WWE SummerSlam predictions

Before I start with my predictions, I just want to say that this has been a very disappointing build towards such a major pay per view. There are 12 matches on the show, and other than perhaps the Universal Title match, none of the other matches have been given much attention on television. 

Despite this, it could still be a decent show in the ring, but I can't remember that last time that SummerSlam had such a poor build, especially since moving from Los Angeles to Brooklyn.

I'll try my best to save this show with some fantasy booking, while still trying to make sense of WWE story lines. 

Here are my thoughts and predictions from start to finish...

​John Cena vs. Baron Corbin

Some of you may think this is a bold move to have John Cena in the first match, but this is one match that really hasn't been setting the world on fire. Corbin has shown some improvement in recent years, but if Nakamura couldn't get a good match out of him, I somehow doubt that Cena will either. Having him lose his MITB title shot due to a Cena distraction was probably done just to add some reason for people to care about this match. Personally, I still don't. Hopefully they keep it short, but it won't be sweet. Cena wins clean with the AA. After the match, Cena goes and autographs a poster for a young fan, only for Corbin to attack him from behind, and plant him with the End of Days on the outside. Corbin then rips up the poster, and hopefully the kid doesn't cry like the last time. 

[A Mae Young Classic ad airs next, and then some of the Mae Young Classic participants are shown at ringside]

Big Cass vs. The Big Show with Enzo Amore in a shark cage over the ring

This is another feud that I just can't get into, and I think it was the worst decision in the world to break up Enzo and Cass at this point, as neither of them have really gone anywhere since the break-up, especially Enzo, who has been labeled as a total jobber, which is a real shame, since he's one of the best promos in the company. This one probably won't go more than three minutes. Cass works over Big Show's hand for the most part, and then claims the victory with a big boot. Cass then calls for the cage to be lowered so he can have his way with Enzo, but Big Show hits him with the knockout punch before he's able to grab Enzo.

[A WWE Network commercial airs next]

​Alexa Bliss vs. Sasha Banks for the Raw Women's Championship 

It is a shame that Bayley got injured, but this is the match I would have preferred anyway, as Bayley just isn't connecting with the audience anymore, and I think New York would have boo'd her out of the building if she won the title. This should be a decent match, but I don't expect it to go very long. The end comes when they brawl on the outside, only for the referee to get between them. As Bliss distracts the ref, Shayna Baszler, who is sitting at ringside as one of the Mae Young Classic participants, floors Sasha with a hay maker. This gives Bliss the advantage. Bliss rolls Sasha back in and hits her finisher for the win. After the match, Bliss goes to the floor and hugs Baszler, and they leave together.

[Highlights are shown from Raw, when Akira Tozawa beat Neville for the Cruiserweight Title]

[Akira is shown in the back, doing his chant, as Titus O'Neil walks in]

O'Neil: Alright Tozawa, this is it. Now you won the title on Raw, so I'm not taking anything away from you. But this is the one that matters. You have to show Neville that you're more than just a one-hit wonder. You gotta make it count tonight. I mean this is SummerSlam. The world is watching! This is the big one.

[Titus and Crews then start mimicking Tozawa's chant, but Tozawa stops them]

Tozawa: Titus, I appreciate your help, but I need to do this by myself, alone. I'm the WWE Cruiserweight Champion, and tonight, Neville will feel the powah of Tozawa!

[Tozawa continues doing his chant out the door, as both Titus and Crews look confused and disappointed]

Akira Tozawa vs. Neville for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship

It would not shock me if this match was bumped to the kick-off show, but it did kind of surprise me that Tozawa won the title on Raw this week, which kind of came out of nowhere. I can only assume that they booked the title change to create some interest in this match, as we've already seen this so many times before. Tozawa has the early advantage until he tries to follow Neville to the outside, only for the ref to hold him back. The momentary distraction allows Neville to sweep Tozawa's leg, causing Tozawa to fall shoulder-first on the apron. Neville proceeds to attack Tozawa's shoulder for the rest of the match. The end comes where Tozawa hits the senton from the top, but is unable to capitalize, as his shoulder is badly hurt, which allows Neville to lock on the rings of Saturn for the tap out, and Neville regains the title.

[Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan are in their office, with Shane wearing his referee's shirt]

Bryan: Look, Shane, I hope I wasn't stepping out of line when I volunteered you to be the referee for this U.S. Title match.

Shane: Daniel, I'm a McMahon. Nobody makes me do anything I don't want to do. Besides, I can't risk these two guys putting their hands on another WWE official. All I know is this is one official who will having know problem putting his hands on them, if they step out of line. 

[Shane is about to leave, but Bryan holds him back]

Bryan: Just remember, you're a commissioner, not a wrestler.

Shane: I know what I'm doing.

The New Day vs. The Usos for the Smackdown! Live Tag Team Championships

This is one of the bouts that I'm actually looking forward to, as these two teams seem to have amazing chemistry. I did find it kind of weird that they revealed before the match which New Day members would be participating, and it is surprising that Kingston will be the corner man, as he's definitely the standout in-ring performer of the group. Having said that, it should still be a good match. I see The Usos trying to get the unfair advantage by pulling the old switcheroo behind the referee's back, but the end result is The New Day beating them at their own game, as Kofi sneaks in and hits Trouble in Paradise on one of the Usos, and then covers his face as he makes the pin, so the ref thinks it's Xavier.

[A recap is shown of the match from Raw between Bray Wyatt and Finn Balor]

​Bray Wyatt vs. Finn Balor

It amazed me that they gave this match away for free this week, but I guess with Balor going all "Demon" on Sunday, it kind of does add a little something extra. I don't expect this match to go very long either, but I see the end come where Wyatt hits Sister Abigail, but then plays with Balor a little bit, instead of making the pin. Balor then springs up into a spider position like Wyatt usually does. This causes Wyatt to freak out, and Balor takes advantage with a big drop kick into the turnbuckle, followed by the sling blade and then the coup de grace for the win.

[Up next is a recap of the NXT: Takeover special from the night before]

​Naomi vs. Natalya for the Smackdown! Live Women's Championship

Considering that this match was made almost a month ago, I'm kind of disappointed that there hasn't been much interaction between these two, which really makes me question why they didn't just give the fans what they wanted, and put Charlotte in the match. Actually, there seems to have been more interaction between Naomi and Carmella lately, which suggests that she may be cashing in her MITB contract sooner rather than later. I have no doubt that this will be a good match, but despite the fact that Naomi is probably the most athletic woman on the roster, I just don't think she's connecting with the fans, and I personally don't buy her as a serious champion. I'm gonna say that Naomi wins this match with her submission hold, but then Carmella teases that she's going to cash in the briefcase, but decides against it, as Naomi springs back up to her feet, before Carmella hits the ring.

[The pay per view panel provide their thoughts on the night thus far, and discuss what's still to come]

​Jinder Mahal vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

This is honestly one of the most disappointing SummerSlam main events in history. Other than the segment from Smackdown this week, there has been zero interaction between these two, and there's no reason to even care about this match, and I would not be the least bit surprised if this opens the show. Fans clearly want to see Nakamura win the title, but I don't know if I would pull the trigger on that just yet, as it will mean nothing on a show like this, where Smackdown is clearly considered to be the secondary brand. I don't know if this will be a great match either, as it could be a bit of a styles clash. The Singh brothers are ejected in the early going, which allows Nakamura to gain the advantage and build some momentum. Just when it looks like Nakamura is about to put Jinder away, Baron Corbin storms into the ring and attacks Nakamura for the DQ, and then hits him with the End of Days.

[After numerous replays, Dasha catches up with Baron Corbin backstage]

Dasha: Excuse me, Baron,  why did you interfere in the WWE Championship match just now?

Corbin: You have some nerve asking me why? Well the simplest question deserves the simplest explanation. If I can't be the next WWE Champion, I'm gonna make sure nobody else will either. Jinder, you better start warming up that title for me, because I'm not finished with you yet. And I'll tell you something else...

[Before Corbin can get another word out, John Cena attacks him from behind, and they are pulled apart by security]

​Randy Orton vs. Rusev

This is another disappointing feud, and I really hate the way it was put together. I guess we're supposed to forget about The Great Khali attacking Randy Orton at Battleground? Well Orton sure did. Not that I'm complaining that we didn't get an Orton vs. Khali match, but this feud doesn't make any sense at all, and I'm thinking it's going to be a one-off. The end comes where Rusev attempts to apply The Accolade, but takes too much time, allowing Orton to slip out the back door and hit the RKO outta nowhere! Orton gets the win, and hopefully this feud is over.

AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens for The United States Championship with Shane McMahon as the special guest referee

I was hoping when Chris Jericho returned that they would just continue the Owens and Jericho feud, but I guess that was a one and done deal. This match has show-stealer written all over it, but hopefully Shane McMahon doesn't become too much of a distraction. I see Shane taking a bump at some point, so Daniel Bryan comes out with a referee's shirt on. This end comes where Styles has Owens trapped in the calf crusher, but Owens places his arms over Styles' chest at the same time, so just as soon as AJ is pinned, Owens taps out. So the match ends in a non-finish, as Bryan and Shane are unable to decide who actually won. Maybe not the greatest idea, but I wanted to come up with a way for this feud to continue. 

[Another WWE Network commercial airs next]

[Before the Raw Tag Title match starts, The Hardy Boys make their way to the ring]

Matt: You know it's no secret that we've been in this business a long time. 22 years to be exact. We've held several different tag team titles, and we've both been world champions. Between us, we've held the Cruiserweight Title, European Title, Intercontinental Title, Hardcore Title and United States Title. That alone is enough to make us Hall of Fame worthy.

Jeff: So we got to thinking: What happens now? Where do we go from here? We've beaten everybody there is to beat, competed in every match that exists-- hell, we've even innovated some of them. So what's next for The Hardy Boys?

Matt: What my brother is trying to say is that by being here, we've proven that we can still go. We can still hang with some of today's top stars. We have nothing left to prove, but that doesn't mean that we have nothing left. So before we get ready to hang it up for good, we want one more crack at tag team gold.

Jeff: This will be our last chance, but on our way out, we wanted to come out here and challenge the winners of this match, and if we can't win back our titles, then maybe we don't belong here anymore.

[Both Hardys drop their microphones and then go shake hands with Rollins and Ambrose. They then try to shake hands with Cesaro and Sheamus, who arrogantly slap their hands away. The refs try to hold The Hardy Boys back, as the match begins]

Cesaro and Sheamus vs. Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose for the Raw Tag Team Championships

Aside from the main event, this is probably the match with the most build. I don't think they would have spent so much time on getting Ambrose and Rollins back together if they weren't winning the titles. Unless, of course, Ambrose were to turn, which I can also see happening. I'm going with the happier ending of Rollins and Ambrose winning the titles after a hard-fought match. 

[The pay per view panel provide thoughts and predictions for the main event]

Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns vs. Samoa Joe vs. Braun Strowman in a fatal four-way match for The Universal Championship

This is probably the most unpredictable match on the card, as I would be fine with any of these four guys leaving as Universal Champion. It should be a good match, and they're clearly teasing an eventual Lesnar vs. Strowman showdown. The end comes where Heyman gets a chair and looks as though he's going to hand it to Lesnar, who is cleaning house by this point, but instead, Heyman slides it to Samoa Joe, who uses it to batter Lesnar, while the ref is down. Reigns and Strowman are brawling in the crowd, so neither of them can come and make the save, as Joe chokes Lesnar out with the Coquina Clutch. Lesnar eventually passes out, and the referee declares Joe as the new Universal Champion. Heyman then celebrates with Joe and they leave together (I just don't buy Paul Heyman as a babyface).

So there you have it.

Here are my match predictions for the next two pay per views:

No Mercy (Smackdown):

Jinder Mahal vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Baron Corbin vs. John Cena in a fatal four-way match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship

Kevin Owens vs. AJ Styles in the first match of a best of five series to determine the undisputed United States Champion - The winner of each match in the series gets to select a stipulation for the next match.

Randy Orton vs. Mike Kanellis

The Usos vs. The New Day for the WWE Tag Team Championships in a street fight

Naomi vs. Tamina Snuka for the Women's Championship

Rusev vs. Tye Dillinger

BreeZango vs. The Hype Bros


Clash of Champions (Raw):

Samoa Joe vs. Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship - If Lesnar wins, he gets five minutes alone with Paul Heyman

Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman in an I Quit match

Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose vs. The Hardy Boys for the Raw Tag Team Championships - If The Hardys lose, they will retire.

Alexa Bliss w/Shayna Baszler vs. Sasha Banks w/Bayley for the Raw Women's Championship

Neville vs. Cedric Alexander for the Cruiserweight Championship

The Miz vs. Jason Jordan for the Intercontinental Championship