Tag: Wwe Summerslam Results

WWE SummerSlam night two live results: John Cena vs. Cody Rhodes street fight

Posted on by Steve Khan

Date: August 3, 2025
Location: MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ 

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Show Recap — 

COUNTDOWN SHOW —

The Women’s World Championship triple threat match will open SummerSlam (in three hours).

They showed a few wrestlers arriving. Iyo Sky and Naomi both used carts to get around because the stadium is so big. 

There were highlights from night one, and the announcers discussed some of it before running down the card for today. 

I’m not going to recap everything the panellists say, but notably, Wade Barrett was openly skeptical of John Cena’s sudden change in behaviour on SmackDown. Big E was skeptical too, but played it more down the middle.

Naomi told Cathy Kelley she would not lose tonight. She recalled losing her title to Natalya eight years ago at SummerSlam and said she would be damned if it happened again.

There’s been a fair amount of repeat content on the pre-show from yesterday, including video packages and Peter Rosenberg doing the walk-through from Gorilla to the stage. Two hours to go. 

There was an entertaining Becky Lynch sit-down interview with Michael Cole. She doubled down on blaming the fans for her heel turn. She blamed Lyra Valkyria for costing them the tag titles and ruining her momentum. Valkyria had to learn a lesson. When your dog pees on the floor, you rub their face in it. (Cole made sure to say he doesn’t do this to his dog.) She noted the list that called her the greatest women’s wrestler ever, and stated she was “the greatest woman ever.” 

Kelley interviewed Angelo Dawkins (wearing a Ken Griffey Jr. shirt) and Montez Ford (wearing a black cowboy hat). They were all business and focused on winning tonight. Ford mentioned this was the first PLE match for the Street Profits in 16 months.

Byron Saxton handed out (sponsored) breath mints to fans. One hour to go. 

Megan Morant and Sam Roberts interviewed Dominik Mysterio. Morant asked about AJ Styles beating him on Raw, and Dom responded by asking her who she ever beat. Dom was offended by their questions, so he blew them off and left. 

They plugged AAA Triplemanía XXXIII with Vikingo vs. Dom vs. Dragon Lee vs. El Grande Americano (Ludwig Kaiser). 

In previewing Dom’s match tonight, they said Styles has not held a title in WWE since 2021. 

Rosenberg interviewed some fans about their experience at the show last night. One fan was happy when CM Punk won the title, but sad that he lost. Funny enough, he was sad because Punk finally won the title after being “gone for ten years.”

The panel spent the final few minutes previewing tonight’s card. 

Tigirlily Gold sang God Bless America as we transitioned from the preshow to the main show. 

SUMMERSLAM 2025 NIGHT TWO —

Solo Sikoa and his crew (MFT), Jacob Fatu, Lyra Valkyria, Becky Lynch, and Cody Rhodes were shown arriving. Lynch received a big reaction, and Rhodes received a big mixed reaction. 

The show intro was once again narrated by Druski. It’s 82 degrees Fahrenheit as the show starts, about 5 degrees warmer than yesterday. 

Paul “Triple H” Levesque entered the ring to his music (he was already at ringside, so it wasn’t a full entrance). He told the audience they were part of the biggest SummerSlam in history. He asked them if they were ready, and they responded in the affirmative. 

Michael Cole and Wade Barrett are the announcers again. 

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Naomi’s entrance included her father, Shawn McCray, performing her theme on guitar as she entered. 

The opening match kicked off at 6:16 pm ET. 

Triple Threat Match for the Women’s World Championship: Naomi (c) vs. IYO SKY vs. Rhea Ripley

Naomi left the ring as the match started, thinking she could let the other two battle it out, but they went after her instead. Their teamwork came to an end quickly when Ripley accidentally booted Sky. Naomi took out both women with a flying crossbody. 

Naomi was in complete control of both women (one at a time as they took turns falling out of the ring). Ripley fought back, and Sky hit Naomi with a springboard dropkick. Sky hit Naomi with a 619, and Ripley hit a German suplex. 

Ripley and Sky finally went toe-to-toe, and Ripley got the better of it initially until Sky countered a Rip-tide into a small package for two. Sky hit a poinsonrana, but Naomi broke up the cover. Ripley hit Sky with a Razor’s Edge and powerbomb, but Naomi broke up the cover again. 

Ripley attacked Naomi on the outside until Sky wiped them out with an Asai moonsault. With her opponents down in the corners, Sky hit repeated running knee strikes. 

Sky set up for a moonsault, but Ripley stopped her. Naomi knocked Ripley off the ropes and hit a split-legged moonsault. Sky tried to break up the cover with a moonsault, but Naomi moved and Sky hit Ripley with the move instead. They traded moves until Ripley hit Naomi with a Rip-tide, but Sky (who was out of sight) broke up the cover. 

Ripley wiped out Naomi with a cannonball off the apron. Sky caught Ripley and powerbombed her onto Naomi on the outside. Sky went to the top, but Ripley cut her off and eventually hit an avalanche Rip-tide. 

Ripley had it won, but Naomi jumped in and caught her in a schoolboy while holding the tights for the pinfall win. 

Match result: Naomi defeated Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY to retain the Women’s World Championship (16:24)

This was a pretty fun match, though nothing outstanding. The story was that Ripley had the match won multiple times, but came up short once again. 

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Tyrese  Haliburton (who was booed), Nick Hogan, and Michelle McCool were shown in the crowd. 

To honour the anniversary of the first TLC match, the Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray and D-Von) and the Hardy Boyz (Matt and Jeff) were shown in the crowd. Cole mentioned their upcoming match at TNA Bound for Glory.

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Six-way TLC Match for the Tag Team Championships: The Wyatt Sicks (Dexter Lumis & Joe Gacy) (c) vs. The Street Profits vs. DIY vs. Motor City Machine Guns vs. Rey Fénix & Andrade vs. Fraxiom

This was insane. 

There was a spot early where the Street Profits tried to give Gacy a backdrop onto a ladder, but he went sideways, missed the ladder and fell out of the ring. They grabbed him and did the spot properly, which delighted the crowd (and the Dudleys). 

The crowd gasped when Fénix leaped on the shoulders of Andrade and tried to grab the belts that way, but the Street Profits cut them off. Fénix and Andrade gave them the three amigos, and the crowd chanted for Eddie Guerrero. 

Tommaso Ciampa tried to throw Montez Ford into a corner table, but Ford did his crazy dive over the ring corner onto a group of guys. Johnny Gargano put Gacy through a table with a DDT off the ropes, and Dexter Lumis did a splash to put Ford through a table. 

Fénix did a crazy top rope frog splash to put Nathan Frazer through a table outside the ring. Angelo Dawkins wanted to do it too, but Axiom cut him off. Axiom put Dawkins (and himself) through outside tables with a Spanish fly off the top—one of the craziest spots you’ll see in WWE. The crowd went nuts. 

Candice LeRae tried to climb the ladder, but she was taken out by B-Fab. Nikki Cross gave B-Fab a backdrop off the middle of the ladder. 

LeRae went back to the ladder as Gargano held it steady. Ford shoved Gargano into the ladder, and it tipped over, causing LeRae to crash through a ladder bridge outside the ring. Another insane bump. 

Refs checked on LeRae, and Gargano gave her a thumbs up before turning his attention back to the ring. (More officials ran out to check on her.) 

Erick Rowan, not a legal competitor, attacked Ford and Dawkins, but they fought him off with chairs and put him through a corner table with a double tackle. 

Ciampa grabbed the harness holding the belts, but MCMG yanked the ladder away. With Ciampa holding on helplessly, Frazer tried a spear off the ladder, but Ciampa managed to do a sit-up to avoid it, and Frazer crashed and burned. 

Moments later, a few teams scrambled up separate ladders to grab the belts, but Uncle Howdy/Bo Dallas knocked everybody down. That included knocking DIY through tables set up outside the ring. 

Dallas (not a legal competitor either) climbed the ladder, but Fénix cut him off. Andrade followed by giving Dallas a sunset flip powerbomb onto a ladder bridge. Fénix climbed the ladder, but Lumis and Gacy took him out with their double team finisher. 

With everyone down, Gacy grabbed the belts as Lumis guarded the ladder. The Wyatt Sicks retain the titles. 

Match result: The Wyatt Sicks (Dexter Lumis & Joe Gacy) defeated The Street Profits, DIY, Motor City Machine Guns, Rey Fénix & Andrade and Fraxiom to retain the WWE Tag Team Championships (16:03)

This was a crazy match, worth going out of your way to watch. The only negative was the ending, because the crowd did not want the Wyatts to win, so that felt sorta flat after all the insanity. 

********

They showed Triple H at the White House with Donald Trump. They did not show the live crowd’s reaction. 

They replayed Seth Rollins cashing in his MITB briefcase on CM Punk, and showed the reaction from different international broadcast teams. 

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There was a video package for this match set to ‘Greed’ by Royale Lynn. 

Becky Lynch has new entrance music. 

No Disqualification, No Countout Match for the Women’s Intercontinental Championship: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Lyra Valkyria

Lynch grabbed a kendo stick but was stunned upon seeing Valkyria present a crowbar. Valkyria smashed the kendo stick out of Lynch’s hand and tried to kill her with the crowbar, but Lynch avoided it and yelled at Valkyria for trying to kill her. 

Valkyria went right back on offence and tossed Lynch around ringside. There was an unintentionally funny spot where Valkyria tried tossing Lynch into the barricade, but instead shoved her into an unsuspecting cameraman. The cameraman acted like nothing happened and sheepishly walked to the other side of the barricade. 

Valkyria set up a table, and the crowd didn’t even care because we just saw a bunch of tables in the last match (and they don’t seem to care about Valkyria). Lynch grabbed her from behind by wrapping a chain around Valkyria’s mouth. 

Lynch shoved her into the steel steps and attacked her repeatedly with a kendo stick. The bored crowd began entertaining themselves. Lynch used the kendo stick like a golf club (to reference her role in ‘Happy Gilmore 2’). 

Lynch continued the beatdown, using a steel chair and a toolbox. Lynch ziptied Valkyria’s hands together and attacked her with a wrench. (Valkyria had to pretend she couldn’t prevent this from happening.) 

Valkyria kicked out of a cover despite her hands being tied together. Lynch followed with exploder suplexes. Lynch trapped Valkyria over the ring post and attacked her repeatedly with the kendo stick. 

Valkyria blocked Lynch’s next move and hit a belly-to-belly suplex. Her hands were still trapped, so the landing looked no fun. Valkyria fought back with kicks and a leaping dropkick off some chairs. Valkyria even managed to hit a middle rope moonsault with her hands tied for two. 

For whatever reason, at no point did the referee think to help Valkyria out of these zip ties. Valkyria untied a turnbuckle cover, but Lynch drove her into the ring post. 

Valkyria disappeared under the ring, and when Lynch went after her, Valkyria sprayed her with a fire extinguisher. Valkyria tried using the extinguisher handle to break the zip ties and eventually got them off. 

With her hands finally free, Valkyria attacked Lynch with a kendo stick until it broke. Valkyria dropkicked a chair into Lynch’s face and hit a Nightwing off the second step of the ringsteps. 

Valkyria tried a charge in the corner, but Lynch moved, and Valkyria crashed into the exposed buckle. Lynch followed with a Man-handle Slam onto two chairs for a close nearfall. 

Lynch trapped Valkyria in a chair and drove her into the announce table and ring post. With Valkyria still trapped in the chair, Lynch leaped off the table and stomped the chair. That looked and sounded great.

Lynch was about to kill Valkyria with the crowbar, but Bayley suddenly appeared to stop her. Lynch reasoned with Bayley and tried talking her into hitting Valkyria. Bayley wouldn’t do it, so Lynch tried to attack her with the steel chain, but Bayley attacked her instead. Lynch avoided a charge, and Bayley flew into the crowd. 

Lynch tried using a table to get to her feet, but Valkyria flew out of nowhere and drove her through the table with a diving leg drop. 

As they traded counters in the ring, Bayley tried to punch Lynch with the chain, but Lynch ducked and Bayley clocked Valkyria instead. Lynch followed with a Man-handle Slam for the pinfall win, and mercifully, it was over. 

Lynch retains, and Valkyria can no longer challenge for the IC title belt as long as she’s champion. 

Match result: Becky Lynch defeated Lyra Valkyria to retain the Women’s Intercontinental Championship (25:06)

It was a mistake to put this on right after the TLC match, but they also tried to do too much. I was enjoying it for the first half or so, but it just kept going, and the stuff with the zip ties ultimately hampered the match. It was designed to get people behind Valkyria, but it didn’t work. It may not have worked even if they did go before TLC. 

And now it’s time for a cage match.

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Jelly Roll, Metro Boomin, Tigirlily Gold, and Russell Wilson were in the crowd. 

Steel Cage Match for the United States Championship: Solo Sikoa (c) vs. Jacob Fatu

You could win this match by pinfall, submission, or escaping the cage. 

Cole tried to put over Sikoa by saying he hasn’t been pinned since losing to Roman Reigns in January. He’s had four singles matches since then, two of which ended in a no contest. In fact, Sikoa had four wins in fifteen matches so far this year. 

Sikoa had the early edge, using the cage as a weapon. Fatu fought back, and when Sikoa tried driving him into the cage again, Fatu no-sold it. Fatu hit a running hip attack, and consecutive moonsaults—but only for a nearfall. 

Sikoa’s MFT crew ran out and surrounded ringside, but Jimmy Uso ran out to fend them off. However, Tala Tonga drove him into the cage and over the announce desk. 

Fatu could have escaped the cage, but he told the referee to lock the door because it was all gas time. Fatu turned around, and Sikoa hit him with a Samoan spike for a nearfall. 

They followed zip ties in the previous match with handcuffs in this one. Tala Tonga handcuffed Fatu to the top part of the cage. JC Mateo opened the door, and Sikoa tried to crawl out, but Fatu ripped himself free of the handcuffs and stopped Sikoa from escaping. 

Fatu smashed the door into Mateo, but Tala smashed the door into Fatu. Sikoa slipped out of the ring and fell to the floor to win the match. Sikoa retains. 

— After the match and after Sikoa and Tala made their way to the ramp, Jimmy attacked Mateo, while Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa were trapped in the ring with Fatu. 

Fatu beat them up and climbed to the top of the cage. He went to the very top and laid out both men with a moonsault. He absolutely obliterated Tonga Loa in particular on the landing. 

Match result: Solo Sikoa defeated Jacob Fatu to retain the United States Championship (12:38) 

This was a boring cage match with too much interference and a lazy finish. 

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Psycho Clown and Mr. Iguana were in the crowd. 

In the last two matches, they’ve had the champion enter first. 

They noted it’s been 20 years since the custody over Dom match between Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio. Styles entered in a Chevy low-rider as a tribute to Eddie, and he wore Latino Heat-inspired gear.

Intercontinental Championship: Dominik Mysterio (c) vs. AJ Styles

There were duelling chants through the early portion of the match. The sun had set, so fans decided to wave their cellphone flashlights. 

Dom was in control until Styles hit a tornado DDT. Styles held control until Dom ducked a Phenomenal forearm and hit a Michinoku Driver. Dom tried three amigos, but Styles countered the last suplex into a brainbuster. 

Styles went for a frog splash, but Dom got his knees up. Dom hit a 619 and went for a frog splash (sort of), but Styles caught him and applied a calf crusher until Dom got a rope break. 

Dom removed a turnbuckle pad (which Valkyria did earlier) to distract the referee. As the ref fixed the buckle, Dom grabbed a chair to do an Eddie spot. 

Dom smashed the mat and fell down. But the ref was still distracted, so Styles wrapped the chair around his head and acted like he was dying. The crowd enjoyed all this, and I’ll always get a kick out of the Eddie spots. (Although, Styles would not have won the title if the ref disqualified Dom.) 

The match simply continued because the ref didn’t know who was or wasn’t guilty. Styles applied a calf crusher, but Dom’s boot slipped off in the process (as Eddie’s did at WrestleMania XX). When they showed replays later, it was clear that Dom loosened his boot on purpose. 

The ref almost got bumped, so while he was still distracted, Dom hit Styles with the boot. Dom followed with a frog splash for the pinfall win.

Match result: Dominik Mysterio defeated AJ Styles to retain the Intercontinental Championship (10:41) 

While nothing amazing, this was a fun match and a breath of fresh air after the last two matches. 

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WWE “icon” Stephanie McMahon announced an audience of 60,651 tonight (7,000 more than last night). The total for both shows was 113,722. 

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Rhodes entered first, and his entrance started with words from Dusty Rhodes (with yellow polka dots displayed on the tron). It may have been an AI version of Dusty’s voice (which is not the first time they would have used AI, sadly). 

Rhodes rose through the stage and his regular entrance music hit. Rhodes wore a gold version of his goofy skull mask, and he removed it fairly quickly. Fireworks went off as Rhodes, dressed in blue, white and red, entered. 

Cena entered second. The tron was initially all-black as it had been during his heel run, but it turned colourful as he entered the stage. Cena also happened to be wearing a blue, white and red t-shirt. Cena acted like his usual babyface self, and fans cheered. 

Rhodes received a heavy mixed reaction during his in-ring introduction, with the boos seeming to outweigh the cheers. 

Cena was roundly cheered, and he couldn’t help but smirk when Alicia Taylor announced him as the greatest of all time.

Street Fight for the Undisputed WWE Championship: John Cena (c) vs. Cody Rhodes

They hugged as the match began, then kicked things off by trading punches. The fight quickly went to the outside, and there were boos when Rhodes slammed Cena into the steps. 

Cena recovered and approached Tyrese Haliburton. Cena gave him the ‘you can’t see me’ gesture and stole one of his crutches to use on Rhodes. (The crowd hates Haliburton.) Rhodes fought back and slammed Cena onto the steel steps, which were now in the ring. 

With Rhodes outside the ring, Cena grabbed the steps and threw them at Rhodes. Cena did this before to Bray Wyatt, and it nailed Bray right in the face (with Bray protecting himself). However, the steps appeared to catch Rhodes lower, and he sold his arm. (He continued and seemed ok.)

Some fans tried to sing Rhodes’ name, but it didn’t really pick up. Cena and Rhodes grabbed chairs, but Rhodes managed to hit Cena with it first. Cena did his usual comeback as the crowd went nuts. Cena hit a five knuckle shuffle, but Rhodes avoided an AA. 

Rhodes followed with clotheslines, jabs, and a bionic elbow as the crowd booed. One fan had the audacity to chant, “Same old sh-t,” at Rhodes, seconds after Cena did the five moves of doom. 

Rhodes hit a Cody Cutter for two, and Cena followed with an AA for two. There were light chants of “You can’t wrestle,” and “Yes, he can,” and I had no idea who they were directed at. Rhodes hit a Disaster Kick and another Cody Cutter for two counts. Cena hit an electric chair drop for two. 

Rhodes hit a piledriver for two, and some fans chanted, “You can’t do that.” Rhodes seemed unsure of how to proceed after that, and the hesitation allowed Cena to hit an AA. Rhodes hit a sit-out powerbomb for two, and Cena quickly applied an STF until Rhodes escaped. 

Rhodes sent Cena over the barricade before Cena bonked Rhodes with the microphone. Cena followed with a Code Red on the outside. 

Cena hoisted Rhodes on his shoulders and put him through the unbreakable announce desk with an AA. Cena struggled to get Rhodes in the ring, and the extra time allowed Rhodes to kick out. 

Cena missed a charge in the corner, and Rhodes hit Cross Rhodes for a nearfall. Cena knocked Rhodes off the ropes and followed with a diving leg drop and AA for a close nearfall. 

Cena set up a table in the ring and went for an AA, but Rhodes tipped over the table and countered with a DDT for two. Rhodes set up a table in the corner, but they both managed to avoid it—so we’ll get to this later. 

Beyond the 20-minute mark, they found themselves fighting in the crowd. Cena grabbed a steel bike rack, but Rhodes suplexed him onto it. 

The brawl continued, and they disappeared under the big stage. The camera focused on the elevator platform that Rhodes used during his entrance. Smoke rose through the opening, and Cena emerged with Rhodes on his shoulders. Cena then dumped Rhodes onto the ramp with an AA. 

Cena hoisted Rhodes on his shoulders and carried him all the way to the ring. Barrett noted how difficult this must be so long into a match. Indeed, Cena was exhausted, so Rhodes drove him through the corner table and hit a Cross Rhodes for a nearfall. 

Rhodes bonked Cena on the head (softly) with a steel chair. Rhodes unscrewed a corner turnbuckle, causing the bottom rope to loosen. Rhodes used the metal turnbuckle rod as a weapon (although he really hit Cena with the padding). 

The crowd booed, and Rhodes showed regret on his face. Cena got to his feet, and Rhodes hit him with the turnbuckle again. Cena avoided Rhodes’ third attempt and hit a drop toe hold. Cena applied an STF, using the bottom rope to choke Rhodes, but Rhodes escaped. 

Rhodes avoided an AA and hit consecutive Cross Rhodes. The crowd was exasperated because they could feel the end coming. Rhodes hit his finisher one more time—but Cena kicked out. The crowd popped and chanted, “Super Cena.” 

Rhodes grabbed the title belt and went to use it as a weapon, but Cena ducked and hit consecutive AAs. Cena grabbed Rhodes and hit an AA off the middle rope—but Rhodes kicked out. 

Cena set up another table in the ring, but Rhodes blocked the avalanche AA attempt. Rhodes instead hit an avalanche Cody Cutter (or something resembling a cutter) through the table. 

Rhodes gave Cena a salute and hit one final Cross Rhodes for the pinfall win. 

(The fans probably would have exploded if Cena won, but they weren’t necessarily booing the result.) 

— Cena handed Rhodes the title belt and hugged him. Cena said something to an emotional Rhodes. A big-ass fireworks display went off as Rhodes stood alone with the belt. Rhodes embraced Cena again and raised his hand for the crowd. 

Rhodes left, and the fans chanted for Cena, who remained in the ring. Before he could leave…

Brock Lesnar entered. The crowd lost it. 

Lesnar entered slowly, wearing a cowboy hat, jeans, and a t-shirt with his logo. 

Lesnar removed his cowboy hat, hit the ring, and nailed Cena with a huge F5. Lesnar was pumped. 

Lesnar grabbed his cowboy hat as the show ended. (Not sure where Rhodes disappeared to.)

Match result: Cody Rhodes defeated John Cena to win the Undisputed WWE Championship (37:43) 

This was a genuinely enjoyable street fight, and the best Cena has looked in forever. He’s been in entertaining no-rules matches before, and this was up there with those. The drama around Cena’s final run certainly helped. It did go too long, but this was likely Cena’s last title match, so I’m sure they wanted to leave no doubt who the winner was in the end. 

However, none of that really matters because of how the show ended. A mixed bag of a SummerSlam could have ended on a high note, but instead came crashing furiously down to earth.

WWE SummerSlam night one live results: CM Punk vs. Gunther, Jelly Roll in-ring debut

Posted on by Steve Khan

Date: August 2, 2025
Location: MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ

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Show Recap — 

COUNTDOWN SHOW —

The countdown show is three hours long. Follow here for periodic updates, followed by the live SummerSlam recap tonight and tomorrow. 

Michael Cole confirmed that the men’s world title match between Gunther and CM Punk will main event night one of SummerSlam.

The opener will be Roman Reigns and Jey Uso against Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed. 

Tiffany Stratton did a quick interview with Byron Saxton. She admitted to being nervous because nobody had Jade Cargill’s star power or potential (shouldn’t Stratton think that about herself?), but she still planned on walking out as champion tonight. 

Sam Roberts interviewed Raquel Rodriguez and Roxanne Perez. They dismissed Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss as opponents, and confidently stated they would retain their tag titles tonight. 

They killed time by interviewing fans outside the stadium. Two hours to go. 

They aired part one of a Jelly Roll interview with Jackie Redmond. He was a huge fan and really wanted to be a part of this period of wrestling (given its current popularity). He wasn’t there to take someone else’s spot. They also focused heavily on his weight-loss journey. (So far, this Jelly Roll interview is the most anyone has been focused on.) 

Another celebrity, comedian Druski, joined the panel. He spoke more about his own projects than he did about SummerSlam.

Saxton interviewed some fans dressed as wrestlers and had them do impressions. It was so embarrassing, I had to mute it. 

They aired the clip of Triple H doing his water gimmick at the White House. 

Joe Tessitore put over WWE: Unreal and claimed it was widely acclaimed (by whom?). Tessitore interviewed Triple H, whom he called the series’ central pillar.

Big E put over the series as well, while admitting the idea of it was polarizing among fans. 

Cathy Kelley interviewed Sami Zayn. Zayn was angry. He saw posters around the building for all the big championship matches, which made him angry that he was instead fighting Karrion Kross to prove himself. He congratulated Kross on making him angry. Zayn would end this tonight, “one way or another.”

Big E and Redmond plugged Kross’ biography, coming out soon. 

There was a long SummerSlam stats video, which somehow included the number of times Jelly Roll’s album has been streamed. One hour to go. 

There was a video package on celebrities getting involved at WWE shows. 

They aired part two of Redmond’s interview with Jelly Roll. It included footage of him training at the PC and being put over by Undertaker. He spoke about tonight’s match, and Redmond wished him luck.

If that wasn’t enough, they aired clips (for a second time) of Jelly Roll on Stephanie McMahon’s podcast. Stephanie joined the panel to talk about him more. His goal was to be under 300 lbs for tonight’s match, and she announced he weighed in earlier at 299. 

They spoke more about other celebrities and how much they want to be part of WWE now. 

There were clips from Unreal.

After a break, the panel spoke about Jelly Roll again. 

The panel spoke about the rest of the card as the pre-show came to a close. 

SUMMERSLAM 2025 NIGHT ONE —

The footage of wrestlers arriving now has a sponsor attached to it. Drew McIntyre, Logan Paul, Randy Orton, Jelly Roll, Gunther, and CM Punk were shown arriving. 

The SummerSlam intro video was narrated by comedian Druski.

Several wide shots showed how packed MetLife Stadium is. It’s 77 degrees Fahrenheit and partly cloudy. 

Cardi B, the host of SummerSlam, entered the ring and she hyped up the crowd (while seemingly reading off cue cards or a teleprompter at ringside). 

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Jey Uso entered first at 6:09 pm. He entered through the crowd and stated, “Damn, I’m tired!” as he hit ringside. Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed entered to a new remixed version of their two themes. 

The opening bell rang at 6:20 pm.

Roman Reigns & Jey Uso vs. Bron Breakker & Bronson Reed (w/Paul Heyman)

Jey and Reign quickly sent the heels from the ring. Jey suggested they play his music again so the crowd could Yeet. Reigns was on board, so they did it. The heels took the opportunity to yank Reigns from the ring, so Jey wiped out every with a dive off the top. 

Reed shoved Reigns into the steel steps while Jey hammered away at Breakker, but Breakker ran him over with a sprinting clothesline and the heels quickly took over. As Reigns was about to get back to his feet outside the ring, Breakker ran him over with a chaotic leaping tackle. 

There was a funny bit where Breakker held Jey in a rest hold while mock-singing Reigns’ name and singing, “You should have stayed in bed!” 

Breakker tried his leaping dive off the apron, but Jey dodged it, and Breakker collided with the announce table. Jey was about to make a hot tag, but Reed pulled Reigns off the apron while Breakker tackled Jey. 

Jey gave Reed a DDT and made the hot tag to Reigns, who hit Breakker with clotheslines. With both heels outside the ring, Reigns did a big Undertaker dive to the outside. Reigns almost landed on his head, but he managed to rotate and avoid catastrophe. 

Reigns hit Breakker with a Superman punch in the ring, but Reed had made a blind tag, and he ran over Reigns. Jey made his own blind tag and ran wild on Reed until Reed cut him off with a clothesline and DVD for two. 

With both babyfaces outside the ring, Reed nailed them with a suicide dive. Reed also took a nasty-looking fall on this one, but he was fine. Breakker decked Jey over the announce table. The heels gave Jey a Steinerizer (with Breakker leaping off the top) for two. 

Breakker began running around the ring, but Reigns cut him off with a Superman punch and speared him through the barricade. (It’s a tired spot, but it looked good.) 

Reed set up Jey for a Tsunami, but Reigns knocked him down with a Superman punch. Reigns and Jey hit Reed with a 1-D, but Breakker broke up the cover. 

Breakker taunted the crowd, put his straps back on before taking them right off. (The crowd popped for that.) Breakker went to spear Jey, but Reigns shoved Jey out of the way and ate the spear instead. 

Jey superkicked Breakker and speared Reed. Jey then hit Reed with an Uso splash for the pinfall win. The crowd popped for the win. 

(The announcers put over the fact that Reigns sacrificed himself for Jey, not something he would have done in the past.)

Match result: Jey Uso & Roman Reigns defeated Bronson Reed & Bron Breakker (21:05) 

This was a perfectly good opener. Reigns’ matches have a certain pattern, and this was no different, but it was at least nice to see some new blood in there—namely, Bron Breakker. Perhaps Bron should have won, but he looked good in the match, and they’ll obviously go back to this soon. 

********

Druski, Breland, and Fat Joe (who got a nice reaction) were shown in the crowd. 

A brand sponsor was also shown in the crowd, and Cole’s ad read was muted on my Netflix broadcast. (The ad reads are usually muted on my feed.)  

********

The show is almost an hour old, and there’s been just one 20-minute match. The second match began at 6:56 pm. 

Charlotte entered first, but remained on the stage for Bliss so they could enter together (to Bliss’ music). 

There were stats shown for Rodriguez and Perez, and even that graphic had a sponsor attached.

Women’s Tag Team Championships: Raquel Rodriguez & Roxanne Perez (c) vs. Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss 

The heels had the heat on Charlotte almost right away. Bliss made a hot tag and went for Sister Abigail, but Perez raked her eyes. Perez missed a springboard moonsault, but Rodriguez tagged herself in. 

Bliss dropped Perez with a DDT and went for Twisted Bliss, even though Perez was not the legal woman. Perez “got her knees up,” but Bliss missed anyway and landed on Perez’s feet instead. None of it mattered because Perez wasn’t legal, so Rodriguez decked her with a clothesline. 

Charlotte made a hot tag and did her best to fire up the quiet crowd. She hit both opponents with a flying crossbody and followed with chops on Rodriguez. She placed Rodriguez and Perez next to each other and hit a moonsault on both women before covering Rodriguez for two. Charlotte tried to put Rodriguez in a Figure Eight, but Perez hit her with a springboard moonsault. 

Bliss jumped in and tried to deck Rodriguez, but Rodriguez moved, and Bliss clobbered Charlotte by mistake. The heels got rid of Bliss before Rodriguez hit Charlotte with a Tejana Bomb. Perez followed with Pop Rox, but Bliss just barely broke up the cover. 

Bliss set up Perez for Sister Abigail. Charlotte looked like she wanted to boot Bliss for revenge, but she booted Rodriguez instead so that she couldn’t interfere. 

Bliss hit Perez with the Sister Abigail DDT for the pinfall win. 

Charlotte embraced Bliss after the match, and they posed with their new title belts as fireworks went off. 

Match result: Alexa Bliss & Charlotte Flair defeated Roxanne Perez & Raquel Rodriguez to win the Women’s Tag Team Championships (13:35)

This match was ok. The crowd didn’t care early on, but they got into it as it picked up toward the end and popped big for the title change. 

********

There was a backstage segment to plug their pizza sponsorship. New Day (and Grayson Waller), Alpha Academy, and LWO argued over who should get the last slice of pizza until Nikki Bella entered with three full boxes. 

******** 

This match did not get a video package (which is fine). 

Sami Zayn vs. Karrion Kross (w/Scarlett)

About five minutes in, Zayn kicked out of a Saito suplex, so Kross turned to Scarlett for assistance. Scarlett handed Kross a lead pipe and distracted the referee, but Zayn ducked a pipe shot and hit a Blue Thunder Bomb for a nearfall. 

A frustrated Zayn repeatedly booted Kross in the ropes, and the referee had to force him off. 

Scarlett offered the pipe to Zayn as the ref checked on Kross. Zayn grabbed the pipe and considered using it, but he tossed it out of the ring (which was actually booed). 

Kross tried a sudden schoolboy, but Zayn kicked out and hit an exploder in the corner. Zayn followed with a Helluva Kick for the decisive win. 

Zayn smiled as he made his way up the ramp. 

Match result: Sami Zayn defeated Karrion Kross (8:11)

This was a basic match that was really just about the closing sequence. I think the crowd was expecting a more interesting result, but ultimately, Zayn did what he said he would do and beat Kross straight-up (which was the correct result). 

********

Cole announced an attendance of 53,161. 

Cole honoured Hulk Hogan once more and spoke about his success at SummerSlam. Nick Hogan was shown in the crowd as Hulk’s music played. 

******** 

Psycho Clown and Mr. Iguana were shown in the crowd. 

There was a clip of Jade Cargill meeting some fans backstage and giving them upgraded seats. This was also a sponsored segment. 

******** 

Cargill’s gear were the colours of the Jamaican flag. Both women were cheered during introductions, and they made sure to show Cardi B applauding Cargill. 

WWE Women’s Championship: Tiffany Stratton (c) vs. Jade Cargill 

Cargill had the early edge until Stratton bumped her off the paron and hit a suicide dive. Stratton followed with a great-looking senton bomb in the ring. (It looked like she would land on her head, but rotated just in time to hit the move.) 

Cargill blocked Stratton’s handspring elbow and followed with a boot and spinning slam for two. They traded moves, which led to Stratton hitting a falcon arrow. Stratton hit a handspring elbow and an Alabama Slam. Stratton tried a moonsault, but Cargill got her boots up. 

Cargill hit Jaded and seemed to have the title won, but when she rolled into the cover, Stratton’s foot happened to touch the rope for a rope break. Cargill hit a chokeslam and took Stratton to the corner. 

Cargill set up for a Jaded off the middle rope, but Stratton countered into an avalanche hurricanrana of sorts. Stratton followed with the PME for the pinfall win. Stratton wins clean. 

Match result: Tiffany Stratton defeated Jade Cargill to retain the WWE Women’s Championship (7:05)

A surprising result. There were some clunky spots, but this was better than expected, and the crowd was into it. 

******* 

There was a trailer for The Smashing Machine. 

Tineke Younger, Cardi B, and Stephanie McMahon were in the crowd. (Cole referred to Stephanie as “legendary,” and I believe they called her that on the pre-show as well.) 

******** 

Bunnie XO, Jelly Roll’s wife, was in the crowd. Cole read some stats about her Spotify audience. 

As mentioned on the pre-show, they said Jelly Roll weighed in at 299 lbs (his goal was to be under 300 lbs for this match).

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

Paul took a cheap shot at Jelly Roll before the match. Orton was going to start the match, but as the bell rang, Jelly Roll tagged himself in to get revenge. 

Paul tried and failed to suplex Jelly Roll, so Jelly gave him a scoop slam instead. Jelly followed with an elbow drop, so a surprised Paul tagged out. 

McIntyre smacked Jelly in the back of the head. Instead of tagging out, Jelly was hyped up by Orton. Jelly got in McIntyre’s face. McIntyre told him that today was the day the music dies.

Jelly hit a few jabs until McIntyre dropped him with a headbutt. Paul tagged in and hammered away at Jelly Roll as the crowd chanted, “F—k you, Logan,” (which was censored). 

The heels beat up Jelly as the crowd chanted, “We want Randy.” Jelly chucked McIntyre out of the ring and made the hot tag to Orton, who hit McIntyre with a powerslam and a draping DDT. Orton set up for an RKO, but Paul pulled McIntyre to safety. 

Orton went outside and gave McIntyre a back suplex onto the announce table. Orton did it to Paul as well, but that distraction allowed McIntyre to hit Orton with a Claymore Kick. Paul attacked Jelly from behind and punched him (with his titanium-plated hand). Jelly didn’t exactly take it flush. 

McIntyre placed Jelly Roll on the announce table as Paul went to the top rope. Paul raised cans of his energy drink before hitting Jelly Roll with a spectacular splash off the rope and through the announce table. The crowd chanted, “Holy sh-t,” as officials checked on Jelly Roll. 

The heels worked over Orton in the ring as the crowd seemed distracted. Officials helped Jelly to his feet and helped him make his way toward the ramp. (The fans cheered when Jelly got to his feet, but they also seemed distracted by something else, to the point where McIntyre banged the top of the ring post to get them focused.) 

With Orton down, Jelly Roll shunned the officials and made his way back to the apron. Jelly made a hot tag and gave Paul a chokeslam. He also gave McIntyre a Bossman slam. The fans—who were all on their feet since Paul’s splash—were definitely into it here, and they cheered as Jelly brought Paul off the top with a powerslam for two. 

McIntyre hit Jelly with a Claymore Kick, and Orton gave McIntyre an RKO. However, Paul chucked Orton into the ring post and hit Jelly with a frog splash for the pinfall win. 

Match result: Logan Paul & Drew McIntyre defeated Jelly Roll & Randy Orton (17:04)

I wouldn’t call this a good match, but it was laid out well, and they accomplished what they wanted. 

On the pre-show, they really focused hard on Jelly Roll and celebrity appearances in general. Indeed, Orton and McIntyre felt like secondary players here. Paul is a regular now, so it did make sense for him to get the pin, and his splash through the table was incredible. 

********

They showed Triple H at the White House with Donald Trump. 

They ran down tomorrow’s card, which has a cage match, TLC match, street fight and no-DQ match. 

******** 

Punk wore the colours of the Chicago flag. 

World Heavyweight Championship: Gunther (c) vs. CM Punk

They wrestled back and forth for a few minutes until Gunther dropped Punk with a single chop. Punk got back on offence and targeted Gunther’s left arm. 

Punk went to the top, but Gunther chopped the back of his leg. Punk was helpless upside down in the ropes as Gunther hit several more chops. Gunther followed with more chops, knees to the mid-section, and abdominal stretch. Punk countered out of the stretch and went for a GTS. A series of counters led to Gunther hitting a big boot. 

Gunther beat down Punk for a while until he began fighting back, but Gunther cut him off. (Gunther had a bloody mark on his chest from Punk’s chops.) 

There was a messy spot where Punk seemed to be going for an atomic drop, but Gunther landed as if it was a spinebuster. It didn’t matter because Gunther put Punk in a single-leg crab. Punk countered into an attempt at a Sharpshooter, but Gunther got a rope break. 

(They stalled for a moment here as the ref checked on Punk, perhaps giving him time to recoup.) 

Punk fought back and hit a clothesline, but Gunther didn’t budge. Punk knocked him down with a leg lariat instead. Punk, also bleeding from the chest, went for a running knee, but Gunther caught him and hit a powerbomb for two. 

They traded submission attempts until Gunther hit consecutive chops, but Punk came back with a Russian leg sweep, running knee and bulldog for two. Punk went to the top, but Gunther slammed him off it and followed with a splash off the top for two. 

Gunther clotheslined an exhausted Punk, waited for him to return to his feet, and hit another one. Punk suddenly got Gunther in position for GTS, but Gunther slipped out and hit a powerbomb. Gunther hit a running dropkick and powerbomb for a nearfall. 

The match continued at a slow pace as Gunther continued his deliberate beatdown of Punk. Gunther posed atop the announce table until Punk tripped him from behind. Punk was too tired to follow up and sat against the ring to catch his breath. 

The camera focused on Punk as a distraction, because Gunther reemerged from behind the announce desk and his face was covered in blood. (His face or nose supposedly smashed off the desk to cause this.) 

Gunther begged off from Punk, who hit a clothesline and diving elbow drop. Punk went for GTS, but Gunther slipped out again and applied a sleeper. 

Punk slipped out and hit a GTS. Gunther was dazed but remained on his feet. Punk grabbed him and hit the GTS again for the pinfall win. 

CM Punk is the World Champion. 

The referee handed the world title belt to an emotional Punk. 

Match result: CM Punk defeated Gunther to win the World Heavyweight Championship (30:18) 

— Punk looked around the crowd before finally holding the belt up high. Seth Rollins’ music hit, the crowd popped, and Punk’s expression changed. 

Rollins walked out on crutches with Heyman by his side. Rollins issued a warning to Punk and acted like he was about to leave. However, Rollins ditched his crutches and removed his knee brace. 

Rollins ran down with his briefcase and a referee. Punk attacked Rollins as soon as he entered the ring, but Rollins fought him off and hit him in the head repeatedly with the briefcase. 

Rollins cashed in his contract. 

World Heavyweight Championship: CM Punk (c) vs. Seth Rollins (w/Paul Heyman) 

Rollins immediately stomped Punk for the pinfall win. 

CM Punk is no longer the World Champion. 

Rollins celebrated with Heyman, Breakker, and Reed as fireworks went off. Rollins sat cross-legged while holding the belt and snickering at Punk. 

Match result: Seth Rollins defeated CM Punk to win the World Heavyweight Championship (0:12)

The main event was good, but not great. It was unnecessarily long, but they probably wanted Punk looking as exhausted as possible for the cash-in. 

Night one was an average show at best (to be generous), the type of show you’d be able to skim through pretty quickly. There was about 90 minutes of wrestling on this three-and-a-half-hour show, and a third of that was the main event.

WWE SummerSlam live results: Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso in Tribal Combat

Posted on by Steve Khan

Date: August 5, 2023
Location: Ford Field in Detroit, MI 

********** 

Show Recap — 

KICK-OFF SHOW —

Kayla Braxton, Jackie Redmond, Booker T, Wade Barrett and Peter Rosenberg hosted the kick-off show. They announced Barrett’s move to the Raw commentary team.

They plugged Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar.

Alpha Academy were shown eating Slim Jims. Well, only Otis was eating them. 

Titus O’Neil and Byron Saxton announced donations to local charities.

They plugged the matches and aired commercials and that was the bulk of the pre-show.

SUMMERSLAM MAIN CARD — 

They had Kid Rock do the intro. 

Michael Cole and Corey Graves are on commentary.

They didn’t waste time getting going and the opening bell rang at 8:08 pm ET.  

Logan Paul defeated Ricochet (17:59)

Paul slowed down Ricochet early on with a back elbow and a neckbreaker on the apron. Paul mocked Ricochet’s injured tag partner Braun Strowman before hitting a powerslam. He also hit a Hulk Hogan-inspired leg drop (while doing the splits). The crowd booed Paul, who ate it up.

Ricochet fought back and acted as though he’d do a People’s Elbow but did a standing moonsault instead. Paul tried a Spanish Fly off the apron but they (sort of) landed on their feet and Ricochet hit a Spanish Fly on the mats. Paul responded later with a Buckshot Lariat over the top to the outside. Paul hit a high cross and a standing moonsault for two.

They fought to the top rope and Ricochet hit an avalanche neckbreaker. Ricochet followed with a handspring elbow, springboard clothesline, and standing shooting star for two. There was a cool sequence where Ricochet caught a Paul moonsault attempt but Paul reversed into a tornado DDT for two.

Ricochet responded with a Recoil but Paul got his knees up on a shooting star press for a two count. Paul hit a flapjack and springboard frog splash for two. Ricochet came back with a superkick, detonation kick and springboard moonsault for two. Ricochet tried a 630 but Paul dodged it.

Someone handed Paul brass knuckles and he clocked Ricochet with a right hand for the pinfall win. (They didn’t reveal who handed him the brass knux.)

This was pretty good.

Cole said, “That was a great match but the ending sucked” which is a funny line. I thought the finish worked here.

********

Sheamus was shown arriving in a monster truck.

Cody Rhodes defeated Brock Lesnar (17:29)

Rhodes got a super reaction.

Rhodes attacked Lesnar as he warmed up in the ring and the ref rang the bell to start. Lesnar responded with a high-angle German suplex but Rhodes came back with consecutive Disaster Kicks. Rhodes tried another but Lesnar tackled him out of mid-air. Rhodes avoided a corner charge and followed with a suicide dive.

Lesnar took control anyway, chucked Rhodes around and hit a vertical suplex for two. Lesnar hit a few German suplexes as they showed Rhodes’ mother Michelle in distress in the front row.

Rhodes kept getting knocked out of the ring but kept getting back in. Lesnar knocked him back out and yelled, “Save yourself!” Rhodes rolled back in and Lesnar said, “Cody, this is only going to get worse.” Lesnar hit another suplex.

Lesnar knocked Rhodes out a couple more times and he kept getting back in. Lesnar got frustrated and gave him an F5 on the floor. Rhodes got back in at a nine count and the fans cheered.

Rhodes fired up and hit a few right hands but Lesnar quickly hit another suplex before giving him an F5 through the announce table. Cole tried to talk some sense into Cody. Rhodes got back in at nine. Lesnar gave him an overhead belly-to-belly suplex. Lesnar gave him a German suplex as Rhodes ripped off the top turnbuckle cover.

Rhodes was finally able to knock Lesnar down by hitting him with the steel steps. Rhodes followed with a Disaster Kick and Cody Cutter. Rhodes hit another Cody Cutter — this time from the top — for a nearfall.

Lesnar applied a Kimura Lock but Rhodes eventually got a rope break. Lesnar tried an F5 but Rhodes pushed him chest-first into the exposed buckle. Rhodes applied a Kimura and Lesnar sold it big but powered out of it.

Rhodes countered an F5 into three consecutive Cross Rhodes for the pinfall win. The crowd was pumped for Rhodes’ win.

— After the match, Lesnar got up and got in Rhodes’ face. Lesnar shook Rhodes’ hand, embraced him, and raised his hand for the crowd. The crowd popped big for this. 

(Cole was a little too over-dramatic saying something to the effect of, “The American Nightmare has arrived.”) 

******** 

LA Knight won the Slim Jim Battle Royal

Most of the entrances happened during a break. Miz was on his way out after the break. LA Knight and AJ Styles got full televised entrances. The bell rang to start the match but MVP stopped everyone by announcing Omos’ entrance. Everyone started fighting as Omos entered.

Omos entered and immediately eliminated Apollo Crews, JD McDonagh and Rick Boogs. Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci eliminated Otis, so Gable eliminated Vinci. Tommaso Ciampa eliminated Erik and Ivar of the Viking Raiders before eliminating Shinsuke Nakamura. Bronson Reed eliminated Ciampa and Ridge Holland.

Austin Theory eliminated Cameron Grimes, Santos Escobar eliminated Theory, and Karrion Kross eliminated Escobar. Gable eliminated Kaiser and the crowd yelled, “Thank you!” Omos lifted Butch and Matt Riddle and easily eliminated them.

LA Knight started taking the fight to Omos to the delight of the crowd but Omos dropped him with a boot. Everyone teamed up on Omos leading to Styles giving him a Phenomenal Forearm. Everyone eliminated Omos together.

Grayson Waller and Miz teamed up on Gable but he avoided elimination. Knight eliminated Miz and the crowd popped. Sheamus eliminated Waller. Styles eliminated Kross. Gable tried to suplex Reed but Reed eliminated him (and the crowd booed).

Knight eliminated Reed (the way Chris Benoit eliminated Big Show) and the crowd popped. Styles had Knight set up for a forearm but Kross grabbed his leg from outside the ring. Sheamus booted Styles out for the elimination as Kross screamed at Styles.

Knight fought off Sheamus and the crowd loudly sang along as he spelled out his name. They fought back and forth until Knight hit an overhead suplex. Knight then eliminated Sheamus for the win. The crowd was happy.

******** 

MMA Rules: Shayna Baszler defeated Ronda Rousey (7:27)

The referee did the little MMA spiel to start the match for both wrestlers. Rousey offered to fist bump before the match (Cole noted that she had never done this before), but Baszler declined.

They did some stuff until Baszler kicked Rousey in the head, knocking her out of the ring. Baszler had control briefly until Rousey responded with a knee to the gut and a knee to the head. Some fans became restless as medical staff checked on Baszler in the corner. Rousey chucked the medical staff out of the ring.

Baszler fired up and fought back but Rousey blocked a Kirifuda Clutch. Rousey tried an armbar but Baszler countered that with an ankle lock. Rousey countered that into a sleeper.

Baszler fought out and put Rousey in the Kirifuda Clutch. Rousey passed out and the ref called for the bell. Cole called it a technical submission and said Baszler got what she wanted by submitting Rousey.

(Going with “MMA rules” was an obvious mistake and this didn’t go over well at all from the start. If the company wasn’t hot right now the crowd likely would’ve been much harsher on this.) 

********

They announced an attendance of 59,194.

Gunther defeated Drew McIntyre to retain the Intercontinental Championship (13:42)

Cole noted that Gunther was only 32 days away from breaking the record for the longest IC title reign.

McIntyre had the early edge until Gunther dropped him back first onto the steel steps (which the announcers undersold). Gunther hit chops, a double underhook suplex and clotheslines. They traded clotheslines until Gunther dropped him with one and hit a German suplex but McIntyre popped up and dropped Gunther with a clothesline.

McIntyre hit chops, consecutive overhead suplexes and a neckbreaker. Gunther ducked a Claymore attempt and hit a dropkick but McIntyre came back with a powerbomb and DDT for two. Gunther rolled out of the ring so McIntyre hit a flip dive. McIntyre went for a Claymore but Gunther again hit a dropkick, followed by a powerbomb for a nearfall. Gunther followed with a splash for two.

They exchanged many chops until McIntyre ducked one and hit a Claymore Kick for a nearfall. The crowd chanted “This is awesome.”

They exchanged strikes on the top until Gunther crotched him on the top rope. Gunther followed with a splash, clothesline, and powerbomb for the pinfall win.

Gunther retained. McIntyre stormed to the back as Gunther posed. 

(The crowd was quiet to start, perhaps because of the previous match, but really got into it towards the end.) 

********

Seth Rollins defeated Finn Bálor to retain the World Heavyweight Championship (18:26)

Rollins wore magenta tights but also wore a black and green vest — the same one he wore for their match seven years ago. Bálor had “SEVEN” painted on his shoulder — the same shoulder he injured in that match.

Bálor decked Rollins from behind as he soaked in the crowd singing his song before the match. Rollins fought back and the ref separated them before officially starting the match.

Bálor targeted Rollins’ shoulder but Rollins fought back with a falcon arrow and three straight suicide dives. Bálor’s lip/mouth was busted open. Bálor draped Rollins’ arm over the top rope and drove his shoulder into the ring post.

Bálor powerbombed Rollins into the barricade (as Rollins did to him years ago) and followed with a slingblade and headlock elbow drop for two. Bálor applied an armbar but Rollins hoisted him up and hit consecutive buckle bombs and a frog splash for two.

Bálor hit a double foot stomp and dropkick into the corner. Bálor went up but Rollins brought him down with a superplex. Before Rollins could follow through with something else, Bálor applied a schoolboy for two. They exchanged kicks which led to both men going down.

Bálor hit a dropkick but Rollins avoided a Coup de Grace and hit a Pedigree for a nearfall.

The crowd got to their feet as Damian Priest made his way down with the briefcase. They exchanged cradles until Priest clocked Rollins behind the ref’s back. Bálor followed with a Pedigree for a close nearfall.

Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio made their way down to ringside. The ref held them back as Bálor argued with Priest. Rollins used the distraction to hit a curb stomp for another close nearfall.

Rollins wiped out Priest with a dive before stomping Dom.

When he returned to the ring, Bálor gave Rollins a slingblade, dropkick and Coup de Grace for an extremely close nearfall.

Priest left the briefcase in the ring, presumably for Bálor to use as a weapon, and distracted the ref. As Bálor went to grab the briefcase, Rollins stomped him onto it for the pinfall win.

The crowd was really into the last part of this match.

******** 

There was a sponsored pretaped segment that saw Alpha Academy put Miz into an equipment box.

Triple Threat Match: Bianca Belair defeated Asuka and Charlotte Flair to win the WWE Women’s Championship (20:46)

Asuka entered second despite being the champion. If you’re wondering why — Belair entered last so she could pose on the ramp while drinking from an energy drink sponsor.

Belair and Charlotte showed off some athleticism early on until Asuka dropped them both with suplexes. Belair and Asuka had an exchange until Charlotte dropped them with a high cross.

This led to a messy sequence where Charlotte was supposed to do something to both women in the corner but needed the ref’s help with her gear. Belair and Asuka just stood there selling for a while until Asuka decided to try the Asuka Lock to kill time. Charlotte wound up doing the planned spot which didn’t look good either, basically clotheslining them in the corner.

Belair got a chance to shine later but when she tried a moonsault on both women, they both got their knees up. Asuka put Charlotte in the Asuka Lock but Belair broke it up with the moonsault.

Charlotte hit (missed) Belair with a moonsault off the top to the outside but Asuka kicked Charlotte. Asuka dropped Charlotte with a DDT off the top which also didn’t look great and Belair broke up the cover.

Charlotte booted Asuka from the ring before Belair gave Charlotte a release German suplex. Asuka tried to steal the pin but Charlotte kicked out. Asuka applied an armbar but as Charlotte got to her feet, Belair slammed her. Asuka put Belair in the Asuka Lock and Charlotte tried a cover with Asuka’s shoulder’s down but she kicked out.

Charlotte hit a moonsault on both women but they both kicked out.

Charlotte dumped Belair from the ring and she seemed to land awkwardly on her knee. Officials ran out to check on Belair as the other two women continued. (They showed replays so you could hear the crash of the steel steps but never actually showed a potential injury.)

Asuka gave Charlotte a superplex as officials helped Belair up the ramp. Charlotte hit Asuka with a spear for two.

As Charlotte applied a Figure Eight on Asuka, Belair shoved away the officials and limped down to the ring and up the ropes. Belair hit a 450 on the elevated Charlotte — which looked insane — for a nearfall.

The next sequence led to Charlotte putting Belair in the Figure Eight but Asuka sprayed mist in Charlotte’s face. It seemed like Asuka might win as a result but Belair rolled her up for the pinfall win. Belair is the new champion.

(The Belair 450 was awesome but the overall match was hampered by too many creatives three-way spots that went wrong.)

— IYO SKY’s music hit and the crowd went nuts. Bayley helped SKY take out Charlotte and Asuka with the briefcase. SKY cashed in.

IYO SKY (w/Bayley) defeated Bianca Belair to win the WWE Women’s Championship (0:08)

SKY attacked Belair with the briefcase before officially cashing in. She climbed the ropes as the bell rang and hit the moonsault for the pinfall win.

The crowd was into all of this. They also cheered as Dakota Kai appeared to celebrate with her friends. New life for Damage CTRL. 

SKY got some time to celebrate on her own, too. 

********

They began entrances after 11:20 pm and the main event started at 11:35 pm. 

Tribal Combat: Roman Reigns (w/Paul Heyman) defeated Jey Uso to retain the WWE Universal Championship (36:03)

The match started slowly as Reigns held control for the first 4-5 minutes until Jey came back with right hands and a suicide dive. Jey also drove him into the steel steps. The crowd chanted “We want tables” so Jey pulled one out.

Jey was distracted as Heyman tried pleading with him and Reigns was able to take advantage. Jey fought back until Reigns hit him repeatedly with a kendo stick and with repeated clotheslines.

Reigns went for a Superman punch but Jey hit him repeatedly with the kendo stick until it broke and followed with a flip dive. Jey came off the top but Reigns caught him mid-air with a Superman punch for two.

Jey countered a spear into a schoolboy for two. Jey followed with a superkick and an Uso splash but Reigns kicked out. Jey hit Reigns on the back twice with a steel chair as Heyman tried pleading with him.

Jey chucked about ten steel chairs in the ring and tried a superplex but Reigns slipped out and powerbombed him onto a few chairs for two. Reigns set up a table in the corner but Jey wound up giving him a Samoan Drop off the apron through a table outside the ring.

Despite the weapon spots, the match was fairly dull up to this point. About 25 minutes into the match, Jey grabbed a strap and whipped Reigns with it.

The fight wound up in the crowd with Jey in charge but Solo Sikoa charged in to save Reigns and put Jey through a table. Sikoa put Jey on his shoulders and carried him to ringside as Reigns directed traffic. Reigns ordered Sikoa to put Jey down so Sikoa gave him a Spinning Solo.

Sikoa and Reigns were about to do their double-team spot but Jey dodged and Reigns speared Sikoa. Reigns was shocked as Jey speared him for a nearfall.

Jey hit both men with a steel chair but Sikoa saved Reigns again by superkicking Jey. A frustrated Sikoa stared down Reigns and the distraction allowed Jey to spear Reigns through the barricade.

Sikoa attacked Jey but Jey superkicked him and splashed him through the announce table.

Jey speared Reigns and the crowd got to their feet as he followed with an Uso splash but the cover was broken up as someone in a hood pulled Jey out of the ring.

It was Jimmy Uso.

The crowd booed and chanted, “F*ck you, Jimmy.” Jimmy superkicked Jey.

As Jey watched Jimmy leave, Reigns speared him through a corner table for the pinfall win. Reigns retains. 

The match ended around 12:10 am and the show concluded at 12:15 am.

This was a letdown.