Every Match Ranked & Reviewed

In a show that was taped a week previously, WWE headed to the Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio for the September 4 edition of Friday Night SmackDown. The show featured a huge main event with WWE Champion CM Punk defending his gold against Cleveland’s own Johnny Gargano, plus the tag team debut of the new Bakusai duo of Kyoki & Shinsuke Nakamura.

TheSportster’s rating system will take a look across the entirety of the match card on SmackDown’s latest episode (which served as the go-home show prior to the first ever Sunday Night’s Main Event) to determine the best match of the night, the weakest on the card, and how everything else stacked up in between.

4

Nia Jax Vs. Chelsea Green

Overall Rating From TheSportster: 3.25/10

In an impromptu match on Friday Night SmackDown, former allies and current rivals Tiffany Stratton and Nia Jax were booked in singles action, with Jax hoping to build momentum ahead of her becoming the first challenger for WWE Women’s Champion Chelsea Green next week. Nia Jax took early control before Stratton rallied from below to dish out some fast-paced offense to the larger opponent.

Iit wasn’t long until Jax hung Stratton on the ropes and dished out a slam, but that didn’t stop Stratton coming close to a win after Jax missed her finisher, following up with some stunners and a Crucifix Bomb. Lash Legend sought to distract Stratton, which she did, allowing Jax to hit a Samoan Drop and an Annihilator for a bland, lifeless win in just over two minutes. The crowd didn’t care, Stratton was squashed, and the action was sloppy.

3

Fatal Influence Vs. Charlotte Flair & Tatum Paxley

Overall Rating From TheSportster: 5.75/10

After Tatum Paxley picked up a big singles win against Michin in her SmackDown debut, she teamed up with new ally Charlotte Flair on this week’s show to take on the reigning WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Fatal Influence in non-title action, who have defended their belts just once since their title win two months ago. After a period of control by the heelish duo, Flair eventually entered the match for a crowd-pleasing hot tag, followed by a massive crossbody to the outside by Paxley.

Jacy Jayne attempted to interfere, only to get taken out by Alexa Bliss at ringside. In a very rushed and underwhelming ending, Flair and Paxley wrapped up the win with a kick and Cemetery Drive. For the most part, this was presented as a glorified squash as the babyfaces beat the champions with relative ease.

2

Bakusai Vs. The Miz & Kit Wilson

Overall Rating From TheSportster: 6/10

The brand new Bakusai tag team of Shinsuke Nakamura and Kyoki made their tag team debut on Friday Night SmackDown this week, taking on the comedy duo of The Miz & Kit Wilson, who are no longer showing signs of being mind-controlled by Danhausen. The early stages provided a good showcase of Kyoki’s speed, madness, and intensity, especially with his fun chop exchange with The Miz. Nakamura entered the ring to dish out some stiff offense, but a cheap shot from Wilson allowed the heels to slow down the match and take control.

Namaura came back with a flurry, eventually bringing in Kyoki for a hot tag, hitting a wild double cutter from the top rope to the outside. The action broke down in the latter stages with everyone getting involved, all leading to Nakamura hitting a Kinshasa on The Miz and Kyoki hitting an awkward-looking reverse stunner to win a decent match.

1

CM Punk Vs. Johnny Gargano (WWE Championship)

Overall Rating From TheSportster: 7.5/10

CM Punk challenged Johnny Gargano to a WWE Championship match on Friday Night SmackDown, breaking him out of his months-long slumber for a first-time-ever match to headline the blue brand. In front of a hot crowd who were invested in their hometown challenger, Gargano ran wild early on, shrugging off ring rust after having hardly wrestled in 2026, last competing in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal. Punk eventually exerted some control, slowing down Gargano and accepting his role as the de facto “heel” in the matchup.

The pair had some good sequences and exchanges, plus some close near-falls in which Gargano nearly convinced fans that a big upset was on the cards. Sami Zayn arrived at ringside, allowing Candice LeRae to hit a quick hurricanrana on Punk, with Gargano following up with a One Final Beat DDT for a close near-fall in a fun moment. Kevin Owens, Finn Balor, and Gunther all turned up to brawl with Zayn and with one another, causing a lot of chaos outside the ring. Punk would hit a GTS on Gargano, but an interfering LeRae prevented the referee from making the count, allowing Zayn to hit Punk with the title, prompting another wild near-fall in which Gargano nearly won. Gargano walked his way into another GTS, allowing Punk to escape in a fine and fun main event.