The road to WWE Clash In Italy just got a lot more intense.
During Friday night’s episode of SmackDown, WWE officially confirmed that Rhea Ripley will defend the WWE Women’s Championship against Jade Cargill at the upcoming WWE Clash In Italy premium live event on May 31 in Turin, Italy.
The title showdown comes after Ripley scored a major victory over Cargill at WrestleMania last month to capture the championship. Following the loss, Cargill disappeared from WWE television for several weeks before finally resurfacing recently with one goal in mind — going right back after Ripley and the title.
Things have only become more chaotic in recent weeks.
Ripley has aligned herself with Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss in an effort to combat both Fatal Influence and the returning Cargill. However, the alliance has hardly been stable, especially with Flair remaining hesitant about fully trusting Ripley.
That tension boiled over again on Friday’s SmackDown.
Flair and Bliss approached Ripley backstage, with Flair attempting to shift the group’s attention toward their upcoming six-woman tag team match at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event. The trio is set to face Cargill, B-Fab, and Michin on the special event card.
The conversation quickly escalated into a heated argument before Fatal Influence interrupted, leading to a tag team match later in the evening.
Now, with emotions running high and alliances appearing shaky at best, Ripley heads into WWE Clash In Italy with the WWE Women’s Championship on the line against a highly motivated Jade Cargill just one week after the major six-woman showdown at Saturday Night’s Main Event.
For those interested, you can check out our complete WWE SmackDown Results 5/22/26 here at WrestlingHeadlines.com.
