WWE SmackDown spoilers: August 28 episode taped Aug. 24 in Ottawa

WWE pre-taped the August 28, 2026 episode of SmackDown on August 24 at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, featuring a variety of promos, backstage segments and an advertised main event slot. Fightful Select provided the spoilers and Khel Now published the full rundown compiled by Abhijit.

The taping was held immediately following Raw at the Canadian Tire Centre as part of a schedule change intended to give the roster and crew downtime after a busy summer, with upcoming international tours including a South American tour cited as the reason. Last week’s August 21 SmackDown in Toronto at Scotiabank Arena was a sold-out show that included title matches and debuts; that episode saw Blake Monroe attack Giulia before their scheduled match, call out Chelsea Green, and promise she will make her in-ring debut against the Champion after the match did not take place. The same show featured a video-package debut for Kyoki (fka Hiromu Takahashi) alongside Shinsuke Nakamura, and Baron Corbin challenging Lil Yachty to a match at Sunday Night’s Main Event (SNME) with the condition that if Yachty lasts five minutes, Trick Williams will receive a U.S. title rematch — Yachty accepted, making the match official for SNME. The August 21 main event ended with Sami Zayn betraying Kevin Owens, allowing CM Punk to win the Undisputed title, and Zayn then launching a post-match attack on both men.

Among the segments reported from the Ottawa taping, Kevin Owens delivered a promo that was interrupted by CM Punk and involved Nick Aldis, Gunther and Finn Balor. Chelsea Green and Tiffany Stratton also cut a segment and were booked to face The Irresistible Forces (Nia Jax & Lash Legend) in a tag match on the show.

Backstage material included a Nick Aldis and Danhausen encounter that involved Gunther, plus a separate Nick Aldis backstage segment with The Irresistible Forces, The Miz and Kit Wilson. A Cody Rhodes and Finn Balor promo carried interference from Randy Orton, while Trick Williams and Lil Yachty cut a promo that featured Baron Corbin.

Additional on-screen content listed for the episode comprised a Tatum Paxley interview including Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss, a Rey Fenix interview involving Ricky Saints, a Blake Monroe segment that led to a brawl with Giulia, and Damian Priest and R-Truth appearing backstage with the War Raiders (Erik & Ivar).

The advertised main event for the taping was listed as Gunther vs Finn Balor vs TBA, with Sami Zayn and CM Punk also noted as getting involved in the contest. WWE is set to air the pre-taped episode on August 28 as planned.

WWE’s next confirmed television and pay-per-view dates noted in the report are Sunday Night’s Main Event on September 6, 2026 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia — described as WWE’s first-ever Sunday Night’s Main Event — and Money in the Bank on October 10, 2026 at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.