Let’s be real for a second: the Road to WrestleMania is usually a bumpy ride, but Friday night’s episode of WWE SmackDown in Raleigh essentially drove a monster truck off a cliff. We had cars getting smashed, bodies falling off scaffolding, slam poetry (yes, really), and a beloved veteran deciding that being a role model is highly overrated.
With WrestleMania 42 looming less than a month away, the blue brand delivered an incredibly chaotic, head-scratching, yet undeniably entertaining two hours of television. If you missed it, grab a seat. Here’s how the madness unfolded.
The Viper Has Officially Lost His Mind On Smackdown
If you were hoping Randy Orton’s brutal assault on Cody Rhodes last week on Smackdown was just a brief lapse in judgment, I have some bad news for you. The 14-time world champion kicked off the show by comfortably settling into a steel chair in the middle of the ring to explain himself.
Orton delivered the kind of chilling, unrepentant promo that reminds us why he’s arguably the greatest heel of his generation. He flat-out admitted that putting smiles on kids’ faces means absolutely nothing to him anymore. The only thing that cures his insomnia is the thought of wearing world championship gold for a 15th time.
But the real emotional gut-punch came at the end of the night. Orton lured Rhodes’ longtime buddy, Matt Cardona, to the ring under the guise of an apology. They hugged. It was sweet. And then, in the least surprising plot twist of the century, Orton hit a low blow, dropped Cardona with an RKO, and proceeded to crush his arm inside a steel chair.
We also need to have a serious conversation about WWE’s security team. About twenty officials completely surrounded Orton, and instead of actually doing anything physical to stop him, they just loudly yelled at him. Shockingly, yelling “Stop!” at a sociopath didn’t work. Cardona left in agony, and Orton walked out looking like a guy who just won the lottery.
Drew McIntyre and Jacob Fatu Choose Violence (And Gravity)
Sometimes you schedule a wrestling match, and sometimes the guys just decide to try and murder each other before the bell even rings. Drew McIntyre and Jacob Fatu opted for the latter on Smackdown.
Their scheduled bout was scrapped because they simply couldn’t stop throwing hands. The broadcast literally opened with McIntyre dragging Fatu through the shattered windshield of a car. Later in the show, Fatu retaliated by putting the former champion through the announce desk with a massive splash.
By the time the Smackdown was going off the air, these two were brawling on an elevated platform near the parking lot. Naturally, they both ended up plummeting off the edge into the abyss. At this point, you have to figure their inevitable WrestleMania clash will involve a street fight stipulation—or maybe they should just fight in a waffle house parking lot at 3 A.M.
R-Truth and Damian Priest Secure the Bag
If you had Damian Priest and a 54-year-old R-Truth winning the WWE Tag Team Championships on your 2026 bingo card, please go buy a lottery ticket immediately.
The unlikely duo dethroned The MFTs (JC Mateo and Tama Tonga) after a distraction from The Wyatt Sicks left the champions vulnerable. R-Truth capitalized, hitting Mateo with an Attitude Adjustment to seal the deal. It’s hard not to feel good for Truth, but looking at the stacked tag team division, putting the belts on this makeshift pairing is certainly a choice. We’ll see how long the magic lasts.
The United States Championship Steals the Show
Amidst the soap opera drama and backstage brawls, Carmelo Hayes and Ilja Dragunov quietly went out there and put on an absolute clinic.
This is what happens when you put two elite athletes in a ring and just let them cook. Dragunov was throwing Hayes around with nasty German suplexes and a brutal Death Valley Driver on the apron. Hayes, refusing to be outdone, countered a top-rope move with a twisting cutter out of nowhere. Ultimately, Hayes retained his United States Championship with a slick rolling sunset flip. It was easily the match of the night and a stark reminder of how deep WWE’s current roster is.
Slam Poetry and Questionable Alliances
Just in case Smackdown was taking itself too seriously, we got a segment where Kit Wilson challenged country music star Jelly Roll… to a slam poetry battle. Wilson spit a few bars insulting the Grammy winner, completely blindsided him with an attack, and dropped an elbow on him from the top rope. You simply cannot find this kind of television anywhere else on the planet.
In the women’s division, things got weird. Jade Cargill somehow acquired a new stable consisting of Michin and B-Fab, and the trio beat down Rhea Ripley. Why does a powerhouse like Cargill—who constantly boasts about not needing anybody—suddenly need henchwomen? Who knows. Add in a Women’s Tag Team title match that ended in a disqualification because Charlotte Flair stopped Nia Jax from using a weapon, and you’ve got an hour of booking that felt like it was pulled out of a random generator.
But hey, that’s the beauty of the Road to WrestleMania. It’s loud, it’s messy, and you absolutely cannot look away. See you next week on Smackdown.
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