On April 7, Joe Tessitore appeared on ESPN Get Up to announce the lineups for night one and two of WWE WrestleMania 42.
With the card announced, there could be some intriguing matches scheduled for the Friday Night SmackDown before Mania.
From title matches to grudges being settled, the April 17 edition of SmackDown will have some significant bouts before “The Show of Shows” takes place the day after.
Here are six potential matches to be added to WWE SmackDown before WrestleMania 42.
6. Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal
The 2025 Andre The Giant Battle Royal was won by Carmelo Hayes
Back at WWE WrestleMania 30, the company held its first ever Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal with the winner being rewarded a trophy of the legendary star.
Since then, WWE has held the battle royal on the WrestleMania card or in recent years, on the SmackDown before Mania.
With WWE announcing the cards for both night one and two, it seems The Andre will take place on the SmackDown before Mania once again.
There will be anywhere between 20 to 30 competitors for the honor that was once won by the likes of Big Show, Bobby Lashley, Bronson Reed and Carmelo Hayes, so it should be interesting to see who wins this year.
5. Charlotte Flair vs. Lyra Valkyria
Both Charlotte Flair and Lyra Valkyria held the WWE Women’s Tag Titles at different points in 2025
At WrestleMania 42, The Irresistible Forces will defend the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships against Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss, The Bella Twins and Bayley and Lyra Valkyria in a four-way match.
Over the past few weeks, fans have seen these duos doing battle in tag team action and even singles competition.
After Bayley faced off with Lash Legend on the April 6 WWE Raw, there could be another singles bout on the cards for the SmackDown before Mania.
Charlotte Flair facing off with Lyra Valkyria could make for a showstealing bout to kick off the Mania weekend in Las Vegas on April 17.
4. Giulia vs. Tiffany Stratton – WWE Women’s United States Championship
Giulia defeated Tiffany Stratton on the March 27 episode of WWE SmackDown
Over the past month, Tiffany Stratton has set her sights on the WWE Women’s United States Championship.
On the March 27 episode of Friday Night SmackDown, Giulia defeated Stratton in a non-title match.
In a backstage segment on the April 3 SmackDown, Stratton met with Chelsea Green and started to contemplate using her help to get the Women’s US Title.
Stratton challenging Giulia for the WWE Women’s United States Championship should make for a compelling title bout on the SmackDown before WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas.
3. The MFTs (Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, Talla Tonga & JC Mateo) vs. The Wyatt Sicks (Uncle Howdy, Erick Rowan, Dexter Lumis & Joe Gacy) 8-Man Elimination Match
The Wyatt Sicks & MFTs first met in the ring on SmackDown in October 2025
Since October 2025, The MFTs and The Wyatt Sicks have been feuding with one another in a battle for supremacy on Friday Night SmackDown.
With these two warring factions going at it week-after-week, it seems like there is no end in sight between Solo Sikoa’s family tree and Uncle Howdy’s band of misfits.
While Tama Tonga decided to give the lantern back to Howdy recently, it still seems likely that the two stables will do battle one last time.
The SmackDown before WrestleMania 42 could be the site for one final elimination-style bout between The MFTs and The Wyatt Sicks ahead of “The Showcase of the Immortals.”
2. Trick Williams vs. Carmelo Hayes
Carmelo Hayes has yet to defeat Trick Williams in WWE NXT or SmackDown
On the March 27 edition of Friday Night SmackDown, Sami Zayn defeated Carmelo Hayes to win the United States Championship thanks to inadvertent interference from Trick Williams.
Then, the April 3 SmackDown saw Zayn once again pull out a victory over Hayes in a rematch for the US Title to confirm his bout against Williams at WrestleMania 42.
With Trick now scheduled to challenge Zayn for the US Title, WWE could deliver a grudge match between Williams and his former best friend.
Trick facing Melo should make for an exciting contest on the April 17 episode of SmackDown ahead of “The Grandest Stage of Them All.”
1. Cody Rhodes vs. Aleister Black
Aleister Black defeated Cody Rhodes twice in AEW
The first night of WrestleMania 42 will see Cody Rhodes defending the Undisputed WWE Championship against Randy Orton.
Ahead of his recent heel turn, Orton was being manipulated by Aleister Black, who got in his head and wanted to see him embrace his dark side.
“The Legend Killer” has since joined forces with Pat McAfee and attacked his former friend Rhodes on several occasions leading up to Mania.
After his recent wins over Orton, Matt Cardona and Sami Zayn, Black could see the opportunity to take advantage of a distracted Cody Rhodes and pull off another significant victory on the road to WrestleMania 42.
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