WWE Smackdown recap & reactions (July 10, 2026): Das Chaos

Reinstated Smackdown GM Nick Aldis kicked off tonight’s Smackdown by introducing new Undisputed WWE Champion and new member of the Smackdown roster, CM Punk. Either Punk or someone writing his promos has been reading reports from the wrestling dirtsheets (several of which have been aggregated right here on Cageside) and decided to incorporate the rumors into the story, or several of those reports were, in fact, true. Namely:

After that last one, Punk was interrupted by somebody whom he noticeably and purposely didn’t name: Cody Rhodes. The former WWE Champion seemed no worse for wear after the attack from Gunther on Monday. Being omitted from Punk’s list was apparently the American Nightmare’s cue to come out to the ring, and just a minute or two after exchanging pleasantries and giving everyone a brief history lesson, a Punk/Rhodes WWE Title match for Summerslam was made official by GM Aldis.

Later in the night, while Aldis was on the phone with the Last Real Good Guy, Sami Zayn, who was not in the building and taking a mental health break, Gunther stormed in and let the GM know that he should be the one getting a WWE Title match. With palpable tension in the room after their post-Night of Champions dustup, Der Ring General gave Aldis an ultimatum to fix the situation by the end of the night.

Then, in the main event segment, Gunther called Aldis down to the ring, asking for answers. Aldis started by telling Gunther that he would give him exactly what he wanted. If he wants to face Cody Rhodes and CM Punk, he can do that in the world’s most famous arena! So next Saturday night, Cody Rhodes and CM Punk will….. TEAM UP?!?….. to face Gunther and a man who he knows wants a piece of Cody and Punk too, Sami Zayn! That clearly was not what Gunther wanted to hear.

After confirming that the WWE Title match between Rhodes and Punk is still on for Summerslam, Gunther brutally attacked Aldis. A bevy of referees and officials was no match for the big Austrian, who locked the Smackdown GM into multiple sleeper holds. Not sure if this happened for everybody, but the feed cut out right as Cody Rhodes was running down to make the save. Luckily, WWE posted the off-air footage on X:

Reaction: Getting the formality of making Punk/Rhodes official for Summerslam out of the way first thing, but then teasing Gunther’s potential involvement throughout the night was a good touch. I feel like this all but confirms that Gunther will be facing Nick Aldis in Minneapolis, and how tonight’s show ended adds some intrigue to that for me. WWE also added a big tag team match for Saturday Night’s Main Event next weekend to a card that desperately needed it. With Cody and Punk seemingly set in stone now, and Gunther and Aldis seeming more and more like a lock, the only other piece of the puzzle left is Sami Zayn. Reports of WWE brass not seeing him as a big money star likely have some truth to them, but even so, he’s gotta be involved at Summerslam in some way, right?…… RIGHT?!?

Bloodline Business Comes to Friday Nights

On Raw this week, Jimmy Uso and Jacob Fatu let everyone know they were headed to Smackdown to confront Solo Sikoa, after the youngest Uso brother staged multiple sneak attacks on Jimmy in recent weeks. The Bloodline headed down to the ring to run the play and handle OTC business, but were interrupted, not by Solo, but by Royce Keys. After Royce made the same comment that just about everyone does about Roman not showing up for work, Fatu stepped up to his longtime friend and begged him to keep Roman’s name out of his mouth. Out of respect for his friend, Royce’s stance softened a bit until Jimmy chimed in and reminded Keys that he’s not a part of the family. This triggered the big man, and Royce talked about how blood doesn’t make family. Loyalty does. He said Jacob has been his family for the last 14 years, and he’s not going to stand by and let him fall.

After one final warning from Jimmy, Royce crossed the imaginary line in the ring and basically challenged Big Jim to a match. Jimmy kept the bravado up when he thought that his cousin was going to fight with him, but Jacob walked out after telling Uso that there was no “we” here, leaving Jimmy to deal with Keys on his own.

In the ensuing match, Jimmy was able to fend off a bunch of offense from Royce, but while he found some breathing room outside of the ring and called for a timeout, Solo Sikoa emerged from behind him. Solo grabbed his brother and wound up for a Samoan Spike but Jacob’s music hit before he could strike. Fatu stormed to the ring and brawled with the man he used to proclaim his love for. While this was going on, Jimmy snuck back into the ring and lined up Keys, hitting a spear on Royce to pick up a win.

After the match, Jacob continued his attack on Solo, but Royce tried to talk some sense into him. It seemed like cooler heads would prevail for a second, until Jacob dropped Keys with a super kick and punctuated it with a running senton. Attention then turned back to Solo. Jimmy slid a chair into the ring, and Jacob wrapped it around Solo’s neck with Sikoa lying prone in the corner. Fatu wound up for a running hip attack, but stopped before impact and instead sent a clear message that Solo better bring his ass to Raw on Monday night.

Reaction: To me, Jacob Fatu continues to be one of the most interesting characters in WWE right now. I chuckled when he left Jimmy to fight Royce Keys on his own, and then popped when he superkicked Keys himself later. Through all of the Bloodline madness, Jacob has remained remarkably consistent in that he doesn’t answer to anybody but Roman Reigns. Keys had a chance to walk away and remove himself from Bloodline business, as Jacob asked him to, so when Royce got in the way of the play Fatu was trying to run, 14 years of friendship and brotherhood went out the window. Say what you will about the Bloodline (and we see the comment sections, so we know you will!), but if this all culminates in Jacob being elevated to the upper echelon, it is all worth it for me.

Finn Balor Visits the Winner’s Circle

For the first time since debuting in WWE over two years ago, Tama Tonga has broken free of the Bloodline/MFT vortex. He made that official, at least for now, by telling Solo Sikoa to his face two weeks ago after Solo cost Tama and Talla Tonga the WWE Tag Team Titles. With only his 7-foot brother by his side, Tama’s first order of business was to confront a man with whom he has a ton of history in Finn Balor. The Tongas brutally attacked Finn backstage last week, which set up the opening match on Smackdown tonight.

Balor once again proved that he can get an above-average match out of just about anybody, as he and Tama had a solid back-and-forth affair. Later in the match, with Finn firmly in control and Tama in the drop zone, Balor was heading up top for his finish when Talla stepped up on the apron and diverted Finn’s attention, allowing his brother to take control. The first-ever Universal Champion then weathered a flurry of offense from Tama, took out both Tongans with a dive to the outside, and picked up a victory with a Coup de Grace.

Reaction: The finish of this match lends itself to a follow-up of some sort, as Tama and Talla likely aren’t done with Finn. For his part, Balor got a pretty noticeable reaction from the live crowd when he prevailed with the win, and I’ve got my fingers crossed that this is just the first step in a sustained push for him. If he actually isn’t done with the Tongans and needs some backup, enlisting Shinsuke to help would make a ton of sense, and I, for one, am all for those two teaming up if it means we’re seeing them on our TVs consistently.

Jade & Charlotte Rivalry Heats Up

The rivalry between Jade Cargill and Charlotte Flair has been picking up steam in recent weeks after Charlotte got involved in Jade’s US Title match at Night of Champions. Upset over the Queen getting involved in her business, Jade decided to take her frustrations out on Flair’s Ally of Convenience, Alexa Bliss, on tonight’s show.

In the early stages of the match, Jade couldn’t help but focus on Charlotte Flair, who had accompanied Alexa to the ring. This allowed the scrappy Bliss to take control early on. With Jade back in control later, the supporting players began to get involved. B-Fab and Michin scrapped with Charlotte on the floor, and the distraction allowed Cargill to hit a pump kick and Jaded on Bliss to pick up the victory.

After the match, Jade and her baddies introduced a steel chair into the ring, and although Charlotte did her damnedest to save her partner, the numbers game was too much. With B-Fab and Michin holding Charlotte back and making her watch, Jade wrapped the chair around Alexa’s left arm, bent it backward in a way arms aren’t meant to bend, and then slammed it to the mat.

Reaction: Built on being two alpha females and continuously interfering in each other’s business, the Jade and Charlotte feud hasn’t really hit a second gear for me. Charlotte fighting for her injured friend could add a layer to this rivalry that has been sorely lacking up until now. I still wouldn’t say I’m overly excited about the inevitable Jade/Charlotte showdown, but I’m willing to let it play out and see where they take it from here. The star of this segment was really Alexa Bliss and her double-jointed elbow for selling that attack more than it probably deserved.

Baron Corbin Interrupts a Trick Melo Gang Clash

Former US Champion Carmelo Hayes has been looking to regain his title for quite a while now, but perhaps nothing has motivated him more than watching his former tag team partner from their time in NXT run around with the gold. Early in the night, Melo cut a promo saying that Trick is all about the catchphrases, but he can do them too. After reminding us that Melo don’t miss and that he is H1M, Hayes vowed that he would beat Trick tonight and eventually beat him for the United States Championship.

Later, before their scheduled non-title match, Trick Williams appeared to have misplaced his United States Championship and blamed Ricky Saints for stealing it, until Lil’ Yachty walked in and presented him with his own legacy title, decked out with white fur trim. Yikes.

Once the bell rang, Carmelo Hayes showed why he has become one of the best in-ring workers in the WWE. I find Trick to be a decent worker himself, but this was one of his better matches, and I think it’s because Melo just elevates whoever his dance partner happens to be. After hitting the First 48, Melo went up looking for a Nothing But Net when Baron Corbin emerged on the apron and grabbed his arm. After ripping Hayes down, the match was thrown out, and Corbin laid Melo out with one of my favorite moves in the business, the End of Days. He then hit one on Trick for good measure and dropped the furry U.S. Title belt onto Trick, who was staring up at the lights in the ring.

Reaction: Despite hearing for weeks that Baron Corbin was on his way back to WWE, I was not expecting to see him return in this capacity. The live crowd seemed stunned too, as evidenced by their “Holy $#!%” chants. With a Trick/Melo US Title match rumored for Summerslam, I’ll be curious to see how Baron factors into that, but for now, I think this was a pretty decent way for him to make his return. Corbin being revealed as Danhausen’s monster next Saturday could’ve been fun, but maybe WWE has a bigger surprise in store for that?

Quick Hits

Final Thoughts

I thought this was a pretty solid effort from the blue brand. Making the switch back to two hours was bound to require a bit of a transition, but I thought the show flowed pretty well tonight. The in-ring action wasn’t necessarily spectacular, but just about everything that happened tonight served a purpose and furthered the stories along. The big tag team match signed for Saturday Night’s Main Event at The Garden next weekend is intriguing, and the pieces are starting to fall into place for Summerslam in just 3 weeks.

Star of the Night: Jacob Fatu

Grade: B-

Match Results

Now it’s your turn, Cagesiders! What stood out to you most on tonight’s Smackdown? Excited to see Baron Corbin back in the fold? Will Sami Zayn be a part of Summerslam? Let us know in the comments below!