Tonight's episode of WWE SmackDown (Friday, September 18, 2026) emanates from Hilliard Center in Corpus Christi, Texas and will air starting at 8 p.m. ET on the USA Network.
Results, match winners, promo segment notes and other major developments from WWE's blue brand will be added below as Friday Night SmackDown airs.
Preview & Predictions for WWE SmackDown:
On tap for tonight's episode, new Undisputed WWE Champion Sami Zayn appears following his title win over CM Punk; Cody Rhodes returns following his loss to Randy Orton at Sunday Night's Main Event for a sit-down interview with Michael Cole; Randy Orton, United States Champion Trick Williams and AAA World Cruiserweight Champion Rey Fenix meet in a Men's Money in the Bank qualifying match; Women's United States Champion Jacy Jayne, Jade Cargill and Alexa Bliss compete in a Women's Money in the Bank qualifier; and WWE Tag Team Champions Tama Tonga and Talla Tonga of The MFTs face Shinsuke Nakamura and Kyoki of Bakusai in a non-title match.
Last week's episode saw Sami Zayn recapture the WWE Championship from CM Punk after a bunch of shenanigans. That is obviously the biggest story heading into this week's episode. I'm sure we'll see plenty revolving around Zayn gloating about his title win, Punk wanting a rematch, folks like Kevin Owens and Johnny Gargano getting around to saying they are owed rightful title shots, and so forth. In fact, it wouldn't shock me if that's the opening promo segment that normally eats up 15-20 minutes and sets up the main event, which I could definitely see being Sami Zayn and Johnny Gargano in a tag team match against CM Punk and Kevin Owens with a "can they coexist?!" air to it, and Gargano taking the pin from Punk in order to set him up for a rematch.
Now that the Money in the Bank qualifiers have been announced, I'm leaning toward Trick Williams on the men's side. Randy Orton has the Cody Rhodes feud to deal with, Trick Williams is already United States champion so he doesn't need it but that doesn't stop them from putting him in there, and Fenix is exactly the type of wrestler WWE would want flying around in a ladder match, but could also take the pin here. I wouldn't rule out Fenix, or even Orton for that matter, but I at least don't think Orton is going to want to bump for this as he is not at all necessary for this year's match.
For the women, Jacy Jayne is already carrying the Women's United States Championship, while Alexa Bliss has plenty going on with Charlotte Flair and Tatum Paxley. Jade Cargill feels like the most straightforward choice to qualify, but Jayne, again, should not be counted out as I just said about Trick. Bliss I see as being in the Orton spot and she'll probably take the pin.
The MFTs against Bakusai being non-title makes me assume Shinsuke Nakamura and Kyoki could score a win to set up a championship match later. Otherwise, there's not much reason for Tama Tonga and Talla Tonga to lose right after establishing themselves as champions. It's probably a DQ.
Other things to take care of on this show will be examining Damian Priest turning heel on R-Truth last week, Gunther continuing to tell Finn Balor that he's washed up, Charlotte Flair remaining less-than-receptive toward Tatum Paxley, and basically everything else sticking to its normal setup. I don't think we're getting anything crazy this week like last week.
Here are your results for WWE SmackDown - September 18, 2026:
- TBD - Undisputed WWE Champion Sami Zayn appears
- TBD - Sit-Down Interview: Michael Cole interviews Cody Rhodes
- TBD - Men's Money in the Bank Triple Threat Qualifying Match: Randy Orton vs United States Champion Trick Williams vs AAA World Cruiserweight Champion Rey Fenix
- TBD - Women's Money in the Bank Triple Threat Qualifying Match: Women's United States Champion Jacy Jayne vs Jade Cargill vs Alexa Bliss
- TBD - Non-Title Tag Team Match: WWE Tag Team Champions The MFTs (Tama Tonga and Talla Tonga) vs Bakusai (Shinsuke Nakamura and Kyoki)
What are your thoughts on tonight's episode of Friday Night SmackDown? Drop your reactions in the comments below and spark a discussion!