WWE Friday Night SmackDown in Barcelona, Spain, Live on the USA Network, May 29th, 2026 — The Episode Recap:
- robbyplaha
- May 30
- 6 min read
Date: May 29, 2026.
Location: Olimpic Arena Badalona, Barcelona, Spain.
TV: Tape Delay on the USA Network.
Streaming: LIVE on Netflix Internationally.
What to Watch This Week: WWE Clash In Italy Streaming Live on ESPN Unlimited on Sunday at 2 P.M. ET | 1 P.M. CT | 11 A.M PT with the 1st Hour Live on ESPN.
The May 29th Episode of WWE Friday Night SmackDown — The Official Match Results:
The Opening Match: Jade Cargill (with B-Fab & Michin) defeated Alexa Bliss (with Charlotte Flair & Rhea Ripley) in a Singles Match | via Pin-Fall — (09:34)
The 2nd Match: Axiom (with Nathan Frazer) defeated The Miz in a Singles Match | via Pin-Fall — (09:54)
The 3rd Match: MFTs (Talla Tonga & Tama Tonga) (with Solo Sikoa) defeated Damian Priest & Royce Keys in a Tag Team Match | via Pin-Fall — (09:04)
The 4th Match: Sami Zayn defeated Matt Cardona in a Singles Match | via Pin-Fall — (11:15)
The 5th Match: Carmelo Hayes vs. Ricky Saints in a Singles Match | via Double Count Out — (11:05)
The Main Event Match: Nia Jax (with Lash Legend) defeated Chelsea Green in a Singles Match | via Pin-Fall — (07:06)
My Official Thoughts on the April 17th Episode of WWE Friday Night SmackDown:
My Official Thoughts: This episode of Friday Night SmackDown had its ups and downs, but it still felt like a mediocre show, which is disappointing for a go-home episode before WWE Clash in Italy. There were some decent moments, but not enough to build real excitement or momentum. Week after week, it’s clear SmackDown needs stronger booking, more focused storytelling, and a better overall direction because the problems become very obvious when you watch regularly.
The May 29th Episode of WWE Friday Night SmackDown — My Official Match Ratings:
The Opening Match: Jade Cargill (with B-Fab & Michin) vs. Alexa Bliss (with Charlotte Flair & Rhea Ripley) in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: **.50 — This was okay, very glad that Jade Cargill had a match before Clash In Italy to build that momentum up, as she is coming off pinning Rhea Ripley at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event, but now she has defeated Alexa Bliss two major players on SmackDown as Jade Cargill now pinned Alexa Bliss & WWE Women;’s Champion who she will be facing at Clash In Italy in Rhea Ripley. Afterwards, another vicious attacked occured as Charlotte Flair & Rhea Ripley were nowhere to be found until it was too late. Jade Cargill, I do expect to have a fun match with Rhea Ripley at WWE Clash in Italy. They had a fun one at WrestleMania. I expected another one.
The 2nd Match: Axiom (with Nathan Frazer) vs. The Miz in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: ***.25 — This match was fun because Axiom is that talented of a wrestler; he just got praised by Gunther for being the best Technical wrestler in WWE. But The Miz didn’t have Kit Wilson by his side because he couldn’t make it through customs to make it to Spain, so The Miz was out there alone. Axiom got a warm reception in his home country of Spain. Axiom hit a beautiful Spanish Fly to nail the Golden Ratio, thanks to Danhausen, causing the lights to flicker as The Miz lost the match. But please do some stuff with Fraxiom. There’s no way these guys have nothing at the moment; they are the best tag team in WWE that haven’t even been booked well since SummerSlam of last year. WWE is talking about how they want to rebuild the Tag Division and build around The Creed Brothers & Fraxiom. It’s so simple.
The 3rd Match: MFTs (Talla Tonga & Tama Tonga) (with Solo Sikoa) vs. Damian Priest & Royce Keys in a Tag Team Match | The Match Rating: N/A — I can’t properly rate this match because it just wasn’t fun. Why are the MFTs even a thing still? Why is Talla Tonga still getting pushed like he’s good? I’m tired of that. Damian Priest & Royce Keys’ tag team was pretty solid. They had some fun moments in this match, but I did enjoy seeing Royce Keys in this match as usual; he is one of my favorite ongoing things on SmackDown. But sadly, the MFTs got the win as Talla Tonga pinned Damian Priest after chaos on the outside distracted Royce Keys, which had them lose.
The 4th Match: Sami Zayn vs. Matt Cardona in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: *** — Probably Matt Cardona's best in-ring performance in his 2nd Return to WWE. Sami Zayn is in the midst of major character development as he has been spiraling since his loss to Drew McIntyre at the Royal Rumble. He has been losing friends, gaining enemies, and becoming a shell of himself as he has become delusional, but he's the best act as of right now on SmackDown. Matt Cardona confronted Sami Zayn while Sami Zayn was talking to a disheveled Johnny Gargano, and it prompted this match. The 1st Half of this match was okay, but when we got to the closing stretch, it got a lot better. Sami Zayn came away with the win, and we are on a crash course to see Cody Rhodes and Sami Zayn feuding next, as it has been hinted throughout this episode.
The 5th Match: Ricky Saints vs. Carmelo Hayes in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: N/A — This match of the night for me, even though I couldn’t rate it due to the Double Count Out finish, which I didn’t have any issue with because this could make for a Triple Threat US Title Match down the line as Trick Williams is also featured in this feud. I really liked this match a lot more than the first match, as I said, the finish made sense, and knowing WWE Creative, they weren’t going to have someone lose. But even the Barcelona Crowd was very much into this match as they were chanting, “This is Awesome.” I liked the chemistry they displayed in this match, and I do think this feud ending with them being in a Triple Threat Match for the WWE United States Title is how it should go down, in my opinion.
The Main Event Match: Nia Jax (with Lash Legend) vs. Chelsea Green in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: *.25 — Chelsea Green as a character is very fun, but in the ring she is very medicore, this mnatch was the Main Event of SmackDown, but we saw where this was going as during this match Tiffany Stratton came out to make the rescue, as she helped Chelsea Green defeat Nia Jax. Now my issue is we're rehashing the Nia Jax & Tiffany Stratton feud again for the 100th time? Why can't we just have Tiffany Stratton go up against, I don't know, Jordynne Grace, Giulia, Kiana James, Michin, someone new? I know three of the four she’s been against, but that would be a lot better than this mess.
The May 29th Episode of WWE Friday Night SmackDown — My Match of the Night: Axiom (with Nathan Frazer) vs. The Miz in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: ***.25 — This match was enjoyable because Axiom is such a talented wrestler; Gunther recently praised him as the best technical wrestler in WWE. Meanwhile, The Miz didn’t have Kit Wilson with him because he couldn’t get through customs to Spain, so he was alone. Axiom received a warm welcome in his home country of Spain. He executed a beautiful Spanish Fly to achieve the Golden Ratio, thanks to Danhausen, which caused the lights to flicker as The Miz lost. Also, do some work with Fraxiom. It’s obvious these two have some plans; they are the top tag team in WWE that hasn’t been properly booked since SummerSlam last year. WWE is discussing how to rebuild the Tag Division and develop teams around The Creed Brothers and Fraxiom. It’s straightforward.
The May 29th Episode of WWE Friday Night SmackDown — My Official Episode Grade: 5.75/10 (C) — This episode of Friday Night SmackDown had its ups and downs, but this was a mediocre episode as this was the go-home show before WWE Clash in Italy. But WWE needs to get SmackDown going because the show needs a lot of help, and it’s very evident when you watch the show weekly.
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