Welcome to Wrestling Inc.'s weekly review of "WWE SmackDown," the show that occasionally ends with CodyRhodes wrestling Baron Corbin and then punting him in the head! We have a lot of thoughts on the main event here in the column this week, as well as thoughts about many other things, includingRey Fenix defending his AAA Cruiserweight Championship against Ricky Saints.If you missed the show, you can catch up via our "WWE SmackDown 10/16/26 live blog, which covers absolutely everything that went down Friday night something this column categorically does not do. We won' t be talking much about Trick Williams vs.Johnny Gargano, for example, or Damian Priest vs.R-Truth, though we wish Truth the best after he seemingly suffered an injury during the match. This column is about the WINC staff's opinions, and specifically our opinions on the matches and segments that stood out to us the most, be it in a positive or a negative way. Which is to say, here are three things we hated and three things we loved about the 10/16/26 episode of "WWE SmackDown!"
I can appreciate Nikki Bella and Paige being allotted a decent amount of television time for their match against one another in a storyline that's positioned them as friends turned bitter rivals who have a long history with one another. That was really the only positive of the match between the two women from this edition of "SmackDown," as there really was not anything else about this contest that I liked at all.For two women who have the experience that Paige and Nikki do between the ropes, they should not have had a match like this, that looked like it belonged between two women in "NXT" who had a combined two years of experience in the ring between them. From bell-to-bell, this looked incredibly sloppy, clunky, and did not make for a very fun match to watch at all. Nikki felt like she oversold several moves with the way that she took certain moves from Paige by really emphasizing her leg movements after she had gone down which kept taking me out of the match, while the Attitude Adjustment that Paige gave to Nikki Bella barely even looked like it was a proper Attitude Adjustment. I also wish that WWE would stop having Paige mock Nikki about her relationship with John Cena given that it happened several years ago at this point in time and Nikki is a well known public figure in her own right. It feels incredibly demeaning, and is something that belongs in the women's division of years past.The ending of this bout also left something to be desired. I didn't love the babyface Paige stealing the win here by countering a roll-up from Nikki with a roll-up of her own as her feet were on the ropes because it made it look too much like it was a fluke win. It also kind of came out of nowhere, and there wasn't any build heading into the closing moments of this.Written by Olivia Quinlan
Tonight was a very dull iteration of "SmackDown," one of the least exciting I've watched in a minute, outside of maybe the main event. Following Money in the Bank, it seemed like quite a few stars were out, or weren't competing in the ring, at least, including the new briefcase holder, Tiffany Stratton. While not involved in the ladder match, Charlotte Flair was also nowhere to be seen.The new Women's Tag Team Champions, Alexa Bliss and Tatum Paxley, took to the ring to celebrate their victory. It was kind of a clunky segment to start off, and I already don't love that it's not Flair and Paxley who are champions. Bliss had to try and hype up the crowd to get some more cheers for Paxley's first title victory on "SmackDown," and before Fatal Influence came out to save the segment, Paxley said she had a "special surprise" for Flair whenever she's back, then proceeded to whisper it in Bliss' ear, rather than tell the audience, or keep it a surprise.Thankfully, Fatal Influence came out to get the crowd a little more into things, and I liked being saved from the kind of awkwardness that the champions were giving that works better in backstage segments rather than in front of the crowd. It helped get Jacy Jayne, Fallon Henley, and Lainey Reid some heel heat, so for that, I'm for it.Jayne came out complaining that Stratton stole the briefcase from her during the ladder match, which was a needed mention with Stratton not on the show. Henley and Reid ran down the new champions, saying the quiet parts out loud. Henley went after Bliss, asking her if she was sure Flair was really happy she was a champion and not her, and Reid went for an even lower blow, basically telling Paxley she's a weirdo and Flair doesn't actually like her. While it may seem basic, the jabs were good and simple for the heat, and then they charged the champions, with Paxley and Bliss standing tall at the end.If Flair was going to be out this week, and I hope she's okay, I don't know if I would have gone this route. Fatal Influence interrupting this segment may have seemed like a small thing to love on this episode, but on such a dull one, it was nice to hear some crowd reaction for a band of dastardly heels.Written by DaisyRuth
Rey Fenix put his AAA Cruiserweight title on the line against Ricky Saints during this week's "AEW Rampage." No, wait, "WWE SmackDown." Normally, that would have been a promise of a perfectly cromulent-to-good time. Alas, WWE was on its finest form this Friday and "SmackDown" delivered a rather spectacularly dull night of something tangentially related to wrestling.Such was its beige reach that even a clash featuring Rey f***ing Fenix managed to melt the synapses. Sure, the beginnings of the bout lulled one into the false security that this was going to be untainted by bulls*** of the unnecessary persuasion. But then when the going got tough, Saints got pushing the referee into the ropes. That dropped Fenix on the buckles and then he delivered Rochambeau, set to become the new champion. If only the referee hadn't been pushed into the ropes, fully aware of who had done it and why.This was another match hit with WWE's signature DQ finisher, and there is no kicking out and salvaging something from it. It was also one of three non-finishes on the show one was the result of an injury, but two of those were planned by someone. Someone will be cashing in a paycheck off of the back of this decision. That's egregious, especially when one looks at the price of a ticket and considers the people in the crowd that paid to watch a wrestling show. This had all the potential to be a good match that still left enough for something to be done in the future, as is obviously the plan. It's abundantly clear that this was not the night for anything to happen, chiefly because nothing happened, but also because it doesn't have a lofty name or locale attached to it. That should be insulting to the paying customer.At the very least, while you would not expect your matches to carry the greatest of stakes or the wrestlers to perform the greatest of risks, you would still expect the matches to have an ending that didn't feel like a carnival scam. This "Watch the next one" mentality is killing WWE programming because the first, second, third, and fourth one are never satisfying. It's all a grift to get you invested in the product for a matter of weeks before even you forget why you started. You're punished for paying attention, you're rewarded for absolutely nothing. WWE feels like it is booked with spite and contempt for its audience.Written byMax Everett
On what was an abysmal episode of "WWE SmackDown," one full of non-finishes, promos that were straight up bad, and Baron Corbin in the main event in the big 2026, you can always rely on Kevin Owens and CM Punk to bring some sort of entertainment to a very bare table. To put it into context, in the two hours that this show took place, Punk and Owens had, at most, less than two minutes on this week's show and it was more memorable than nearly everything else that took place.Owens is getting checked up by the doctors after going through an extremely physical Money in the Bank Ladder match last weekend and while he didn't walk away with the briefcase, neither did Punk. Before he got the chance to gloat, Punk storms in to ask Nick Aldis to put him in the ring with Owens, who then accuses Punk of following him around. Aldis makes it abundantly clear that another match between the two men will eventually happen, but it won't happen in a doctors office and that they need to stay out of each other's way, at least for the time being. Owens walks off by asking Aldis to tell Punk to stop following him around, before Punk, as he is known to do, says he's surrounded by children.Despite not even appearing in front of the live audience, Punk and Owens keep their feud going in a segment that was a "blink and you'll miss it moment" on the show, and it still feels like the most must-see feud on "SmackDown" right now. It's a match made for a high-profile Premium Live Event like Survivor Series, or to a lesser extent Crown Jewel (though getting either of these guys to Saudi Arabia in the current climate will be a task in itself), and it's a match that you get more excited to see just by a small segment like this.Both of these guys are masters of their craft to the point where if you wanted a prime example of making the most of your time on a wrestling show, this is it. Short, straight to the point, entertaining, and leaves you wanting more in both wrestling and a non-wrestling capacity. it's the perfect time to really heat it up as well since WWE Champion Sami Zayn will be preoccupied with trying to defeat Roman Reigns at Crown Jewel. I just kind of wish that we got a little bit more from these guys tonight because they were desperately needed.Written by Sam Palmer
During the closing segment of "WWE SmackDown," Cody Rhodes was expecting Randy Orton, only to get ... Baron Corbin. Corbin said he told Rhodes years ago that he doesn't see what everyone else sees in him. He had the audacity to say that Rhodes is always whining about something, which is rich coming from Corbin. Corbin went on to inflate his own ego by saying he has the killer instinct that Rhodes doesn't because he destroyed everything when he returned before winning the U.S. title. He also told Rhodes that he is "getting back where he belongs" at the expense of Rhodes. I'm not sure where he thinks he belongs considering he has never been a world champion anywhere.Rhodes had enough and asked for a referee. Rhodes controlled most of the match before Orton pulled the ref out of the ring and sent Rhodes into the steps to cause a disqualification. Rhodes landed a Cody Cutter on Orton and Corbin splashed Rhodes before kicking him in the spine. Orton was on the ramp when Rhodes punted Corbin.All of this buildup about Rhodes not punting Orton for him to waste it on Corbin? Why is Corbin of all people the one to finally cause Rhodes to betray himself by punting someone? They've been building the fact that Rhodes wouldn't stoop to Orton's level and had him give in and do it on a random "SmackDown." I mean, Corbin is annoying and maybe he just couldn't help himself, but it's a letdown that he didn't save it to the person he has decades of history with. And what does it do for Corbin? It makes him look dumb and even more like he doesn't belong (wherever he thinks that is). This segment was a waste of time.Written by Samantha Schipman
How much of a struggle does an episode of "SmackDown" have to be for me to love a random Baron Corbin appearance? No shade to "The Nomad" as a person, but his character hasn't been my favorite thing since he's returned to WWE. I've found myself questioning for some weeks what he's doing back. Tonight, at least, he gave us and Cody Rhodes an answer. He wants to get his spot back, presumably at least the one he held earlier in the year when he was United States Champion.Rhodes demanded a face-to-face with Orton, and instead, he was met by Corbin. Rhodes intercepted a right from the former US champion during their back-and-forth, then called out a referee for the pair of them to have a match, despite not being in his ring gear. Thankfully Rhodes wasn't in a suit, so it was a bit more believable.Of course, Orton appeared to interfere in the match, causing the disqualification and beating Rhodes around the ring. Rhodes avoided the punt kick and hit a Cody Cutter, then looked for the punt on Orton, something he said he'd do to him next time he got the chance. He didn't get that chance, however, because Corbin got in his way, allowing for Orton to slide out of the ring.Rhodes dodged the End of Days, then hit a super Cody Cutter off the top rope to Corbin. He stared down Orton, and as "The Viper" yelled that Rhodes didn't have it in him, he hit a punt to Corbin without thinking twice. Orton looked shocked, and that's how the show ended. While Corbin did have to be a sacrifice here, I'm glad that Rhodes hit a punt to prove that he's capable of doing it. I figured there was no way he was hitting one to Orton before their next match, if he's even able to do that, so this was cool to see tonight.On a pretty darn boring episode of the blue brand that really only served to set up a few different matches for next week and the week after, this was a hot way to end the show. I honestly think, even with taking the punt, Corbin didn't look terrible, as he got to shoot his shot against Rhodes in the main event segment of the show, whereas he wouldn't have been on it otherwise. In a WWE that continuously revolves around face-to-faces, contract signings, and brawls, this stood out as something at least slightly different.Written byDaisyRuth
