When we last left WWE at Money in the Bank, things were tense. No one seemed to know what was going on behind the scenes between WWE’s Board of Directors and Vince McMahon but everyone was discussing what was going on behind the scenes between WWE’s Board of Directors and Vince McMahon. Plus, like, anyone familiar with McMahon probably had a hunch anyways.
A few weeks later and just a week before the 35th SummerSlam, WWE’s next chapter was written in the form of a 3-line, 17-word (including hashtags) Friday morning Tweet from @VinceMcMahon:
”At 77, time for me to retire.
Thank you, WWE Universe.
Then. Now. Forever. Together. #WWE #thankful”
I guess I wasn’t expecting him to appear on TV to yell “I’m… FIIIRED!” (well…), but was that really it? The next week made it apparent that yes, it probably was. Just like that, he was gone; not really gone but gone in the sense that people are gone now — not dead and not cancelled, just… gone. By necessity.
The moral of the story, at least for the immediate discussions that followed, was that Triple H was back in charge of both Creative and Talent Relations. The generic lineup Vince McMahon approved for SummerSlam would stay, but it would be delivered by his son-in-law who for a little while there not only seemed estranged but was recovering from a heart attack.
What a business.
Kayla Braxton, Kevin Patrick, Booker T, Jerry Lawler and Pete Rosenberg hosted the Kickoff Show, which could’ve really used a wrestling match or something.
1. RAW Women’s Title: Bianca Belair [c] vs. Becky Lynch
In broad daylight, Bianca Belair swung that ponytail all the way down the entrance ramp and opened up SummerSlam with another classic versus Becky Lynch. It was missing WrestleMania‘s big stage and those awesome good vs. evil costumes — plus Becky separated her shoulder a few minutes in — so while it didn’t reach those heights, it was still pretty incredible. They emphasized their signatures, Bianca’s strength, and her persistence in hitting the K-OD before she finally did. There was a Spanish Fly spot that made every other Spanish Fly look kind of stupid too. Excellent. So excellent. ****
After the match, Bianca (and Becky) were confronted by not only the returning Bayley but the returning (and re-hired) Dakota Kai and the returning (and re-named) IYO SKY. Just get used to it.
2. Logan Paul vs. The Miz w/ Maryse and Ciampa
At the end of this match Logan Paul did a spectacular frog splash from the top turnbuckle through The Miz and a commentary table, the WWE quota of Something Big that used to be reserved for HBK or Shane-O-Mac now outsourced to WWE’s latest celebrity. It’s not that bad of a strategy, to be honest. Also up until the frog splash this was a boring pile of shit. **1/2
3. WWE U.S. Title: Bobby Lashley [c] vs. Theory
As Mr. Money in the Bank, Theory was expected to show up later in the night for the Undisputed Title match no matter this result. Everyone freaked out when he did a roll-through the top and middle ropes that Lashley countered it into a gorilla press slam, but other than that Theory lost in about five minutes. Bobby is as over as you can ask for but this was a stinker. **1/2
4. No DQ Tag Team Match: Rey & Dominik Mysterio vs. Finn Balor & Damian Priest w/ Rhea Ripley
Some matches are just there to be noise until something else happens, and no matter how well thought-out they might be prior they are not beating that situation. This match acted as a noise that was pleasant enough before Edge made his return to go after The Judgment Day. The same tag match at MSG a week before was a little better, if only for positioning. ***
5. Pat McAfee vs. Happy Corbin
Stuck in the middle of the show, this match was outshined by both McAfee’s last in-ring effort at WrestleMania and even the earlier “guest star” match (Miz/Paul). Another stinker! **
6. Undisputed WWE Tag Team Title: The Usos [c] vs. Street Profits [c] (Special Guest Referee: Jeff Jarrett)
The Usos and Street Profits had a pretty remarkable run against each other most of this year, but it came to a halt here. Maybe that’s why Montez Ford looked so disappointed afterwards — not at the failure to capture tag team gold, but the failure to ever fully capture the attention of SummerSlam’s crowd. So competent and acceptable that at some point it became kind of bad. ***
7. SmackDown Women’s Title: Liv Morgan [c] vs. Ronda Rousey
The first couple minutes did nothing to make the approach of “Liv Morgan is competing with Ronda Rousey” make any more sense, but the last couple minutes did find a way with Liv fighting through armbars and a clever finish. **3/4
8. Last Man Standing – Undisputed WWE Universal Title: Roman Reigns [c] vs. Brock Lesnar
This was the match where Brock Lesnar tipped over the wrestling ring with a tractor. That wasn’t even the finish, either… kids these days have no respect for the business! Before that (and a little after), they delivered what was probably their second-best match together. Babyface Brock is undeniable sometimes; especially when he is rising from the dead in all the most ridiculous things Roman could throw at him. Mostly spectacle but kind of a good wrestling match, too. ***1/2
Happy Thoughts: SummerSlam was filled with generic wrestling and endless possibilities, with one of the most exciting openings and endings for a WWE PPV in a while. They lost the energy somewhere in the middle but for a show that ended with Roman Reigns standing tall after beating Brock Lesnar in their seventh main event, the future of this dinosaur corporation felt exciting. 3.75 / 5.0
