WWE Friday Night SmackDown came from Barcelona, Spain today with a rare international broadcast schedule, airing live at 2 p.m. EST on Netflix outside of the United States before airing a few hours later in its usual 8 p.m. EST time slot on USA Network in the states. With WWE Clash In Italy set for this Sunday, this was the final blue brand stop before the historic PLE in Turin, and while fans in the U.S. still have to wait for the tape-delayed broadcast, the full spoilers from the international airing are already out, with Cageside Seats providing the full spoiler report as the show unfolded.
Here are the full spoilers
- Jade Cargill def. Alexa Bliss
- Axiom def. The Miz
- Tama Tonga & Talla Tonga def. WWE Tag Team Champion Damian Priest & Royce Keys
- Sami Zayn def. Matt Cardona
- Carmelo Hayes vs. Ricky Saints ended in a double countout
- Chelsea Green def. Nia Jax
Breakdowns & Reactions
SmackDown opened with Jade Cargill, Michin and B-Fab, and the Barcelona crowd immediately made it clear where they stood. Jade was booed hard, while Rhea Ripley came out to a monster reaction, giving the Women’s Championship program the energy it needed going into Clash In Italy. The issue is that WWE is still leaning heavily on numbers-game booking with Jade, Michin and B-Fab against Rhea, Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss. It works because Jade feels dangerous, but it also risks making the story feel more like faction chaos than a straight championship collision between two powerhouse stars.
The opening angle quickly turned into Jade Cargill vs. Alexa Bliss after Charlotte and Alexa got involved and Nick Aldis made the match official. Jade won after avoiding Twisted Bliss, hitting a pump kick and putting Alexa away with Jaded. Afterward, Jade laid Alexa out again on a chair, which was the right kind of final image for Jade before Sunday. Whether fans are fully buying Jade as the one to take the title from Rhea or not, WWE at least made sure she did not leave the go-home show looking like just another challenger.
Backstage, the Cody Rhodes and Sami Zayn tension continued, and this was one of the more interesting pieces of the show because it was not just about Cody vs. Gunther. Sami told Cody that he allowed Gunther to choke him out last week because Cody needed to learn a lesson. Cody’s response was simple: after he is finished with Gunther, he may have to teach Sami a lesson too. That keeps Cody focused on Sunday while quietly leaving a Cody/Sami issue sitting there after Clash In Italy. Sami’s current direction is becoming one of the stranger stories on SmackDown because WWE is clearly pushing him into a more resentful, bitter space, but they have not fully pulled the trigger on what he is supposed to be yet.
The Miz and Axiom story had the obvious hometown hook, and WWE made the right call by letting Axiom win in Spain. The Danhausen equipment/customs issue running through the show gave the match a little extra weirdness, especially with the lights going out during the bout, but the finish was all about Axiom getting his moment. He hit the Spanish Fly and the Golden Ratio to beat Miz, which gave the Barcelona crowd something clean and satisfying. Miz trying to walk out and Nathan Frazer stopping him also helped make the win feel earned instead of thrown together.
The tag match with Tama Tonga and Talla Tonga beating Damian Priest and Royce Keys was more about moving pieces than delivering a clean tag-team showcase. R-Truth was not cleared, so Royce had to team with Priest, which automatically put tension into the match before the bell even rang. Solo Sikoa interfering with the Samoan Spike behind the referee’s back kept the MFTs protected and gave Talla the opening to hit Priest with the T-Bomb Chokeslam for the win. The finish makes sense if WWE wants the MFTs looking strong, but Priest taking the loss right before Clash weekend does not exactly scream momentum unless the point is to keep him trapped in chaos with Truth, Royce and the Bloodline orbit.
Sami Zayn later found himself talking to Candice LeRae and a mostly unresponsive Johnny Gargano, which continued the ongoing Gargano depression storyline. The story is still odd, but the purpose is becoming clearer: Gargano is being used as a visual reminder of what happens when someone loses direction, while Sami is becoming a man who still has direction but is starting to lose himself. Matt Cardona stepping in and calling Sami pathetic led to their match, where Sami defeated Cardona after surviving the Ruff Ryder, sending him off the top rope and finishing him with an Exploder Suplex and Helluva Kick. It was a solid result for Sami, but the more important part is that WWE is clearly making him more defensive, more angry and more unstable by the week.
The Trick Williams, Carmelo Hayes and Ricky Saints segment was another one of those moments where WWE looked like it was setting up the next wave instead of only focusing on Sunday. Trick came out with Lil Yachty, Carmelo interrupted, and Ricky Saints made it clear he had his eyes on the United States Championship once he was done with Melo. Trick slapping Ricky before leaving Melo and Saints to fight was a strong little character beat. The match itself ending in a double countout protects both guys, but it also feels like WWE kicked the can down the road. Hayes and Saints brawling over the barricade and Melo laying him out afterward with The First 48 made it clear this is not finished.
Chelsea Green beating Nia Jax was pure opportunist booking, with Tiffany Stratton coming through the crowd and hitting Nia with the Women’s United States Championship to help Chelsea steal the pin. That finish keeps Chelsea’s act alive, protects Nia from taking a clean loss, and keeps Tiffany in the middle of the women’s midcard title picture. The problem is that WWE is stacking so many women’s stories at once that some of them are starting to feel like traffic instead of direction. Jade/Rhea has the strongest focus. Everything else needs sharper lanes after Clash In Italy.
Fatal Influence confronting Paige and Brie Bella was another clear post-Clash seed. Jacy Jayne declared she is entering Queen of the Ring, while Fallon Henley and Lainey Reid made it clear they are coming for the Women’s Tag Team Championships. That is exactly the kind of segment that does not need to be overcomplicated. It told fans who wants what, where they are going next, and why it matters.
The Blake Monroe vignette was short but important, with Monroe writing about Rhea Ripley in her diary. That is a strong hint that WWE already sees Monroe tied to the upper end of the women’s division. It also makes Sunday’s Rhea vs. Jade match feel bigger because whoever walks out champion may already have another problem waiting.
The main event segment was Cody Rhodes and Gunther face-to-face, and this was the piece that had to land. Gunther framed Cody as the symbol of a crumbling American dream, called him entitled and said he was protecting wrestling from people like him. Cody fired back by attacking Gunther’s identity as a pure wrestler, saying the title is addictive and telling him the worst thing someone like Gunther can learn is that he is just not that good. That was the right final note. No unnecessary pull-apart. No forced brawl. Just two top guys talking like the championship actually means something.
Overall, this was a functional go-home SmackDown. It was not some all-time final sell for Clash In Italy, but it did what it needed to do. Cody and Gunther closed strong. Jade looked dangerous. Axiom got his hometown win. Sami’s story became more layered. Hayes and Saints kept their issue alive. The weak spot is that some of the midcard and women’s division stories still feel like WWE is throwing a lot of names at the screen and hoping the momentum carries it. The good news is Sunday now has enough heat where it matters most.
Current WWE Clash In Italy Match Card
- Roman Reigns (c) vs. Jacob Fatu (Tribal Combat Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship)
- Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Gunther (Undisputed WWE Championship)
- Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Jade Cargill (WWE Women’s Championship)
- Becky Lynch (c) vs. Sol Ruca (WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship)
- Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi
Final Thoughts
WWE used today’s international SmackDown to close the road to Clash In Italy with a show that was more about final positioning than major surprises. The Barcelona crowd gave the episode real energy, especially for Axiom and Rhea Ripley, while Cody Rhodes and Gunther carried the final stretch with the kind of heavyweight promo exchange a world title match needs.
The show was not perfect. Some stories still feel crowded, and WWE needs to be careful that Jade Cargill’s title chase does not become more about outside interference than the actual battle with Rhea. But as a go-home episode, this did enough. It gave Cody and Gunther the final word, made Jade look like a serious threat, gave Axiom his moment in Spain and kept several post-Clash stories moving.
Now everything turns to Sunday in Turin.
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I’m the quiet one until the bell rings then I’ve got takes. I live for WWE NXT and TNA, I want every promotion to succeed, and I will absolutely roast the bad decisions on sight (because someone has to). Anime taught me to respect long-term storytelling; wrestling taught me that sometimes the plan is “we panicked” and called it “unpredictable.” The Miz got me into all of this, so yeah I appreciate confidence, commitment, and the art of talking like you’re already the main event. Now I bring that same energy to the page as the main writer for Late Night Crew Wrestling because if you’re not here to be must-see and tell the truth, why are you here?!