WWE SmackDown After WrestleMania in Fort Worth, Texas, USA, Live on the USA Network, April 24th, 2026 — The Episode Recap:
- robbyplaha
- Apr 26
- 6 min read
Location: Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, USA.
Where to Watch: Live on the USA Network.
What to Watch Next Week: WWE Monday Night RAW Streaming Live on Netflix on Monday at 8 P.M. ET, 7 P.M. CT, 5 P.M PT.
The April 24th Episode of WWE SmackDown After WrestleMania — The Official Match Results:
The Opening Match: Tiffany Stratton defeated Giulia (with Kiana James) (c) in a WWE Women’s United States Title Match | via Pin-Fall — (08:56)
The 2nd Match: Brie Bella & Paige (c) vs. Alexa Bliss & Charlotte Flair in a WWE Women’s Tag Team Title Match | via No Contest — (04:58)
The 3rd Match: Damian Priest & R-Truth (c) defeated The MFTs (JC Mateo & Tama Tonga) (with Tonga Loa) in a WWE Tag Team Title Match | via Pin-Fall — (08:15)
The 4th Match: Danhausen defeated The Miz (with Kit Wilson) in a Singles Match | via Pin-Fall — (01:42)
The 5th Match: Rhea Ripley defeated Jacy Jayne (with Fallon Henley & Lainey Reid) in a Singles Match | via DQ — (10:59)
The Main Event Match: Jacob Fatu defeated Solo Sikoa in a Singles Match (with JC Mateo, Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa) in a Singles Match | via Pin-Fall — (10:58)
My Official Thoughts on the April 24th Episode of WWE SmackDown After WrestleMania:
My Official Thoughts: 1st Episode since February where SmackDown was actually interesting, and watchable. This also contributes to the new call ups that will bring freshness to this brand with Blake Monroe, Fallon Henley, Jacy Jaynes, Lainey Reid & Ricky Saints which is a great grab for SmackDown boosts the women side up tremendously, and the male get a great add in Ricky Saints but now WWE needs to add some people from RAW bring in Creed Brothers, CM Punk, Rey Mysterio & Ivy Nile to be a great add to this Brand. But solid episode, next week let's keep it going.
The April 24th Episode of WWE SmackDown After WrestleMania — My Official Match Ratings:
The Opening Match: Giulia (with Kiana James) (c) vs. Tiffany Stratton in a WWE Women’s United States Title Match | The Match Rating: ***.25 — Giulia's Main Roster Run hasn’t been great, as WWE clearly is restricting her from wrestling in her actual style. But this match was one of the better matches she has had on the Main Roster. We’ve been seeing the tension between Giulia & Kiana James, which is very evident, and a breakup seems to be on the horizon. I just need Giulia to be back as her old badass self, like she was in Marigold, NXT & STARDOM. This version of her is just a watered-down version of her. Tiffany Stratton in this match was decent. She has been looking like she doesn’t enjoy this anymore. Maybe I’m reading her body language, but she doesn’t seem like someone interested in wrestling at this moment. But this match was fun. I actually enjoyed it. I was upset that Giulia lost the title, as both of her reigns were fiddled with horrendous booking not on her, and now Tiffany Stratton has another piece of gold to add to her collection. Let’s see how she does with the WWE Women’s United States Title.
The 2nd Match: Brie Bella & Paige (c) vs. Alexa Bliss & Charlotte Flair in a WWE Women’s Tag Team Title Match | The Match Rating: N/A — This match, I knew something was going to happen, but man, what an introduction for Fatal Influence as they all came up together from NXT. I loved that they were all well presented throughout the night; it reminded me of how the R.I.O.T. Squad debuted back in 2017. But the match wasn’t anything special, but seeing Fallon Henley, Jacy Jayne & Lainey Reid man, that made me happy, a big boost to this SmackDown Roster.
The 3rd Match: Damian Priest & R-Truth (c) vs. The MFTs (JC Mateo & Tama Tonga) (with Tonga Loa) in a WWE Tag Team Title Match | The Match Rating: *.50 — This reign sucks, please end it. They released one of the greatest tag teams ever in Motor City Machine Guns just to have this make-shift team of Damian Priest & R-Truth have terrible tag team matches against teams that people are tired of, like where's Fraxiom, Los Garzas? Bring the Creed Brothers to SmackDown, have some fresh young bloods on this SmackDown Male Tag Division because man, we don't want a comedy tag team, we want the Tag Division restored wth young teams, and great matches. The MFTs lost because of the drama that's ongoing, but this reign of Damian Priest and R-Truth needs to end soon.
The 4th Match: Danhausen vs. The Miz (with Kit Wilson) in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: N/A — This was a quick comedy match as Danhausen gets another win on SmackDown, I’m not usually a fan of comedy lower card gimmicks, but this guy has been money for WWE, and hey man I respect it you getting paiid, and now one of the most over acts but I must say The Miz & Kit Wilson are a very entertaining duo, they are a team I won’t mind being together for a while.
The 5th Match: Rhea Ripley vs. Jacy Jayne (with Fallon Henley & Lainey Reid) in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: ***.50 — As I said, this has been an A+ showing of Fatal Influence. All three women have been looked at as threats in every division. They attacked the WWE Women's Tag Team Champions, and made it known to the WWE Women's Champion,n Rhea Ripley, they have arrived, and the heat they got, they're on all cylinders. This was the Match of the Night for me thus was a fresh match, and it was firing on all cylinders, I knew something had to happen as both women have to be protected but what a way to introduce all these women, and they are now feuding with Alexa Bliss, Charlotte Flair & Rhea Ripley this was a great night they need to keep this up, and next week it seems like Charlotte Flair & Jacy Jayne is hitting our TV Screens which is great.
The Main Event Match: Jacob Fatu vs. Solo Sikoa (with JC Mateo, Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa) in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: *** — Yay Bloodline Lore is back, this was the best match these two had against each other I remember the god awful match at SummerSlam and thought man this can be a lot better right? It was, which is great to see, but it was at the same time like, why can't we have a normal feud without reheating the Bloodline Lore? Jacob Fatu got the win, then fought off The MFTs as the Usos looked on. I thought Royce Keys was going to come out to help Jacob Fatu, as Solo Sikoa is on the way to be feuding with Royce Keys, but this was okay, as now we find out if the World Title Match between Jacob Fatu & Roman Reigns is going to be made official on Monday on RAW.
The April 24th Episode of WWE SmackDown After WrestleMania — My Match of the Night: Rhea Ripley vs. Jacy Jayne (with Fallon Henley & Lainey Reid) in a Singles Match | The Match Rating: ***.50 — This has been an A+ showcase for Fatal Influence. All three women are now seen as threats in every division. They went after the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions and made it clear to WWE Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley that they’ve arrived. The reaction they got shows they’re firing on all cylinders. This was my Match of the Night. It felt fresh and delivered from start to finish. I knew something big had to happen since both women needed to be protected, and this was a great way to introduce everyone involved. Now they’re feuding with Alexa Bliss, Charlotte Flair, and Rhea Ripley, which is a huge step. Overall, it was a great night, and they need to keep this momentum going. Plus, it looks like we’re getting Charlotte Flair vs. Jacy Jayne on TV next week, which is fantastic.
The April 24th Episode of WWE SmackDown After WrestleMania — My Official Episode Grade: 6/10 (C+) — This was the first genuinely interesting and watchable episode of SmackDown since February. The new call-ups are a big reason why, bringing some much-needed freshness to the brand. Blake Monroe, Fallon Henley, Jacy Jaynes, Lainey Reid, and Ricky Saints are great additions. They significantly strengthen the women’s division, and Ricky Saints is a strong pickup for the men as well. Now WWE just needs to supplement this by moving some talent over from RAW, bringing in the Creed Brothers, CM Punk, Rey Mysterio, and Ivy Nile would be fantastic for SmackDown. Overall, this was a solid episode; let’s hope they keep the momentum going next week.
Next Week WWE Friday Night SmackDown May 1st Episode in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA, Live on the USA Network — The Announced Appearances, Matches & Segments:
Ricky Saints In-Ring SmackDown Debut.
Charlotte Flair (with Alexa Bliss) vs. Jacy Jayne (with Fallon Henley & Lainey Reid) in a Singles Match.
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