Summerslam 2022 Preview

It’s one of the biggest shows of the year and that means it is time for a bunch of rematches, because that’s what Summerslam has become this year. Now that being said, we very well may be in for one of the biggest changes in WWE in a VERY long time as this will be the first major show under the new regime. That means we could be in for some surprises and I’m much more interested in what we are getting now that things have changed. Let’s get to it.

United States Title: Bobby Lashley(c) vs. Theory

It’s a Money In The Bank rematch and the match has barely gotten any attention because Theory has Mr. Money In The Bank stuff to focus on instead. That hasn’t left much time for these two to do much, but at the same time, what kind of a story is there to tell with them? Theory seems destined to move up to the top level and Lashley is just one of the biggest stars on Monday Night Raw. It could be an interesting match, but that isn’t what WWE is doing here instead.

There is no reason to have either of them lose, but I’ll go with Lashley retaining here, even if Theory shouldn’t be taking another loss. The problem is I don’t see a need for him to be US Champion again, though that might be a hope spot for the sake of getting rid of the briefcase. Theory is a good smarmy heel, but he isn’t winning here without a lot of cheating so we’ll go with Lashley to retain, perhaps by DQ.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Liv Morgan(c) vs. Ronda Rousey

Now this is an interesting one, as it depends on what WWE wants to do with Morgan. She used the Money In The Bank cheat code to become champion in the first place so it isn’t like she has proven she can hang with the top stars in the division. If WWE wants her to be a thing then they need to have her win here, but I’m not sure if that is what they are going to do.

I’ll go with the false hope and say Morgan retains, but even if she does, there is the shadow of Charlotte’s return hanging over everything. Morgan is not going to go anywhere until she can get away from the top stars and I don’t think that is happening anytime soon. I can go with Morgan retaining here, but I can’t bring myself to believe that WWE is going to actually let someone into the main event club.

Mysterios vs. Judgment Day

This is another rematch that we have seen a few times already, but this time it’s No DQ so it makes things all the better. For some reason WWE thinks that teasing a Dominik Mysterio heel turn and split is interesting, to the point where this is the second Summerslam in a row where the Mysterios have been having issues coming in. If they’re going to do the turn then do it already so we can continue to not be interested in whatever Dominik is doing.

Since they need it a lot more, I’ll go with Judgment Day winning here. The team is in far better need of a win than the Mysterios so go with what makes sense. Normally that wouldn’t make a ton of sense, but maybe we get something new under the new regime. This is one of the least interesting matches on the card and I don’t see them overcoming that problem between the bells.

Logan Paul vs. The Miz

This is the celebrity match on the show but at least Paul is someone who has shown some abilities when he gets in the ring. I’m still not sure how much crossover there is going to be between Paul’s fans and WWE, but it does make sense to try to cash in on his audience. Putting him in there with the Miz means things should be safe, which means this has potential to be something.

I don’t see any reason for Paul to lose here, as you don’t want the celebrity to come back in and lose, especially in a match built on his revenge for Wrestlemania. Paul is going to be a semi regular and it makes sense to have him come in for special events. That interest involves him winning here, as beating Miz will give him just enough credibility. The match should be ok, but I’m not getting my hopes up here.

Tag Team Titles: Usos(c) vs. Street Profits

For the sake of star power, Jeff Jarrett is guest referee, as the New Generation is the best option that we have these days. There have been multiple singles matches between the teams and a lot of them have turned into brawls, so it’s time for something a bit more physical. The question now is if it is time to take the titles off of the Usos, and that might be where they are going.

I’ll go with the Profits winning here, as otherwise, I have no idea what they are supposed to do. The Usos have dominated for so long and someone has to take the titles from them eventually. It makes enough sense to have the Profits win here, if nothing else for the sake of only the Viking Raiders being around as challengers after. I could use a break for the Usos, and hopefully that is the case for WWE as well.

Pat McAfee vs. Happy Corbin

It’s a battle of former roommates, because there is an actual backstory to this thing. McAfee is someone who has done incredibly well every time he has been given the chance and Corbin is someone who can carry anyone in the ring if necessary. They have put in some effort to build this up and now we get one of McAfee’s special appearances, which should go well.

Of course I’m taking McAfee here as you don’t put Corbin in a match like this to have him win. McAfee is a star and having him brag about the win on his podcast can get WWE some extra attention. That is one of the reasons you put him on a show like this one and it helps that he is pretty awesome at everything he does. Now just go and have the match without doing anything too wrong.

Raw Women’s Title: Bianca Belair(c) vs. Becky Lynch

This match isn’t doing much for me and that is because it feels like something that has been hammered into the ground. WWE has done very little to make me care about the Raw women’s division because it tends to be the same group of people over and over. Belair is great as the champion, but I’m over seeing her face off with Lynch. I’m sure the match will be good, but they both need to move on after this.

Give me Belair to win here, though I have no idea why she is supposed to face next. Raw has a great top half of the division, but it has been used so often now that there is almost no reason to get interested in this stuff again. These two had an epic showdown at Wrestlemania earlier this year, but I’m not sure if they are going to be able to do it again. Belair should win though, and stay from Lynch for good after.

WWE Title: Roman Reigns(c) vs. Brock Lesnar

It’s Last Man Standing, because WWE had to give us a little something over having the same match that we have seen far too many times. It’s their second Summerslam main event (third if you count their four way in 2017). Lesnar continues to be one of the only people who can give Reigns a run for his money, but, again, forgive me for not getting excited over watching these two fight one more time.

I don’t see any reason for Lesnar to take the title so I’ll go with Reigns to retain, probably with some kind of interference. They’ll beat each other up, but if Lesnar isn’t interested, this could be a bit of a slog. Hopefully Theory cashes in to get rid of the briefcase already, but something tells me they find a way out of what they have been teasing for the last several weeks. Reigns retains here, and gets out to face Drew McIntyre at Clash At The Castle.

Overall Thoughts

It’s kind of interesting and appropriate that this is the first major show under the new regime, because you can feel how old and tired this show is looking. There are parts of the show that could go well but the question now is what kind of changes you could make. I don’t have the highest expectations for the show, partially because I’ve seen a lot of the matches before, but maybe they can mix enough good action with some fresh ideas to make it a nice evening.

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