Hiya!

Did I ever tell you I believe SummerSlam is the “heel” pay-per-view event of the WWE? It’s actually an inside joke I have with my brother as one of the most memorable SummerSlam shows I ever watched was when Edge successfully defeated John Cena to retain the WWE World Championship on the show. Ever since then, I’ve equated the pay-per-view to one where the heels would get the upper hand. After watching this year’s SummerSlam, it seems like I was right for the most part.

I’m getting ahead of myself, though. Let’s go through each of the matches on the card and let me give you my thoughts on them.

The first match of the night had Liv Morgan defending her RAW Women’s Championship against Rhea Ripley, who had “Dirty” Dominik Mysterio by her side. On paper, it looked like Rhea Ripley was a shoo-in to take the title but, thanks to some creative storytelling of Ripley dislocating her shoulder during the match, Liv managed to get in a good run. Some of the finer moments were mostly focused on in-ring storytelling rather than spots. Things like Dom shoving Mami out of the way from Morgan’s suicide dive and Ripley slamming her shoulder back into the socket to regain control of her arm.

The finish saw Ripley nailing Morgan with her Riptide slam but, instead of going for the pin, she opted to try to hit her opponent with a steel chair. Before she could strike Morgan with the chair, Dominik stopped her, telling Mami she would get disqualified if she did. While Rhea was arguing with Dom-Dom on the ring apron, Liv hit Ripley in the back with a dropkick and then her Ob-Liv-ion finisher but Ripley kicked out!

Dominik Mysterio then slid the same steel chair into the ring and… did he point it out to Liv Morgan? Anyway, Dominik then distracts the referee, allowing Liv Morgan to hit her Ob-Liv-ion to Rhea Ripley onto the steel chair. No kicking out this time as Liv Morgan retains her RAW Women’s Championship. After the match, Dominik Mysterio’s true colors show as he celebrates with Liv Morgan while Rhea Ripley stews in anger at his betrayal.

Once again, I do have to reiterate the action here wasn’t all that great. I still don’t think Liv Morgan is all that good in the ring but she manages to cover it with a lot of showmanship. However, I was still super into the match because of all the buildup towards it. Seeing “Dirty” Dom betray Rhea Ripley was no surprise as it’s classic heel storytelling. Even so, I love the execution of it all.

The next match had Sami Zayn defending the Intercontinental Championship against Bron Brekker. Wait, didn’t we just have these two go at it during the last pay-per-view? Yes, we did! This is probably why I and the live crowd didn’t seem so eager for this match. Oddly enough, this was mostly a squash, with Bron Brekker overwhelming Sami Zayn with both his speed and power. Some of the cooler moments were Zayn leapfrogging out of the way of a spear, causing Brekker to slam himself into the ring post, Brekker hitting a top rope Frankensteiner and Zayn reversing a bulldog attempt into a Blue Thunder Bomb.

The finish came after Zayn hit an exploder suplex, sending Brekker into the corner. Sami set up for his Helluva Kick finisher but Brekker exploded from the corner and nailing Zayn with a spear. Brekker then hit another spear to Zayn to get the pinfall victory and become the NEW Intercontinental Champion.

This was a nice quick match and, while the action was good, it was still hard to get into as we did see this match happen just a month ago. I am glad the put the belt on Bron Brekker as he has shown he can stand out like a WWE Superstar should. Still, they could’ve done this a month ago and everyone would’ve been fine with the result then.

The next match had Logan Paul defending the United States Championship against LA Knight. I actually love the build up of this match as it had two loudmouths trying to out loudmouth each other. Officially, the match was pretty short but that’s only because the action started even before the bell rang! This allowed a lot of roughhousing early on, with LA Knight hitting a neckbreaker on top of the announcer’s table before the match officially began. Lot of cool spots during the actual match as well, like when Logan Paul hit a corkscrew springboard moonsault to the outside, Paul imitating Hulk Hogan with a big boot and modified legdrop combo, Knight bouncing from the 2nd rope to the top to deliver an elbow and Knight leaping to the top rope to deliver a wicked looking hybrid superplex/avalanche brainbuster to Paul.

The finish came when Machine Gun Kelly handed Logan Paul his chain, which just so happens to have The Maverick’s brass knuckles on the end. Knight then tried to hit a back suplex to send Paul back into the ring but Paul nailed Knight with the knuckles in the process. Paul then went for a buckshot lariat but Knight blocked the move and hit his opponent with his Blunt Force Trauma finisher to get the pinfall and become the NEW United States Champion!

This was a fantastic match as it had a good mix of spots, action and good in-ring storytelling. Love him or hate him, you can’t deny how good Logan Paul is in the ring. LA Knight may not be a high flyer who can do spots but he brings in a lot of sizzle with his steak. Great match and it gets two thumbs up from me.

The next match of the night had Bayley defending the Smackdown Women’s Championship against the Queen of the Ring winner, Nia Jax. This was kind of a squash match as Nia Jax got most of the offense in with Bayley essentially just trying to survive and working on any of Jax’s mistakes. Luckily for Bayley, there were a lot of those as it allowed her some quick bursts of offense before Jax would overwhelm her again with her power. No real highlights here besides Bayley actually lifting Nia Jax for a powerbomb. That’s enough, right?

The finish came after Bayley hit the aforementioned powerbomb and then hit a top rope elbow for a 2-count. All of a sudden, Tiffany Straton‘s music hit and she came rushing down with her Money in the Bank briefcase! Bayley knocks Straton off the ring apron and then rolls up Jax. Bayley then tried a hurracarana but Jax overpowered Bayley and hit a powerbomb. Jax then hit one Annihilator… and then another! This was too much and Nia Jax got the pinfall win to become the NEW Smackdown Women’s Champion.

The match itself was pretty ho-hum as expected. I only really woke up after Bayley hit the powerbomb and hearing Tiffany Straton’s music. Otherwise, this was a lackluster match and, honestly, besides the final minutes, I forgot most of it already.

The next match might be the one with the most story involved. It wasn’t for the title but it was for… a bracelet? Anyway, this had CM Punk take on Drew McIntyre with Seth “Freakin'” Rollins as the special guest referee. Seth Rollins did let a lot of things slide as, when the action spilled to the outside, he didn’t even bother counting them out. I will say Punk looked gassed very early on and this might have led to why the action wasn’t as hot and heavy as I think it needed to be. Still, lots of good moments, both action-wise and storytelling-wise. Things like Rollins allowing most things to slide but not allowing a steel chair brought in by McIntyre, leading to Rollins trying to hit Drew with the chair but almost hitting Punk. Then, while Rollins was getting rid of the chair, Punk got McIntyre with a rollup but Seth was too late to count the pin. Like I said, really good in-ring storytelling.

I mentioned a bracelet earlier, didn’t I? Well, it’s Punk’s friendship bracelet with his wife and dog’s name on it, which Drew stole a week ago. I mentioned it as it factors into the finish. Punk tried to lock in the Anaconda Vise on McIntyre but got distracted as the Scottish Warrior was wearing it on his wrist. McIntyre hit the distracted Punk with a Claymore for a 2-count. Seth then saw the bracelet and put it on, presumably for safekeeping. Drew then tried to spear Punk but Punk sidestepped, sending McIntyre flying into the ring post.

The Second City Savior then signaled for his GTS finisher but noticed Rollins was wearing the bracelet, distracting him once again. Drew clocked Punk from behind, knocking Rollins out of the ring. Punk managed to reverse a Futureshock DDT with a GTS but Rollins wasn’t there to count the cover. Punk then started arguing and Punk got fed up and hit Seth with GTS! Punk then tried to retrieve the bracelet again but, as he turned to beat on McIntyre, Drew hit Punk with a low blow and a Claymore. Rollins dragged himself and made the slow count, giving Drew McIntyre the pinfall victory.

This was a fantastic match. While the pacing could have been better as there were some major gaps, where I think CM Punk had to catch his breath. In hindsight, this did make Punk look like a chump as he kept on getting distracted by the bracelet instead of, I don’t know, just beating on Drew McIntyre and getting the bracelet afterwards. Still, I love all the drama of the match and this was my match of the night.

The second to the last night had Damien Priest defending his WWE World Heavyweight Championship against GUNTHER. On paper, this would look like a couple of powerhouses beating on each other. There is definitely more to it as The Justice Day member was more about flashy strikes and quickness while GUNTHER would rely on just straightforward, no-frills chops and slams. This was a good contrast to see but the most memorable moments here weren’t the spots but more on the in-ring storytelling. Some things like GUNTHER getting busted open on his chest was unexpected and I love how GUNTHER played into that. There was Priest defying GUNTHER and asking for the beating he was getting and Priest hulking up after GUNTHER struck Finn Balor, who supposedly came to support his fellow Judgement Day team member.

The finish was both a surprise and expected. After Priest hulked up, he took down GUNTHER with a Razor’s Edge and his South of Heaven chokeslam finisher. Priest went for the cover but Finn Balor grabbed GUNTHER’s leg and draped it on the bottom rope, forcing the referee to stop the count! For some reason, Finn Balor’s action was replayed on the Titantron, with a guitar which added to the weirdness, which Priest saw. An irate Priest tried to attack Balor but GUNTHER locked in a sleeperhold. Damien tried to rally and then go after Balor again. Unfortunately for him, GUNTHER hit a powerbomb and then locked in the sleeper. Priest fades, stopping the match, making GUNTHER the NEW WWE World Heavyweight Champion!

I half expected Finn Balor to eventually backstab Damien Priest here. I am rather disappointed by Priest’s actions as, after he broke out of the sleeperhold the first time, he still went after Balor instead of trying to attend to GUNTHER. This also does make GUNTHER look somewhat weak as he needed shenanigans to take the belt. I did like the match but, even now, I can’t really remember most of what happened to it as the closing moments and The Judgement Day’s implosion will always be the highlight here.

The final match of the night had Cody Rhodes defending the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against the New Bloodline leader, Solo Sikoa, in a Bloodline Rules match. Why couldn’t they just call it a No DQ match? Anyway, the match started out as a regular match, with lots of back and forth. Solo Sikoa would start to dominate by using his power and strikes while Cody would counter in some way and get a run of his own. I would say there was too much taunting by Solo Sikoa here and it didn’t look right. I used to call Nikki Bella a “spotty” wrestler as she would do a “spot” then preen to the crowd before doing her next “spot.” This is my same opinion of Solo Sikoa as the leader of the new Bloodline. Just stay on offense, man!

Anyway, this would happen for noticeably too long of a time until The American Nightmare hit a Cross Rhodes to Solo. This led Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa to come in and beat on Rhodes for a while. This led to a returning Kevin Owens to try and make the save. The numbers were too much so it was time for Randy Orton to run in as well. The faces cleaned house and Orton hit a powerslam to Solo and Owens connected with a swanton. Cody then hit his Cross Rhodes finisher but only got a 2 count. For some idiotic reason, Owens and Orton went out of the ring to chase away Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa.

Cody Rhodes then went bananas and brought in the steel steps to beat down Solo with. Solo managed to recover and counter with a spear, taking out Cody for a 2 count. Solo sandwiched the steel steps between Cody and the ring corner. He attempted a hip attack but Rhodes moved out of the way, sending the New Bloodline leader into the steps. Cody then hit 2 Cross Rhodes but, when he went for a 3rd, Jacob Fatu ran in and attacked Rhodes. The New Bloodline’s enforcer hit a beautiful looking moonsault and dragged Solo to pin Cody but Rhodes still kicked out.

Fatu then dragged Cody out of the ring and placed him on top of the announcer’s table. Fatu then climbed the top turnbuckle and hit a samoan splash on Cody. It looked like Fatu’s leg landed on the edge of the table as he wasn’t able to stand. Solo dragged Cody back into the ring and hit a samoan splash of his own but only got a 2 count again. Solo set up for his Samoan Spike finisher but Rhodes collapsed to the floor. He was just playing possum because, as Solo picked him up, he hit a superkick and then his Cody Cutter signature. It was at this point, while both competitors were down, when Roman Reigns music hit and he moseyed into the ring!

Roman Reigns them made a beeline towards Solo and hit the New Bloodline leader with his superman punch signature move. Reigns then hit a spear to Solo, gave a subtle head nod towards Cody before stepping out of the ring. Cody then hit one more Cross Rhodes to Solo and pinned Solo while staring cautiously at Roman Reigns the entire time to retain his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.

Honestly, the match itself wasn’t all that great. Sure, it was exciting to see how many run ins can happen but, at the same time, it did get too overwhelming. Still, the point was to lead to Roman Reigns’ big return so I get why they did it. Lots of spectacle here but no real substance.

Overall, I would say this year’s SummerSlam was a pretty good show… but a heel show if you really think about it. While Cody Rhodes retained his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship and LA Knight walked away with the United States Championship, the majority of the matches did have the heels triumphing over the faces. Priest is out of The Judgement Day thanks to Finn Balor stabbing him in the back. GUNTHER is now the top heel of RAW as he is the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. Liv Morgan retained thanks to “Dirty” Dom’s betrayal of Rhea Ripley. Drew McIntyre beat super fan favorite CM Punk and Nia Jax beat Bayley with a little distraction from Tiffany Statton.

See? SummerSlam is a heel pay-per-view!

Byee!

What did you think of this year’s SummerSlam? Let me know in the comments section below!