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WWE SmackDown Results (5/8/26): Twas the Night Before Backlash

What happened on the WWE SmackDown go-home episode for tomorrow's Backlash premium live event?
Matt Black|
Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes | WWE

Tonight's episode of WWE SmackDown took place at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida.

The show kicked off with Jacob Fatu coming to the ring to speak to the WWE Universe. Fatu declared that he's taking the World Heavyweight Championship from Roman Reigns at Backlash. The Usos interrupted Fatu's promo to try to make him understand what's going to happen to him if he loses tomorrow night.

Jacob Fatu responds by saying he's not losing and he can't lose tomorrow. Fatu reminds Jey he's never beaten Roman one-on-one and tells Jimmy his family will see him become the new World Heavyweight Champion tomorrow. Jacob ends the segment by telling The Usos that if they try to interfere in his match at Backlash, he's going to burn the entire family tree down.

Nick Aldis is backstage with Cathy Kelley to speak about Gunther. Aldis teased that Gunther is on the Raw roster "for now" before being interrupted by Ricky Saints and Matt Cardona, who will have a match against each other later in the show.

Elsewhere backstage, Royce Keys gives Jacob Fatu a pep talk before he leaves the building. Keys is confronted by Solo Sikoa, who tells Keys he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time last week. Sikoa reminds Keys there's still a spot for him in his family, but he needs an answer soon.

In the first match of the evening, Tiffany Stratton successfully defended her WWE Women's United States Championship against Kiana James. The finish of the match saw Stratton hit James with the Prettiest Moonsault Ever to score the pinfall victory.

Backstage, Sami Zayn expressed his frustration to Nick Aldis that they are holding a funeral for the Gingerbread Man mannequin. R-Truth came in and tried to console Zayn, which left him on the edge of snapping again, but he caught himself before he did.

Cathy Kelley is backstage with Rhea Ripley, Charlotte Flair, and Alexa Bliss. Ripley says Fatal Influence picked the wrong women to attack, and they will get their revenge tonight. Flair got snippy with Ripley's verbiage, and Bliss needs to step between them and settle things down.

Meanwhile, in the locker room, Damian Priest made it clear to R-Truth that he wanted him to stay in the back tonight during his match with Talla Tonga due to his being hurt, knowing that The MFTs would target him at ringside to get to him.

After a bit of back and forth, Truth agrees to stay in the locker room. Unfortunately for Priest, when Tama Tonga returned, and the numbers game was firmly against him, Truth came out to try to assist, which led to Talla Tonga hitting Damian Priest with a chokeslam for the pinfall victory. Following the match, the MFTs looked to attack the Champions, but Royce Keys made the save.

Backstage, Danhausen is sitting at a table with a signup sheet, looking for a tag team partner at Backlash. The Miz and Kit Wilson make fun of him because no one has signed up to team with him. Wilson tells Danhausen that the only person toxic enough to team with Danhausen is himself. This seemingly gives Danhausen an idea, and he runs off.

Backstage, Paul Heyman and Nick Aldis discussed a new contract to bring Gunther to the blue brand. Gunther enters and is about to sign the contract, but Cody Rhodes' music hits as he's going to the ring. Gunther is angry that Rhodes is taking up his time and hands the contract back, storming off. Heyman told Aldis he would handle it.

Meanwhile in the ring, Rhodes said he believes Gunther attacking him next week was a way of him saying he's next in line and asks Gunther to come to the ring. Paul Heyman interrupted, revealing that getting this title match for Gunther is the favor he owed him from WrestleMania. Heyman announced the title match will take place later this month at Clash in Italy.

Gunther comes through the crowd and tries to attack Rhodes from behind, but fails. Rhodes tells Gunther he doesn't sweat him because of who he's retired, reminding him that he's not hard to find, but hard to beat.

The MFTs argued backstage about Royce Keys. Tama Tonga wants to take him out, while Solo Sikoa wants to bring him into the family. Tama said he'll take care of Keys later tonight. Back in the ring, Ricky Saints picked up his first victory on the main roster with a win over Matt Cardona.

Backstage, Sami Zayn speaks with Johnny Gargano, who kind of reacts for a moment when he is asked if Johnny Wrestling is still in there before planking out again. Zayn then spoke with Rey Fenix, who tried to calm Zayn down and told him this wasn't the place. It appears Zayn will vent his frustrations in the ring.

In the hallway, Brie Bella and Paige are walking, and a ladder falls behind them. When they look, Danhausen runs in front of them and hides. That was pretty much it.

Brie Bella and Paige came to the ring to speak to the WWE Universe. They were interrupted by Fatal Influence. After a bit of back and forth, they are all interrupted by the Irresistible Forces, who take down the champs as Fatal Influence stood there and watched.

This led to the six-woman tag with Rhea Ripley, Charlotte Flair, and Alexa Bliss. The finish saw Jade Cargill return and attack Ripley, leading to Jayne hitting Bliss with the Rolling Encore to score the pinfall victory for her team.

After the match, Cargill, Michin, and B-Fab put a beatdown on Flair, Bliss, and Ripley. Backstage, The Usos speak with Royce Keys. Jey Uso warns Keys to stay in his lane, or he might catch the eye of the Tribal Chief.

Royce Keys' match was up next, which saw him pick up a victory over Tama Tonga with a spinebuster. Backstage, Danhausen tries to use a machine to clone himself so he can have a tag partner at Backlash tomorrow. Unfortunately for Danhausen, the machine breaks down.

Elsewhere backstage, Shinsuke Nakamura continued to give Tama Tonga grief for staying with the MFTs. Talla Tonga comes in and tells Nakamura to back off.

WWE SmackDown closed with Trick Williams hosting the Gingerbread Man mannequin's funeral. The less said about it the better. Sami Zayn finally interrupted and questioned if he's losing his mind. Zayn said time on this show used to mean something and now it's a joke.

Despite every word that Zayn said making complete sense, the crowd boos him. Zayn tells Trick he got in his head, but he played himself by making it personal, and he's going to embarrass him. Zayn attacks Williams, and the Gingerbread Man sits up in the coffin, revealing himself to be Lil Yachty, who attacks Zayn with the candy cane stick as the show goes off the air.

WWE SmackDown quick results:

  • Tiffany Stratton defeated Kiana James to retain the WWE Women's United States Championship
  • Talla Tonga defeated Damian Priest
  • Ricky Saints defeated Matt Cardona
  • Fatal Influence defeated Rhea Ripley, Charlotte Flair, and Alexa Bliss
  • Royce Keys defeated Tama Tonga
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Published
Matt Black
MATT BLACK

Matt Black got involved in the wrestling media industry over two decades ago, covering WWE video games released by Acclaim, THQ, and 2K. He has been covering professional wrestling for multiple digital outlets since 2019. He is the former Senior Editor of WrestleZone and has extensive knowledge of the entire wrestling industry. In his spare time, Matt enjoys cheering for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Los Angeles Lakers. He's also a diehard comic book movie fan and doesn't pick sides when it comes to the endless debates of Marvel versus DC.

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