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WWE SmackDown Results (7/18/25): Rhodes & Cena Street Fight Official For SummerSlam

John Cena needed a little assistance, but he ultimately put pen to paper on his WWE Championship Match against Cody Rhodes Friday night on SmackDown.
Rick Ucchino|
Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes | WWE.com

John Cena tried to back out of his WWE Championship Match against Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam, but the American Nightmare was not going to let that happen.

During their contract signing Friday Night on SmackDown, the Never Seen 17-Time World Champion claimed that he reluctantly needed to cancel his RSVP to the 'Biggest Party of the Summer' due to mental and physical exhaustion.

Cena claimed that his grueling film schedule simply would not allow him to compete and he could not in good faith sign the contract for SummerSlam. No worries there, because Cody Rhodes would end up signing the contract for him.

Furthermore, after putting him through a table, the American Nightmare would inform Cena that their match at SummerSlam would now be a Street Fight.

Two other championship matches were made official for SummerSlam, which gets underway two weeks from Saturday. Here's everything you may have missed from Friday's episode of SmackDown in San Antonio.

SmackDown Match & Segment Results:

SmackDown opened with a bit of controversy as Solo Sikoa and his MFT's were involved in a hit and run car accident in the parking lot of the Frost Bank Center. Raw GM Adam Pearce was on scene as Nick Aldis chose a great week to take a vacation.

Cody Rhodes would pop in real quick to make sure that the contract for his WWE Championship Match at SummerSlam was finalized. Pearce assured him that everything was written up as The American Nightmare had requested.

Charlotte Flair found Alexa Bliss backstage and informed her ally of convenience that she cashed-in some of her clout as The Queen to secure them a WWE Women's Tag Team Title opportunity at SummerSlam.

Charlotte Flair defeated Raquel Rodriguez. The Queen would secure a singles victory over Big Mami Cool thanks to a little assist from her tag team partner. After Roxanne Perez tried to get involved in the match, Alexa Bliss took advantage of the distraction and hung Raquel neck first over the top rope. Charlotte would then leverage a roll up pin for the three count.

San Antonio Police are shown backstage talking with Adam Pearce. They identified Jacob Fatu as a person of interest in the hit and run against Solo Sikoa. The Samoan Werewolf reluctantly followed the officers for questioning.

WWE production ran a hype package for the WWE Women's Championship Match between Tiffany Stratton and Jade Cargill at SummerSlam.

Damian Priest vs. Carmelo Hayes ended in a no contest. This was a very strong match-up that had the San Antonio crowd chanting 'this is awesome', but as Priest went high to deliver a little Old School, Aleister Black would appear and yank him down across the top rope. He then knock Priest out with swift Black Mass. Hayes wanted no part of that smoke and left the ring.

The Wyatt Sicks delivered a rather ominous message to the rest of the Friday Night SmackDown Tag Team Division, promising to strip all of their competitors of their 'wicked desires' for gold and burn their vanity.

Jacob Fatu and Jimmy Uso orchestrated an ambush on Solo Sikoa and his MFT's after officers determined that the Samoan Werewolf was not the one responsible for the car accident earlier in the night. They would pick apart each MFT one at a time, giving the United States Champion a chance to escape with minimal damage done to himself. He would be forced to watch as Fatu beat JC Mateo and Tonga Loa with a steel chair.

Raw GM Adam Pearce would cut Solo off from the top of the ramp to make a little announcement about SummerSlam. Pearce said that since Solo wanted Jacob Fatu locked up so badly, then they will both be locked up inside of a Steel Cage in two weeks at SummerSlam. And the United States Championship will be on the line.

Solo Sikoa was then placed in handcuffs and arrested by San Antonio PD for allegedly trying to frame Jacob Fatu at the top of the show.

Stephanie Vaquer defeated Alba Fyre. The Dark Angel made short work of the former NXT UK Women's Champion. Vaquer picked up the win with the SVB. Piper Niven would attack after the match was over, but La Primera would send the Secret Hervice fleeing to the back.

Andrade & Rey Fenix defeated #DIY, Motor City Machine Guns and Fraxiom to earn a WWE Tag Team Championship Match against the Wyatt Sicks next Friday on SmackDown. Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano tried to steal this one with some help from Candice LeRae, but Ciampa took some friendly fire in the form of a Super Kick. Andrade then took out Johnny with a spinning back elbow and delivered The Message to Ciampa for the big victory.

Cody Rhodes attacked John Cena after he tried to back out of their match at SummerSlam. The American Nightmare would clock the WWE Champion with his own title belt and put him through a table. Rhodes would then put the pen in Cena's hand and help him sign the contract, making their match official for New Jersey. That match will also now be a Street Fight.

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Rick Ucchino
RICK UCCHINO

Rick Ucchino is the Assistant Editor & Content Coordinator for The Takedown on SI. He also works full-time for 700WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio as a local news and sports anchor, in addition to his time covering the Cincinnati Bengals for Sirius XM. Rick has been on the professional wrestling beat since 2019, having provided coverage for a number of outlets, including Fightful, SB Nation’s Cageside Seats and the Bleav Podcast Network. With an educational background in theater, creative writing and journalism, Rick focuses primarily on the storytelling aspect of pro wrestling, but he’s no stranger to the squared circle himself. He had the privilege of training with former WWE & WCW cruiserweight Jimmy Wang Yang for nearly two years and retired early due to back issues with a perfect 1-0 record in singles competition. Rick is a married father of two incredibly adorable children, who are budding pro wrestling fans themselves. Much to the chagrin of their mother. You can reach Rick at rwucchino@gmail.com

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