WWE Tag Team Champion Suffers A Shock Defeat After A SmackDown Twist

Shinsuke Nakamura defeats WWE Tag Team Champion Tama Tonga on SmackDown.© NDTV Library

Tama Tonga lost a singles match on the latest taped episode of SmackDown, and Shinsuke Nakamura picked up the win for Bakusai with the Kinshasa. Nakamura beat one half of the reigning WWE Tag Team Champions, but he had help, since his partner Kyoki played a part in the finish. The result adds another setback for the MFTs in their ongoing feud with Bakusai. After the match, Tama's brother Talla Tonga stepped into the ring as Nakamura and Kyoki were heading out, which keeps the rivalry pointed toward a bigger confrontation.

❕SMACKDOWN SPOILER Shinsuke BEATS TAMA TONGA! #Smackdown https://t.co/i13ZRSwR5W

— jace (@vurawrestling) November 3, 2026

Shinsuke Nakamura defeats Tama Tonga after Bakusai's rivalry with the MFTs escalates

The singles match happened because the two teams never got their planned contest started the previous week. Bakusai, which is Nakamura and Kyoki, was supposed to face the MFTs in a non-title tag team match on the October 23 episode.

That bout never officially began. The teams started brawling at the entrance ramp after Kyoki took Haku's cane, and it all turned into chaos. So WWE booked Nakamura vs. Tama for this week's show.

The feud has been building for a while. The MFTs won the WWE Tag Team Championship on the August 14 episode in Boston, beating Damian Priest and R-Truth and The War Raiders in a Triple Threat match, and Nakamura teased a new partner right after that.

Bakusai then beat the MFTs by disqualification on the September 18 episode when Haku hit Nakamura with his walking stick. On October 9, Bakusai showed up at ringside during the MFTs' win over The War Raiders, and Haku clocked Erik with the same stick.

In this match Nakamura got the pinfall with the Kinshasa, but only because Kyoki got involved first. Tama is one half of the champions, yet he took the loss to someone who didn't need a title to do it.

He's now on the wrong end of a rivalry that has already spilled outside the ring.

Talla Tonga enters the ring as Nakamura and Kyoki leave after the match

The action didn't end at the final bell. Nakamura and Kyoki left the ring quickly after the win, but Talla Tonga showed up while they were backing away.

Neither Nakamura nor Kyoki stayed to face the other champion, and the segment ended with them leaving as Talla stood in the ring beside his fallen brother.

Haku, who manages Tama and Talla, has been involved in most of the flashpoints between the two sides. That's also why Kyoki taking his cane was the moment that wrecked the October 23 match.

This episode was taped before WWE's trip to Saudi Arabia, where Crown Jewel takes place on November 7 in Riyadh.

The main event of the taped show is set to be CM Punk against Kevin Owens in a No Holds Barred match. Earlier in the night, Gunther and Finn Balor opened the show with a brawl.