WWE SmackDown results, grades (Oct. 2): Kevin Owens qualifies for MITB, Randy Orton costs Cody Rhodes

"WWE SmackDown" was in Denver on Friday for Cody Rhodes' much-anticipated return and the final Money in the Bank qualifying matches. Unfortunately for the former world champion, he came up short in his match thanks to his bitter rival, Randy Orton.The table is setOh, how I've missed some quality triple-threat action on my TV screen. There's been plenty of negative discourse around WWE's multi-person matches as of late — mostly that they're often used as booking copouts for specific stars to lose without eating pins. Friday was another example of that … but damn, the matches were good.In the end, Kevin Owens and Tiffany Stratton round out the upcoming six-wrestler fields for the men's and women's Money in the Bank ladder matches..@FightOwensFight is headed to New Orleans!! 🔥👏 pic.twitter.com/BX0lJLoDtd— WWE (@WWE) October 3, 2026 Gargano was the expected fall guy in the main event, wrestling alongside powerhouse names like Rhodes and Owens. However, in every recent opportunity, he's reminded us he belongs in this mix.The match was thought to be Rhodes' to lose — but Randy Orton still exists. And if Orton isn't qualifying for this year's ladder match, neither is Rhodes.He made sure of that by stopping two Rhodes pin attempts/break-ups. The last saw Owens hit the Pop-Up Powerbomb on Gargano to secure his spot..@RandyOrton couldn't let that happen! 😤@CodyRhodes pic.twitter.com/aBn1Og7lND— WWE (@WWE) October 3, 2026 Ultimately the story was Rhodes, for a change, valuing personal action over winning. Instead of going back in the ring when he had the chance, Rhodes saw an opening to punt Orton outside the apron, only for an airborne Gargano to intercept him. That spot was kind of funny, but it was an objectively nice wrinkle, and continues to point Rhodes and Orton toward their inevitable stipulation blow-off match.LOOK OUT, CODY!!! 😱@JohnnyGargano @CodyRhodes pic.twitter.com/Yv5tBzqZoP— WWE (@WWE) October 3, 2026 As for Owens, he joins a stacked field of CM Punk, Bron Breakker, Penta, Je'Von Evans and Trick Williams.As Trick would say, "Let's talk about it."All together now!OK, we have to be honest about something: WWE lazily putting on overbooked multi-person promos annually ahead of Money in the Bank has gotten hilarious.But as devoid of creativity as they usually are when everyone just boasts about their future plans to cash in, tonight's one was good solely thanks to Sami Zayn."Unlike you, what if it doesn't take me 20 years to finally get the WWE Championship?"If @SamiZayn wasn't crashing out before, he's about to... 😅@WWEJeVonEvans pic.twitter.com/nIELJ4tjp7— WWE (@WWE) October 3, 2026 Zayn continues to take his victory laps, but he does it by playing into claims that he's a weak champion and mentioning his experience. He really shouldn't be viewed like a chump compared to Penta, Trick Williams and Je'Von Evans, who all confronted him too.The history baked into this segment with Trick was great as well, especially their head-to-head moment that absolutely felt like improv..@SamiZayn has a HUGE target on his back! 🎯 pic.twitter.com/iaC1UZLzih— WWE (@WWE) October 3, 2026 Finn Balor and Gunther got involved to end it on the ramp. That was kind of odd, and left those two feeling more aimless than ever, having just lost their qualifiers last week. But the clear move here is to get Gunther vs. Balor in some sort of contender progression match. Yet there's Danhausen also lurking.Yes. You read that correctly. Danhausen keeps getting involved with Gunther, and that can't be for nothing.Danhausen was just trying out his new device! #WWE #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/KsYmyhi7Tm— USA Network (@USANetwork) October 3, 2026 🚗 Car Crash of the NightAs mentioned, Stratton won her way into this year's women's Money in the Bank ladder match by defeating Candice LeRae and Tatum Paxley. But this match cannot be glossed over, as it would've earned a perfect crown score had Paxley been the victor.Nonetheless the finish sequence was spectacular, and Stratton always makes for a fun addition to a ladder match, so you can't complain too much. The only "problem," per se, is that tonight's match only further highlighted Paxley's in-ring brilliance. She's been great so far in her main roster run, but holy cow — this woman absolutely has it between the ropes, and was the undeniable star of this match. That's without mentioning anything about her character work, which is clearly ever-present. Her style played into her two opponents' perfectly as well, making this match a nonstop, 100-mile-per-hour sprint. And there's nothing more I love than a good high-speed triple-threat.In other words, WWE: Push Paxley. This match was "SmackDown's" equivalent of Bayley vs. Lyra Valkyria vs. Becky Lynch at Evolution last year..@tiffstrattonwwe saw an opportunity and took it! 😱 pic.twitter.com/UvssG388LP— WWE (@WWE) October 3, 2026 👑 Uncrowned Gem of the Night 👑Blake Monroe actually had a match tonight!OK, while that is the Uncrowned Gem of this show, it shouldn't be alone. Tonight's program started with wrestling from the jump, getting into the women's triple-threat, then gave plenty of time to each of the remaining four matches. Overall, it was a great wrestling show, and that's always welcome for obvious reasons. (You know, because this is supposed to be a wrestling show by nature.).@giulia0221g is doing whatever it takes! pic.twitter.com/llRRsTu9we— WWE (@WWE) October 3, 2026 In terms of name value in matches, it's wild how much better Friday nights are than Mondays right now. I give Friday's "SmackDown" a crown score of: 👑 9.5/10 👑WWE SmackDown full card results and grades:Men's Money in the Bank qualifying match: Kevin Owens def. Johnny Gargano, Cody Rhodes — 👑 4.25/5 👑Blake Monroe def. Giulia — 👑 3/5 👑Ricky Saints and The War Raiders (Eryk and Ivar) def. Rey Fenix and Fraxiom (Axiom and Nathan Frazer) — 👑 3.75/5 👑Women's Money in the Bank qualifying match: Tiffany Stratton def. Candice LeRae, Tatum Paxley — 👑 4.75/5 👑Recap "SmackDown" with Uncrowned's live blog: