SmackDown airs tonight (Oct. 3) with a live show emanating from Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. This is the second episode of SmackDown during the three week build towards Crown Jewel, which
takes place on October 11 in Australia.
Cody Rhodes makes another bad decision in WWE
WWE Champion Cody Rhodes is set to face off with World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins for the Crown Jewel championship next weekend.
Rollins’ oracle Paul Heyman showed up on the blue brand last week to have a chat with Rhodes, but it turned out to be a trap when The Vision’s Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed suddenly entered the ring. Cody admitted it was “probably not a good decision on my part” as he took the first blow at The Brons even though he was outnumbered.
It was indeed not the smartest decision for Rhodes to make, but that’s what fighting champion babyfaces just have to do sometimes when confronted by assholes. Thankfully for Cody, Randy Orton showed up just in time to save his ass and send The Brons packing. Fast forward to tonight, and the main event is Orton and Rhodes teaming up to take on Breakker and Reed in a tag team match.
Orton may have bailed Rhodes out of trouble last week, but this is yet another example of Rhodes trusting The Viper, and that decision has to bite him in the ass at some point. Perhaps The Viper won’t strike Cody down tonight, but what about at Crown Jewel when he is in the ring with Rollins? The allure of the WWE championship will be too much for Orton to resist at some point, and that’s when Cody will eat an RKO.
Tune into SmackDown to see if Rhodes can trust The Viper for at least one more night, and if Seth Rollins will try to sneak an attack on Cody before Crown Jewel.
The rest of the card
United States Champion Sami Zayn is having another open challenge for the gold tonight, which marks his fifth title defense in as many weeks. Is is time for Shinsuke Nakamura to return to SmackDown and steal Sami’s title away, given that WWE is only a couple weeks away from doing shows in Japan?
Damian Priest is in action tonight, but we don’t know who he is facing yet. It might be Kit Wilson, who Priest recently chokeslammed through a wall in a fit of toxic masculinity. After the match is over, should Damian draw a chalk outline of his own body and then lay down on it, to save Aleister Black the trouble of knocking him out with another Black Mass?
WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton’s undefeated record in 2025 remains intact after last week’s botched ending. She is scheduled to appear on SmackDown tonight to address Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer, ahead of their match at Crown Jewel for the women’s Crown Jewel championship. Will Vaquer show up on the blue brand tonight to let Stratton know that she doesn’t give a shit about her winning streak?
Other stuff to keep an eye on
– Jacob Fatu returned to SmackDown last week to kick Drew McIntyre’s ass and shut his mouth. One week later, has McIntyre come up with the perfect promo to tear apart the Samoan Werewolf on the mic?
– Solo Sikoa put the spotlight on JC Mateo last week and Tonga Loa the week before that. Does that mean tonight is Talla Tonga’s turn to say “I love you, Solo”?
– Chelsea Green is searching for a new member of the Secret Hervice due to Piper Niven’s injury. Nia Jax declined her offer last week. Does Chelsea dare make the same offer to Jade Cargill tonight?
– Now that the Street Profits are once again number one contenders for the WWE tag team championship, what kind of gimmick match will GM Nick Aldis settle on for their future title shot against the Wyatt Sicks?
– Will NXT stars Sol Ruca and Zaria show up again on SmackDown trying to earn a title match against WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair? If not, are Kiana James and Women’s United States Champion Giulia next in line after they beat Michin and B-Fab last week?
– Is Carmelo Hayes finally ready to ditch The Miz after last week’s mishap led to a loss for Melo Don’t Miz? Who will be first to turn on his partner?
– Have the Motor City Machine Guns come up with power rankings yet for all the different foods they’ve eaten backstage in WWE catering? They haven’t wrestled on SmackDown TV since August 22.
– Where the f*** is Bianca Belair?
What will you be looking for on SmackDown?
