WWE Friday Night Smackdown Live Coverage - June 12th, 2026
What stipulation will Gunther choose for his title rematch against Cody Rhodes?
Gunther is once again coming for Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. What stipulation will The Ring General choose for his title showdown against The American Nightmare? How will Rhodes respond?
:smackdown:
— The show kicks off with a video recapping what went down between GUNTHER, Cody Rhodes, and Sami Zayn during last Friday's show.
— Wade Barrett and Joe Tessitore then greet audiences at home as we see Cody Rhodes encounter Nick Aldis and The Usos as he arrives at the Amica Mutual Pavillion. Jey promises that he's going to win his First Round Fatal Four-Way Match King of the Ring Tournament and challenge Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship when he wins the whole thing, but Rhodes tells Jey to make sure it's his choice to challenge him rather than Roman Reigns' choice.
— Cathy Kelley catches up with Jade Cargill, B-Fab, and Michin backstage and Cargill puts Rhea Ripley on notice by telling her that she'll see her at WWE SummerSlam for her Women's Championship. She gets cut off by Charlotte Flair's music as Flair makes her way to the ring. Sol Ruca, Lyra Valkyria, Cargill, Michin, and B-Fab all follow.
Queen of the Ring Fatal 4-Way Qualifying Match: Charlotte Flair vs. Lyra Valkyria vs. Sol Ruca vs. Jade Cargill (w/Michin & B-Fab)
The bell rings and Cargill rocks Flair with a right hand. Valkyria cinches in a sleeper on Cargill, but Cargill delivers a double suplex to Ruca and Flair. Valkyria and Ruca are sent crashing out of the ring, leaving Flair and Cargill alone in the ring.
Flair fires off chops on Cargill's chest, then lands a suplex on Cargill and kips up. B-Fab and Michin pull Flair out of the ring by her ankles and fire off right hands on her spine, but Alexa Bliss' music hits and she runs out to the ring. She fires off right hands on Michin, but B-Fab and Michin outnumber her. Tiffany Stratton's music hits and she runs out to the ring to provide some back-up to Bliss. Stratton, Bliss, B-Fab, and Michin then begin to brawl with one another through the crowd.
During the commercial break, Cargill whips Ruca into the ropes and levels her with a back elbow. Flair rolls up Cargill, but Cargill kicks out and levels Flair with a clothesline. She whips Ruca into the corner spine first and delivers a back elbow to her, then connects with a suplex and goes for a pin. Ruca kicks out.
Flair fires off chops on Cargill's chest, but Cargill levels Flair with a clothesline and pins Valkyria. Valkyria kicks out, but Ruca rolls up Cargill. Cargill kicks out, but Ruca fires off chops on Cargill's chest and looks to land a crossbody on her off the middle rope. Cargill rolls through, but Valkyria takes out the two women and dumps Ruca out of the ring. She levels Flair with a pair of clotheslines and rocks her with an enzuigiri, then lands a suplex on Ruca and counters into a DDT on Cargill when Cargill gets Valkyria up.
Flair lands a Natural Selection on Valkyria and pins her, but Ruca breaks the fall with a running senton. Valkyria sends Ruca crashing into Flair as Flair teeters on the ropes and joins Flair up there, but Cargill pulls both women off the ropes.
Flair levels Cargill with a chop, but Ruca catches Flair with a missile dropkick off the top rope and kips up. Valkyria rolls up Ruca, but Ruca kicks out and whips Valkyria into the corner.
Valkyria lands a dropkick on Cargill through the middle rope to take her out on the outside, but Ruca delivers a moonsault to both women and Flair off the top rope. She dumps Valkyria back inside the ring and delivers a Frog Splash to her off the top rope, then goes for a pin but Valkyria kicks out.
Flair whips Ruca around the ring using her legs during another commercial break, but Ruca rolls up Flair. Flair kicks out, but Ruca wrenches back on her using the ropes. Valkyria lands a shotgun dropkick on both women and wears down Ruca with a Pendulum Swing submission hold, but Cargill breaks the hold and fires off shoulders on Flair's midsection.
Cargill fires off stomps on Ruca in the corner and jams her boot into her, then lands a forearm on Valkyria and jams her boot into Valkyria's throat. She sends Valkyria crashing into the mat and delivers a kick on her spine, then fires off a forearm on Flair and fires off shoulders on her midsection. She delivers a back elbow to Flair in the corner, then lands an elbow on Valkyria in the adjacent corner.
Cargill connects with a spinebuster on Ruca back from the break and pins her, but Ruca kicks out and Cargill ascends to the top rope. Flair rocks Cargill with a right hand and delivers a double superplex to her with Ruca, but Valkyria takes advantage by pinning Ruca. Ruca kicks out, but Valkyria whips her into the corner spine first. Ruca then lands a boot on Flair and delivers a 450 Splash style double clothesline to both Flair and Valkyria.
Cargill lands a Jaded on Flair and pins her, but Valkyria breaks the fall and gets Cargill up on her shoulders. Ruca intercepts Cargill with a Sol Snatcher and goes for a pin, but Valkyria pulls Ruca out of the ring to break the fall. Valkyria catches Cargill with a leg drop and rolls up Flair, but Flair kicks out. Flair then cinches in a Figure Eight Leg Lock on Valkyria, and Valkyria taps out.
Winner: Charlotte Flair
— Tiffany Stratton walks backstage and Cathy Kelley asks her why she helped Flair. Michin and B-Fab approach Stratton and Chelsea Green pops in to defend Stratton with a Kendo Stick. B-Fab and Michin leave and Stratton is shocked and asks Green what she's doing.
— The Usos warm up backstage and Jacob Fatu walks in. Jimmy asks why Fatu is here and Fatu says he's here to speak to Solo Sikoa. Fatu asks why Jimmy is here and Jimmy says he's here to make sure no one gets involved in Jey's match.
— A vignette plays for Blake Monroe and she calls out Charlotte Flair.
— Nick Aldis talks to Gunther backstage and asks Gunther what his stipulation is for this match against Cody Rhodes. Gunther says he can't trust Aldis or the WWE so he gets to pick the referee for the match. Aldis asks who, and Gunther says he'll let Aldis know by the end of the ring.
— Finn Balor is interviewed by Cathy Kelley. Balor says he's excited to be on SmackDown and he has a lot of friends here and a lot of foes. R-Truth comes in and welcomes Balor to SmackDown and says they should bring back the Judgement Day to SmackDown. Damian Priest comes in - he and Balor stare each other down as Truth is elated. Balor leaves and Truth says they love Balor. Priest says he doesn't and all that matters is their tag titles and that he doesn't trust Balor.
— Back at ringside, Paige and Brie Bella make their way out. Fatal Influence follows.
Paige and Brie Bella vs. Fatal Influence (w/ Jacy Jayne)
Fallon Henley and Brie begin the action. The bell rings and Henley blindsides Brie as Lainey Reid distracts her from the ring apron. Reid whips Brie into the corner, but Brie levels Henley and sends her crashing into the top turnbuckle face first.
Brie catches Henley with a Russian Leg Sweep, but Paige tags in and double teams on Henley with Brie. Henley fights off Paige and tags out to Reid, but Paige trips up Reid and tags out to Brie. Brie fires off the Yes Kicks on Reid and levels an interfering Henley with a kick, and Paige fires off knees on Henley's chest as Henley is draped through the middle rope.
Henley and Brie tag back in, but Jayne trips Brie as she runs the ropes and Henley levels Brie with an elbow. Paige tags in, but the referee misses it and tells her to leave the ring. Reid tags in on her side, and Henley catches Brie with a flapjack. Reid follows it up with a blockbuster on Brie and pins her, but Brie kicks out.
Brie delivers a Sunset Flip to Reid during the commercial break and pins her, but Reid kicks out and tags out to Henley. Henley delivers a stomp to Brie. She fires off an elbow on Brie and tags out to Henley. Henley and Reid whip Brie into the mat, and Henley then wears down Brie with a submission hold.
Paige tags in back from the break and levels Reid with a boot, then goes for a pin but Reid kicks out. Paige then cinches in the PTO on Reid, but Henley breaks the hold and Paige dumps her out of the ring. She connects with a Ram-Paige on Reid and pins her, but Henley breaks the fall.
Paige rolls up Reid, but the referee has his back turned and begins the count late. Reid kicks out, but Henley tags back in and delivers a flapjack to Paige. Brie sends Reid crashing out of the ring through the middle rope, but Paige cinches in a submission on Henley. Jayne helps Henley crawl over to the bottom rope to break the hold, but the referee catches her and ejects her from ringside.
Henley rolls up Paige, but Brie slides into the ring to help Paige reverse the fall on Henley for the win.
Winners: Paige and Brie Bella
— Sami Zayn is backstage talking to Johnny Gargano who is laying on an equipment crate. Candice LeRae is on her phone and asks Gargano when he'll get off his ass and Zayn thanks Gargano for the advice and says he'll go talk to Nick Aldis.
— Danhausen talks to Angel and Berto backstage. They give him money to do a curse and leave. Matt Cardona comes in and asks Danhausen to curse someone and pawns off his watch and ring. Kit Wilson comes in with The Miz who is all spaced out. Wilson says Danhausen electrocuted The Miz and he went crazy and asks Danhausen to reverse the curse. Wilson gets pissed and starts trashing Danhausen's lab and gets electrocuted.
— Back at ringside, Sami Zayn comes out to the ring.
Zayn says it's a little bit of a strange reaction from the live crowd. He says he's not comparing the European crowd to the American crowd, but the ride or dies in Europe showed up in full force for him. He says the live crowd can look sour and boo him, then calls Cody Rhodes to the ring.
Rhodes' music hits and he makes his way out. He asks Providence what they want to talk about, but Zayn stops Rhodes and asks him to be his friend for one moment in order for them to have an honest conversation. He says there's been a series of misunderstandings, then says he's tried to help Rhodes on multiple occasions and says at a certain point, he's had to question if it's all been accidental.
Rhodes says this is the professional wrestling and says Zayn's new shirt calling him "the last real good guy" is something that he believes more than Zayn. He says they shouldn't be standing in the ring and recalls standing in the ring with Zayn at WWE WrestleMania 40, but Zayn recalls being the first person to join Rhodes in the ring and emphasizes that he's a good guy.
Rhodes says he wasn't able to be honest enough, but Zayn invites Rhodes to be honest with him. Rhodes says if he was being honest, he's taking fire from Zayn and says the fans are booing Zayn because he has sucked lately. He says Zayn has been crying and whining, but Zayn slaps Rhodes and immediately shows regret for doing so. He hugs Rhodes, but Rhodes slaps Zayn. Zayn grabs a chair from the ringside area, but decides to throw it onto the floor and retreats up the entrance ramp to the back.
— We then head over to the men's locker room, where Jacob Fatu comes face-to-face with Solo Sikoa. Fatu says it's time for Sikoa to come home per Roman Reigns wants, but Sikoa calls Reigns' home a dog house and asks Fatu what happened to him. He says Fatu used to be the "Samoan Werewolf", but now he's under Reigns' thumb and says Reigns has done nothing but embarrass him. Fatu tells Sikoa that if he won't join Reigns, then himself, The Usos, and Reigns will be coming for him. Sikoa responds by saying Reigns can come and get him if he wants.
— Rey Fenix then makes his way to the ring. Axiom and Nathan Frazer follow.
AAA Cruiserweight Championship Match: Rey Fenix (c) vs. Axiom
The bell rings and Fenix flies over the top rope to level Axiom on the outside of the ring. He dumps Axiom back in the ring and ascends to the top rope, but Axiom sees Fenix coming and the two men go back and forth with one another.
Axiom looks to land an enzuigiri on Fenix, but Fenix ducks out of the way and Axiom catches him with a suplex. He connects with a kick on his chest and pins him, but Fenix kicks out and delivers a chop to Axiom's chest. Axiom intercepts Fenix with a dropkick to send him crashing out of the ring and delivers a moonsault to him off the top rope to take him out on the outside.
During the commercial break, Axiom and Fenix fire off chops on each other's chests. He wears down Fenix with a submission hold, but Fenix ascends to the top rope back from the break. Axiom rocks him with an enzuigiri and joins him up there, but Fenix fights him off and looks to walk the ropes. Axiom sees him coming, but Fenix ascends to the top rope of the adjacent corner and delivers a Frog Splash to Axiom.
Axiom ascends to the top rope and delivers a missile dropkick to Fenix, then sets up for the Golden Ratio. Fenix sees Axiom coming and sends him crashing into the mat with an off the shoulder brainbuster before Fenix delivers a kick to Axiom's chest in the corner and sits him on the top rope.
Axiom connects with a Spanish Fly on Fenix off the top rope and pins him, but Fenix kicks out and lands a Fenix Driver on Axiom for the win.
Winner and STILL AAA Cruiserweight Champion: Rey Fenix
— We then head backstage to Nick Aldis' office, where GUNTHER informs Aldis that he's decided to select Sami Zayn as the special guest referee for his Undisputed WWE Championship match against Cody Rhodes next week.
— A car pulls up in the parking lot and Trick Williams comes out of the car with Little Yachty and we cut to a commercial break.
— Back from the break, Trick Williams and Lil Yachty make their way out.
Yachty looks to give a grand introduction to Williams, but Williams stops him and says he has something to get off his chest. Yachty becomes frustrated with Williams not wanting to party, but Williams says the truth of the matter is that he lost his First Round Fatal Four-Way Match for the 2026 King of the Ring Tournament to Dominik Mysterio last Friday. He says it woke up something in him and lit a fire in him that made him want to step his game up, then says people are asking who will be the man to carry "SmackDown".
Williams says he's the leader of the new school and says although he lost last Friday, he's still the United States Champion. Ricky Saints' music cuts him off and he makes his way out. Carmelo Hayes' music plays immediately after and he storms past Saints on the entrance ramp to make his way to the ring. Saints beats Hayes inside the ring, but Hayes says Saints needs to be cut out of the picture. He says he was handling business with Williams, but asks Williams why he's avoiding putting the United States Championship on the line against two guys who are working hard.
Saints and Hayes begin arguing with one another, but Williams cuts them off and tells Hayes and Saints to figure out who will challenge him for the United States Championship next.
Williams looks to leave with Yachty, but Saints sends Hayes crashing into Williams to knock Williams off the ring apron. Hayes delivers a Dirty Diana to Saints, but Williams sends Saints crashing into the ring post shoulder first and delivers a Book End to Saints.
— Cathy Kelley talks to Royce Keys backstage. Kelley asks Keys about his upcoming match. Solo Sikoa comes up to Keys and tells him The Bloodline is here and he knows the kind of play they'll run. Sikoa says they're here to help Jey Uso win and Jacob Fatu is on board. Sikoa tells Keys that he thinks Fatu is family but Fatu doesn't see him as family and Sikoa doesn't want Keys to be a casualty in Reigns' war.
— Chelsea Green and Tiffany Stratton make their way out. Michin and B-Fab follow.
Tiffany Stratton and Chelsea Green vs. Michin and B-Fab
Michin and Stratton begin the action. The bell rings and the two lock up. Green tags in, but Michin tags out to B-Fab and the pair double team on Green. B-Fab looks to cinch in a Full Nelson on Green, but Green escapes and B-Fab rocks her with a forearm. Michin and B-Fab send Green crashing into the mat face first, and Michin knocks Stratton off the ring apron.
B-Fab tags in and fires off stomps on Green in the corner during the commercial break. Michin tags back in and jams her boot into Green before B-Fab tags back in and jams her knee into the back of Green's neck. Michin lands a forearm on Green as the referee has his back turned, then tags in and whips Green into the corner.
Michin levels Green with a clothesline, then delivers a hurricanrana to her back from the break off the top rope. Green looks to tag out to Stratton, but Jade Cargill appears and pulls Stratton off the ring apron before she can do so. This opens the door for Michin to land a Styles Clash on Green for the win.
Winners: Michin and B-Fab
— After the match, Stratton gets in the ring and attacks Cargill. Michin and B-Fab attack Stratton. Cargill hits Jaded on Stratton. Cargill then gets the United States Champion and looks at it and then lays it on Stratton. B-Fab, Michin and Cargill leave the ring with Stratton laid out and Green laid out outside the ring.
— Kiana James is backstage with Cathy Kelley. James tells Kelley she was betrayed by Giulia and says Giulia is useless. Giulia comes in and tells James that she needed her for her English and James says she never needed Giulia. Giulia slaps James.
— Finn Balor walks backstage and Tama Tonga approaches him and welcomes him to SmackDown and wishes him luck in his match tonight.
— Cody Rhodes talks to Nick Aldis backstage and talks about Gunther's stipulation. Rhodes says Sami Zayn is a mess right now and he's all emotion. Zayn comes by and tells Rhodes he is a mess and his emotions are all over the place and wishes him luck on his match next week.
— LA Knight is backstage with Cathy Kelley. Kelley talks to him about his match and his thoughts on The Bloodline being in the building. Knight says he's in the building and that's what matters and he predicted they'd all be there. Knight talks about Jacob Fatu trying to recruit Solo Sikoa and that The Bloodline needs a team for Jey Uso to win. Knight says he'll win and stomp out Roman Reigns.
— Jey Uso, LA Knight, Finn Balor, and Royce Keys then all make their way to the ring.
King of the Ring Fatal 4-Way Qualifying Match: Finn Balor vs. Jey Uso vs. Royce Keys vs. LA Knight
Knight looks to mock Jey by running back his entrance, but Jey blindsides him from behind. The bell rings and Keys begins brawling with Balor. He goes after Jey and Knight in the corner, then clotheslines them both out of the ring.
Balor delivers a chop to Jey in the corner during the commercial break, but Jey fires off shoulders on Balor's midsection in the corner and rains down right hands on him. Knight rains down right hands of his one on Jey in the corner, but Keys goes after Knight and dumps him out of the ring.
Jey levels Balor with a back elbow as Keys whips Knight into one of the barricades on the outside. Jey levels Balor with an enzuigiri back inside the ring, but Balor levels Jey with a shotgun dropkick and goes for a pin back from the break. Jey kicks out.
Keys levels Balor with a shoulder tackle, but Jey lands an open palm strike on Keys. Keys connects with a spinebuster on Jey and pins him, but Knight breaks the fall. Keys runs over Knight with a clothesline, then fires off clotheslines on Balor's chest as Balor is draped across the top rope.
Jimmy Uso appears at ringside, but Solo Sikoa follows him. Jey fires off right hands on Keys inside the ring, but Knight sends Keys crashing into all four corners. Balor rocks Keys with a couple of right hands to send him crashing off the apron.
Jey and Knight clear the announce desk, then land a triple powerbomb on Keys to send him crashing through it along with Balor.
Inside the ring, Jey fires off right hands on Knight. Balor delivers an elbow drop to Knight and pins him, but Jey breaks the fall and Balor delivers a Sling Blade to Jey. Balor delivers a Coup De Grace to Jey and pins him, but Keys pulls Balor out of the ring to break the fall and sends him crashing into the timekeeper's area.
Sikoa cheers on Keys, but Knight blindslines him from behind with a dropkick. Knight takes out Key with a Death Valley Driver, but Keys sends Knight crashing into the mat. Knight responds with an elbow drop off the top rope on Keys and sets up for a BFT on him, but Keys avoids it and delivers a spinebuster to Knight. He goes for a pin, but Jey breaks the fall with a Frog Splash off the top rope. He then pins Knight for the win.
Winner: Jey Uso
— The Usos celebrate and YEET as they leave Keys, Balor and Knight laid out in the ring and the show fades to black.
