Lackluster SummerSlam Main Event Saved by Roman Reigns's Return

Despite a nearly five-month-long absence due to concerns amid the coronavirus pandemic, Reigns regains his role as the face of WWE.

After a four-and-a-half month absence, Roman Reigns is back.

And he is right back where he left off, challenging for the Universal Championship.

“The Fiend” Bray Wyatt defeated Braun Strowman in the main event of SummerSlam, ending a title defense that began at WrestleMania. Strowman had won the belt from Bill Goldberg, stepping into the spot that originally belonged to Reigns, who opted out of WWE shows due to newborn twins at home and uncertainty surrounding the pandemic. There is now far more certainty in WWE, which operates almost exclusively out of the Amway Center in Orlando — now christened the ThunderDome — with COVID-19 testing, enforced mask-wearing and social distancing practices. So Reigns is back, much to the delight of fans and television executives at Fox, and business has once again picked up for WWE.

Courtesy of WWE

The lackluster main event was saved by Reigns’s return, but the rest of the card was strong. Asuka lost in the opening match to SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley, who capitalized off outside interference from Sasha Banks. But Bayley was not able to return the favor. Her distractions backfired in Banks’ match against Asuka, leading to a sequence where Asuka reversed the Banks Statement into the Asuka Lock for the win. One of the most talented wrestlers in WWE, the win represented a great moment for Asuka, who is the new Raw Women’s Champion, as well as elevated tensions between Banks and Bayley, who are still the Women’s Tag Team Champions.

Another outstanding was Mandy Rose defeating Sonya Deville in a no disqualification, loser-leaves-WWE match. The original plan for this was a Hair vs. Hair match, but that was scrapped after what Deville has endured in real life as the victim of a frightening kidnapping attempt. Somehow, that stress did not alter her performance, as both Deville and Rose delivered on the stipulation and pieced together a hard-hitting, personal match. These are two emerging stars in WWE, and it has been a pleasure watching their ascent from role players in their story at WrestleMania to genuine stars at SummerSlam.

Another star-making performance took place by Dominik Mysterio. He lost to Seth Rollins in a street fight, but his debut was nearly flawless, even better than Pat McAfee the night before in his first match at TakeOver. Mysterio had the benefit of sharing the ring with Rollins, one of the top in-ring talents in the world. Though Rollins has been hit-or-miss with his “Monday Night Messiah” character, he played the arrogant, malicious role to perfection in the match with Mysterio, which also included outstanding supporting roles from Rey Mysterio and Buddy Murphy.

If there was one disappointment from the card, it was the decision to not have the WWE Championship match in the main event. Reigns’s return made it clear why the Universal title match needed to close the show. As a result, it extended Drew McIntyre’s unfortunate streak of not headlining pay per views while holding the company’s premiere belt. McIntyre and Randy Orton worked a solid match together, with shades of Bret Hart in a creative finish. Neither McIntyre nor Orton could connect with their finishers, which is not often seen in WWE matches, and the match ended in unexpected fashion when McIntyre used a backslide for a surprise victory.

The show also included the Street Profits defeating Angel Garza and Andrade to hold onto the Raw Tag Titles. Apollo Crews retained his United States Championship against MVP on the pre-show, and it was also announced that Keith Lee will start on Raw this Monday night. But the major takeaway was the return of Roman Reigns, who immediately regains his role as the face of the company.

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Falls Count Anywhere match for the Universal Championship: Braun Strowman (c) vs. Bray Wyatt

Bray Wyatt returned at SummerSlam a year ago as "The Fiend," defeating Finn Balor and forever changing the direction of his career. A year later, The Fiend defeated Braun Strowman in the SummerSlam main event to win the Universal Championship.

The Fiend’s first run as Universal Champ was interrupted by Bill Goldberg’s return. Goldberg then dropped the belt to Strowman, who held the belt from WrestleMania until SummerSlam.

But The Fiend’s championship win was overshadowed. The match with Strowman was lackluster, and the real excitement occurred after the title changed hands when Roman Reigns made his return.

Reigns’s return adds so much life to the WWE product. His return promo this Friday is must-see viewing — and when was the last time that was said about SmackDown? And suddenly, if Reigns has his return match next Sunday, then Payback instantly becomes a far more compelling pay per view.

Reigns and Strowman have fantastic chemistry together in the ring, and hopefully, Reigns’ return allows Strowman to return to a more antagonistic role, which he is better suited to play. Reigns has worked with Wyatt, but never encountered The Fiend, which will be a very compelling addition to the weekly programming for WWE.

The story of SummerSlam was not the Universal Championship changing hands, but rather the return of Roman Reigns.

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WWE Championship match: Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Randy Orton

Unfortunately for Drew McIntyre, the WWE Championship match is not headlining SummerSlam.

On the bright side, he retained the WWE title.

At first glance, not placing this match last is certainly an odd choice, especially considering this has been a more interesting program than Braun Strowman-Bray Wyatt (not to mention this is supposed to be WWE’s most premiere title). But the fact that it was placed after Sasha Banks-Asuka, a match that ended in a title change, was a tell that McIntyre wasn’t dropping the belt.

The finish was unexpected. McIntyre could not hit his Claymore Kick, Randy Orton was unable to connect with the RKO or the punt, and McIntyre then won with a backslide. It is rare to see WWE protect finishers in this manner, but it was a refreshing change in a WWE title.

McIntyre’s streak of appearing second-to-last on pay per views continues, and it has to be a blow that he was unable to headline this card.

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Raw Women’s Championship match: Sasha Banks (c) vs. Asuka

Sasha Banks and Asuka put their bodies on the line in this match, highlighted by an outrageous sunset flip by Banks off the apron and onto the outside mat.

Courtesy of WWE

This match was incredibly gripping, and this is a common thread in Banks’s work, because of her nonstop desire to win. That adds such emotion to Banks’ matches, and she and Asuka work so well together.

There were numerous reversals throughout the match, and there was more outside interference from Bayley. The finish came immediately after Bayley did not do enough to hurt or distract Asuka, which allowed Asuka to reverse the Banks Statement into the Asuka Lock. Banks tapped, and Asuka became the new Raw Women’s Champion. Commentary went heavy on the friction between Banks and Bayley, and an added layer to the story is that they are still Women’s Tag Team Champions.

Banks and Bayley have been fantastic together in this storyline. I hope they can extend the story to WrestleMania.

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Street Fight: Seth Rollins vs. Dominik Mysterio

There are few better opponents for Dominik Mysterio in his WWE debut than Seth Rollins.

Rollins sometimes gets himself in precarious positions in interviews or due to comments on social media, but there are zero questions about his ability in the ring. This is a long way removed from Rollins’s main event last year at SummerSlam, where he defeated Brock Lesnar to become the Universal Champion, but it shows Rollins’ versatility and willingness to contribute in multiple ways to the company.

Rollins dictated the pace of the match, and the match was enhanced by Rey Mysterio’s presence outside the ring (and the shots of Dominik’s mother backstage). Rollins laid into Dominik with the kendo stick, and there was a great spot where both men went through a table. Dominik then hit Rollins with a Frog Splash, which led to a two-count, then Rollins regained control of the match.

Rey and Buddy Murphy both played their roles tremendously well, with Rey the proud-but-worried father, and Murphy perfecting his role as Rollins’s henchman. Rollins handcuffed Rey, then started making his way to Mrs. Mysterio, until Dominik saved his mother. Dominik had control until Rollins picked up his knees on the second attempt of the Frog Splash, and then hit a Curb Stomp in front of the handcuffed Rey for the win.

This match was fantastic. Everyone played their role so well, and this program helps Rollins re-establish himself as one of WWE’s top villains, gives Rey Mysterio a new purpose (a tag team of Rey and Dominik would be fun), and introduces Dominik into the world of active competition in WWE.

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No Disqualification Loser Leaves WWE match: Sonya Deville vs. Mandy Rose

This has been a tremendous feud between Rose and Deville.

Rose, Deville, Dolph Ziggler, and Otis all contributed to the success of WrestleMania 36, but the focal point of that was the singles match pitting Otis against Ziggler. Four months later, and this program is entirely built around Rose and Deville.

Two nights ago, WWE pivoted from a “Hair vs. Hair” match to a “No DQ Loser Leaves WWE” match. The match was physical, and it was the biggest moment for both Rose and Deville in singles action. Rose emerged victorious, using a brutal knee to the face to knockout Deville. Following the win, Otis, along with the Money in the Bank briefcase, celebrated with Rose.

Deville was the likeliest candidate to lose this match, as she is enduring incredible stress as the victim of a frightening attempted kidnapping case. Hopefully, she is back on WWE programming soon.

As for Rose, the timing is right for her to jump up the card and make a run for the SmackDown title.

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Second match: WWE Tag Team Champions The Street Profits vs. Andrade and Angel Garza

The Street Profits are extraordinarily talented, but the team has struggled to build momentum since the start of their title reign in March. It didn’t help that their reign has coincided with the empty arena era of wrestling. They also haven’t had a signature opponent, as the backstage/off-site skits with The Viking Raiders did more harm than good to that program.

Andrade and Angel Garza are both very special talents, but they are two wrestlers I would prefer to see in singles action. This tag match has the potential to produce some world champions. Andrade and Montez Ford are both candidates to one day be WWE Champion.

Kevin Owens, who hopefully is in line for a title shot at next week’s Payback pay per view (yes, WWE is airing pay per views on back-to-back Sundays), joined the commentary table for this match. Zelina Vega is ringside for Andrade and Garza, but Bianca Belair did not come to the ring with Ford and Angelo Dawkins.

The match was very good and ended with the Profits retaining the titles. Ford pinned Garza following a beautiful frog splash, one that he turned mid-air. As Owens left the broadcast table, he shared that the KO Show will be back tomorrow night on Raw, and his guest will be Aleister Black.

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We have come a long way from WWE editing Roman Reigns out of highlight packages.

“The Big Dog” just appeared in a WWE/Hyundai commercial, and he looks healthy, fit, and ready for action. There is no question that WWE wants to improve its SmackDown television rating on Fox, and a return from Reigns would play a big role in doing that.

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Opening match: Asuka vs. Bayley

The opening match is Bayley defending the SmackDown Women’s Championship against Asuka.

Bayley has held the title since this past October, which is approaching an eternity in modern-day wrestling. This is a seminal night for Asuka, who has title matches against both Bayley and Sasha Banks, and she was given over 11 minutes in the opener with Bayley.

The match was solid, and Bayley used an inside cradle to pick up the victory. This is only the first half of a two-part story. Constant interference from Banks played a big role in the match, and Bayley rolled up Asuka after Banks was involved. This will also be a key part of the Banks-Asuka match, likely with Bayley’s interference backfiring and costing Banks the belt.

I really like seeing Asuka in the underdog role here, especially with such a big spotlight on her work.

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WWE takes a major step in its virtual fan era tonight with SummerSlam in the ThunderDome.

This will be unlike any SummerSlam we have seen, and it would have been unbelievable a year ago to think that the 2020 version of the event would be held in an empty Amway Center. But here we are, and WWE has taken a creative approach to the pandemic with its creation of the ThunderDome.

The matches tonight will shape the next three months of WWE programming. Does Randy Orton regain the WWE title, or will WWE look to solidify Drew McIntyre’s reign with a victory? Asuka has title matches against Bayley and Sasha Banks, and there are high expectations for both. Dominik Mysterio makes his debut against Seth Rollins, Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville meet in an old-fashioned loser leaves match, and we have what should be the payoff between Braun Strowman and The Fiend for the Universal Championship.

Apollo Crews defeated MVP on the preshow, retaining the United States Championship. Renee Young also waved goodbye to her WWE run as the preshow went off the air.

As for the rest of the night, will we see surprises? Does Keith Lee make his main roster arrival? Is tonight the right time for a Roman Reigns return? Or will the focus remain on the stars currently on the card? It feels like a swerve is coming with Strowman and Bray Wyatt. Considering The Fiend changes all of his opponents (except, of course, Bill Goldberg), perhaps there is more to the story than we see.

SummerSlam starts now, and I’ll be live blogging with updates and results all night. Enjoy the show!