WWE SmackDown recap & reactions (July 31, 2026): Why can’t we be friends?

The go-home episode of SmackDown before SummerSlam kicked off at the Resch Center in Green Bay, Wisconsin, with Finn Bálor. As much as I enjoy hearing his old WWE theme again, the Irish star wasn’t the story of the night. Instead, that honor goes to Haku. Just kidding…sort of. The appearance of the legendary tough guy Haku was without a doubt an unexpected and welcome surprise — and we’ll get to him and Finn later — but the story of the night was, as expected, Undisputed WWE Champion CM Punk coming face to face with Cody Rhodes one last time before their SumerSlam match on Saturday night. After Punk interrupted what was sure to be a prolonged crowd singalong to Rhodes’ entrance music by rushing past The American Nightmare as the far superior “Cult of Personality” kicked in, the two men squared off in the ring. They then spent a lot of time (too much) discussing whether or not they are still friends or will continue to be so after SummerSlam. Honestly, I couldn’t care less about the s