WWE SmackDown takes: Ricky Saints debuts, Sami Zayn kills Gingerbread Man

WWE SmackDown on May 1 took place at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla., and featured a tag match between Solo Sikoa and Talla Tonga against The Usos.

The Backlash build continued, featuring a pair of tag title matches and Cody Rhodes’ return to action. Jacy Jayne continued to establish herself with a win over Charlotte Flair, Royce Keys dominated Angel, and Danhausen was tricked by The Miz and Kit Wilson. There was a lot of silliness mixed in with more serious storylines, and it all went down in front of a crowd that lacked enthusiasm.

Here’s the top takeaways from this week’s show:

Both sets of tag title defended

This week both the men's and women's tag team titles were defended.

First, Damian Priest and R-Truth took on Fraxiom. The champs retained their titles against the high-flying challengers after Priest decided it was time to take over the match. While the match ended cleanly, Priest and Truth were attacked by Talla Tonga afterward.

.@Talla_Tonga is on a rampage! 😨 pic.twitter.com/e6DoM3etD0

— WWE (@WWE) May 2, 2026

Second, new champs Brie Bella and Paige took on the Irresistible Forces, Nia Jax and Las Legend. The champs notched their first title defense after their match was ruined last week by Fatal Influence. It was a match that happened. It wasn't terrible, but nothing stood out.

Paige is on ROLL! 🔥@Sarayapic.twitter.com/XxzArdcczZ

— WWE (@WWE) May 2, 2026

Neither match was particularly memorable, but it was nice to see two title matches go off without any outside interference between the bells. Keeping it all the way honest, neither match would have been on these takeaways if the titles weren't on the line.

Sami Zayn kills Gingerbread Man

In one of the silliest segments in recent memory, Sami Zayn took his frustrations out on the Gingerbread Man.

There wasn't a human in the GBM costume, no. It was just the costume on a mannequin. After Zayn said a few words on the mic, he destroyed the mannequin, which prompted Trick Williams to rush out to save GBM, only it was too late. After chasing Zayn away, Williams checked on GBM, and then threw up the X to the ringside officials.

.@_trickwilliams had ENOUGH of @SamiZayn! 👊 pic.twitter.com/5lhGXd3Xks

— WWE (@WWE) May 2, 2026

It didn't stop there. GBM was sent to the trainers, where Williams received word that he didn't make it, which infuriated Williams even more. A RIP graphic for GBM was shown, and apparently, there will be a funeral for GBM next week. All of this is being used as a lead-up to Williams-Zayn at Backlash.

At times, WWE does something so goofy that you don't quite know how to take it. This was very obviously a segment geared toward younger audiences, which is a demo the IWC often forgets that WWE has to cater to at times. At the end of the day, we're watching pro wrestling, and we're going to get hit on the head with over-the-top ridiculousness when you least expect it.

Ricky Saints debuts, Gunther chokes out Cody Rhodes

Cody Rhodes and Ricky Starks Saints met inside the ring once again, this time on the main roster in WWE.

It started with Rhodes announcing he was cleared to compete, and just when he began to ponder what could be next, Saints' music hit. Saints made it known that his arrival to SmackDown isn't just about being another name on the roster. Saints said he was here to "change who the show is about."

We're getting @starkmanjones vs. @CodyRhodes TONIGHT! 👏 pic.twitter.com/GXbh0XRJFD

— WWE (@WWE) May 2, 2026

This led to a challenge for a singles match later in the show. Rhodes' first match after Mania wasn't the main event, surprisingly. It was a good match in which both tried to work the crowd, but Tulsa's energy came off as mediocre at best. After Rhodes scored the pin with a Cross Rhodes, Gunther attacked from behind, putting him to sleep.

.@Gunther_AUT has his sights set on the Undisputed WWE Championship 😳 pic.twitter.com/A1raFyFt1q

— WWE (@WWE) May 2, 2026

I think Rhodes got his real answer about what's next – maybe. It seems WWE has no clue what to do with Gunther, as they threw him in at Mania against Seth Rollins (and had the best match of the whole PLE, to be fair) and now just have him pop up and attack Rhodes on SmackDown. We'll see where Saints goes from here. Hopefully, it's in an interesting storyline, which has been a struggle for the creative team lately.

The Usos, Solo Sikoa and Talla Tonga address Jacob Fatu

The new-look Bloodline story continued Friday with The Usos, Solo Sikoa, Talla Tonga and Jacob Fatu all getting segments ahead of Backlash, where Fatu will take on Roman Reigns.

After Sikoa and Tonga attacked the tag champs, they went back and forth on the mic with Jimmy and Jey Uso about Fatu using a sacred family move on Reigns, the Tongan Death Grip. Jey said Fatu had to be held in check, which Sikoa laughed off because he doesn't answer to Reigns any longer.

"You tell @WWERomanReigns that he ain't my Tribal Chief"

Solo Sikoa means business 😤 pic.twitter.com/jBZfJpQ2E7

— WWE (@WWE) May 2, 2026

In the final match of the show, The Usos took on Sikoa and Tonga. It was what you would expect from these four, until things spilled to the outside, where Tonga cleared off the announce desk. Fatu appeared, attacking Tonga and Sikoa, once again utilizing the Tongan Death Grip. After taking care of those two, he entered the ring, and walked straight through The Usos, and then sent a message to Reigns.

THROUGH THE TABLE! 😱@jacobfatu_wwepic.twitter.com/riv1Ym1GnK

— WWE (@WWE) May 2, 2026

The Bloodline stories continue to be the best told in WWE today. This was all about making Fatu look like a next-level threat, and they built that up even more through the show by first having Tonga look like a monster. Then, when those two forces clashed, Fatu got the upper hand. Everyone in the family is scared of Fatu, or respects his gangster so much that they're unwilling to test him. Good stuff.

This article originally appeared on Wrestling Junkie: WWE SmackDown takes: Ricky Saints debuts against Cody Rhodes