The SnSbCu Babbitt alloys have emerged as materials favored for sliding bearings due to Sn’s anti-friction properties, whereas SbSn and Cu6Sn5 intermetallics serve as load supports. In this research, microstructures, dispersion of intermetallic compounds (IMCs), hardening parameters, and activation energy of Sn-5wt% Sb-0.7wt% Cu alloy (Sn-Sb-Cu) reinforced with Ni element (Sn-Sb-Cu-Ni) and graphene oxide nanosheet (GOns) (Sn-Sb-Cu-Ni-GOns) were investigated. With 0.1 wt% Ni addition, long rod-shaped (Cu, Ni)6Sn5 intermetallic compound is formed, β-Sn microstructure has undergone remarkable refinement, and the Cu6Sn5 phase’s morphology progressively shifts from coarse polygonal precipitates to platelets and scallop shapes. When 0.1 wt% GOns were added to Sn-Sb-Cu-Ni alloy, SbSn, Cu6Sn5, and (Cu, Ni)6Sn5 IMCs’ volume fraction decreased, and there was a noticeable decrease in the average grain size of the β-Sn rich phase. The tensile stress-strain tests showed improvements in the hardening parameters of Sn-Sb-Cu alloy due to the incorporation of Ni and GOns. Sn-Sb-Cu-Ni-GOns alloy exhibits the highest Young’s modulus (Y), the yield stress (σy), the ultimate tensile strength (σUTS), and work hardening coefficient (χp) under different applied testing temperatures and strain rates. The average activation energies (Q) of Sn-Sb-Cu, Sn-Sb-Cu-Ni, and Sn-Sb-Cu-Ni-GOns Babbitt alloys are 41.64±0.14, 42.22±0.11, and 46.5±0.09 kJ/mol respectively, where the stress exponent (n) ranges between 2.16±0.36 to 6.69±0.45. Based on the values of Q and n, the main deformation process at high strain rates is the rate-controlling mechanism, specifically dislocation climb, which is regulated by lattice self-diffusion. At low strain rates, dislocation-pipe diffusion and grain boundary diffusion may be the rate-controlling mechanisms.