Summerslam 2026 Night One
Date: August 1, 2026
Location: US Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Michael Cole

It’s the first half of one of the biggest shows of the year and for once we have a genuine double main event. That includes Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar inside the Cell, plus Cody Rhodes challenging CM Punk for the Smackdown World Title. Those two matches should be more than enough to carry the show but the undercard doesn’t look bad either. Let’s get to it.

The wrestlers arrive, with Michael Cole saying the two night Summerslam takes place tonight. That’s not how nights work.

The opening video is hosted by a Minnesota Viking (I believe Justin Jefferson), who talks about the effort that everyone puts in to get here, with the focus on their training.

Raw Women’s Title: Iyo Sky vs. Liv Morgan

Morgan is defending and goes after her to start, only to be knocked into the ropes. Sky dropkicks her out to the floor, where she uses Green Shirt Guy to get on the barricade and dive onto Morgan. Back in and Morgan goes after the banged up ribs to take over, setting up Three Amigos. An enziguri gives Morgan two but Sky is right back up with a flapjack. A missile dropkick has Morgan in more trouble and Sky sunset bombs her out to the floor.

Cue Judgment Day for a distraction to shove Sky off the top for two but Sky is fine enough to send Morgan outside. A moonsault to the floor takes the villains out but Morgan kicks her down back inside. Cole: “You have to give credit to Morgan for staying in this fight thanks to the Judgment Day.” As I try to figure out what we’re crediting Morgan for if the other people did the work, Sky catches her on top with a super Spanish Fly for two and they slug it out.

Oblivion is broken up and Sky faceplants her for two, followed by her own Oblivion for two on Morgan. Over The Moonsault misses though and Sky bangs up her ankle, allowing Morgan’s middle rope Codebreaker to connect for two. They head to the apron with Sky hitting a German suplex, setting up the Bullet Train Attack against the post. That leaves Sky favoring her knee again, meaning Over The Moonsault misses. Back to back Oblivions (though the first one might have been blocked) retain the title at 13:34.

Rating: B. Morgan did a lot better than I was expecting here and it was nice to see her actually defend the title for a change. Beating Sky as close to clean as she got here is a bit of a surprise and it was a good way to open the show. If nothing else, the fans are always going to respond to Morgan and they had a hard hitting match in the process.

Mark Henry, Sean Waltman, Dan Spivey and Jimmy Hart are here.

Bloodline vs. Royce Keys/LA Knight/Solo Sikoa

The Bloodline gets the Gears Of War inspired entrance (never played the games so I’m going to assume the entrance was good). The non Bloodline rush in to start fast and it’s Sikoa hammering on Jey to officially get things going. That lets Sikoa mock Jey’s entrance and even tease running it back. Fatu comes in to hammer on the rather cocky Sikoa and the running Umaga Attack in the corner gets two.

Sikoa punches his way to freedom and it’s a double clothesline to leave both of them down. Keys gets the tag and starts to beat up Jimmy, including a spinebuster. Jimmy finally gets in a shot to the head and goes up, where Keys hits a super fall away slam. Jey comes in to spear Knight for two but Knight runs the corner for the superplex.

It’s time for the parade of secondary finishers until Keys powerslams a charging Fatu into the timekeeper’s area for the awesome crash. Jey spears Knight again and Jimmy’s Superfly Splash gets two. Sikoa is back up to Spike Jimmy though and the BFT to Jey gives Knight the pin at 11:04.

Rating: B-. I’m surprised by the result but it’s nice to see the Bloodline lose for a change, with Knight even getting the pin. That’s a good sign for his future and maybe we can FINALLY get Knight in the main event picture. That powerslam to Fatu looked great too and it’s nice to see things going the other way for once.

Post match Knight eventually hugs Sikoa as a thank you.

Gunther vs. Nick Aldis

Gunther wasn’t happy when Aldis, then Smackdown GM, wouldn’t put him in the World Title match so Gunther attacked him. Now Aldis is back in the ring for one night to get some revenge. Aldis even gets to come to the ring to Oasis and Barrett absolutely loses it. Gunther backs him up against the ropes to start and takes over, allowing for a celebration on the announcers’ table.

Gunther gets back inside and gets suplexed for quite the reaction from the fans. The King’s Lynn (modified Texas) Cloverleaf is broken up though and Gunther chops him out to the floor. We pause for Gunther to yell at Aldis’ wife (Mickie James) and son before he rocks Aldis with another chop.

Aldis’ chop doesn’t do much good as Gunther sends him hard into the corner. A backbreaker works a bit better for Aldis, who tries and fails at the King’s Lynn Cloverleaf again. Gunther’s sleeper is broken up with a ram into the buckle and Aldis hits a nice superplex. The top rope elbow to the back sets up the King’s Lynn Cloverleaf and the fans go nuts, only for Gunther to make the rope. The sleeper is broken up again so Gunther hits a powerbomb into another sleeper, with Aldis tapping at 11:14.

Rating: B. This was pretty much exactly what it was always going to be, with Aldis doing as well as he could have and giving Gunther a sweat before falling in the end. Aldis certainly didn’t embarrass himself out there and had a heck of a match, with the whole thing being about the King’s Lynn Cloverleaf, which just wasn’t enough. Good match, and if Aldis wants to wrestle on occasion, he’ll be fine.

Post match Gunther leaves and Aldis’ family gets in to celebrate with him.

Bella Twins/Paige vs. Fatal Influence

Brie and Henley start things off with Brie taking over off a Russian legsweep. The YES Kicks connect and they quickly go outside, with Brie being sent into the steps. Jayne adds the running cannonball and the villains get to pose. Back in and Reid grabs a chinlock but is smart enough to cut off Paige to prevent the tag. She doesn’t cut Nikki off though and the tag allows Nikki to come in and take over on Reid.

The Rack Attack 2.0 is broken up though and Paige cannonballs off the apron onto Henley. Jayne has to come in for the save so Brie decks her, despite her arm looking like it’s just hanging there. Henley pulls Brie to the floor, leaving Reid to give Nikki a hard knee to the face. But Jayne misses the Rolling Encore. Paige sunset flips her for tow, only to walk into the Rolling Encore for the pin at 7:33.

Rating: C. Well, I’ll certainly take being completely wrong about the result here. I was sure the Bellas would get their big moment but it’s nice to be wrong here. This started off fine but got bad near the end. As usual, the Bellas are only so good in the ring and it doesn’t help when Brie clearly got hurt in the process. Not good here for the most part, but at least it didn’t go on that long.

Post match the winners leave and the Bellas….turn on Paige to lay her out. Nikki says the lesson is to never take her spot. Wait. Does Brie possibly being hut mean we might have to keep waiting on the Bellas to get their big title win? Good grief.

Smackdown World Title: Cody Rhodes vs. CM Punk

Punk is defending and sporting a Minnesota North Stars themed jacket. Since Rhodes is Rhodes though, he gets a big Street Fighter entrance, complete with a themed mask and helmet. They chop it out to start and Punk knocks him into the corner, with Rhodes suddenly favoring his arm. Punk immediately slaps on the hammerlock, which is reversed int a headlock.

That’s broken up so Rhodes sends him into the corner, meaning they can fight over a wristlock. Rhodes takes over and sends him outside, though the arm is still bothering him. Punk gets in a clothesline off the barricade and drops an ax handle to the arm back inside. Another shot drops Rhodes again but Punk comes up favoring his knee. The running bulldog out of the corner is blocked and Rhodes gets in a shinbreaker to start in on the leg. Rhodes gets in a dragon screw legwhip and it’s time to stomp away. A half crab is blocked but Punk can’t hit the GTS.

Punk can break up a Disaster Kick by kicking him out of the air though and they’re both down. That’s enough for Punk to get up and drop the elbow but the GTS is escaped again. The Cody Cutter, Disaster Kick and a top rope Cody Cutter combine for a series of near falls and the Figure Four goes on. Punk turns it over until Rhodes gets to the rope, but another Figure Four attempt is countered. Instead Punk pulls him into the Anaconda Vice, with Rhodes getting out again.

Back up and Rhodes tries a swinging Alabama Slam but without the Alabama or the Slam, as Punk pulls him into another Anaconda Vice. Rhodes gets up and grabs a Cross Rhodes for two so Punk goes up for a moonsault and another near fall. The GTS connects but Punk hurts his knee, allowing Rhodes to kick out. They head outside with the announcers’ table being loaded up. Neither finisher can hit so Rhodes sends him into the steps. Back in and another GTS drops Rhodes, though he’s able to grab the rope for the break this time.

Punk sends him outside again and loads up the top rope elbow…but completely misses Rhodes for the massive crash, with the knee taking most of the impact. Rhodes throws him back inside but accidentally kicks the referee. Punk hits a GTS and tries another, which is reversed into Cross Rhodes. With both of them down, Randy Orton runs in for the surprise return and drops Rhodes with an RKO. Punk, who didn’t seem to see what happened, gets back inside and hits another GTS to retain at 29:45.

Rating: B+. I liked the ending with Orton running in as that’s certainly a big surprise worthy of Summerslam. At the same time, this started rather slowly and eventually worked with the Punk crash through the table being a huge spot. The good thing is that Punk retained in the end as we need a break from Rhodes as champion. Rhodes vs. Orton non-title is fine and should open up some doors for Punk to face a few of those people he’s been talking about. The match took its time to get going but they got it rolling in the end, which is not surprising given the talent involved.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi. They’ve fought twice before and split the matches, so it’s time for the two of them to hurt each other really badly inside the Cell.

Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar

In the Cell and Paul Heyman is here with Lesnar. Femi fires off the uppercuts to start so Lesnar snaps off the German suplexes. That’s shrugged off though and Femi clotheslines him out to the floor. A suplex drops Lesnar on the floor and Femi sends him into the steps. Lesnar doesn’t seem to mind as he picks up the steps for some HARD shots to Femi’s head

Another hard shot, this one with a chair, puts Femi down again and Lesnar suplexes him onto the chairs. Femi escapes an F5 though and gets in a chokeslam for the needed breather. Another chokeslam sets up a toss powerbomb as Lesnar is rocked for a change. The Fall From Grace (without the lift) gets two so Lesnar does and Undertaker sit up and hits an F5, but Femi pops up.

Lesnar does it again and Femi pops up again, so it’s a third F5 to finally get two. The frustrated Lesnar rips up the mat and exposes the boards, with a Tombstone onto the exposed wood (yes including the tongue out) gets two. Femi has had it and pops up, knocks a chair out of Lesnar’s hands, and hits a Fall From Grace for the pin at 11:41.

Rating: B+. Yeah it was kind of short, but this isn’t the sort of match that needs to go long. Sometimes you need to get in there and get out and that was the case with this match. Femi survived everything from Lesnar and won clean in the end, though I was expecting it to take a bit more. There was no reason for Lesnar to win here so it was cool to see them do the right thing in the end.

Post match the Cell is raised and Lesnar leaves, but comes back to hug Femi. Lesnar grabs the mic and offers congratulations and calls Femi the future. He himself is the past and Femi is the future. That felt like a retirement, but then again so did Wrestlemania so we’ll have to wait and see

Overall Rating: B+. It was another rather good one night event, which has me scared for the second night. The good thing is the big matches delivered and most of the rest worked too, though there was nothing that stole the show. I’ll take a show that is a steady supply of good though, even with the constant breaks and ads and all that time being wasted. The show was a strong one though and it was over before 9:15, which I’ll take any day. Rather good first half for Summerslam here.

Results
Liv Morgan b. Iyo Sky – Oblivion
LA Knight/Royce Keys/Solo Sikoa b. Bloodline – BFT to Jey
Gunther b. LA Knight – Sleeper
Fatal Influence b. Bella Twins/Paige – Rolling Encore to Paige
CM Punk b. Cody Rhodes – GTS
Oba Femi b. Brock Lesnar – Fall From Grace

 

 

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Summerslam 2025 Night One
Date: August 2, 2025
Location: Metlife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Attendance: 53,161
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

So for the first time ever, Summerslam is a double night show and that means we might be up to ten total matches! The main event for the first night is CM Punk challenging Gunther for the Raw World Title, which should be a heck of a fight if they are able to get enough time. Other than that, Jelly Roll has a match because of course he does. Let’s get to it.

Breland singe God Bless America.

Someone I don’t know named Druski talks about how huge some of these moments are going to be. The focus is on making moments, because going viral matters more than anything else these days.

Here is host Cardi B in a ery feathery dress. She hypes up the crowd and…that’s it.

Jey Uso/Roman Reigns vs. Bron Breakker/Bronson Reed

Paul Heyman is here with Breakker/Reed, the latter of whom stole Reigns’ shoes to be a real jerk. They pair off to start and Uso and Reigns clear the ring so let’s run that Uso entrance back. Reigns gets pulled out to the floor so Uso dives onto all three for quite the crash. The really big running clothesline hits Uso back inside and it’s off to Breakker, with Breakker getting a running start to hit the flying tackle on Reigns.

Back in and Breakker gives Uso a World’s Strongest Slam, setting up the pushups and pose. A double splash crushes Uso and it’s Breakker grabbing a chinlock, allowing him to sing a mocking song to Reigns (Barrett finds this questionable). Breakker knocks Uso outside but misses the big diving clothesline, sending him crashing into the announcers’ table. That’s still not enough for the tag as Reed runs over to pull Reigns off the apron, with Breakker tackling Uso at the same time.

A ticked off Reigns gets up as Uso knocks Reed down, allowing the tag back to Reigns. It’s Summerslam so Reigns busts out the big dive, with Reigns overshooting the two of them and thankfully rolling in time to prevent a massive faceplant. Back in and Reigns gives Breakker a release Rock Bottom but Reed knocks Reigns down. Uso is back in with an enziguri, earning himself a big running clothesline.

Reed isn’t done and hits a heck of a suicide dive, followed by Breakker hitting his big running clothesline to knock Reigns over the announcers’ table. Back in and a Steiner Bulldog hits Uso but Reigns is back up with the Superman Punch. The spear sends Breakker through the barricade, leaving an annoyed Heyman to tell Reed to finish him off.

The Tsunami is broken up with a Superman Punch and the 1D gets two with Breakker making another save. Breakker is up and pulls his straps up, only so he can pull them back down. The spear is loaded up but Reigns takes the bullet for Uso, who knocks Breakker outside. Reed is Superfly Splashed for the pin at 21:07.

Rating: B+. These guys beat the fire out of each other and it was an awesome opener with Breakker looking even more like a freak of nature. The big focus here was Reigns putting his body on the line for the sake of Uso and it made for a good story. Very exciting match here, with even the long Uso heat segment not being able to drag it down.

We recap the Women’s Tag Team Titles. Roxanne Perez is replacing Liv Morgan as Raquel Rodriguez’s championship partner. Alexa Bliss has attempted to befriend Charlotte, who really doesn’t want friends but does want gold, so they’ll get along for the time being.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Alexa Bliss/Charlotte vs. Judgment Day

Judgment Day is defending and naturally Charlotte and Bliss have issues deciding who starts. That results in Bliss being taken into the corner early on but it’s quickly off to Charlotte. Rodriguez gets in a clothesline from the apron though and gets to come in for some heavy stomping. Perez chokes away and it’s back to Rodriguez for a chinlock.

That’s broken up as well though and it’s Bliss coming back in for the comeback. A rake to the eyes breaks up Sister Abigail though and Twisted Bliss is blocked as well. Rodriguez drops Bliss with a clothesline and the champions take over again. A big boot and Russian legsweep get two on Bliss and Perez grabs the reverse chinlock.

Bliss fights up and brings in Charlotte to clean house. Everything breaks down and Bliss accidentally hits Charlotte, who gets planted with the Tejana Bomb. Pop Rox connects but Bliss makes the save with a running Blockbuster. Charlotte boots Rodriguez down and Sister Abigail finishes Perez for the titles at 13:31.

Rating: B. Bliss deserves a medal for what she has managed to do with Charlotte. These two took what felt like it should have been a short form story and turned it into an actual something. Above all else though, that something has turned Charlotte into a completely different version of herself and it is working so well. The match was good too, as both teams have chemistry and you could see the story they were telling.

Sami Zayn vs. Karrion Kross

Scarlett is here with Kross, who has been trying to get Zayn to embrace his dark side and if he loses here, he has to admit that he’s wrong. Zayn knocks him outside to start and hits the moonsault off of the barricade. Back in and a Death Valley Driver gives Kross two and he strikes away in the corner.

The t-bone suplex gets two but Zayn fights back with the ax handles. Some right handles in the corner are broken up so Kross knocks him down. Scarlett gives Kross the pipe and distracts the referee, only for Zayn to grab the Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Zayn strikes away in the ropes and goes for the pipe, which he throws down. Instead it’s the Helluva Kick to finish Kross at 8:12.

Rating: C+. This was Zayn getting his chance to show that good can win over evil and that’s where he tends to shine. Zayn knows how to overcome the odds like few others and it worked here. Kross would be done with WWE after this match, as his second run with the company ended about the same as the first.

We get a tribute to Hulk Hogan, with Michael Cole talking about what Hogan did at Summerslam over the years.

We recap Jade Cargill challenging Tiffany Stratton for the Smackdown Women’s Title. Stratton cashed in Money In The Bank and is described as someone who stole the title and needs to prove herself, despite doing so over and over. Cargill is the unstoppable new star and Stratton appears to be in trouble.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Tiffany Stratton vs. Jade Cargill

Cargill is challenging and we get the Big Match Intros. They waste no time in going outside, with Cargill taking over and suplexing her down for a nip up. Back in and Stratton knocks her down for a change, setting up a Swanton. Cargill gets in another shot in the corner though and the Eye Of The Storm gets two.

A suplex puts Stratton down again but she reverses a chokeslam with a hurricanrana. Stratton’s not great Alabama Slam connects but Cargill gets the feet up to block the Prettiest Moonsault Ever. Jaded connects, with the cover pulling Stratton’s feet into the ropes. Now the chokeslam connects but a super Jaded is countered. The Prettiest Moonsault Ever retains the title at 6:57.

Rating: C+. As much as WWE seems to want this to be the big rivalry of the future for the division, I really don’t see it happening. The chemistry isn’t there and while Stratton is better than Cargill in the ring, she’s not quite good enough to carry this to greatness. It’s not bad and Stratton gets a nice win, though Cargill clearly wasn’t ready for this big of a spot yet.

We recap Jelly Roll/Randy Orton vs. Logan Paul/Drew McIntyre. Paul didn’t like Roll showing up and getting so much attention so Orton yelled at Paul about it. Paul fought back and McIntyre got involved as well, setting up the big celebrity tag match where all three of the wrestlers deserved better on this show.

Jelly Roll/Randy Orton vs. Logan Paul/Drew McIntyre

Paul jumps Roll from behind before the bell so Roll tags himself in at the bell. Some kicks to the ribs have Roll in trouble but he fights up, causing Paul to bring in McIntyre. Orton begs for a tag but Roll wants to stay in, meaning Orton gives him a pep talk instead. Roll realizes he’s in trouble as he slugs away, only to get dropped with the Glasgow Kiss.

McIntyre slowly pounds Roll down (McIntyre: “I hear voices. They say YOU’RE SCREWED!”) and brings Paul back in for a double suplex. Roll fights out of trouble and gets over for the tag, with Orton giving McIntyre a hanging DDT. They head outside, where McIntyre is dropped onto the announcers’ table, but Paul distracts Orton. That’s enough for a Claymore from McIntyre and Paul takes Roll down as well.

The big right hand puts Roll down and McIntyre puts him onto the announcers’ table, leaving Paul to go up. After a toast of Prime, Paul hits the highe splash through the table and they’re both down. Paul gets up and Roll is taken out, leaving Orton to get beaten down. The Blockbuster gives Paul two but Orton is able to get in a top rope superplex to McIntyre.

Somehow Roll is still at ringside and says he’s going back to the ring, where he gets on the apron. Roll comes back in with a chokeslam to Paul and a Boss Man Slam to McIntyre. Orton is back in and takes out McIntyre, only to be sent outside. Paul drops Roll and gives him the frog splash for the pin at 17:05.

Rating: C. It was….fine. There were big spots in there and Roll wasn’t bad but ultimately it was nothing more than just ok. The problem here continues to be that the focus was ENTIRELY on Jelly Roll, which doesn’t make for a good tag match. It’s like a bunch of big stars had to stop what they were doing so he could play too and that’s not good for the second biggest match at Summerslam. It’s a case of focusing on the celebrity rather than the wrestling and that gets annoying fast. Roll did well enough, but this felt like a miscast Smackdown main event.

We recap CM Punk vs. Gunther for the Raw World Title. Punk has won a bunch of feuds since he came back and now he wants some gold. After winning a #1 contenders match, the match was set, with Gunther pointing out that they both consider themselves the best in the world. This basically boils down to Punk wanting to show he can still do it and Gunther wanting to smash through him.

Raw World Title: CM Punk vs. Gunther

Gunther is defending and they take their time to start. Punk gets backed up against the rope but avoids the big chop as he knows the big weapon he has to dodge. They take turns going after the arm and Punk blocks another chop, which might have hurt Gunther’s own hand. Back up and the big chop out of the corner finally connects to put Punk down hard.

Punk goes back to the arm until Gunther ties him in the Tree Of Woe for some big chops, including one to the leg. The regular chop to the chest has Punk down again and Gunther drops him a second time just to prove his point. They fight over an abdominal stretch until Punk tries a GTS, with Gunther escaping and trying the sleeper. That doesn’t work either so Gunther boots him in the face to take over again.

Another chop ties Punk in the ropes for the Terry Funk teeter totter spot, with Punk making it look more like death than a joke. The reverse chinlock goes on, followed by a Sharpshooter to put Punk in even more trouble. Somehow Punk powers out and reverses into a Sharpshooter of his own, sending Gunther over to the rope. Gunther chops him down again but Punk is back up with some strikes of his own into a swinging neckbreaker.

Punk’s running knee in the corner is countered into a powerbomb for two and they both need a breather. Another knockdown lets Gunther hit the top rope splash for two and Gunther is getting frustrated. The big clothesline puts him down and Gunther hits the even bigger version to make it worse. The dropkick into the corner sets up another powerbomb for another two, leaving Gunther stunned.

More chops have Punk in more trouble and Gunther knocks him outside. The announcers’ table is loaded up but Gunther takes too long posing and gets dropped onto said table. Gunther comes up and is cut open BAD and Punk goes after the cut back inside. The top rope elbow connects but Gunther pulls the GTS into the sleeper. That’s reversed into a GTS and Gunther is out on his feet, meaning it’s a second GTS to give Punk the pin and the title at 30:21.

Rating: A-. This was a war, with Punk trying to stop the monster and getting the fire beaten out of him, only for Gunther to get just a bit too cocky. That let Punk get in his big shot and finally unload on Gunther enough to beat him. It worked well and kept up the idea of Gunther not being at his best on the big stage, which is an interesting recurring theme for him. Awesome match here as Punk continues to absolutely bring it in the big spots.

Post match Punk gets the title in a very emotional moment…and here is Seth Rollins, on crutches, with Paul Heyman holding up the Money In The Bank briefcase. Rollins shouts a lot, goes to leave, and then throws his crutches down. The knee brace is removed and Rollins comes to the ring and we’re ready to go.

Raw World Title: Seth Rollins vs. CM Punk

Punk is defending and tries a GTS but Rollins hits him with the briefcase over and over. NOW we get the cash in and opening bell, meaning the Stomp gives Rollins the title back at 11 seconds. This was the big culmination of “Did Rollins fake a knee injury or not” and apparently he did, as they recreate the Wrestlemania XXXI ending and continue the neverending Punk vs. Rollins feud.

The Vision comes out to celebrate to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was a rather strong show, even if it weakened a bit in the middle. The opening two matches and the (advertised) main event are all more than good and it made up for the weaker (but still fine) middle of the card. If you mix this in with the top half of the second night of the show, it’s an all timer, but that’s not how we do things at major events these days. Still though, good stuff here and this worked well.

Results
Roman Reigns/Jey Uso b. Bron Breakker/Bronson Reed – Superfly Splash to Reed
Charlotte/Alexa Bliss b. Judgment Day – Sister Abigail to Perez
Sami Zayn b. Karrion Kross – Helluva Kick
Tiffany Stratton b. Jade Cargill – Prettiest Moonsault Ever
Logan Paul/Drew McIntyre b. Jelly Roll/Randy Orton – Frog splash to Roll
CM Punk b. Gunther – GTS
Seth Rollins b. CM Punk – Stomp

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Summerslam 2022
Date: July 30, 2022
Location: Nissan Stadium, Nashville, Tennessee
Attendance: 48,449
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jimmy Smith, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

We’re still in the stadium for Summerslam and believe it or not, this time we have a main event of Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar. The twist this time is that it’s Last Man Standing to add some spice, but there is only so much interest to be had. Other than that, we have Becky Lynch vs. Bianca Belair in a match a year in the making. Oh and Vince McMahon stepped down from WWE eight days before this show so we’re in a VERY new era. With a pair of rematches on top. Let’s get to it.

The opening video focuses on what a CRAZY TOWN Nashville is, with a look at all of the crazy people on the show.

Oh and there’s a pinball theme. A CRAZY pinball theme I’m sure.

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

Lynch, currently in the Big Time Becks villain phase, is challenging after Belair took the title from her at Wrestlemania. Feeling out process to start with Belair powering her away without much trouble. Back up and Belair flips away from her, setting up a heck of a shoulder. Becky takes her down by the arm and cranks back on it though and Belair is in trouble for a change. The bad arm is kicked apart to make it even worse but Belair’s legs are fine enough to hit a dropkick.

They head outside where the KOD onto the announcers’ table is broken up and the arm is banged up again. They get back inside with Lynch snapping off a Bexploder and taking her down in the corner…but Lynch comes up holding her shoulder (uh oh). Lynch is fine enough to go for the leg and then kick Belair to the apron but the middle rope Fameasser is blocked.

They go outside again with Belair Glam Slamming her onto the apron before a posting sends Lynch’s shoulder into the steel. Back in and a handspring moonsault gives Belair two but Lynch is back with Diamond Dust of all things for two of her own. Belair’s powerbomb is countered into a hurricanrana which is countered into a failed KOD attempt. They head outside with the KOD connecting this time, but Lynch just beats the count.

Back in and another KOD is countered but Belair spikes her anyway. Belair takes too long going up and gets Manhandle Slammed for two. With nothing else working, Lynch takes her up top for a super Manhandle Slam, which is reversed into a KOD to retain Belair’s title at 15:11 and win the feud.

Rating: B. Yeah these two fought a lot but they have the chemistry to make it work very well. This was another good back and forth showdown between two of the best women (or anything) that WWE has ever had. It came off like a huge battle and that is the kind of showdown that these two have managed to make possible. The arm work from Becky to take away the power made sense and the fact that she was banged up makes this even more impressive. Heck of a match here and a great opener.

Post match Becky, with her right arm non-functional, shakes Belair’s hand and seems to be good again. With Becky gone, Bayley makes her surprise return after over a year away with a horrible knee injury. Cue the returning Dakota Kai (she’s been gone for a bit), plus the newly named Iyo Sky (no longer Io Shirai). The trio gets in the ring to yell at Belair but Lynch evens things up a bit, sending the villains running off. That would be more or less it for Lynch for about four months, as she would be written off television the following night on Raw due to a shoulder injury and not be back until November.

We recap Miz vs. Logan Paul. They were a team at Wrestlemania and won, but then Miz turned on Paul for no apparent reason. Months later, Miz said that he destroyed Paul, who then announced that he had signed with the company. Now it’s time for Miz to show what he can do, while Paul is back with his first ever singles match.

Miz vs. Logan Paul

Miz has Maryse and Tommaso Ciampa (missing his first name here but just in case you confuse him with Gus Ciampa) with him. Inspired by Paul’s really rare Pokemon card (not here this time), Miz has a one of a kind Polaroid of he and Paul together around his neck. Feeling out process to start with Miz snapmaring him down and mocking Paul a bit, much to Maryse’s delight.

Back up and Paul grabs a waistlock into a fireman’s carry, allowing him to mockingly shove him away with a boot to the head. Miz is sent out side and an apron moonsault takes him down again as Paul is already shining rather well. Back in and Miz crotches him in the ropes, setting up a Codebreaker for two. Ciampa even gets in a cheap shot and we hit the chinlock.

Miz misses the charge in the corner though and Paul is right back with a Blockbuster. Back up and Paul gets two off a running powerslam, followed by the YES Kicks to send Corey Graves that much closer to madness. The Figure Four has Miz in trouble but a rather dramatic rope break gets him out. Paul hits a high crossbody and a standing moonsault for two but Miz kicks him in the face.

Ciampa teases another cheap shot and gets ejected (with the crowd throwing in a YES chant), but Ciampa just sits ringside in a chair. Cue AJ Styles to really chase Ciampa off, leaving Paul to hit a not so phenomenal Phenomenal Forearm. They head outside with Paul loading up the announcers’ table, setting up a heck of a top rope frog splash to drive Miz hard through it. Back in and Maryse distracts the referee but Miz almost runs into her. That’s enough of a distraction to let Paul hit the Skull Crushing Finale for the pin at 14:16.

Rating: B. This was up there for best celebrity matches ever and it’s barely even on a sliding scale. Paul was out there showing himself to be able to do all kinds of things in the ring, with that frog splash being a great bonus. It was entirely a showcase for Paul and Miz is the perfect choice to be out there taking the beating. What mattered here was Paul looking like a star and that is exactly what happened here. Heck of a match and WWE has to know what they have here with Paul.

US Title: Bobby Lashley vs. Theory

Theory, the reigning Mr. Money In The Bank, is challenging and jumps Lashley before the bell. Lashley says he can go and shrugs off Theory’s swarm to start. An elbow to the face into a spinebuster has Theory on the floor and he’s ready to walk. Lashley isn’t having that but Theory is right back with a rolling dropkick for two. For some reason Theory thinks it’s a good idea to slug it out with Lashley, earning himself a powerslam. The spear hits the post but Theory rolls into the Hurt Lock to retain the title at 4:44.

Rating: C-. This could have been on any given Raw and that isn’t good enough for a Summerslam title match. They seemed to be playing up the idea that Theory was saving himself for a potential cash-in later tonight but the Hurt Lock is the kind of move that could make him tap that fast as well. This is something that could have been cut from the show without missing much, though having Lashley on the show is often a good idea.

We recap the Mysterios vs. Judgment Day. The team isn’t happy with Rey Mysterio being a star and attacked him in front of his family. Now it’s time for revenge in a No DQ match.

Judgment Day vs. Rey Mysterio/Dominik Mysterio

Rhea Ripley is here with Judgment Day (Finn Balor/Damian Priest) and this is No DQ. Judgment Day jumps them to start and the fight is on fast. Rey hurricanranas Balor though and Dominik dropkicks Priest, setting up the back to back dives to put the villains down. We settle down to a double Russian legsweep dropping Balor but Dominik gets sent into the wrong corner.

The chinlock goes on as the fans are starting to wake up a bit here. Priest adds the Broken Arrow into a slingshot stomp from Dominik but he’s back with a suplex. Rey comes in with a top rope seated senton to Priest. A bulldog plants Priest again so Balor slides in a chair, which Rey picks off without much trouble. Rey grabs the chair and slides down into a splash on Balor for a nasty looking crash.

Back in and Priest boots Rey down for two and Balor adds the shotgun dropkick in the corner. Dominik breaks up the Coup de Grace though and Rey snaps off a top rope hurricanrana, with Priest making the save this time. The double 619 is broken up by Ripley, who drops Dominik face first onto the apron. South Of Heaven hits Rey but Balor wants a chair. Instead he gets the returning Edge, who spears down Judgment Day, setting up Rey’s slingshot splash for the pin on Balor at 11:07.

Rating: C+. The match itself was good enough, but my goodness the fans did not care about what they were seeing here. Granted at this point Judgment Day was one of those things that just kept going and there wasn’t much to get excited about with them, but it shouldn’t take Edge to get the only strong reaction of the match. This was a good example of a match where the fans just didn’t are no matter what was happening, and that’s a bit disappointing.

We recap Happy Corbin vs. Pat McAfee. They’re old friends/roommates from the NFL and McAfee has mocked Corbin’s losing streak. Corbin has attacked McAfee a few times so now it’s time to fight.

Pat McAfee vs. Happy Corbin

McAfee has a choir here to sing about BUM A** CORBIN for a rather unique entrance. They talk a lot of trash to start, with McAfee leading the crowd in their singing. McAfee hits a superkick and a middle rope hurricanrana puts Corbin on the floor. A posting drops Corbin again and McAfee stomps away back inside.

Corbin is put on top but gets shoved down, only to have McAfee moonsault onto his feet. A dropkick (to the stomach) sends McAfee into the corner and Corbin gets to hammer away. The slow beating is on, with a ram into the barricade giving Corbin two. McAfee manages to send him to the floor and hit the slingshot dive, only to be thrown over the announcers’ table.

Back in and McAfee catches him on top, this time jumping (mostly) to the top for a top rope superplex. McAfee slugs away and avoids a charge to send Corbin shoulder first into the post. That lets McAfee go up top and, after getting his balance, hit a top rope flip dive to take Corbin down on the floor. Back in and McAfee knocks Corbin into the referee by mistake, setting up a low blow (payback for Corbin doing the same thing to him the previous night) and a Panama Sunrise to finish Corbin at 10:50.

Rating: B-. McAfee is another of the few celebrities who has figured out how to put together a rather good match. There were some close calls here as McAfee didn’t have everything polished but he made it work well enough. This was an entertaining match and the fans ate McAfee up as usual, while Corbin lost again, also as usual. It might not quite have been the Logan Paul stunt show, but McAfee is certainly worth a look whenever he is out there and has a star power all his own.

We look at Drew McIntyre defeating Sheamus to become #1 contender last night on Smackdown.

Here is McIntyre to talk about how much he loves Nashville, to the point where he lives here. He and Sheamus went to war last night but now it is time to go to to war with Roman Reigns. For now though, it is time for Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar for the first time ever! Uh, in Nissan Stadium in Nashville. Last man standing. McIntyre asks a an for his name (Colt). McIntyre: “IN FRONT OF COLT!” Nice save there and McIntyre raises his sword to set off some pyro and wrap up a quick cameo.

Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Street Profits

The Usos are defending in a rematch from Money In The Bank where a bad referee cost the Profits the titles. Therefore, Jeff Jarrett of all people is guest referee, just for the save of the country music connection. The Profits come out with the Tennessee Titans cheerleaders for a little bonus. Dawkins and Jimmy start things off with Jeff having t pull both of them out of the corner.

Jey comes in off a quick tag for a modified Demolition Decapitator for two. It’s already back to Jimmy for a chinlock as this isn’t the fastest pace to start. The running hip attack connects but a second one misses, allowing Dawkins to enziguri his way out of trouble. Ford and Jey come in to pick up things up a lot, with Ford’s high crossbody getting two. A rather loud chop only seems to wake Jey up though and it’s a pop up neckbreaker for two on Ford.

Back up and Ford slips over for the tag to Dawkins and house is rapidly cleaned, including a huge flip dive to the floor. Back in and the Anointment gives Dawkins two on Jimmy but Jey is back in to cut him off. A superkick into the Superfly Splash gives Jimmy two, setting up the double Superfly Splash with Ford having to make a save.

Jey almost superkicks Jarrett by mistake but walks into a spinebuster. Ford’s very high frog splash gets a delayed two, meaning it’s time to yell at Jarrett (who did nothing wrong, along with the nothing he has done for the rest of the match). A dive is cut off by a double superkick to the….some part of Ford’s body. Back in and more superkicks hit Dawkins, setting up the 1D to retain at 13:22.

Rating: B. I remember wondering what Jarrett was going to add coming into this and coming up with an answer of “nothing”. The fact that I didn’t remember him being involved in this match at all didn’t help things and there was nothing to having him here. At the same time, you had these teams with some great chemistry having a good, pay per view worthy match. The Usos were still doing some awesome stuff with the titles, even if they had to deal with such a lame choice for guest referee.

Matt Riddle (not medically cleared) runs in through the crowd and calls out Seth Rollins for a fight. Rollins comes out to meet him in the aisle, gets the better of it, and Stomps (how Riddle was hurt in the first place) Riddle down again.

We recap Liv Morgan challenging Ronda Rousey for the Smackdown Women’s Title. Morgan cashed in Money In The Bank on an injured Rousey to win the title so now it’s time for the match with Rousey ready coming in.

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

Morgan is defending and Rousey flips her over to start. A running knee rocks Morgan and another throw gets two. Morgan comes back with a Codebreaker but Oblivion is easily blocked. Rousey tries to get her down but is reversed into a double arm crank. That and a crucifix bomb get two on Rousey, who is right back with the armbar. Morgan tries to slip out but gets pulled into it again, this time making the rope for the break. Rousey gets the armbar again so Morgan stacks it up for the pin at 4:35…..despite tapping before the pin.

Rating: C-. Morgan was on a roll on the way to Money In The Bank and then just died once she got the title via the cash-in. This was Morgan mostly getting squashed before tapping out and retaining anyway. If WWE wanted Morgan to be a big star, they needed to actually put her over someone rather than these screwy finishes. It didn’t do Morgan any favors and Rousey hardly looked better either.

Post match Rousey protests and armbars Morgan…and the referee. Replays show that Morgan tapped way before the three count.

Here is Kane to announce the attendance: 48,449. I believe he has some questions about those numbers.

We recap Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar in a Last Man Standing match for Reigns’ WWE Universal Title. In short, Randy Orton was supposed to get the shot but was too hurt so it’s time to break the Lesnar glass. Not the most thrilling match, but fair enough that they didn’t have a better option. The video also teases Austin Theory cashing in his briefcase.

WWE Universal Title: Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

Reigns, with Paul Heyman (but without the Usos, who he sends to the back), is defending in a Last Man Standing match. Lesnar starts walking to the ring but stops to put on a flannel shirt and cowboy hat….so he can drive a tractor to the ring. There is no way this can end well. As Lesnar stands in the loader of the tractor, he cuts off the introductions and does his own, before flipping the mic to Reigns…..who snatches it out of the air in one hand (not shown but find the clip as it’s rather awesome).

Lesnar then DIVES out of the tractor onto Reigns and a clothesline takes it to the floor. There’s the overhead belly to belly on the floor as Lesnar is starting very fast. Another suplex of the steps has Reigns rocked and they head into the crowd, where Lesnar suplexes him onto a platform. Reigns gets in a quick shot but is promptly suplexed back to ringside. The table is set up but a Heyman distraction lets Reigns put Lesnar through it instead.

Lesnar is back up so Reigns steps him in the face. Back in and Reigns hits a pair of Superman Punches, followed by the first (of probably many) spear. Another spear is blocked and Lesnar sends him outside in a crash. Lesnar slams him into part of a broken table before getting back in the tractor. After fiddling with it a bit, Lesnar gets out and hits Reigns with the steps instead.

A piece of a broken table to the head puts Reigns down again but he staggers to his feet. That doesn’t work for Lesnar, who puts him in the front loaded and drops him into the ring for a crash. With that not being enough, Lesnar snaps off some German suplexes and the F5 gets nine. Another F5 is countered into the guillotine but Lesnar reverses into one of his own. Lesnar lets him go and Reigns is up at nine again.

That doesn’t work for Lesnar….who uses the tractor to LIFT UP THE RING and send Reigns falling out to the floor. Reigns is up again (and so is the ring, which is still up on the tractor, meaning a big middle finger to fans on that side of the ring, who can’t see a thing right now) so cue the Usos to go after Lesnar. They’re wrecked in short order so Heyman hands Lesnar the titles in an attempt to get him off Reigns.

That earns Heyman an F5 through the announcers’ table (egads the impact), allowing Reigns to hit a spear. They’re both down so heeeeeeere’s Theory with the briefcase! Before the bell can ring, Lesnar F5’s him on the floor to cut that off in a hurry. The Usos are back up to superkick Lesnar, who gets up again.

Reigns hits another spear, followed by another spear. With that not working either, Reigns hits Theory with the briefcase and then unloads on Lesnar with the thing. That’s only good for nine, so Reigns belts him in the head but Lesnar is up AGAIN. Another belt shot connects so Reigns and the Usos bury Lesnar with everything they can find at ringside to finally keep him down and retain the title at 22:54.

Rating: B. This was the fight that you would expect from these guys under these circumstances and that’s exactly what it needed to be. Sometimes you need two people to beat the daylights out of each other with one big shot after another and that’s what you got here. Lesnar might not have been the biggest threat to win the title, but sometimes you need a match where the champion has to fight really hard to keep the title. Rather good main event and that’s as good as you could have gotten here.

Reigns poses as what used to be Heyman is carried out to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. WWE had a rather strong show here with the bigger matches more than delivering. There’s nothing on here to make it a classic but it’s a three and a half hour show with some very good stuff throughout. The weaker points are kept short and I had a lot of fun throughout. This is what Summerslam tends to be like and they made a rather transitional time in the company’s history work out.

Results
Bianca Belair b. Becky Lynch – KOD
Logan Paul b. The Miz – Skull Crushing Finale
Bobby Lashley b. Theory – Hurt Lock
Rey Mysterio/Dominik Mysterio b. Judgment Day – Slingshot splash to Balor
Pat McAfee b. Baron Corbin – Panama Sunrise
Usos b. Street Profits – 1D to Dawkins
Ronda Rousey b. Liv Morgan – Rollup
Roman Reigns b. Brock Lesnar when Lesnar could not answer the ten count

Ratings Comparison

Bianca Belair b. Becky Lynch

Original: B
2023 Redo: B

Logan Paul vs. The Miz

Original: C+
2023 Redo: B

Theory vs. Bobby Lashley

Original: C-
2023 Redo: C-

Judgment Day vs. Rey Mysterio/Dominik Mysterio

Original: C
2023 Redo: C+

Baron Corbin vs. Pat McAfee

Original: C
2023 Redo: B-

Usos vs. Street Profits

Original: C+
2023 Redo: B

Ronda Rousey vs. Liv Morgan

Original: C-
2023 Redo: C-

Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: B-
2023 Redo: B

Overall Rating

Original: C+
2023 Redo: B+

Dang I underrated some of those earlier matches, especially Miz vs. Logan Paul.

 

 

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Summerslam 2021
Date: August 21, 2021
Location: Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas, Nevada
Attendance: 51,326
Commentators: Pat McAfee, Michael Cole, Jimmy Smith, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves

It’s time for one of the biggest Summerslams ever, as this is the first major event after the attendance restrictions were lifted after the Coronavirus pandemic. They need a major main event to make that work and that is what they have with John Cena challenging Roman Reigns for the Universal Title. Other than that, we have Bobby Lashley vs. Goldberg for the WWE Title because we must have Goldberg. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Big E. vs. Baron Corbin

Baron’s Happy days weren’t here yet. Some woman from Tik Tok is a guest ring announcer and Big E. doesn’t have his Money In The Bank briefcase as Corbin stole it from him. The rather sad Corbin clutches the briefcase and gets belly to belly suplexed to start. Big E. misses the apron splash though and Corbin is thrilled with the idea of winning via countout.

That doesn’t work so Corbin sends him into the post a few times, setting up the chinlock to keep Big E. down. A chokeslam is countered into a stretch muffler of all things but Corbin slips out and hits Deep Six for two. Corbin heads outside to grab the briefcase, earning himself a ram into the barricade. Back in and the Big Ending is good enough to finish Corbin at 6:31.

Rating: C. Set up a quick story on TV and then pay it off with a fast match here. That’s all you need to do for a Kickoff Show match and seeing the horrible loser take another loss will always work. Things would get better for Corbin soon, while Big E. would wind up having a pretty lame WWE Title reign, though at least he got there.

We’re in Las Vegas so the opening video has a poker theme, which lasts all of a few moments before going into the look at the matches, as expected. Also as expected, John Cena vs. Roman reigns feels way bigger than anything else.

Those stadium shows always look awesome and that is the case again here.

Raw Tag Team Titles: RKBro vs. AJ Styles/Omos

RKBro is challenging after reuniting last week to go after the titles. Orton and Styles start (not a bad choice) with Orton sending him flying with an early suplex. It’s off to Riddle so Styles bails to the floor and assaults the announcers’ table. Back in and Styles hands it off to Omos for the big slam on Riddle. Styles puts the chinlock on but Riddle elbows his way out of the fireman’s carry. That lets Riddle hit a running knee on Omos but Styles is there to cut off a diving tag to Orton.

The comeback is on, including a backdrop to Styles and forearms to Omos. Orton powerslams Styles and, after knocking Omos off the apron, hits the hanging DDT. Omos saves Styles from the RKO though and then chokeslams Riddle onto the apron. Riddle is back up with a posting for Omos but Styles is back with a moonsault from the apron into a reverse DDT to drop Riddle hard. Back in and Styles blocks the RKO, only to get caught with the second attempt to give Orton the pin and the titles at 7:05.

Rating: C+. The match wasn’t quite a classic but it makes perfect sense to put this on first. The fans loved RKBro and letting them have their big win was going to get the show started in the right direction. Styles and Omos were fine for a pretty nice title reign, but you’re only going to get so much out of that. Good choice for the opener here and Orton getting some focus is almost always a good thing.

Riddle being so freaking happy over the win is a great thing.

We recap Alexa Bliss vs. Eva Marie, which is over Bliss’ doll Lillie being all evil. Eva wanted Doudrop to go after Bliss but she was scared of the doll, meaning Eva and Doudrop aren’t in a great place coming in.

Eva Marie vs. Alexa Bliss

Doudrop is here with Marie. Sign in the crowd: “Eva Marie is worse than an airport tuna sandwich.” Points for creative, which cancels out the negative points for the massive CGI Lillie doll. During the entrance, we get a quick look at Lillie being able to sit up and wink, because of course she can. Bliss dodges a few charges to start and Eva falls out to the floor.

Back in and Bliss elbows her in the face as they’re going in very slow motion to start. Eva gets in a few shots but stops to slap Lillie, who she also uses to slap Bliss. That’s enough to send Bliss into a rage for some bad right hands, setting up a flipping splash for two. Doudrop insists that she believe in Eva as Lillie is sat back on top. Bliss sends her into the corner but misses Twisted Bliss to give Eva two. Back up and Bliss hits a DDT (which Marie falls too soon on) for the pin at 3:50. Doudrop seems well pleased.

Rating: D-. This was one of those matches that would have felt like a bad filler on Raw, let alone getting time on one of the biggest shows of the year. Eva was brought back in for star power but then she has a match like this and so much of it is dropped out the window. Bliss was better, but the Lillie stuff was killing her and that was getting more and more obvious every week.

Post match Doudrop makes sure to announce Eva as the loser of the match.

Mario Lopez, in a swank Hart Foundation shirt, brings in RKBro with Randy Orton promising that it is going to be smooths ailing for the team going forward. He’s still getting used to the Bro name though. Riddle has a surprise for him on Raw too, which would wind up being a scooter (with tassels).

United States Title: Sheamus vs. Damian Priest

Priest is challenging after beating Sheamus in a non-title match, where he re-injured Sheamus’ nose (hence a protective mask). Sheamus headlocks him down to start before switching into a hammerlock. Back up and Priest rocks him with a right hand before muscling him up for the Broken Arrow. Sheamus is sent outside so there’s the running step up flip dive to take him out again.

Priest’s spin kick is countered and he gets sent hard into the post, meaning it’s time to slow down a bit. A belly to back suplex sets up a chinlock but Priest is right back up. That works for Sheamus, who plants him with the Irish Curse and stops to pose. Priest powers out of another chinlock and hurricanranas his way out of a powerbomb, only to get powerslammed for two more.

Back up and Sheamus stops to check his hair, allowing Priest to get in a running tornado DDT but his back seems to be flaring up. The back is fine enough to hit a top rope spinwheel kick but Sheamus snaps him throat first across the top to break up a…..something. A top rope clothesline into an Alabama Slam gives Sheamus two and frustration is setting in.

The Brogue Kick is countered with a kick to the head though and Priest grabs South Of Heaven for two more. Sheamus knees him out of the air for two of his own and it’s off to a heel hook of all things. Priest fights up and rips off the mask, allowing him to hammer away. A kick to the face sets up the Reckoning to give Priest the pin and the title at 13:49.

Rating: B-. That’s the kind of big time fight that you need to have in a spot like this and they did the right thing with the ending. Priest took every big thing that Sheamus had and then won clean with his finisher. WWE set Priest up in the last few months and then paid him off with a win here, which is what you’re supposed to do. Nicely done.

We recap Dominik Mysterio causing issues for his dad, because they have literally been teasing this split for over a year now.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Mysterios

The Usos are defending. Rey hammers on Jimmy to start but it’s too early for the 619. The Usos are both sent outside with Rey hitting the sliding splash, followed by a springboard dive from Dominik. Dominik comes in for Three Amigos to Jimmy but Jey breaks up the frog splash with a shove out to the floor. The top rope Demolition Decapitator hits Dominik for no cover and Jimmy adds a running headbutt for two.

Dominik tries to fight out of the corner and gets BLASTED with an uppercut to drop him again. Jey hits Two Amigos and stops to pose before shouting some Spanish. A neckbreaker gets Dominik out of trouble though and there’s the hot tag to Mysterio to start cleaning house.

The tornado DDT gets two on Jimmy and the top rope seated senton puts him down again. Everything breaks down and it’s a superkick into the Superfly Splash for two on Rey. Dominik is back in and gets dropped on the apron like the schmuck that he is. Jimmy misses another Superfly Splash but he raises his knees to block a frog splash. The double superkick sets up the Superfly Splash to retain the titles at 10:48.

Rating: C+. The Usos and Rey managed to overcome Dominik’s extreme level of bleh to have a decent match. The Usos are able to have a pretty good match against anyone and that is what they did again here. It’s a rematch from another recent title change so there was only so much interest, but that has been the chance for either Tag Team Titles for years now.

Actress Tiffany Haddish introduces the new National Champion Damian Priest, who doesn’t like bullies. He likes being the UNITED STATES Champion though.

Rick Boogs plays new Intercontinental Champion Rick Boogs to the ring, allowing Pat McAfee to dance on the announcers’ table.

We recap Sasha Banks vs. Bianca Belair for the latter’s Smackdown Women’s Title. Belair beat her at Wrestlemania to win the title so Banks left (as she does) and then came back for a rematch. However, there were rumors that Banks wasn’t cleared to wrestle so things might be up in the air.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Sasha Banks

Hold on though as Banks isn’t cleared to compete (right) so we have a replacement.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Carmella

Belair is….hang on a second.

BECKY LYNCH IS BACK beats the heck out of Carmella, meaning we have a replacement (again).

Smackdown Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Becky Lynch

Belair is defending and it’s a right hand into the Manhandle Slam to make Lynch champion at 25 seconds.

And for those you keeping track, had it been Banks vs. Belair, it would indeed be the same story for Belair at back to back Summerslams.

WWE is going back to Saudi Arabia and yes, it’s amazing, mainly because they’ve been well paid to say so.

Tamyra Mensah-Stock and Gable Steveson, Olympic gold medal winners in wrestling, are here for a nice presentation.

We get the same WWE Shop commercial for the third time in less than two hours.

Drew McIntyre vs. Jinder Mahal

Mahal cost Drew Money in the Bank so tonight it’s about revenge with Mahal’s goons barred from ringside. McIntyre drives him into the corner to start and hits a quick clothesline, followed by the toss suplex. A trip to the floor goes badly for Mahal as well, so McIntyre throws him back inside for some begging. Mahal brings up their previous friendship before getting in a superkick for two. The chinlock doesn’t do much to McIntyre so it’s the Glasgow Kiss into a series of overhead belly to belly suplexes. The Futureshock into the Claymore finishes Mahal at 4:36.

Rating: D+. Yeah what were you expecting here? Mahal has long since stopped meaning anything so having McIntyre beat him without much trouble was the only way to go. That’s what they did here and it was a fine way to go, albeit in a bad match. You can only get so much out of a match that is this one sided though and that’s what brought this down.

Post match Veer and Shanky come to the ring to go after McIntyre, who chases them off with the sword.

We recap the Raw Women’s Title match, with new champion Nikki Ash defending against Charlotte and Rhea Ripley. Nikki cashed in Money in the Bank on Charlotte, who had been beaten down by Ripley. Tonight it’s time to crush Nikki once and for all, because she has been treated like a loser since she won the title in the first place, because A, Charlotte and B, it’s a really stupid gimmick.

Raw Women’s Title: Charlotte vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Nikki Ash

Nikki is defending and, after some Big Match Intros, gets shoved down by Charlotte to start. The monkey flip takes Charlotte down and a rollup gets two on Ripley. Back up and Charlotte tosses Nikki out, leaving Ripley to shoulder Charlotte into the corner. Nikki comes back in so Charlotte can beat up both of them at once, including slamming Ash onto Ripley for the double stack.

The moonsault hits Ripley’s raised boot though, leaving Nikki to counter Riptide into a crossbody for two. Charlotte and Ripley mess up something so Charlotte hits a big boot for two of her own. Nikki is sent outside and another big boot sends Ripley outside. A tornado DDT drops Charlotte to give Nikki two but Ripley is back in to German suplex both of them at once.

Ripley’s missile dropkick gets two on Charlotte, leaving Ripley with the stunned kickout face. Charlotte and Ripley brawl to the floor for the slugout until Nikki dives onto both of them for no reaction. Back in and Ripley and Ash go for a double suplex on Charlotte, who counters into a double DDT, then knocks them both outside (because of course she does). Charlotte corkscrew moonsaults onto both of them, with Ash being driven HARD into the barricade.

Ripley finally gets in a big boot on Charlotte and Prism Traps Nikki, only to have Charlotte break it up again. The Prism Trap to Charlotte is countered into the Figure Eight but Nikki dives off the top for the save. Nikki hits the Reckoning for two on Charlotte with Ripley making a save this time. The Riptide is countered into a DDT to send Ripley outside and this isn’t looking good for Nikki. A high crossbody misses for Nikki and Charlotte grabs the Figure Eight to get the title back at 13:03.

Rating: C+. While it’s an entertaining match, this made me mad last year and it’s doing it again here. Nikki might as well have been a lamb led to the slaughter here, as Ripley looks like a killer and Charlotte looks like a star, while Nikki looks like a mascot of a low rent kids’ birthday party place. Throw in Charlotte being booked like a train here and then getting Nikki to tap in the end and this was ALL about Charlotte, as is far too often the case anytime she’s around. Nikki being called ALMOST A Superhero was bad enough, but then she’s just a meal for Charlotte, like so many others have been over the years.

We recap Seth Rollins vs. Edge. Rollins cost Edge the universal Title against Roman Reigns last month, which is apparently tied to a moment in 2014, when the Shield teased attacking Edge and almost wiped him out. Now Edge knows that if Rollins hits the Curb Stomp, his career is probably over. I’m not sure how good of a feud it was, but Edge facing someone new is a fun thing to see.

Edge vs. Seth Rollins

I almost didn’t recognize Rollins without his Freakin. Edge comes out with a hybrid Brood/Metalingus theme for a pretty awesome moment. Feeling out process to start with Edge grabbing a headlock and then knocking Rollins to the floor for some frustration. Back in and Rollins forearms away but gets backdropped right back over the top for a crash. Edge sends him back inside and then outside again but this time Rollins drives him into the post.

A trip into the steps makes it worse and Rollins grabs a neckbreaker for two back inside. Rollins hits a Sling Blade but Edge is smart enough to go to the ropes before the Stomp can launch. Yet another neckbreaker is countered though and Edge grabs a flapjack for a breather. Rollins is able to knock him off the top, setting up a heck of a frog splash for two. Another Stomp attempt is avoided so they go up top at the same time, with Edge grabbing a super swinging neckbreaker (which would seem to hurt them both equally).

It’s Edge up first with a big boot and the Edgecution for two, leaving him a bit frustrated this time. The Edge-O-Matic is good for the same but Rollins suplexes him down. Another Stomp misses so Edge grabs a Glam Slam for two (nice touch). Edge has to avoid another Stomp and sends Rollins into the post, setting up a spear through the ropes and out to the floor for the crash.

Rollins is driven into the apron and the screen (because there’s a screen) is knocked out to give Edge two more. The spear is countered into the Pedigree (how Rollins beat Roman Reigns one day) for another near fall, meaning it’s Rollins being stunned this time. With nothing on the ground working, Rollins goes up top for the Phoenix splash, only to get speared down for another near fall.

With nothing else working, Rollins just hits him in the back of the neck, setting up a basement superkick to the back of the head. Rollins goes for the Stomp yet again but gets reversed into the Edgecator of all things, with Edge letting go to switch into the Crossface. Edge rams him face first into the mat and makes it a Crossface sleeper for the tap at 21:14.

Rating: B. They beat each other up for a long time until Edge got him in the end. The story here centered around the Stomp and it was a logical way to go given the buildup from that 2014 segment. That being said, going off a segment from seven years ago that wasn’t so interesting in the first place and it was a weird build to get there. Good match, but the road there could have been better.

Money In The Bank is in a football stadium next year. Gee that’s a quick turnaround for the same stadium but I’m sure nothing will go wrong.

Tonight’s attendance of 51,326 is officially announced.

Earlier tonight, John Morrison and Miz drove a water truck into the stadium.

Here are Miz and John Morrison for a chat. They’re ready to soak everyone….but Morrison has forgotten the Drip Stick 2000s. Miz doesn’t have them either, so here is Xavier Woods with the Drip Stick 2000 (a water cannon with a water tank attached). Woods is told he’s outnumbered but he does a survey (as part of his weird NWO tribute phase) and then sprays both of them down. And that’s it, as the crowd was SILENT during this.

We recap Goldberg vs. Bobby Lashley for the WWE Title. Goldberg showed up as a challenger (as he tends to do) and the match was made, but then Lashley and MVP went after Goldberg’s son Gage (who looked like he would rather be having his teeth pulled out than be here) to make it personal. In other words, it’s a battle of the spears because WWE thinks that is the most amazing idea ever.

Raw World Title: Goldberg vs. Bobby Lashley

Lashley, with MVP, is defending. After the Big Match Intros, they go with the power off to start, with Goldberg hitting a flying shoulder and a World’s Strongest Slam. Back up and Lashley knocks him down with a hard shot of his own. Neither can hit a Jackhammer though so Lashley gets in some shots to the back of the neck. For some reason Lashley goes up top but gets slammed down, meaning MVP needs to offer a distraction.

That’s fine with Goldberg, who hits the spear on the floor to rock Lashley again. With nothing else working, MVP hits Goldberg in the knee with his cane, allowing Lashley to hit a chop block. A spinebuster puts Goldberg down again and he rolls outside for a rather out of character move. Lashley follows and drives the knee into the post twice in a row….which is enough for the referee stoppage at 7:12 as Goldberg can’t stand.

Rating: D+. Yeah it wasn’t awful, but at the same tome it is really hard to find any reason to be interested in Goldberg. All he does is come in, do some lame story, and then get a title match. That wasn’t the case here, and Lashley can only do so much. Nothing to see here, but at least Goldberg is done again for the time being.

Post match Lashley stays on Goldberg with a chair, but Goldberg’s son comes in to jump Lashley. That earns him a Hurt Lock, but MVP points out who it is and Lashley lets him go. Goldberg swears vengeance and covers his son as MVP says Lashley had no way of knowing who that was. BECAUSE THIS NEEDED A REMATCH!

We recap Roman Reigns vs. John Cena for the Universal Title. Reigns has been champion for about a year so now it’s Cena coming in for the dream match. Reigns talked about how Cena never changes (Reigns: “It’s like missionary position EVERY NIGHT!”) but Cena says Reigns has to change every few years because people stop caring. Cena also brought up that all it takes is three seconds to win the title, no matter what Reigns does to him. Oh and if Reigns loses, he’s leaving WWE, because WWE likes to take away any drama they might build up.

Smackdown World Title: John Cena vs. Roman Reigns

Reigns, with Paul Heyman, is defending. Cena comes out first and my goodness you can feel the star power dripping off of him like no one else that you ever see. As a great touch, the screen behind Cena’s entrance shows his sixteen World Titles, including the dates he won them. They take their time before eventually locking up for a standoff. Cena rolls him up for two and points it out to Reigns as the mind games are on.

That doesn’t work for Reigns, who knocks him down and then does it again to make it worse. A snap suplex gives Reigns two and we hit the chinlock. Cena gets tossed outside and there’s the big whip into the steps, allowing Reigns to pose again. Reigns can even stop to pose on the steps with the title but Cena gets in a quick rollup for two (in a great touch because it’s THAT CLOSE to the upset).

A quick AA attempt is countered into a DDT to give Reigns two, allowing him to apologize to movie executives for hurting Cena. Reigns cuts off a comeback attempt with a right hand and says this is easy. Another AA attempt is countered into a sleeper, with Cena powering up to drive him into the corner. Reigns still isn’t impressed, so Cena hits that big running clothesline of his for a needed breather.

Back up and Cena hits the running shoulders into the ProtoBomb. The Shuffle is countered into a quickly broken guillotine though, leaving Reigns to hit a Superman Punch to take over again. The spear is cut off with a kick to the face and now the Shuffle connects. There’s the AA for two (with Cole freaking out on commentary to give away the kickout). The STF sends Reigns to the rope for the break so Cena follows him outside, earning himself an apron kick to the face.

Reigns gets a running start but charges into an AA through the announcers’ table for two back inside, leaving Cena frustrated. Cena goes up top but dives into a powerbomb for two and needs to pull himself up in the corner. The spear misses in the corner though and it’s the super AA for two, with the Reigns Leaves If He Loses stipulation being brought up for the first time all match. For some reason Cena tries his own spear but gets kicked in the face. They slug it out with Reigns hitting the Superman Punch into a spear to retain at 23:00.

Rating: B+. This wasn’t the best match in the world, but it was all about the big match atmosphere. That was hitting completely, as Cena knows how to bring the feeling like no one else these days. While it wasn’t likely that Cena was going to win, there was the feeling that it could happen and that’s good enough. Throw in Cena knowing how to do this match just well enough and it felt like a main event worth title match between two titans.

Post match Reigns poses but here is Brock Lesnar, making his first appearance in well over a year. Lesnar circles the ring and then stands on the steps before the staredown sends Reigns backing away. While the feud is tired, this would lead to a heck of a story as Paul Heyman was stuck between the two of them and even switched sides for a few weeks. Anyway, Lesnar poses as reigns and Heyman leave to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Most of the bigger matches clicked well, but there were enough things bringing the rest of the show down. The biggest thing though was the crowd actually being around, as it adds so much to the show. This was a rare situation where Summerslam was a way bigger show than Wrestlemania and the quality was good enough too. The bad parts are pretty bad but the stronger parts of the card carried it over. Solid show, but fast forward some of those weaker points.

Ratings Comparison

Big E. vs. Baron Corbin

Original: C
Redo: C

RKBro vs. AJ Styles/Omos

Original: C+
Redo: C+

Eva Marie vs Alexa Bliss

Original: F
Redo: D-

Sheamus vs. Damian Priest

Original: B-
Redo: B-

Usos vs. Mysterios

Original: C-
Redo: C+

Becky Lynch vs. Bianca Belair

Original: N/A
Redo: N/A

Jinder Mahal vs. Drew McIntyre

Original: D+
Redo: D+

Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte vs. AJ Styles

Original: B-
Redo: C+

Seth Rollins vs. Edge

Original: B+
Redo: B

Bobby Lashley vs. Goldberg

Original: D+
Redo: D+

John Cena vs. Roman Reigns

Original: A-
Redo: B+

Overall Rating

Original: C+
Redo: B-

Mostly the same here, though some of the bad stuff pulled the original down a bit.

Here is the original review if you’re interested:

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

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Monday Night Raw
Date: July 27, 2026
Location: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s the last Raw before Summerslam and that means it is time for the final push to the red half of the card. In this case that means an official weigh-in between Brock Lesnar and Oba Femi, along with something else between Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns. The Alpha Academy get to face the Vision as well so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

The Cell is lowered and Oba Femi and Brock Lesnar (with Paul Heyman), flanked by police, come to the ring for the weigh-in. HHH and Adam Pearce are in the ring waiting as Femi comes in first. Femi weighs 302lbs and here are Heyman and Lesnar, but the Cell is locked with the two of them outside. Heyman says it’s a bad idea for Lesnar to be inside that Cell and lists off Lesnar’s resume.

We hear about how great Lesnar is in the Cell and Femi is promised a beating. Oh and Lesnar weighs 303lbs. Femi is ready to fight anyway but Lesnar will see him at Summerslam. Femi says Saturday is coming and he’ll be ready for Lesnar. With Lesnar and Heyman leaving, Femi wrecks security. Unless I missed it, HHH didn’t say anything here. This wasn’t a great segment, but it’s also a story where there is nothing left to say.

We look at Seth Rollins beating Roman Reigns via DQ at the 2022 Royal Rumble (hey I was there).

Vision vs. Alpha Academy

Non-title. Theory runs from Otis to start and it’s Breakker coming in to circle Otis instead. A big shoulder drops Breakker and it’s off to Tozawa, who gets sent into the wrong corner. Maxxine Dupri grabs Tozawa’s foot and a big boot knocks him outside as we take a break. We come back with Breakker’s gorilla press gutbuster dropping Tozawa for two. Tozawa flips away from Theory though and it’s Otis coming in to clean house. The Caterpillar hits Breakker and Tozawa’s suicide dive takes Theory out on the floor. Otis gets posted though and the Super Spear finishes Tozawa at 8:30.

Rating: C+. Hopefully this wraps things up for the Academy as a serious threat as it’s pretty much the only match they needed to have. Otis probably has something else to do and that makes sense as the fans are behind him. At least Tozawa took the fall here, which is how the thing should go as he’s just kind of along for the ride.

Post match the Vision stays on them but Otis is back up. Dupri offers a distraction though and it’s a double powerbomb out of the corner to plant Otis. Theory cracks Otis with a chair to leave him laying.

LA Knight has been accused of being paranoid but look at how things have been going with the Bloodline. The goal is to put them in a hole at Summerslam and the BFT is just a fact of life.

Raquel Rodriguez and Sol Ruca are both ready for the title match tonight. I have no idea why they’re looking off to the side as they talk about the other, as they’re in different rooms.

Various celebrities are here, including Jimmy Hart.

We get a video of Chad Gable in Minnesota, where he promises to win the Intercontinental Title. He spent a long time doing everything he could to gain success and it didn’t work, but then he lost himself as El Grande Americano. Now though, he needs to win the title because he’s ready to represent himself, his friends, his family and his state as he did in the Olympics, but he’s doing it as the man he was always supposed to be. Heck of a vignette here, as Gable is on fire here and pretty much has to win.

Iyo Sky is ready to prove Liv Morgan wrong again by taking the title at Summerslam.

Je’Von Evans vs. Rusev

Rusev drives shoulders into the ribs to start and then drops him with a clothesline. Back up and Evans kicks him in the head, setting up a springboard hurricanrana. That earns Evans a fall away slam out to the floor, where he kicks Rusev in the face. A charging crossbody is tossed over the barricade but Evans is right back with a shot of his own. That’s enough for Evans to send us to a break (“We’ll be right back!”) and we come back with Evans fighting out of a chinlock.

Rusev drops him with a shot to the face but Evans unloads with right hands in the corner. The big no hands dive takes Rusev down again so they go back inside, where Rusev gets in a Machka Kick. The Accolade is escaped but the OG Cutter is reversed into the Accolade, with Evans diving over to the rope. A Stunner staggers Rusev though and the OG Cutter finishes him off at 10:55.

Rating: B-. This was a back and forth match and Evans bounced off of Rusev rather well. That’s about all you can expect from Rusev these days, as it’s not like he’s doing much of anything else. At the same time, Evans got to survive the Accolade and beat Rusev clean. He’s getting something out of this and I want to see how far he can go, as he’s won me over in recent months.

We look at Seth Rollins costing Roman Reigns the World Title at Wrestlemania XL.

Here are Joe Hendry and Danhausen for a concert, starting with a song about Judgment Day wanting Danhausen’s human monies. Then they sing about believing that you are cursed and here are the Minihausens as well, followed by a bunch of dancing girls. The dancing girls start a conga line and boxer Ryan Garcia jumps the barricade to sing with them.

Then he guitars Hendry in the back and Judgment Day runs in for the big beatdown. The Minihausens get beaten up too and Judgment Day clears out the ring. I actually fell asleep watching the show and woke up during the concert with the Minihausens dancing. It was clear that more sleep was needed.

Various celebrities are here, including Ashton Kutcher (the Farm Hand), who is holding an NXT Tag Team Title of all things.

Big Cass is back next week.

Rey Mysterio vs. Ethan Page

They go technical to start until Page runs him over with a shoulder. A quick hurricanrana looks to set up the 619 but Page is back up with a pull into the corner. Page powerbombs him onto the apron and we take a break. We come back with Page going for the mask but Mysterio fights out and hits a top rope moonsault. Page boots him in the face but gets sent into the post, allowing Mysterio to hit some right hands in the corner.

The Eddie Dance looks to set up…something off the top, only for Page to reverse it into a powerslam. Page is sent outside for a top rope hurricanrana, sending Page hard into the announcers’ table (OUCH). Back in and the 619 is loaded up but Page grabs the ring skirt of all things to block it. Page posts him and gets the Egoplex for the pin at 11:43.

Rating: B-. This was another nice win for someone on the way up as Page gets what is probably the biggest win of his main roster career. He’s not someone who is coming up with anything amazing or new but he does his thing rather efficiently. It’s similar to Robert Roode and that’s not a bad place to be.

Liv Morgan thinks Iyo Sky doesn’t know who she’s facing at Summerslam. Morgan is the girl who worked so hard to make it through NXT and now she’s here, as champion. She cares about Sky, who already beat her once, but Sky isn’t in her head. Morgan is so much stronger than Sky and now it’s time to remind everyone who she is. Good, to the point promo here.

Danhausen and the Minihausens are banged up so Adam Pearce comes in to say give Judgment Day the money back. Danhausen has an idea (uh oh): Human Monies On A Pole! Pearce: “HUMAN MONIES ON A POLE???” Danhausen: “Haven’t you ever watched wrestling?” It’s official for Summerslam and Pearce needs a drink.

Here are the Usos for a chat, albeit after running it back. They issue a warning shot to LA Knight/Solo Sikoa/Royce Keys at Summerslam but here is Sikoa, through the crowd, to say they don’t have a chance at Summerslam. Jimmy mocks Sikoa for suggesting he doesn’t want to come back to the Bloodline because it was the best thing that ever happened to his career. Sikoa: “Or what, you’re going to YEET for thirty minutes?”

Sikoa isn’t worried about Roman Reigns and here is Knight to join things. Knight wants things fixed up after Summerslam because it’s time to pay penance. He’ll see them this weekend…..or we can do this right now, LA style. The brawl is on so here is Jacob Fatu, who wrecks both of them until Keys it on for the save. Sikoa breaks up the Tongan Death Grip and Fatu gets dropped with a trio of finishes. Perfectly fine brawl to preview the match.

Video on the violence of the Cell.

Women’s Intercontinental Title: Sol Ruca vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Ruca is defending and spins around her into an X Factor to start. A sunset flip is blocked but Rodriguez avoids an elbow drop as Lyra Valkyria is watching backstage. Rodriguez strikes away but gets sent outside for a heck of a moonsault. Back in and Rodriguez pulls a high crossbody out of the air for a reverse suplex. A slam gives Rodriguez two and she teases an armbar but just punches her in the head instead. We hit the chinlock, allowing the referee to wipe some blood off of Rodriguez’s face.

Back up and Ruca hits a Backstabber (albeit with feet), followed by Sliced Bread for two. Ruca’s running knee gets two, followed by a top rope cartwheel DDT for the same. Cue Roxanne Perez for a distraction so Liv Morgan can trip Ruca, meaning it’s a big boot to give Rodriguez another near fall. Cue Iyo Sky to brawl with Morgan and Ruca gives Rodriguez a Codebreaker. Perez breaks up the Sol Snatcher though and the Tejana Bomb gives Rodriguez the title at 10:23.

Rating: C+. There was a lot going on here with Sky vs. Morgan feeling like the bigger story than the title match going on here. That being said, Rodriguez needed to win something of her own at some point and this worked. Ruca seems to have gotten around some of her yips in the ring and that is great to see, as she can be outstanding when she is hitting on all cylinders. Not a classic here, but I like the title change.

And Rodriguez is very emotional over her win. Fair enough.

Video on CM Punk vs. Cody Rhodes.

Summerslam rundown.

We look at Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns (vs. CM Punk) last year at Wrestlemania.

Here is Reigns for the big wrap up. After standing around for a bit, Reigns loads up the catchphrase but here is Rollins to interrupt. Rollins wants to be acknowledged so Reigns calls him an a******. Rollins: “Guilty!” He’s fine with being the bad guy between the two of them because he wasn’t born on third base. Reigns has a lot of advantages over Rollins but the one thing he will never be better at is pro wrestling.

No matter how Reigns looks at it, Rollins owns him. How is Reigns getting out of it this time? Get disqualified? Maybe call in the Bloodline? Reigns may need to beat him but Reigns doesn’t have a chance. Reigns calls himself the only real superstar and true champion around here. The whole industry needs Reigns to win, which has Rollins talking about what they need.

Reigns needs the redemption, so Rollins says Reigns needed his family there to see it. This has Rollins thinking back to Wrestlemania XXXI, when Rollins cashed in and sent Reigns’ family home in tears. Rollins wants to see them cry again on Sunday, including Reigns’ children. The fight is on and Reigns beats him up, including the spear. Reigns goes outside and grabs the chair (oooh) and goes for the big shot but gets Stomped onto the chair to end the show.

This was a good example of someone just not having the same presence as their opponent. What Rollins was saying was fine, but there is a gravitas to the way Reigns speaks that makes him feel so much bigger. It’s been hanging over Rollins the entire time, so playing up their record against each other is about all he has. Teasing Reigns finally getting the chair shot to pay Rollins back is a big thing too, as they really have turned it into something that feels monumental and started setting so many things in motion over the years. Good segment here, and it makes sense that this will be the big Summerslam headliner.

Overall Rating: B. This was the show designed to get them ready for Summerslam and yeah it worked. Reigns vs. Rollins feels a lot bigger and the six man tag got a nice push. I’m more interested in Summerslam than I was coming in and it would be great to see them pay that off this weekend. You need a show like this and if nothing else, maybe it can get them to break 30,000 tickets a night. You know, in that 60,000+ seat stadium they’re in for back to back nights. Anyway, solid effort here.

Results
Vision b. Alpha Academy – Super Spear to Tozawa
Je’Von Evans b. Rusev – OG Cutter
Ethan Page b. Rey Mysterio – Egoplex
Raquel Rodriguez b. Sol Ruca – Tejana Bomb

 

 

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Summerslam 2014
Date: August 17, 2014
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 14,079
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

Time for a redo of a show with a main event billed as the Biggest Fight of the Summer. The more I think of that line, the more I like it. The main event here is Cena (subbing for the injured Bryan) defending against Brock Lesnar, who is having his first match since breaking the Streak. Interestingly enough, I don’t even remember another match from this card. Let’s get to it.

I usually don’t say anything on the pre-show, but my goodness Renee Young is stunning. I know you often hear about the Divas looking great, but she is just beautiful, especially in a nice red dress here.

Pre-Show: Cesaro vs. Rob Van Dam

No real story here. Rob rolls out of a wristlock to start and we hit the ECW chants. My goodness there’s other stuff to cheer over people. Cesaro is sent to the floor and Rob slips a bit on his dive but still manages to kick Cesaro down and hit Rolling Thunder on the outside. Back in and Cesaro simplifies stuff by just pummeling Van Dam in the corner before throwing him down with the gutwrench suplex.

We take a break and come back with Cesaro holding a chinlock as the announcers give us one final hype for Cena vs. Lesnar. Rob fights up for a rolling cradle and the split legged moonsault for two, followed by a superkick to put Cesaro back on the floor. This is Van Dam 101 here, which was the biggest criticism he faced during this time. The Five Star is broken up by a big uppercut but Rob is still able to block a superplex.

That earns him another uppercut though because Cesaro is pesky like that. Van Dam shoves him down again but Cesaro hits the third straight uppercut, only to be shoved down yet again. Rob is finally able to dive…..right into an uppercut of course. This time it’s Cesaro kicking Rob in the face for two and frustration is setting in. Back up and Van Dam hits his quick step over kick, followed by the Five Star for the pin at 8:06.

Rating: C-. The uppercut sequence was nice but like I said, Van Dam was just doing high spots here and nothing else. That was the case for most of his 2014 run and that’s not really doing anything for him at this point. Cesaro was just wandering around at this point, which makes his Wrestlemania battle royal win feel like the biggest waste of a rub in recent history, which is really covering a lot of ground.

In a sign of the times, Hulk Hogan is brought out to open the show. Well to be fair it worked really well at Wrestlemania XXX so this isn’t the worst idea in the world. He thinks it’s appropriate for Hollywood Hogan to open the show here in Los Angeles and talks about how amazing Summerslam really is. This turns into a commercial for the Network, all while Hogan’s video is playing behind him. Hogan hits the catchphrase and he’s out in less than three minutes. This was fine and got the crowd fired up while also plugging something. Well done.

The opening video is in the theme of an old 1980s action movie trailer (Follow the Buzzards Productions) with the usual previews for the main events, but with everyone’s nickname instead of their actual name. I really liked this as a movie geek and it holds up quite well a year later.

It’s a shame that the curse of the standardized sets has hit Summerslam as well. It’s the second biggest show of the year. Mix that stuff up people.

Intercontinental Title: The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler

Miz is defending and has the Hollywood star gimmick. I still really like his work in this and still find him to be one of the better done characters. Before the match, Miz talks about being real instead of CGI and brags about how jealous you all should be of the moneymaker. Tonight he’s going to make Ziggler the WWE version of the Lakers. Feeling out process to start as the announcers talk about the Ice Bucket Challenge, back when that was still a thing.

The threat of a superkick sends Miz bailing to the floor as we hear about the Shawn Michaels vs. Rick Martel match from Summerslam 1992 where it was agreed that neither would hit the other in the face. Back in and a quick rollup gets two for Dolph but he gets whipped chest first into the corner as Miz takes over. With his variety of stomps used up, Miz kicks Dolph hard in the face before slapping on a chinlock.

The fans tell Miz that he can’t wrestle, but you could say the same thing about Ziggler so it’s not really clear. Dolph punches him out of the air and hits a Stinger Splash before a rollup gets two more. Now the superkick connects with the moneymaker for two so we get the required attempt at bailing, only to have Dolph baseball slide him down.

Somehow that earns Ziggler a Figure Four (because Miz needed a submission hold and it’s always a good thing to pay tribute to Flair, who won SO many major matches with that hold right?) but Dolph is in the ropes. His leg is fine enough for a Fameasser but Miz pops to his feet for the Skull Crushing Finale before he starts to sell. The kickout shocks Miz again but he misses another running boot, allowing Dolph to score with the Zig Zag for the pin and the title at 7:57.

Rating: C-. These two don’t have any kind of special chemistry but they would fight each other for the better part of eternity because WWE doesn’t know how to set up anything fresh more than once every few months. Ziggler winning the title gave the fans a nice moment but there was nothing to the match.

We recap the latest part of the RIVETING Brie Bella vs. Stephanie McMahon feud where Stephanie brought Daniel Bryan’s physical therapist to say she and Bryan had an affair, leading to Brie slapping the therapist and getting arrested, just as she had done to Stephanie a few weeks earlier. The affair stuff was so hated that they dropped it pretty much the next day.

Brie talks about doing a bunch of reflecting while she was in jail where she thought about Stephanie torturing Nikki while Brie was gone, how she insulted Bryan and how she paid the therapist to lie about an affair. She’s going to take out the beast tonight because that’s best for business. Oh dear I think I’m going to have something to say about this.

Divas Title: Paige vs. AJ Lee

Paige is challenging and they’ve been feuding for most of the summer with AJ returning and winning the title, causing Paige to start imitating her for reasons that still aren’t clear. They’re friends and enemies at the same time (yes I know there’s a word that combines the two and no I won’t use it) so Paige offers a handshake, only to have AJ rip some of her hair out. AJ stays all aggressive (Heaven help me if I say the other word about her) and sends Paige onto the announcers’ table, only to have Paige come back with a knee to the ribs.

The champ gets dropped onto the barricade but Paige realizes she can’t win the title via countout. Back in and we get Paige’s sexy crawl over AJ before she pulls her own hair extensions out. Well no one ever accused Paige of being normal. The chinlock on AJ goes nowhere and she’s able to shove Paige off the top, though she’s nice enough to blow her a kiss first.

A top rope clothesline to the floor drops Paige again. The Shining Wizard gets two but Paige kicks her in the face, only to have the Paige Turner countered into the Black Widow. Just like at the Raw after Wrestlemania though, Paige powers out again and scores with the Rampaige for the pin and the title.

Rating: C+. This was similar to the Divas version of Shawn Michaels vs. Mr. Perfect back at Summerslam 1993 where they basically guaranteed a classic but just had a good match instead. This was one of the last good feuds before Nikki took over the title in a few months, which we’re somehow still surviving nine months later. Lucky us.

Summerslam 2015 will be in New York/New Jersey. That would be slightly changed to Brooklyn

Jack Swagger vs. Rusev

Speaking of things still going on later, these two are still having the same match the following summer. This is also a flag match, meaning a regular match with the winner getting their flag raised. Lana (rocking the white suit here) and Zeb Colter (remember him?) are the seconds. Before the match, Lana says that Hollywood is a great example of everything wrong with America. In real life, there is no happy ending and America is full of worthless cowards.

Swagger counters with members of the US Army Color Guard to present the American flag. Rusev jumps Jack before the bell and the American flag falls, which is a big sign of disrespect. Swagger counters into a Patriot Lock as we’re still waiting on the bell. The referee breaks it up so Lana orders Rusev to his feet. Now the bell rings and Jack goes after the leg and ankle again.

Rusev bails to the floor so Swagger, showing some fire for a change, follows him out with a hard clothesline. The Vader Bomb hits knees though, which really should hurt the bad leg but why bother with logic? Jack happens to have bad ribs coming in so Rusev has his own target now. With the leg breaking down, Rusev opts for a bearhug, meaning he has to stay on his feet anyway. Jack can’t belly to belly his way to freedom but his second attempt works a bit better.

The Vader Bomb connects but hurts Jack’s ribs all over again. Rusev’s superkick is caught in the Patriot Lock but Rusev is quickly out, only to walk into a powerslam for two. The second superkick connects and the Accolade (on one leg) goes on, only to be countered into the Patriot Lock. Rusev kicks out of that as well, spinwheel kicks Jack down, and Accolades him again for the knockout victory.

Rating: C. This is a tricky one to grade, as yet again, since these guys have fought roughly a dozen times, I never once believed Rusev was in trouble. That being said, they did a good job here of using the ankle injury to try to add some drama. It’s a very difficult thing to do when there is almost zero doubt as to who is winning, but they gave it a good try.

The problem for these two is they’re still fighting on occasion and it never gets any closer for Jack. That’s something WWE is really bad about: they don’t understand that fans don’t want to see the same obvious match over and over again but that’s what we get because there’s no one other than Swagger (or Henry) to take these losses. Bring back unknown jobbers or something, because they have about the same chance of winning and would at least feel fresh for a change.

Rusev attacks Colter post match and the Russian flag comes down.

We recap Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose, which is Dean’s first attempt for revenge on Seth after Rollins broke up the Shield over the summer. Seth ran a lot previously but tonight it’s time for a lumberjack match so Dean can finally get his hands on him.

Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose

Most of the lumberjacks were attacked by Rollins and the Shield at some point in the last year and a half. Rollins is Mr. Money in the Bank here. It’s a slugout as soon as they’re both in the ring with Dean taking over and knocking Rolling outside. That goes as badly as you would expect for Rollins so he goes back inside for something a bit safer: Ambrose ripping at his nose. This time it’s Dean being sent outside for a beating but some guys hold the attackers back.

Now it’s Rollins in control for a bit so Ambrose just punches him in the face. He goes up top for no logical reason (to be fair he’s supposed to be crazy) and gets caught in the Tree of Woe as Seth really takes over. A chinlock doesn’t go very far as Dean is sent to the apron, only to suplex Rollins over the top and out onto the lumberjacks in a big crash. The whole thing turns into a war with Dean backdropping Rollins over the barricade.

Dean dives onto the lumberjacks because he’s nuts and then down the announcers’ tables to get to Rollins in the crowd. This is more like what the match should have been and it’s about time they got to it. They fight into the balcony as Kane comes down to tell the lumberjacks to do their job. Bo Dallas stops Rollins from powerbombing Dean off the balcony so Seth runs towards the entrance but gets caught by Stardust, Big E. and the Usos.

Rollins is literally carried back to the ring but Dean is waiting on them with a huge dive off the top. Back in and Dirty Deeds is countered but Ambrose blasts him with the rebound lariat. NOW the crowd is way into things and Dean curb stomps Seth, only to have Kane come in for the save. The lumberjacks get in another fight because they all have anger management issues. Dean dispatches the Wyatts but walks into a briefcase shot to the face for the pin.

Rating: B-. This is one where your opinions may vary wildly and I’m not going to put up much of an argument either way. There were only so many ways that they mess with the idea to keep the lumberjack gimmick going (which fit the story) while also being insane. Good, insane brawl here and that’s what it needed to be.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Bray Wyatt, which started because Bray decided it was time and didn’t like Jericho calling himself a savior. Jericho beat Wyatt clean at Battleground in a stupid decision so tonight the Family is barred from ringside. I have no idea why they thought this would make me interested in seeing it again but it’s better than another gimmick match.

Bray Wyatt vs. Chris Jericho

The fireflies are still so cool looking. Bray goes right after him to start and they’re quickly on the floor with Jericho stepping over Bray’s hat. That’s polite of him. Jericho gets shoved to the floor as the announcers start reading Tweets. I know the match isn’t the most thrilling story in the world but come on. A running knee sends Jericho’s head into the steps and Bray drives him into the post for good measure.

Back inside and we hit the chinlock, because no matter how insane or unconventional someone is, they make sure to throw on a chinlock. Like everyone has ever done, Jericho fights out with ease and gets one off an enziguri. Jericho’s dropkick stops a charging Bray but he walks into the release Rock Bottom for two. Sister Abigail is countered into the Walls but Bray gets a rope (unlike in NXT where he tapped to the Walls years ago).

Bray goes to the middle rope so Jericho can hurricanrana him back down for a delayed two. I’m never a fan of people going up just so someone can hit them with a move. It’s a stretch of the suspension of disbelief. Bray spiders up and says that he can’t die because he is already dead. Jericho breaks his code for two and Bray slides outside where he smacks Jericho in the face, setting up Sister Abigail into the barricade. Back in and another Sister Abigail is enough to give Bray the pin.

Rating: C-. I wasn’t really feeling this one as it’s a match that Bray was supposed to win and then did. He was still trying to recover from the huge blow of losing the feud to Cena and losing the first match to Jericho really didn’t do him any favors. The match was nothing to see either as Jericho was starting to run on fumes again here. This would have been so much more effective if Jericho hadn’t won the first match.

Bray serenades us post match.

We recap Brie Bella vs. Stephanie McMahon, which was a recap I needed when I watched this show live as the whole thing was such a mess. So Stephanie was all evil to Daniel Bryan, but Bryan is on the shelf with his neck injury so the feud was transferred over to Brie, because Brie and Bryan are totally the same thing.

Stephanie threatened to fire Brie but Brie quit first, leaving Stephanie to torture Nikki by putting her in handicap matches against such devastating forces as Alicia Fox, Rosa Mendes, Cameron and Eva Marie. Yes, this was really supposed to be intimidating. Brie and Stephanie sued each other over slapping each other because that’s what this feud needed. Then Brie offered to drop the charges in exchange for a match with Stephanie at Summerslam, because that’s how wrestling works.

Stephanie McMahon vs. Brie Bella

This is Stephanie’s first match in ten years and the announcers act like it’s Bruno vs. Hogan. We immediately get to the point as Stephanie comes out in something that looks like a superhero outfit with skin tight leather that shows off every inch of her figure. Oh and of course she throws the Four Horsewomen sign to Ronda Rousey and the other three women whose names no one knows (in the front row when Rousey was just starting to make noise as a big time star) because Stephanie is cool like that.

The announcers swoon over Stephanie like it’s Trish in 2000 and then give Brie a polite response. That’s the match right there: Brie looks good while Stephanie looks amazing and it’s entirely by design. Stephanie shoves Brie against the ropes to start and blows her a kiss. Brie gets back up and can barely do a lockup properly. Some shoulders in the corner have Brie in more trouble as the announcers try to act like Brie is some big physical threat while also pointing out that Stephanie has long legs.

The big slap is blocked though and the threat of a YES Lock sends Stephanie outside, likely out of fear due to how bad Brie made the hold look on Raw a few weeks back. Brie’s suicide dive is blocked by a forearm to the face and it’s Stephanie in control again. Stephanie talks trash and busts out a Hennig neck snap, drawing a YOU STILL GOT IT (shut up. Stephanie never had it in the ring in the first place. Think before you chant) and even more praise from the announcers.

Stephanie cranks on both arms as Brie has been on offense for all of fifteen seconds so far. An evil look that would make Edge jealous looks to set up….something, but Brie comes back with a Thesz press and the YES Kicks in the corner. Well close enough to them as she can’t get the timing right because the one spot that is going to get her a cheer is too complicated for her.

The middle rope dropkick gets two on Stephanie and Brie follows up with some of the absolute worst punches I have ever seen. I mean even Lita’s horrible punches (go back and watch her matches. She’s one of the most athletic women in wrestling history but she couldn’t throw a good punch to save her life) look great compared to these. HHH comes out but Nikki is here as well because those two are so equal. The Pedigree is countered into whatever Brie calls her imitation of the YES Lock because that’s not the hold her husband uses.

HHH pulls the referee out anyway, which shocks Cole for some reason. I have no idea why Cole is switching sides so fast because he’s spent the last ten minutes praising Stephanie. Brie baseball slides HHH and does the YES chant, only to have Nikki come in….and turn on Brie because that’s the least logical and worst idea they could go with for this story. Stephanie Pedigrees Brie for the pin.

Rating: D+. Where do I even start with this one? First and foremost: Brie Bella is a horrible wrestler. She’s a beautiful woman, she’s found the right look for herself with the ripped tights and shirt tied around her waist and she can clap on the floor, but she just does not have it in the ring. Some of the stuff in here was Eva Marie level work with those punches and the inability to do a lockup properly just being unforgivable.

On top of that, this is the wrong story. After the months and months of the Authority tormenting the Bellas, they win here in the end with Brie getting squashed until a quick comeback at the end, only to have it all taken away from her again so we can get to the Bella feud that no one other than the Total Divas producers wanted to see. Nikki turning on Brie would lead to the “I wish you died in the womb” nonsense that went on forever and was then just dropped, but I spent a three months ranting about that so I’ll cut myself off for now. Brie should have won here, no matter how bad she looked in the ring.

That gets us to the final point: this match was ALL about Stephanie. Brie was just the person in the ring to bounce off of her as Stephanie got to look great (both mechanically and physically. I know she gets a lot of flack, but Stephanie can rock some tight outfits) out there and even had the crowd cheering for her. That praise was well deserved though as Stephanie was as polished here as any Diva had been since probably Mickie James but, as is always the case, Stephanie has to look great and can’t get any comeuppance. In this case though, she deserves a lot of praise because this was one heck of a performance.

Some fan won a contest and got to make a character called Mama’s Boy, complete with some training. He even got to make an entrance at NXT, to the Hurricane’s old theme song for some reason. Eh cute enough.

Randy Orton vs. Roman Reigns

This is due to Reigns costing Orton a title shot and Reigns’ first big solo match. I like the blue trim on Reigns’ attire but it can be a bit distracting. Orton goes right at him to start and is quickly headbutted out to the floor. Some right hands and a clothesline put Orton outside again but he sends Reigns into the steps and takes it back inside for a chinlock. This isn’t exactly thrilling stuff so far. We hit the Garvin Stomp followed by a nice top rope superplex for two. I love a good superplex.

Back to the chinlock for a bit before Reigns counters into a rear naked choke of all things. See, why doesn’t he do stuff like that more often today? There’s more to life than clotheslines. Orton falls backwards to escape and we’re right back to the chinlock. Orton isn’t exactly giving Reigns much to work with here. The Samoan drop gives Roman a breather and he jacks Randy’s jaw to set up the apron kick. Lawler: “Reigns kicked the Kryptonite out of him!”

Orton whips him into the barricade to take over again though and drops him onto the announcers’ table to keep Roman in trouble. Back in again and Reigns punches his way back into it (shocking I know), followed by a super Samoan drop for two more. The Superman Punch knocks Orton silly but he counters the spear into one heck of a powerslam. That looked great.

The Orton DDT gets two but Reigns gets up for another Superman Punch, only to dive into the RKO for a very near fall. Randy is livid so he loads up the Punt, which is about the dumbest thing you can do against someone who uses the spear for a finisher. Well that’s how it should have ended but instead Reigns just moves away from the Punt and then the spear is good for the pin.

Rating: B-. This was supposed to be a huge turning point for Reigns’ career but it came off as just an ok match with some good moments. The first seven to eight minutes really dragged this down as the chinlocks took the crowd out of things. Now to their credit, Orton and Reigns were able to get them back later on but this needed some tweaks to really make it work. It’s Reigns’ biggest win yet but it really wasn’t anything great.

Long recap of John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar. The idea is Cena beat Lesnar two and a half years ago when Lesnar returned, but since then Lesnar has reached his full Beast Mode and is the unstoppable monster. Cena is pretty clearly a fill in for the injured Daniel Bryan, who would have made for a better story here. They really aren’t hiding the fact that Lesnar is going to win the title here but you know Cena isn’t going down without a fight.

WWE World Title: Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena

Cena is defending of course. They do the big staredown across the ring before the bell and we get one of my favorite Cole lines: “It’s the biggest fight of the summer.” I know that was the tagline going into this match but I love his delivery there. Before we get started, awesome sign in the crowd: “Cena wins, we logically discuss on Twitter.” Cena charges right at him but gets taken down to the mat…..and the F5 connects at thirty seconds. I actually screamed “NO WAY! NO WAY!” when I saw that for the first time.

Lesnar shouts that Cena just had his one chance and I think everyone in the building believes him. Cena looks totally out of it and we’re 90 seconds into this. The first release German suplex sends Cena flying and the fans are just stunned. German #2 has Cena’s mouth hanging open and the replay makes it look even worse. Cena wildly swings but only hits the mat.

A quick drive into the corner and some shots to the ribs just annoy Lesnar as he knees Cena to the mat and slaps on a chinlock so Cena can remember what planet he’s on. More punches from Cena are stopped by a knee as this is even more dominant than I remembered. Four more Germans (six total, counting a snap that I didn’t mention) have Cena a crippled mass in the middle of the ring. Lesnar drives even more knees into the ribs and pulls Cena up so he can throw another German.

The referee FINALLY checks on Cena, who says he’ll have two eggs and sausage. John goes flying off another German but elbows out of the next and gets in some right hands and a clothesline, followed by an AA for two. That seems like Cena’s last gasp though and he can’t follow up. Lesnar does the Undertaker sit up…..and starts laughing. He tells Cena to get out of the corner and bring it on while bouncing back and forth on his feet. Cena charges and gets taken down and pounded in the head.

Cena can’t even move on the mat but tells the referee to let it keep going. Lesnar is ticked off at Cena not quitting so he rolls four straight German suplexes, earning what sounds like applause. He still won’t quit, so there are three more rolling Germans. With Brock standing over him, Cena sweeps the leg and puts on the STF but Brock rolls over and just unloads on him with right hands. The F5 finally ends the slaughter and gives Brock the title.

Rating: A+. This was hard to watch. Not hard in the WCW or TNA hard to watch way, but in the “that’s enough, stop this before Cena dies” hard to watch way. This was a complete squash that ran 16:14. In that span of time, and this is being VERY generous at times, Cena was on offense for 1:22. That’s including the opening where they were grappling on the mat and the time where Cena was trying to break Brock’s grip.

Above all else though, this match did what it was supposed to do, which is make Brock Lesnar look like the biggest monster this side of Godzilla. This wasn’t a technical masterpiece or anything, but the fact that it got this kind of emotion out of me is doing something right. Outstanding performance and Cena selling so well made it even better.

Cena is checked on and can’t move to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Something occurred to me as I was getting ready for this show: I didn’t remember anything about it other than the main event. I can tell you the main event for all of the big four shows and every In Your House off the top of my head, but I had no idea that Orton and Reigns had a match here. Looking back, it’s easy to see why. Other than Lesnar vs. Cena, nothing on here is anything outside of the average range. Almost all of the redo ratings are in the middle of the pack and nothing else is memorable. It’s a watchable show, but totally forgettable, which isn’t something you should say about Summerslam.

Ratings Comparison

Rob Van Dam vs. Cesaro

Original: C-

Redo: C-

Dolph Ziggler vs. The Miz

Original: C

Redo: C-

AJ Lee vs. Paige

Original: B-

Redo: C+

Jack Swagger vs. Rusev

Original: C+

Redo: C

Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins

Original: B

Redo: B-

Bray Wyatt vs. Chris Jericho

Original: C

Redo: C-

Brie Bella vs. Stephanie McMahon

Original: C+

Redo: D+

Roman Reigns vs. Randy Orton

Original: C

Redo: B-

Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena

Original: A-

Redo: A+

Overall Rating

Original: A

Redo: C+

……what? I mean just…..what? That overall rating doesn’t even make bad sense. Other than Brie vs. Stephanie and maybe Orton vs. Reigns, nothing really changed drastically, but it went from great to above average? I REALLY got into that Lesnar vs. Cena match the first time around. That original rating actually made my eyes bug out when I read it to see what I had originally given the show.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2014/08/17/summerslam-2014-on-the-a-list/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Summerslam 2013
Date: August 18, 2013
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 17,739
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield

It’s a double main event tonight with a pair of smaller guys vs. big powerhouses with CM Punk vs. Brock Lesnar and Daniel Bryan challenging John Cena for the World Title. This is remembered as one of the best shows in a very long time for WWE and it should be interesting to see how well it holds up. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: United States Title: Dean Ambrose vs. Rob Van Dam

Ambrose is defending and there’s no Shield with him to start. Some standing switches go nowhere and Ambrose continues to look moderately displeased by the whole thing at worst. Rob is right back up with a spinning kick to the chest, meaning he can hit those finger pokes. You don’t do that to Ambrose, who chops away in the corner and stops a charging Rob with a kick to the face.

The neck crank goes on, followed by a running dropkick against the ropes to keep Rob in trouble. It’s back to the chinlock with the microphones picking up the spot calling. Rob is right back up with a kick to the face and the split legged moonsault out of the corner for two. A kick to the head breaks up the original Dirty Deeds (headlock driver) but here are Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins. That brings out Mark Henry and Big Show and we take a break. Back with everyone standing at ringside and Dean dropping an elbow for two. The ECW chants bring Rob back to life but Dean sends him outside.

That means a staredown between the four on the floor with Rob managing a suplex on Dean. The spinning kick to the back on the apron has Dean in even more trouble and it’s a top rope cannonball for two back inside. Dean is right back with a spinebuster for two of his own but misses his top rope elbow. Rob has to go after Rollins instead of trying the Five Star so he kicks Dean down again. The Five Star connects but Roman Reigns comes in with a spear for the DQ at 13:40.

Rating: B-. This worked rather well and is one of Van Dam’s last good matches either in WWE or anywhere for that matter. He looked like his old self here and made Ambrose look good, even when he got the DQ win. This was still before Shield had reached their peak and they were far better as a team anyway. It got the crowd going and happened to be a good match in the process. Not bad for the Kickoff.

Here’s the Miz as your host for the evening. His task at the moment: tell us about the main events we already know. How TNA of him. We’re about to hear our first match but Fandango and Summer Rae cut him off with some dancing. Miz: “Really? Really? WELCOME TO SUMMERSLAM!”

The opening video focuses on Los Angeles and how big things happen here. Like Summerslam. That’s a nice motif and it moves into the double main event, which is indeed sounding great. Future note: the music during this video would become Akira Tozawa’s theme (not sure if that’s a Network edit or not).

Dig that pyro. Seriously with all the money they have, we can only get it at Wrestlemania and the Saudi shows?

Jojo from Total Divas sings the National Anthem. This was a plot point on Total Divas because that she needed to stretch for plot points.

Kane vs. Bray Wyatt

This is a Ring of Fire match, meaning an Inferno match with pins and submissions only. It’s also Bray’s in-ring debut, which is almost weird to imagine. Harper and Rowan are in Wyatt’s corner, as tends to be the case. The bell rings and the flames come up, going all of six inches high. Kane slugs away to start and the flames do go higher as someone lands on the mat.

Harper and Rowan get closer to the ring and the flames go WAY up to make things look a lot better. Kane hits a suplex to pop the flames again and avoids a big boot, sending Bray close to the fire. Bray’s running splash in the corner connects and he hammers away as the fans aren’t exactly thrilled so far. Back up and Kane sends him into the corner and the side slam makes the flames go up again. The chokeslam is broken up and Harper tries to throw in a kendo stick but the flames cut it off.

Cue the fireman to put the stick out, allowing Kane to hit the chokeslam. Rowan grabs the fire extinguisher to try and put out the flames but they come right back up as Kane hits another chokeslam. For some reason there’s no cover so Kane hits a third chokeslam, meaning it’s Tombstone time. Hold on again though as Harper and Rowan put a blanket over the flames and get in for the beatdown. The fans want Undertaker but settle for Sister Abigail to finish Kane at 7:49.

Rating: F. Well that was dumb. You have Wyatt getting destroyed until the goons saved him, the flames not lasting seven minutes before someone figured a way around them, and the match being dreadful until the ending. Pick two of them and you can figure out what was wrong with this one. It was a good idea on paper but the execution was a nightmare, which sums up Wyatt’s whole career.

Post match Wyatt puts on his hat and sits in the rocking chair as Harper and Rowan put Kane’s head on the steps. They pick up the other steps and crush his head for the big knockout, which looked better than most of the match. Harper and Rowan carry Kane out.

The Kickoff Show panel talks about the Wyatt Family.

On the Kickoff Show, Paul Heyman talked about how the real story of David vs. Goliath is that Goliath took the best shot and then destroyed David. Heyman has gotten both sides to agree that tonight can be No DQ so Lesnar can finish Punk for good.

Damien Sandow vs. Cody Rhodes

Sandow is Mr. Money in the Bank and cost Cody the briefcase to break up their team. Before the match, Sandow talks about how there have been great pairings throughout literary history, with each pair having a lackey. Tonight, Sandow proves that he was the leader by sending Cody back to the land of clowns. Cody starts fast and hammers away before getting two off a backdrop. Sandow is right back with a suplex and a double arm crank as this is already feeling like a TV match.

An early Cross Rhodes attempt is blocked and Sandow hits the Russian legsweep into the wind-up elbow for two. Something like Edge’s Edgecation goes on but Cody kicks away without much effort. Cody catches him on top with a MuscleBuster of all things and that gets the fans into things for a change. A missile dropkick gives Cody two more and the Disaster Kick knocks Sandow silly for another two. Cody misses a charge into the post to give Sandow two but Cody snaps off Cross Rhodes for the pin at 6:39.

Rating: D. This was a case where Cody should have won the briefcase and moved up to the World Title scene but instead they went with Sandow and the whole thing flopped because no one bought him in that spot. Maybe they were planning on having Cody take the briefcase from him, but the damage was already done. It’s a case of putting too much thought into things as WWE screwed up something else.

We recap Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio for the Smackdown World Title. Alberto had put Christian on the shelf late last year and now Christian is the challenger of the month. Actually saying this is recapping Christian vs. Alberto is a little misleading as Alberto is neither seen nor mentioned in the video. I know he’s not interesting but come on now.

Smackdown World Title: Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio

Alberto is defending. They circle each other a few times until a loud kick to the leg has Christian in trouble. A headlock doesn’t do much for the champ as Christian comes back up with a right hand and a toss over the ropes. Back in and Christian gets caught on top for the running enziguri into the running kicks to the chest. It’s time to go to the arm, as tends to be Del Rio’s style.

The armbar doesn’t last long so Del Rio throws him into the air for the big crash to the mat. A top rope double stomp to the arm gets two but Del Rio misses a charge and goes crashing out to the floor. That lets Christian hit a dive off the top and they’re both down. Back in and Del Rio goes right back to the arm, because it’s a plan that works well. He deviates from said plan by going up and diving into raised boots though, allowing Christian to hammer away in the corner.

The high crossbody gets two on the champ but the Killswitch is countered into a Backstabber. Another running enziguri in the corner rocks Christian for two more but he’s fine enough to hit a middle rope elbow to the jaw. A super hurricanrana gives Christian another two and it’s time for the spear.

Since the idea of selling Christian’s spear makes anyone cringe, Del Rio dropkicks him in the face for two instead. There’s a low superkick for another two, with the fans dubbing this awesome. Eh…..it’s close but I don’t know about that. Christian hits the spear out of nowhere but the arm is banged up, allowing Del Rio to slap on the armbreaker for the tap at 12:29.

Rating: B. I can’t go all the way to awesome but this was a rather fun match with Christian throwing everything he had. That being said, I wasn’t buying a lot of the near falls as Christian never hit the Killswitch and Del Rio never won with anything but the armbreaker. Christian’s career was more or less done at this point, as he would be put out of action again in a few months and have his last comeback with his final match in March.

Post match Del Rio says he’ll be the hero Los Angeles needs. Someone get this man a big bus!

Video on Summerslam Axxess earlier in the day, complete with a women’s tag match including Marina Menunos.

Maria is here and talks about the Bella Twins freaking out about Maria saying Natalya did well on Total Divas. Cue Fandango and Summer Rae to dance but Maria and Miz do just the same, leaving Fandango and Summer looking annoyed.

Natalya vs. Brie Bella

Cameron, Naomi, Eva Marie and Nikki Bella are here because this is the Total Divas match of the night. It’s weird seeing Natalya in regular gear instead of the leather she’s worn for years now. You can tell this is serious as they exchanged SLAPS on Raw. They fight over failed hiptoss attempts to start and it’s time for another slapoff. Brie has to bail to the floor to avoid the Sharpshooter so Nikki and Eva get in some cheating to take Natalya to the floor. The fans chant for JBL instead of this mess before quickly shifting over to the other announcers. Or maybe it’s an old Jerry Graham fan club.

Brie grabs the chinlock as the fans want tables. Egads the idea of the Total Divas crew trying to do something that complicated. The chinlock goes on again because that’s their best idea at the moment. Natalya fights out without much trouble but the Sharpshooter is countered with a rollup into the corner. The other four get in a fight on the floor and it’s a THIRD CHINLOCK in less than five minutes. Natalya breaks it up and, with the fans saying they want Ryder, slaps on the Sharpshooter for the win at 5:21.

Rating: D-. Any match that involves three chinlocks in less than five minutes is pretty self explanatory. There was no story here other than they were arguing about a reality show and that’s enough to get us here. The wrestling was pretty awful with the talented Natalya not being good enough to carry Brie. At least it was short, but this really had no business being on Summerslam.

Ryback, currently a bully, yells at catering about the soup being cold. It’s supposed to be, which Ryback knew of course. The soup goes down the chef’s shirt and then over his head. Ryback: “Feed me moron.” Make sure you catch his podcast so he can tell you how he came up with that entire idea and how it would have been a classic if WWE supported him.

We recap CM Punk vs. Brock Lesnar. Punk was about to win Money in the Bank but Paul Heyman turned on him because Punk was nothing without him. Heyman brought Lesnar back in to destroy Punk, who had been Heyman’s friend and client for a long time. It’s a pretty easy tagline: The Best vs. The Beast. This was better than the UFC version: Former UFC Heavyweight Champion vs. The Miserable Failure.

CM Punk vs. Brock Lesnar

No DQ. I know I say this a lot, but a fired up Lesnar is a terrifying human being. Punk shrugs off the shoulders in the corner to start so Lesnar just does them again. The CM PUNK chants begin and you can feel the energy in this one. A heck of a beal across the ring rocks Punk and it’s time for some choking in the corner. Punk manages a kick to the head and Lesnar is rocked, followed by some running knees to put him outside.

The suicide dive connects as I can’t help but look for the baseball sized growth on his back (it’s just hard not to). Punk tries the steps but Brock knocks them right back into him without much effort. Lesnar posts himself though and Punk scores with a top rope dive to stagger him again. The clothesline off the announcers’ table connects as well but Punk makes the mistake of going after Heyman. Lesnar LAUNCHES him over the table and Cole is declaring this one over already.

Back in and Punk starts kicking at the leg so Lesnar hits him in the face (don’t make it complicated). The bearhug stays on the ribs as you can’t fault Lesnar’s plan. Punk’s escape plan: hit Lesnar in the face. See? He’s learning too. Lesnar goes right back to the ribs and the slow pace continues. Another bearhug goes on and gets broken up by more shots to the face. Punk kicks him in the ribs and goes up, only to dive into a World’s Strongest Slam (giving us a great OH DANG IT face).

Some backbreakers get two as Punk’s ribs are being destroyed and we hit the chinlock. Punk bites the ear to escape and starts striking away, setting up a top rope knee to the face to FINALLY put Lesnar down. Some running knees in the corner connect and a kick to the head sets up the Macho Elbow (almost a splash) for a hot two. The GTS and F5 are both countered so Punk kicks him in the head again.

Another GTS attempt is countered into the Kimura but that’s reversed into a triangle choke. You just don’t do that to a power guy like Lesnar though, as he turns it over into a powerbomb….which doesn’t break anything. Lesnar powers up again though, this time into a heck of a running powerbomb for the real break. The delayed cover gets two and a ticked off Lesnar rolls some suplexes for two more.

Lesnar takes his sweet time going outside so Punk can get up top for a dive. That’s blocked by a raised chair, but Punk still drives it into Lesnar at the same time. That means Punk can beat the heck out of Lesnar with the chair and it’s Punk getting fired up this time. Back in and Punk hits him low, meaning it’s time to go up top for the Macho Elbow with the chair. Lesnar can’t get up (that’s a rare shot) so Punk hits him again, leaving Heyman to take the chair.

Brock is back up and grabs the F5 but Punk grabs Heyman’s tie for the block. Punk slips out and hits the GTS with Heyman having to make a save. The chase is on and Punk runs into the F5, which is countered into a DDT for two. The Anaconda Vice goes on, but since Lesnar’s legs aren’t kicking you know it’s not a finish. Heyman tries to come in with a chair….but Punk steps onto it. A right hand drops Heyman and Punk puts him in the Vice (like an idiot). Lesnar gets in the chair shot to Punk and the F5 onto the chair is good for the pin at 25:17.

Rating: A. Oh I loved this one all over again. The one part holding it back was Heyman getting involved once too often and Punk getting stupid by putting him in the Vice (he’s way too smart to get that caught up no matter what). Other than that, this was an incredible display of the underdog (who happens to be a multiple time World Champion) going after the unbeatable monster and getting dangerously close to stopping him. I was getting into the near falls here and that says a lot given that I knew how it was ending. Awesome stuff and the blueprint for how to have a smaller guy fight Lesnar.

Punk gets the big hero’s sendoff in what would be his last great match.

A fan took a Mark Henry splash for Summerslam tickets. I’d do it too. The fan and his friends will be ringside for the next match.

Dolph Ziggler/Kaitlyn vs. Big E. Langston/AJ Lee

Langston and Lee turned on Ziggler so he got Kaitlyn, who lost the Divas Title to AJ, on his side for this. It’s so strange seeing Big E. as his old self. The guys start and Big E. goes straight to an abdominal stretch to take over. It’s already off to the women with AJ kicking Kaitlyn in the face for two. The sleeper on Kaitlyn’s back keeps things slow and we look at the fans eating Doritos (sponsor).

Kaitlyn fights up and brings Ziggler back in for the dropkick and rapid fire elbow drops to Big E. Since they’re just elbows, Big E. is right back up with an over the shoulder backbreaker for two with Kaitlyn making the save. A hard running shoulder in the corner only hits post, leaving Kaitlyn to hit a heck of a spear to AJ on the floor (AJ always sold that perfectly). Big E. is fine enough to try the Big Ending but Ziggler reverses into the Zig Zag for the pin at 6:45.

Rating: D+. This was nothing but a way to let the crowd calm down a bit after the instant classic and there’s nothing wrong with being in that spot. Kaitlyn’s spear looked awesome and it was always cool to see Big E. throwing humans around like they were toys. The Ziggler push was already dying around this time but somehow he would still be kicking around in big spots six years later. WWE is funny/stupid in that way.

Fandango interrupts Miz one more time so Miz lays him out. Cole: “It’s Fan-DOWN-Go.” No Cole, it isn’t.

The Kickoff Panel does what Kickoff Panels do. In this case that means picking Daniel Bryan to beat John Cena for the title.

We recap Cena vs. Bryan. Cena was given the chance to pick his challenger for this show and selected Bryan, who had worked his way up the card like few others in recent years. Management hated the idea because Bryan wasn’t good enough and tried to give Bryan a corporate makeover. Bryan refused to cut his beard though because he was going to be himself. HHH, who has seemed to favor Bryan, is guest referee. Bryan and Cena have played up the sports entertainment vs. wrestling deal, which is exactly what this match should be about.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan

Bryan is challenging with HHH as guest referee. Cena is also sporting a massive growth on his elbow, which was leaving him desperately in need of surgery because it’s the size of a baseball. Bryan isn’t getting the superstar pops yet but he’s cheered more than Cena. We get the Big Match Intros and I had forgotten about Bryan’s THE BEARD IS HERE shirt. Cena grabs a headlock to start as they have a ton of time here.

Bryan rolls out with no trouble and it’s an early standoff. Back up and Cena tries a test of strength, which is blocked by a bridge. The YES Lock attempt sends Cena bailing to the floor and he tells the doctor that his arm is fine. Back in and Bryan takes him down into the surfboard knee stomp as Cena is in way over his head with the wrestling. Therefore, he runs Bryan over for a knock to the floor because power is his best bet. Cena follows him outside but gets sent into the steps, only to manage a suplex off the steps to put Bryan down again.

Back in and Cena whips him hard into the corner as Bryan has no answer for the power game just yet. A Batista Bomb gives Cena two and the chinlock goes on. Bryan fights up and forearms away, setting up some kicks in the corner to put Cena on defense again. The running clothesline drops Cena and you can feel the fans’ energy picking up. The YES Kicks connect but, as usual, the big one misses and Cena fires off the shoulders.

Cena takes too long with the Shuffle though and gets kicked in the head, only to come back with the ProtoBomb. Now the Shuffle connects but the AA doesn’t work just yet. Instead Bryan hits a missile dropkick for two as they’re going back and forth very well here. Over ten minutes in, Bryan finally goes after the BIG FREAKING BULGE on his arm to take over. Cena tries the STF but Bryan kicks away and grabs one of his own. The rope is grabbed so Bryan hits a pair of German suplexes for a pair of twos.

Now it’s off to the YES Lock but Cena slips out, earning himself a guillotine choke instead. That’s countered with a backdrop into the corner (cool) and they’re both down for a second. Cena grabs the AA out of nowhere for two and they’re down a bit longer. With nothing working, Cena goes up but Bryan catches him with the running forearms to stagger him. Bryan superplexes him down but hangs on to stay up top for a cool visual.

The Swan Dive connects for two so Cena runs him over with the clothesline for two of his own. Cole mentions that HHH is referee, marking the most significant HHH portion of the match over twenty minutes in. Cena’s super AA is blocked by elbows to the head but Cena blocks the super hurricanrana. That means jumping down and dropping Bryan on top of his head in a botch I had forgotten about so the cringing is strong. The STF goes on with Bryan rolling over to take off some of the pressure.

Bryan manages to reverse into the YES Lock until Cena makes the rope. The running corner dropkicks have Cena in more trouble so he comes out of the corner with the hard clothesline to turn Bryan inside out. The slugout it on until they both hit flying shoulders for another double knockdown. Bryan wins the next slugout but the moonsault out of the corner is caught on Cena’s shoulders. That’s countered into a DDT and they’re both down again. Bryan tries a high crossbody but gets caught in the AA. It’s reversed again and Bryan kicks him in the head, setting up the debuting running knee for the pin and the title at 26:54.

Rating: A+. I go back and forth on which of the two big matches I like more and this time around I liked the story that much more. Bryan debuting the running knee to win is still one of my favorite things in a long time as it came out of nowhere and makes the move look devastating right off the bat. They had a great battle of styles here with both guys sticking with their respective specialties until Bryan broke down the machine through heart and determination, plus some awesome strikes. I had a great time with this one and it was one of the best matches I’ve seen in a good while.

Post match Cena hands him the title and leaves, likely straight to the hospital to get that thing out of his arm. The confetti falls and pyro goes off….and here’s Randy Orton with the other Money in the Bank briefcase, because we needed two of them. Orton does the big staredown, teases leaving, turns back around…and HHH lays Bryan out with the Pedigree to turn full heel.

Raw World Title: Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan

Bryan is defending as well as out so Orton wins the title in eight seconds. There’s your major story over the next eight months and yes I still believe that Bryan winning the title at Wrestlemania was the plan all along (details to be determined).

Overall Rating: A-. This is one of those shows where the good is excellent and the rest just exists. That being said, with the two awesome main events and a rather good Del Rio vs. Christian match, you have a seven match card (leaving out the cash-in match) with three of them receiving some rather high praise. That’s about as good as you can get and it’s one of the better shows in recent memory. Yeah the other four matches range from bad to rather bad, but their times combined are about equal to the main event. Excellent show and worth your time (as in less than three hours) to see.

Ratings Comparison

Rob Van Dam vs. Dean Ambrose

Original: B-
2014 Redo: B-
2017 Redo: D+

2019 Redo: B-

Bray Wyatt vs. Kane

Original: D+

2014 Redo: D

2017 Redo: F+

2019 Redo: F

Damien Sandow vs. Cody Rhodes

Original: C

2014 Redo: D+

2017 Redo: C+

2019 Redo: D

Alberto Del Rio vs. Christian

Original: B+

2014 Redo: B

2017 Redo: B

2019 Redo: B

Brie Bella vs. Natalya

Original: F

2014 Redo: D-

2017 Redo: D-

2019 Redo: D-

Brock Lesnar vs. CM Punk

Original: A+

2014 Redo: A+

2017 Redo: A+

2019 Redo: A

Big E. Langston/AJ Lee vs. Dolph Ziggler/AJ Lee

Original: C-

2014 Redo: D+

2017 Redo: D+

2019 Redo: D+

Daniel Bryan vs. John Cena

Original: A+

2014 Redo: A+

2017 Redo: A+

2019 Redo: A+

Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan

Original: N/A

2014 Redo: N/A

2017 Redo: N/A

2019 Redo: N/A

Overall Rating

Original: A-

2014 Redo: A

2017 Redo: A-

2019 Redo: A-

Was I in a really bad mood when I watched the Kickoff Show in 2017? And I’m all over the place with Cody vs. Sandow. Other than that, it’s pretty much the definitive set of ratings here.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Summerslam 2012
Date: August 19, 2013
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 14,205
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

So Brock Lesnar is back and someone has to stop him. Naturally in this case that means HHH, who is still one of the most important people in the company. Lesnar broke HHH’s arm so HHH is back in the ring to get some revenge. That is pretty much the entire focus of the show, along with the required World Title matches. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Santino Marella vs. Antonio Cesaro

Cesaro (and yes, Antonio Cesaro), with Aksana, is challenging and gets to say “greatest” in five languages before his match (and yes, we were supposed to be surprised when this didn’t get over). They grapple to the mat to start and Marella can actually hang with him down there, followed by a judo throw to bring Cesaro down.

Cesaro breaks out of an armbar without much trouble but Marella is already loading up the Cobra. That’s not happening either so Cesaro takes him to the mat for a chinlock with a knee in Marella’s back. Marella gets up and suplexes Cesaro down but the Cobra is ripped up. Marella fights back and pulls out another Cobra, only for Aksana to offer a distraction. The Neutralizer gives Cesaro the pin and the title at 5:09.

Rating: C. That’s all it should have been as Cesaro wasn’t going to be in any danger against a joke like Marella. The point in putting the title on Marella was to have him lose it in dominant fashion against a big threat and that’s what we got here. The match was nothing of note but that wasn’t the point, as Cesaro basically mauled him in the end.

The opening video looks at the history of Summerslam before shifting to Lesnar vs. HHH. The other matches are basically ignored, as this is all that matters.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Jericho

Ziggler is Mr. Money In The Bank and has Vickie Guerrero with him while Jericho only has bad ribs (thanks to Ziggler on Smackdown). Ziggler bails out to the floor to start so Jericho gives chase, setting up a running elbow to the jaw back inside. With the running stuff not working, Ziggler gets smart by going after the ribs to take over. An ax handle to the ribs gets two but Jericho is back up with a backdrop to the floor (with a heck of a bump from Ziggler).

Jericho does the Hogan hand to the ear but misses the triangle…well it wasn’t going to be a dropkick even if it hit. Back in and Ziggler takes him down into some kind of a rib stretch, followed by a Stinger Splash for two. A neckbreaker lets Ziggler mock the arrogant cover for two more but another Stinger Splash misses. Jericho hits the middle rope ax handle but gets sent into the corner again, allowing Ziggler to hit the Fameasser for two.

The enziguri gives Jericho two of his own but Ziggler is right back with a rather messy looking sleeper. That’s broken up (because it’s a sleeper) so Jericho catches him on top with a super hurricanrana and they both crash down. The running DDT gives Ziggler two and the Zig Zag gets the same, leaving Vickie screaming on the floor.

Back up and Jericho hits a quick Codebreaker but Ziggler rolls out to the floor. Vickie grabs the leg so Jericho can get two off a small package, leaving her screaming again. The Liontamer makes Ziggler tap at 13:04. This is described as Jericho “winning the big one” at Summerslam and….really? He’s won matches at Summerslam before but THIS is the big one?

Rating: B-. The match was fine as you would expect, but I’m not buying this being Jericho winning “the big one” at Summerslam. Jericho is a former multiple time World Champion and has main evented Wrestlemania. Having him win an opener against someone like Ziggler doesn’t feel like a major accomplishment, but rather just something he happens to be doing here.

We look at Brock Lesnar breaking Shawn Michaels’ arm on Raw, which even Paul Heyman thinks might be too far.

Heyman announces that HHH has talked the referee into letting them go a bit further tonight. Lesnar says HHH is in a fight he can’t win, with Heyman saying the two words are “tap out”.

Daniel Bryan vs. Kane

So they’re both having trouble dealing with anger, including Bryan being VERY angry that the fans are cheering for him, even if it’s more mocking this time. Bryan kicks away at the ribs to start before moonsaulting over Kane, who plants him with a slam. The basement dropkick gets one and Kane throws him hard out to the floor. Bryan gets in a shot on the floor though and the missle dropkick gets two back inside.

The fans get to Bryan again but he fires off the YES Kicks anyway. The big kick to the head misses (as it almost always does) though and Kane drops him with a hard clothesline. Kane’s side slam gets two as the loose string on his boot is driving me crazy. There’s the top rope clothesline for two but Bryan escapes the chokeslam and bails outside.

Back in and Bryan hits him in the face, which goes about as well as you probably expect. Bryan goes for the arm though and now the big kick to the head connects. The top rope headbutt is countered into a chokeslam but the Tombstone is countered into a small package (ignore Kane’s shoulder being up) for the pin at 8:03.

Rating: C+. This was another fun one, as Bryan gets to work in his small package, which has been a near trademark for him over the years. The double anger management thing was a good touch and the two of them worked well together in any capacity. If nothing else, this was a lot better than the rumored deal with Charlie Sheen for Bryan, as he and Kane would wind up having a heck of a run together as a team shortly after this.

Post match Kane stalks Bryan to the back, shouting WHERE IS HE and breaking various things (including Josh Matthews).

Intercontinental Title: Rey Mysterio vs. The Miz

Mysterio, as Batman, is challenging but Miz tops him by bringing back the awesome AWESOME balloons for his own entrance. Miz gets in an early knockdown to start so Mysterio grabs a rollup for two, sending him outside. They trade spots a few times, allowing Mysterio to dropkick him through the ropes.

Back in and Miz fires off some kicks, setting up a torture rack dropped into a backbreaker for two. A kick to the head gives Miz two and we hit the cravate. Miz hits a clothesline from his knees for another near fall but Mysterio catches him up top. The top rope seated senton starts the comeback but Miz is right there with a snazzy slingshot sitout powerbomb. Mysterio is back up with a 619 so he tries to Drop The Dime, which is pulled out of the air. That’s reversed into a cradle for two but Miz is right back with the Skull Crushing Finale for the pin to retain at 9:09.

Rating: C+. This was a match that could have been on any given Raw and again that’s not exactly Summerslam worthy. I can always go for the Miz, but this was just he and Mysterio having a match which came and went without doing much of anything. Totally fine and watchable stuff, but for a Monday night in the middle of May, not at the Staples Center at Summerslam.

Eve Torres and Teddy Long think Raw GM AJ Lee is a bit nuts. They leave and CM Punk goes in to see Lee, saying that he doesn’t like being in a triple threat for his title. Punk thinks it’s because he turned down her proposal (Lee was….something at this point), though Lee won’t say anything. He says that’s rather disrespectful, but promises to defend the title tonight. Then tomorrow on Raw, she’ll be forced to show him respect. Lee continues to look off into space and not say a word as Punk leaves.

We recap Alberto Del Rio challenging Sheamus for the Smackdown World Title. Del Rio said Sheamus was beneath him and wanted the title, which is the entire point of the feud. Sheamus stole Del Rio’s car and drove it around San Antonio before leaving the car a mess. Del Rio teased getting Sheamus arrested but had fake cops beat Sheamus up instead. The match was still on for Summerslam.

Smackdown World Title: Alberto Del Rio vs. Sheamus

Sheamus is defending and Ricardo Rodriguez is here with Del Rio (ok I had forgotten how good the personalized ring announcing can be). They start fast and go to the floor, with both of them being sent into a hard object. Back in and Del Rio kicks him in the head, followed by another one to the bad arm to put Sheamus in trouble. The cross armbreaker is easily countered into the Regal Roll for two but Del Rio kicks him in the arm again.

Another cross armbreaker attempt is cut off but the Brogue Kick misses as well. Del Rio knocks him outside, followed by a top rope chop to the head for two back inside. More kicks have Sheamus in trouble but he fights up with the raw power. Del Rio goes right back to the arm to knock him out of the air though and the cross armbreaker finally goes on.

That’s broken up with quite the powerbomb, followed by White Noise for two. The Brogue Kick is blocked so Sheamus hits the ten forearms to the chest. Del Rio kicks him in the head for two so Rodriguez throws in a shoe. That’s intercepted and Sheamus hits the Irish Curse for the pin, but Del Rio’s foot is on the rope…and it doesn’t matter as Sheamus knocks it off and gets the win at 11:23.

Rating: B-. This is a basic story that makes perfect sense, but that doesn’t make it interesting. I remember watching this feud as it played out and there was never a moment where I felt invested in the story. It’s just Sheamus having matches with someone who felt beneath him and that wasn’t going to work. The stuff with the car was fine, but Del Rio didn’t feel like a threat to win the title, which sums up a lot of the issues he had after around 2011 or so.

Sheamus’ “oh well” shrug and smile are great. Del Rio blames Rodriguez for the loss and walks out.

Earlier today, HHH told the referee to let he and Brock Lesnar fight tonight.

Tag Team Titles: Prime Time Players vs. Kofi Kingston/R-Truth

Kingston and R-Truth are defending. The serious R-Truth jumps Young to start and hammers away. Young drives him into the corner though and hands it off to O’Neil for some barking. A front facelock slows R-Truth down but he’s back up with a kick to the face. Kingston comes in to clean house, including the Boom Drop to O’Neil.

The chase around the ring goes badly for Kingston though as a cheap shot lets the villains take over. O’Neil suplexes Young onto Kingston for two. Commentary discusses Little Jimmy’s parentage as O’Neil puts on an abdominal stretch. That’s broken up and it’s back to R-Truth as everything breaks down. Young grabs a rollup for two but walks into Little Jimmy for the pin to retain at 7:03.

Rating: C-. If there has been a recurring theme on this show, it’s “this doesn’t feel like it belongs on Summerslam” and this match is the poster child for those issues. This would have been dull on any given edition of Raw and it wasn’t any better here. I get that you need a bit of a breather between two of the bigger matches, but as usual, the Tag Team Titles do not feel remotely important. It’s not the wrestlers’ fault as they had a decent enough match, but dang this felt out of place.

We look at WWE taking over Los Angeles.

We recap CM Punk defending the Raw World Title against John Cena and Big Show. Punk got tired of the lack of respect despite being World Champion and turned evil by attacking Cena. In addition, Show has been knocking people out to keep himself involved as well. Rather kooky General Manager AJ Lee made it a triple threat to torment Punk, who is all about getting respect.

Raw World Title: CM Punk vs. John Cena vs. Big Show

Punk is defending. Show drops both of them to dominate early and hits the big chops. A double suplex sends Cena and Punk flying and Show knocks Cena outside. Back up and Punk gets smart by kicking the leg out as the fans are rather pro-Punk. Cena comes back in and gets kicked down for two, only for Show to stand on Punk’s back. Show sends Cena outside again and pulls a springboarding Punk out of the air to plant him down.

Back in and Cena gets speared down for two, setting up a Vader Bomb. Punk moves out of the way so Cena gets fully crushed, leaving Punk to be chokeslammed against the ropes. The side slam plants Cena as this has been almost all Show. Cena is back up with the ProtoBomb to drop Show but Punk is right there to break up the Shuffle. Punk drops a top rope elbow for two, with the kickout sending him flying.

Another kick to the head sets up a Koji Clutch, which is broken up in short order. Cena gets Show in the STF but it’s countered as well. Punk gets the Koji Clutch on Show again but Cena adds the STF and Show taps at 12:34. Punk and Cena both celebrate but there’s no ruling. Cue AJ Lee to say restart the match, so Show chokeslams both of them for two each. The KO Punch misses though and Cena gives Show the AA, only to be thrown outside so Punk can steal the pin to retain at 14:28.

Rating: B-. Show looked dominant, but the double submission took a lot of that away in a hurry. I didn’t even remember this match taking place here and that’s because, and I hate to sound like such a corrupted mp3 (because my goodness it’s time enough to get a new metaphor) but this isn’t something that felt worthy of being on Summerslam. It’s just another triple threat that feels like what you do when you don’t have a good enough idea. AJ being all crazy and messing with Punk is fine, but find a better way to do it.

Celebrities are here!

We look at the new WWE movie, the Day. It had no wrestlers in prominent roles, got bad reviews and made $20,000 in theaters.

We look at Cesaro winning the US Title on the pre-show.

Kevin Rudolph sings the theme song. Were we really short on time here or something? Various WWE women come out to dance, with Michael Cole doing the same on commentary.

We recap HHH vs. Brock Lesnar. Basically Lesnar had a bunch of demands, like a looser schedule, Vince McMahon’s private jet and more money, but HHH said no chance. Lesnar broke HHH’s arm and a few months later, the match was set for Summerslam. This led to an almost bizarre visual of Stephanie McMahon arguing with Paul Heyman, which might have been even more entertaining. Lesnar responded by breaking Shawn Michaels’ arm as well and the match was on.

HHH vs. Brock Lesnar

The rules are slightly relaxed here and Lesnar has Paul Heyman with him. Lesnar powers him into the corner to start but the Kimura is blocked. HHH clotheslines him to the floor and hits the running knee to put Lesnar down for a breather. Another clothesline puts Lesnar on the floor and Heyman tells him to slow it down. Back in and Lesnar takes the gloves off before knocking HHH outside.

The previously broken arm is dropped onto the announcers’ table as HHH is in trouble. Back in and HHH slugs away but gets cut off with a German suplex. They go back outside and the bad arm is sent into the steps. HHH gets sent over the announcers’ table, followed by a hard clothesline back inside.

HHH fights back and tries the Pedigree but gets sent back to the floor, with the arm getting banged up again. Lesnar goes after him but HHH sends him ribs first into the announcers’ table, leaving Lesnar in trouble. Back in and HHH fires off the knees to the ribs, followed by the spinebuster. The Pedigree gets two so Lesnar hits him low for a breather. The F5 gives Lesnar two (Heyman: “WHAT DOES IT TAKE?”) so the Kimura goes on. That’s broken up and HHH hits another Pedigree, only to get caught in the Kimura for the tap at 18:43.

Rating: B. I guess you can call this the match of the night, as it’s the only match on the show that was treated as a big deal. It wasn’t exactly in doubt as HHH isn’t going to beat Lesnar at Summerslam (he would of course save that for Wrestlemania), which left this as kind of an “ok, and then what?” feeling. The stuff with the arm worked as a story, but it was a question of how Lesnar would win rather than would he win.

Post match Lesnar and Heyman leave, with HHH doing the big dramatic stand as the fans cheer for him. HHH: “I’m sorry.” Somehow this feud would continue for about eight more months, with HHH winning at Wrestlemania (of course) and Lesnar beating him at Extreme Rules to wrap it up and finally move on to something new.

Overall Rating: C+. The show isn’t bad as a whole, but there is a reason I saw this on the list and could barely remember anything about it. Outside of the main event, this is as nothing of a Summerslam as you’ll ever find, with pretty much nothing important happening here. So much of this show feels like it’s setting up something else for later and that’s not what I’m wanting out of one of the biggest events of the year. I get the idea of building off of this, but there was just nothing going on here and it’s a totally forgettable show as a result.

 

 

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Monday Night Raw
Date: July 13, 2026
Location: American Airlines Arena, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re on the way to Saturday Night’s Main Event and that means it is time to finalize the Raw side of the card. The show is only feeling so important with Summerslam coming a few weeks after but that is often an issue with these specials. Hopefully they can put something together here with Brock Lesnar in the house. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Here are Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar, with a bunch of cops, to get things going. The fans keep chanting for Oba Femi, with Heyman explaining how obsessed Femi is with facing Lesnar. Heyman finds it interesting to see Femi being obsessed because so many people are until they get hit in the face.

This time though, Lesnar is obsessed with Femi and has been looking past hunting trips and training camp to get his hands on Femi in the Cell. Before then though, Heyman has gone to a judge and gotten a restraining order to prevent any violence. Lesnar takes his hat off because he’ll be abiding by the judge’s orders, but here is Femi (in a RUN FROM THE RULER shirt, making me picture him as the nun in the Blues Brothers) to interrupt.

Femi is here to fight so Lesnar and Heyman leave, with Femi beating up the cops. With Lesnar and Heyman on the stage, Femi says he would have gotten his title shot but Lesnar would have cost him anyway. At Summerslam, there is no more running. Not much here, but the match has already been set up.

We get the start of a series on Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins, with the formation of the Shield. This is basically “here’s the Shield, they’re awesome”.

Iyo Sky vs. Roxanne Perez

Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez are here with Perez. It’s a brawl to start with Sky taking her down for some knees to the ribs. Back up and they trade some rollups for two each until Perez kicks her in the ribs. They head outside for the fight over a suplex, with Sky dropping her down to the floor. An Asai moonsault connects but Morgan offers a distraction, allowing Perez to twist the leg as we take a break.

We come back with Perez tying her in the Tree Of Woe and kicking at the knee some more. Sky gets her knees up to block a moonsault and hitting a butterfly backbreaker for another two. There’s the missile dropkick but the running knee only hits buckls. Perez grabs a Haas Of Pain, with Sky reversing into a crossface. That’s broken up as well so Judgment Day offers a distraction, only for Sky to roll through a rollup and pin Perez at 9:35.

Rating: B-. This was one of those basic steps in a long story as Sky is on her way to a title match at Summerslam but they have so long on the road to the title match. Sky beating Morgan’s friends is a good way to go and she outsmarted the Judgment Day to win here. They have a few weeks to go and at least this first part went well.

Post match the beatdown is still on until Sol Ruca runs in for the save. That earns her a swing into the barricade and a powerbomb against the post, followed by a belt shot to leave Sky laying.

We recap the issues with the Bloodline on Smackdown.

Here is the Vision, now with Maxxine Dupri, to brag about getting the Tag Team Titles back. Dupri goes to explain but here is the sad looking Alpha Academy to interrupt. They want an explanation and beg her to come back but she didn’t think it was fair that she had to pick between them. Otis told her that Austin Theory was bad news but she insists that they don’t even know Theory. As Otis seems ready to confess his feelings for Dupri, Theory gets on the apron to laugh the whole thing off.

The fight is on with Tozawa diving at Bron Breakker, who suplexes him clean over the announcers’ table. Back in and the beatdown continues but Otis fights back in the corner. Otis goes to kiss Dupri but Theory gets in a low blow. Breakker hits a huge spear to Tozawa and another drops Otis as well. This is supposed to be some big sad moment but I’m really not that mad about Dupri getting to be happy with the successful team over some comedy losers.

Survivor Series is in Houston.

The people in the gauntlet match for an Intercontinental Title shot want to win the gauntlet match for an Intercontinental Title shot.

Royce Keys vs. Jimmy Uso

This is an impromptu match and we’re joined in progress after a break, as the two got in a fight in the aisle during the commercial. Keys hammers away as we recap how the match was set up. A high crossbody gives Jimmy a breather and he enziguris Keys outside. That earns Uso some rams into various objects on the floor, only to come back with a Samoan drop onto the announcers’ table. We take a break and come back with Keys catching him in a powerslam as Jacob Fatu arrives in the back. Fatu comes into the arena and lays Keys out for the DQ at 6:53.

Rating: C. They didn’t have time to do much here as so much of the match was spent in the break. At the same time, Keys is the latest name to be pulled into the Bloodline Vortex, which might seem like a good thing but will likely only lead to a bunch of beatdowns. You really couldn’t have him pin Uso here before the big beating?

Post match Fatu wrecks Keys and wraps a chair around his neck in the corner. Solo Sikoa pops up to call Fatu off though, saying blood is thicker than water. That’s why he’s coming home to the family. They do the big pose and Sikoa Spikes Uso but the Bloodline is back up. LA Knight comes in for the real save, though a chair to the back just wakes Fatu up. Knight chairs him to the floor and says that’s not enough because he wants the two of them in this ring. Throw in Jey Uso too and let’s do that six man thing at Summerslam.

Paul Heyman applauds the Vision for their efforts but says that Maxxine Dupri was so great tonight….that they don’t need him anymore. And Heyman walks away. If that’s it for the team, fair enough, as it really wasn’t working and needs a new direction.

Video on the Cell.

Oba Femi comes up to Adam Pearce and threatens a lot of violence in the Cell.

Bayley is in the ring and invites Lyra Valkyria to join her. Valkyria does show up and Bayley asks for an apology, but Valkyria thinks she deserves the apology. If Bayley could realize her own problems, she would realize why so many people turn on her. Valkyria has always lied to Bayley to make her feel good because the reality is Bayley is a doormat. Her face shouldn’t be on the posters and she drags everyone down.

Bayley has always been the worst of the Four Horsewomen but she lists off some of her own accomplishments. She’s going to add beating Valkyria at Madison Square Garden, because their match is set for Saturday Night’s Main Event. Valkyria’s cheap shot is cut off but she beats Bayley up anyway. They were doing it there or at Summerslam so this makes sense.

We look at the Shield splitting up, with the chair shot that ultimately lead to the creation of the Bloodline.

Big Cass is back on August 3. If he’s alone, it’ll be fine. Therefore, it won’t be fine.

Gauntlet Match

Seven entries for an Intercontinental Title shot at Summerslam and it’s Dominik Mysterio in at #1 and Joe Hendry in at #2. Hendry starts fast and takes over, including a slam to put Mysterio down. They go outside with Hendry being whipped hard into the steps and the fans are all over Mysterio. Back in and the slingshot hilo connects but Hendry blocks the Three Amigos. Hendry gets in the fall away slam but JD McDonagh offers a distraction. The 619 into the frog splash gets rid of Hendry at 4:52.

Je’Von Evans is in at #3 and, after a break, is taken down by McDonagh on the floor. Evans sends Mysterio into the announcers’ table though and a spinning enziguri gets two back inside. McDonagh gets caught interfering so Evans hits him in the face, only to get 619ed. Mysterio goes up….and here is Danhausen to CURSE him. The pyro goes off in the wrong corner (Danhausen realizes he messed up) but it’s the OG Cutter to give Evans the pin at 11:10.

Dragon Lee is in at #4 and sends Evans outside for the big running flip dive as we take another break. We come back with Evans winning a slugout and taking it outside. Lee is sent into the timekeeper’s area, where a big dive takes him down again. They get back inside where Lee plants Evans for two, only to get rolled up for the pin at 15:36. Rusev is in at #5 and we take a break.

We come back with Rusev unloading on Evans, at least until he knocks Rusev outside. The big no hands dive gives Evans two back inside but Rusev slams him down. The Accolade goes on, with Evans making the rope. That’s not acceptable for Rusev, who pulls him back in, only to have Evans stand up (!) and drop down for the save. Rusev pulls him right back in though and Evans is out at 27:15.

Chad Gable is in at #6 and the rolling suplexes have Rusev in trouble. Rusev is able to catch him with a release Rock Bottom though and we take a break. We come back with a superplex and Angle Slam being blocked. Instead Rusev superkicks him into the Accolade but Gable slips out for a German suplex into the corner.

A victory roll pins Rusev at 34:26 but Rusev Accolades Gable again. Ethan Page is in at #7 and Page’s running big boot gets two but he’s caught in the ankle lock. That’s reversed into a Confidence Breaker for two, only for Gable to reverse an Egoplex into the Angle Slam for two. The ankle lock gives Gable the win at 38:18.

Rating: B. This worked well as I wasn’t sure who was going to win. Gable going forward is the right way to go, as he is long overdue for some singles success of his own. I’d assume he wins the title, but the question would seem to be how. For right now, he’s having good matches and the fans are behind him so you can only ask for so much more than that. This was rather long but flew by and that’s a nice feeling for the big featured match designed to eat up a bunch of the show’s time.

Post match Penta comes in for the staredown.

We look at the recent Smackdown World Title issues, leading to a tag match at Saturday Night’s Main Event.

Roman Reigns arrives.

Saturday Night’s Main Event rundown.

It’s time for the contract signing with Roman Reigns coming to the ring (already containing Adam Pearce) first. After the catchphrase, here is Seth Rollins to interrupt and join in. Rollins signs before his music finishes playing and says him beating Reigns is one of those things you can’t avoid. With his feet on the table, Rollins tells Reigns to get on with this but Reigns says he wishes Rollins that last week.

Last week Rollins proved himself to be Reigns’ #1 hater (the fans like that one) and Reigns doesn’t like that because it has people believing they’re on the same level. Reigns will prove the difference between the two of them at Summerslam, where he’ll show Rollins what #1 looks like. That’s enough for Reigns to sign and we’re officially set. Rollins is rather pleased with him for keeping the title warm and he’ll see Reigns the next time he wants to show up for work.

Reigns cuts him off and asks what happens if Rollins does win. Is he going to hold the title for a few months and then get hurt again? It’s what happens every single time because some people just can’t handle the pressure of being the top guy around here. That brings Rollins back inside to tell Reigns to just say something. Reigns says he knows Rollins is #2 because after all of these years, he still needs Money In The Bank and a fake injury to win the title. If there was ever a time to be #1, Rollins’ work daddy HHH is basically running the place!

They gave Rollins all of Reigns’ stuff but he still couldn’t walk in Reigns’ shoes. Reigns will always be #1 and Rollins will always be #2 so just acknowledge it b****. Rollins asks if that’s all he has, and says that they’re not doing the same thing. He’s glad that he isn’t Reigns and the fight is on, with Rollins beating him down. The Stomp is countered with a Superman Punch but Rollins uses a microphone to get out of a powerbomb. Now the Stomp connects and Rollins stares down at him to end the show. This went on for a bit and Reigns basically destroyed him on the mic, as Rollins didn’t have much to respond to him.

Overall Rating: B. They were in a rough spot (again) because they’re trying to build to a few things at once. Saturday Night’s Main Event does feel bigger this time around, but when you already have Summerslam mostly set, the Saturday special only matters so much. The wrestling was a big different here too, with one scheduled match, an impromptu match (that’s not a bad thing) and then a very long six fall match. It worked out fine, but this was definitely something a bit different and I’m not sure how often they could pull it off.

Results
Iyo Sky b. Roxanne Perez – Rollup
Royce Keys b. Jimmy Uso via DQ when Jacob Fatu interfered
Chad Gable won a gauntlet match last eliminating Ethan Page

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Monday Night Raw
Date: June 1, 2026
Location: Inalpi Arena, Turin, Italy
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re still in Italy for an afternoon show in the eastern United States. Clash In Italy took place yesterday and Roman Reigns is still the World Champion, albeit now with Jacob Fatu under his thumb. That should help him as he could have an upcoming challenger via the King Of The Ring, which gets started this week. Let’s get to it.

Here is Clash In Italy if you need a recap.

Clash In Italy recap.

Roman Reigns and the Usos arrive, minus Jacob Fatu. We pause for the fans to serenade them and yeah that’s a pretty cool moment. Reigns seems impressed as this goes on for at least a few minutes before he gets in the catchphrase. Reigns is happy that it’s acknowledgment daybut there’s no Fatu. Jey: “His first day on the job and he’s already late!”

Cue Fatu, in far more casual than usual clothes, with Reigns and Jey mocking him for taking too long. Fatu glares at Jey and then takes the microphone away, saying he’s taken a lot of losses over his career. Last night was another one and he knows there are consequences. His children saw their father take a loss last night but he’s going to be a man and keep his word. Last night he lost to his Tribal Chief, but he didn’t lose to Jey’s punk a**.

Fatu goes back to Reigns and officially acknowledges him, even taking a knee in front of him. Reigns takes Fatu’s hand and pulls him up, saying that Fatu might not understand this right now, but Reigns loves him. Jimmy says Fatu is with them now and they’re the ones, with the four of them doing the pose. It could take a bit, but this setting up the other three turning on Reigns, which could do well for everyone involved.

Video on King and Queen Of The Ring. The tournaments will be four four ways, with the winners going on to regular four person elimination brackets.

King Of The Ring First Round: Penta vs. Oba Femi vs. Solo Sikoa vs. Carmelo Hayes

Non-title and the MFT’s are here with Sikoa. Femi clears the ring to start and knocks Sikoa outside with a straight right hand. Femi follows him and dropkicks Hayes into the face. They switch places and Hayes hits the Fadewaway, only to dive into a superkick. Femi and Talla Talla Tonga have the big staredown on the floor and before Femi chokeslams Penta and Hayes.

We take a break and come back with Sikoa cleaning house until Femi drops him with a clothesline. Femi gets hit with the First 48 and is sent into the post, with Sikoa and the MFT’s taking him out on the floor. Penta and Hayes hit a dive each until Sikoa clotheslines Penta back inside. The Penta Driver gets two on Hayes and everyone is down. Femi is back up though and starts cleaning house, including a spinebuster to Penta. Talla Tonga is tossed onto the announcers’ table and the Fall From Grace finishes Sikoa at 8:57.

Rating: B. The ending was OBA SMASH and that’s all it needed to be. Femi needed a dominant win after what happened at Clash In Italy and while I don’t know if he wins the whole tournament, he was treated like a huge deal here. It didn’t feel like Femi got lucky, as much as he just ran through everyone to win.

Post match Femi talks about Brock Lesnar asking if he could take a beating. Well here he is after 7 F5’s and now he’s going to be King Of The Ring. Lesnar needs to remember that they’re 1-1 so they’ll see each other again.

Video on Seth Rollins vs. Bron Breakker, which takes place again tonight.

Here is new Women’s Intercontinental Champion Sol Ruca for a chat. Ruca is asked if she believed she would get here and thanks the fans for believing in her. She also thanks Becky Lynch for giving her a chance, but then she proved Lynch wrong. And it’s not just hear saying it either! She’ll be a fighting champion and you shouldn’t underestimate her because she’ll snatch your soul. She even gets some pyro to wrap it up.

After last night’s show, Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns had a silent staredown.

Reigns wants the Usos to keep an eye on Rhodes. For now though, he wants Jey Uso to go be King Of The Ring and go on to Summerslam to get the other World Title. Jimmy is staying with Reigns though because Jey has to do this on his own.

Rey Mysterio/Dragon Lee vs. Ethan Page/Rusev

Rusev stomps Lee down into the corner to start and it’s off to Page, who gets sent into the corner. Lee’s wrecking ball dropkick hits Lee in the corner, setting up a running dropkick for two. Rusev comes back in and gets rolled up for two before Lee looks over to Mysterio for quite the reaction. Page breaks up the tag though (that was a great evil thing to do) and Lee gets planted as we take a break.

We come back with Page breaking up Lee’s tag attempt. That doesn’t last long though as Lee gets over to Mysterio for the big tag so house can be cleaned. Everything breaks down and Page sends Mysterio into Lee, allowing him to grab a rollup for two. Page’s Boston crab has to be broken up and Lee suicide dives Rusev. That leaves Mysterio to 619 Page into the slingshot splash for the pin at 11:34.

Rating: B-. This was just a way to get Mysterio in the ring in front of the international crowd and they more than seemed to appreciate it. That was how the match should have gone and while I could have gone with Rusev taking the pin over Page, this was pretty nice stuff. If nothing else, Mysterio can still more than go in the ring and it’s more impressive every week.

Adam Pearce talks to Penta and gives him the Intercontinental Title match against Rey Mysterio. Penta approves and leaves when LA Knight comes in. Knight isn’t happy with how much attention Pearce has been giving to Roman Reigns, so maybe we need to get Pearce his own Honorary Uce shirt.

Maybe Knight can bring Pearce out of retirement so he can put him back in it. Knight thinks Pearce is trying to get the Bloodline back together and even mocks the finger point before storming off. The thing that made this work is how natural Knight sounded. It felt like he was told “here’s why you’re mad at Pearce, get this point over, go talk.” That’s a great way to go and it worked here, as Knight can talk with the best of them.

Commentary talks about the Mask vs. Mask match from last weekend’s AAA show, with the match airing again after Raw on Netflix. Watch it if you haven’t seen it.

We get some highlights of the mask vs. mask match.

Queen Of The Ring First Round: Lash Legend vs. Giulia vs. Iyo Sky vs. Roxanne Perez

Legend catches Giulia to start but gets dropkicked down by Sky. Perez is in to go after Sky but Legend picks up Perez and Sky, with Giulia dropkicking everyone down for a change. We take a break and come back with Legend being pulled out to the floor, leaving Sky to Bullet Train Perez and Giulia in the corner.

Legend is back in with a choke to Sky but Giulia breaks it up with the running knee. Perez takes Giulia and Sky down at the same time, followed by the cartwheel knee to Sky’s head for two. Giulia takes Sky up top but Perez breaks it up, only for Legend to double powerbomb not-Sky. A Lash Extension drops Giulia and Perez but Sky makes the save. Over The Moonsault gives Sky the pin on Giulia at 10:36.

Rating: B-. Sky possibly moving back to the title picture is a good way to go as she feels like a major star. At the same time, Giulia continues to just kind of float around aimlessly and Perez will more than likely be going back to tagging. That leaves Legend, who has turned into a pretty decent power monster. I’m rather impressed with her transformation, as she looked more than capable in there this time.

Maxxine Dupri isn’t happy about not being in the Queen Of The Ring but Adam Pearce says she’s the first choice if a spot opens up. The Alpha Academy warn her about hanging out with Austin Theory, because he’s bad news. She insists she’s got this.

We get a video on Danhausen cursing ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith and the New York Knicks, who then went on a losing streak, then uncursed them, and then they went on a 7-0 winning streak and went on to the NBA Finals. This is the definition of “let’s run with this” and it’s working.

Bayley and Lyra Valkyria want the Women’s Tag Team Titles. Valkyria goes over to Sol Ruca and praises her for ending the Becky Lynch reign of terror. Valkyria gets a title shot out of this and Bayley isn’t thrilled.

Roxanne Perez rants about her loss when Liv Morgan comes in to brag about how she’s going to win the tournament. Raquel Rodriguez has to help her get the hint and Perez doesn’t seem happy about not getting any help. Morgan says she and Dominik Mysterio are winning the tournaments, seemingly forgetting that Rodriguez and JD McDonagh are entered as well.

Seth Rollins vs. Bron Breakker

Paul Heyman is here with Breakker. Rollins strikes away to start but gets suplexed down for his efforts. Breakker is sent outside, where’ he’s able to toss Rollins over the barricade as we take an early break. We come back with Breakker continuing to wreck Rollins, including the array of suplexes. They head outside with Breakker sending Rollins into the announcers’ table and clearing both tables off.

Rollins uses the delay to fight up and take over, with a running knee hitting Breakker back inside. Breakker is fine enough to run the corner and snap off a super Frankensteiner for two, leaving the frustration levels high. They go outside again with Rollins going onto the announcers’ table and diving at a diving Breakker for a midair collision.

We take a break and come back again with Breakker hammering Rollins in the corner, only to get reversed into a not great looking powerbomb for two. Rollins superplexes him down but has to reverse Breakker’s suplex into a small package for two more. The spear drops Rollins and they go outside again, with the diving spear being countered into a Pedigree through the announcers’ table.

Back in and cue Austin Theory for a distraction, but Montez Ford runs in to take him out. Another spear gives Breakker another two, as does Rollins’ stomp as Heyman puts the foot on the rope. Rollins goes after Heyman, who accidentally gets speared through the barricade. Breakker knows he screwed up and tries another spear but Rollins has grabbed a title belt, with Breakker knocking himself out. Another Stomp gives Rollins the pin at 22:24.

Rating: B. This got wild near the end and you know it’s a big deal if Heyman takes a bump. That’s likely going to get rid of him for at least a good while and I’m not really sure where that leaves a lot of things. The match was pretty much the traditional post PPV PPV level main event, which caps off the weekend nicely enough. It absolutely could have been on Clash, but then how else would you get in four more ads?

Rollins points at Ford and implies he wants Roman Reigns’ title to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show was more about setting things up for later, with the opening segment saying “Fatu is with the Bloodline”, the main event being about getting rid of Heyman, and two of the three other matches being starts to tournaments. That’s only so much of a show and while it wasn’t bad, it was a pretty skippable show. Not bad, but you’re better off reading a recap than watching the whole thing.

Results
Oba Femi b. Solo Sikoa, Carmelo Hayes and Penta – Fall From Grace to Sikoa
Rey Mysterio/Dragon Lee b. Rusev/Ethan Page – Slingshot splash to Page
Iyo Sky b. Giulia, Lash Legend and Roxanne Perez – Over The Moonsault to Giulia
Seth Rollins b. Bron Breakker – Stomp

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6