CM Punk began his reign as WWE champion on SmackDown by welcoming the spotlight, thanking the crowd and then setting the next title direction in motion. On Friday, July 10, 2026, Nick Aldis brought Punk out to celebrate the win he earned on Monday over Sami Zayn, but the biggest development was the SummerSlam challenge from Cody Rhodes that was accepted in full.
It was the kind of segment that gave SmackDown a clear championship shape for the weeks ahead. Punk had beaten Sami Zayn for the WWE championship on Monday, and after returning to the ring he made it clear he was enjoying the moment. He said, in effect, that he had missed the crowd, that anyone was welcome to try to take the title from him because he is a fighting champion, and that Sami Zayn would get a rematch if he wanted one.
Cody Rhodes sets the SummerSlam direction
The bigger headline, though, was Rhodes. After being attacked on Monday and missing the title match that had been scheduled against Sami Zayn, he stepped in to challenge Punk for SummerSlam. The match was made official on the night, turning Punk's celebration into the starting point for a major championship showdown.
For anyone following the build, it is a natural next step. A new champion has arrived, a former champion wants back in, and SummerSlam now has one of its clearest main-event level title matches. It also keeps alive the tension around what kind of champion Punk intends to be: a man defending the belt proudly, or one already being pulled into a bigger rivalry before the reign has even settled.
That helps explain why this SmackDown felt important beyond the single segment. The show had already been moving in this direction, and if you want a broader look at how Punk's return has been framed, El-Balad.com previously tracked the build around CM Punk returning to SmackDown with Alexa Bliss and facing Cody Rhodes, while another update noted the push for a July 6 RAW return in Chicago, even as the SmackDown plan remained.
Finn Balor takes care of his business
Elsewhere on the show, Finn Balor beat Tama Tonga in a singles match. That mattered because Balor was seeking retribution after an attack from Talla and Tama Tonga last week, and this was his chance to answer it in the ring rather than with words.
There was also movement around Jimmy Uso and Jacob Fatu, who called out Solo Sikoa, only for Royce Keys to appear instead. Keys claimed that Big Jim's family business was starting to affect him, adding another layer to a developing SmackDown issue that still looks far from settled.
With Gunther suspended after Night of Champions and the title picture now set around Punk and Rhodes, Friday's show did what good weekly wrestling television should do: it advanced the biggest stories without losing sight of the supporting ones. The champion has spoken, the challenger has answered, and SummerSlam now has a firm championship road map.
