWillComic.com.
