Welcome to Wrestling Inc.'s annual review of WWE SummerSlam ... but our first-ever review of SummerSlam NIGHT TWO! It would be a stretch to saySummerSlam Sunday was a night of surprises champions retained their titles in the first five matches but it certainly ended in surprising fashion, with Cody Rhodes regaining the Undisputed WWE Championship from John Cena, who was then confronted by of all people, a returning Brock Lesnar. As you, uh, might imagine, the WINC staff hasthoughts about all this, as well as Naomi stealing another Women's World Championship win from Rhea Ripley, Bayley accidentally costing Lyra Valkyria the women's Intercontinental Championship, and more!
There are a few matches we don't have very much to say about, including the men's tag team, United States, and Intercontinental title matches (try harder next time, men). Fortunately, you can still read about all of those via our SummerSlam Night 2 results page if you need to, and we are very much not at a loss for things to talk about! Here are three things we hated and three things we loved about WWE SummerSlam 2025 Night Two!
Let's be honest. This was, no doubt in the world, always going to be a banger match.
Naomi defended her WWE Women's World Championship against one of the faces of women's wrestling, Rhea Ripley, and one of the best wrestlers in the world (female *and* male), IYO SKY, to open up SummerSlam Sunday, and it was everything you could have ever imagined it could be. This match had high-drama kick-outs, thumb bites, a variety of Moonsaults, and a roll-up that made sense. This match was a high-stakes, blink-and-you'll-miss-it, genuine fight to claim the spot as the top female wrestler on "WWE Raw," and even in the midst of all the spectacle, they still managed to have intention behind every movement, a rationale behind every in-ring choice, and a thoughtful ending to the match that protects both competitors while also reinforcing a core component of the champion's personality.
Before any analysis, I have to give all the women involved their flowers. There is a reason that WWE's women division despite its booking is heralded as the premiere spot for women's wrestling. You just can't beat talent like Ripley, SKY, and Naomi. It's hard enough to map out a thoughtful and deliberate match between two people; to do so with three is even more impressive. They all complimented each other's styles beautifully too: Ripley and SKY have great chemistry, as their Evolution match proved, and Naomi's athleticism added to their dynamic. Nobody really felt out of place in this match, nothing felt clunky everything was top-of-the-line. Add in Naomi finally getting her in-ring flowers, with SKY and Ripley being willing to put her over during her long bouts of match-dominance? You can tell all of these competitors respect each other and are committed to churning out a beautiful product. That passion made this match so incredibly pleasurable to witness. Was it as crazy as some of the other night's matches? No, but it was a testament to women's wrestling and solidarity (something much-needed after Sunday ending).
Typically, I would scoff at a roll-up pin. I think they're a typically cheap way to end a match, and, in general, the longer a match goes, the more upset I am about a roll-up pin finish. This roll-up pin, however, made sense. Naomi is unpredictable. That is her whole character. You have to proceed with caution, because Naomi is unhinged that is where her danger lies. So, the roll-up pin already makes so much sense for her character. While it is not as cathartic as a traditional pinfall or submission, the flash pin makes so much sense for Naomi, you can kind of write off how unsatisfying it can be. Add in the heightened drama of Ripley's inaugural win over SKY being interrupted by the volatile Naomi? It is almost cinematic. Frequent readers of these columns will know: for *me* to give a flash pin praise is crazy. That's how good this match is, and that's how much I appreciate just how thoughtful it was.
Written byAngeline Phu
One of the most glaring issues with the first-ever two-night SummerSlam was the fact WWE loaded night two with all the stipulation matches, whereas Saturday had none, in a completely baffling and avoidable choice in booking. Tonight saw a cage match, a street fight main event, a six-team TLC match, and a no-disqualification match. It can't even be argued after tonight that WWE avoided putting any stipulation matches on night one to not outshine Seth Rollins' Money in the Bank cash-in on CM Punk, considering how tonight ended with Brock Lesnar's return. While I initially thought tonight would blow yesterday out of the water, that ended up sadly not being the case for quite a few reasons.
I really thought the TLC match would have been an excellent way to kick-off SummerSlam weekend entirely. Not that the tag team match pitting RomanReigns and Jey Uso against Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed was bad or anything, I just think kicking off the event with TLC, especially when WWE was acknowledging the 25th anniversary of the match, would have been a great move. The match wasn't buried by anything tonight, but it certainly killed the crowd for the following two matches, one being in the cage, the other, the no DQ match. I had a few gripes with the TLC match, as well, as it seemed a bit poorly timed at points when guys were up on the ladder attempting to grab the titles and it seemed like some folks didn't hit their times exactly. It left for a few brief, but awkward, moments. I don't know if switching nights would have fixed that, but maybe it wouldn't have been as glaring to me.
They also kind of repeated a spot between stipulation matches, with Becky Lynch tying up Lyra Valkyria with a zip tie in their match, then Jacob Fatu getting handcuffed to the cage in the match that followed. Granted, Fatu broke out of the cuffs very quickly, but it was just kind of redundant. The cage match is also something that could have very easily been moved to night one of the show, as the cage itself was suspended above the ring already yesterday.Sadly, Fatu's loss to United States Champion Solo Sikoa also felt a bit like a "WWE SmackDown" match to me tonight, probably due to all the outside interference we always see on weekly WWE TV anyway, though I do really enjoy both of them.
All the stipulation matches on tonight's card seemed to have the live crowd exhausted at some points. That may not have been the case in person (and I hope it wasn't for all those in attendance), but it certainly came across that way on TV. One quick scroll of social media, prior to the way the show ended, at least, confirmed I wasn't alone in thinking all this about the hardcore matches tonight. This weekend was full of ups and downs, and for better or worse, was it certainly historic.
Written by DaisyRuth
Becky Lynch and Lyra Valkyria as well as Bayley later on all understood the assignment at SummerSlam, a well-built feud for the Women's Intercontinental Championship that started during WrestleMania week, and one that has progressively elevated both in stakes and animosity, there was a call not for a match but a fight.
That fight was delivered under a multitude of stipulations, chiefly that Valkyria would not be getting another shot should she lose the bout, as well as no count-outs or disqualifications. Creativity shone through in this bout, with the familiar weapons like kendo sticks and steel chairs seeing more than their fair usage, but also moments where Valkyria had to wrestle with her hands zip-tied together, taking a beating from both an actual tool box as well as its contents, and had a chair wrapped around her body just to be sandwiched in it with a sickening stomp from Lynch.
That was when Bayley got involved, just as Lynch stood over the chair-trapped Valkyria with a crowbar in-hand (one that Valkyria introduced, because wrestling is nothing without irony) ready to, I guess, do some irreparable damage.
Lynch then tried to coerce Bayley into being the one to strike Valkyria, leaning into the tensions that have been bubbling over between the former tag team partners, but Bayley is not a goldfish and remembered that Lynch was the one to put her out of action in the first place; Bayley proceeded to batter Lynch around ringside, allowing Valkyria to gather her bearings and free herself from the chair.
Ultimately, it would turn out to be fruitless however, with Bayley costing Valkyria the bout inadvertently and allowing Lynch to retain the title. Valkyria cannot challenge for the Intercontinental title, and, whether accidental or not, she is more than likely to place the blame at Bayley's doorstep. That's the hook for the next part of the saga established, Lynch continuing her reign with the title, and a brutally violent defense in the bank. WWE continues to have struck gold with the Lynch/Valkyria saga, and creating a natural bridge for a feud between Valkyria and Bayley going forward is a brilliant move, while allowing Lynch to continue to produce her best work with the litany of other babyfaces on the roster.
Written byMaxEverett
If I never saw Paul "Triple H" Levesque and Stephanie McMahon at one of these premium live events ever again, I would be over the moon.
This year's SummerSlam lived up to the moniker of being "the biggest party of the summer," with fantastic matches left and right, back to back, across the board. For the most part, SummerSlam was electrifying, and after every match, you were left wanting more, more, more. This was a *wrestling* show, through and through, with bodyslams harmonizing with the raucous cheers of fans to fill out MetLife Stadium's huge, outdoor arena.
SummerSlam featured some of WWE's finest bodies of in-ring work, so can the people who no longer wrestle kindly step aside?
Listen, I get why they showed up. I know why Levesque and McMahon thought themselves justified in inserting themselves into the card. I know they've paid their dues Levesque obviously, but McMahon has ran the ropes and knows this business like the back of her hand. I understand why they would want to come out, and I can appreciate their past contributions to justify their appearances on the broadcast, in that ring. That doesn't mean I like it (and this is Love/Hate, not Love/I'm ambivalent about it).
Levesque and McMahon (less Levesque, and more McMahon) have been taking up a lot of WWE broadcasting time recently, and for someone whose work primarily is behind the scenes (as he loves to remind us through his selfies with champions in gorilla position), Levesque and McMahon have been showing up in front of cameras quite a lot. For Levesque's show opener, it makes sense hype up the crowd, spit your water, and get those nostalgia clicks. For McMahon's mid-show segment, though, it's more nonsensical (pointless) why dedicate minutes of a broadcast announcing gate numbers when you could easily do it on social media? Via commentary? Via the post-show? What reason was there for McMahon to take to the ring other than to deliver an ego boost? In a card that featured so much great wrestling, she felt like the little sibling you had to take when you went out with your friends to appease your parents. I've seen quite enough of these two.
It's also curious to me that, for people who want to appear on broadcast so badly, they cancelled SummerSlam's post-show presser. Considering everything that happened in the last few minutes of the show (my dear colleague will address this) it's sickening that Levesque and Corporate Officer no. 3 can show their faces to satisfy this egotistical need for the spotlight in their tired, corny, and played-out state, *knowing* what is about to happen knowing what will happen so well, in fact, that they cancelled the presser.
They've paid their dues and they can justify their on-broadcast appearances, but I can say this: it took away from the nights' awesome momentum, if only for a moment, just to show their faces. Of course, in a way that is convenient and digestible for them.
Written by Angeline Phu
The John Cena that turned up to the SummerSlam main event has been missing for almost a decade, but everything about it was as glorious as his heel run was awful.
Cena retconned the heel turn that broke the internet on Friday's "WWE SmackDown," declaring that he would be entering the Sunday show's main event as Super-Cena rather than the pawn in The Rock's gambit, and that honestly left questions over what would unfold in the rematch between him and Cody Rhodes for the WWE title. Cena's story has been, to this point, one of walking away from the company with the title as the "Last Real World Champion" and ruin wrestling. It was hardly received well, and felt a shell of the Cena we had grown to love over the decades. But how would he just reverse all of that?
Apparently, it was much easier than I gave it credit for, with a match that asked the question, "What if we just kicked out of everything?" and more than delivered on spots. Seriously, this match had all of the spots. As you would imagine, there were several finishers flying from both sides, an Attitude Adjustment here, a Cross Rhodes there, STFs, Cody Cutters, Disaster Kicks, Pop-Up Powerbombs, Top-Rope Legdrops, Avalanche Attitude Adjustments, quite literally everything in each man's arsenal.
Rhodes suplexed Cena onto a guard rail, Cena puts Rhodes through the announcer's desk, Rhodes battered Cena with the bottom rope having unscrewed it from the ringpost and Cena carried Rhodes up the "Cody-Vator" to hit an Attitude Adjustment on the entrance ramp. It was a story of who could outdo the other impervious foe, and wound up being the perfect passing of the torch from the infallible hero of the past to the infallible hero of the now, a gradual tale of Cena giving his all in one last attempt at being the very best he can be, with the wear and tear from the years playing the difference when all was said and done.
It is so hard to have a good finish to a match that went out of its way to snuff the impact of finishing moves throughout, with everything feeling like another drop in the ocean, and yet they managed to find it anyway; Cena went for the Avalanche Attitude Adjustment to put Rhodes through a table, but Rhodes fought out of it to hit the Cody Cutter through the table. Rhodes then waited, Cena almost aware of the fact he was running on empty as he hung on the middle rope, finally getting up to the match-winning Cross Rhodes. The impossibly elusive three-count was satisfying, the torch had been passed, and Cena felt truly revitalized as the "Greatest of All Time."
It was perfect, down to the last minute detail, and would have been enough to get me excited for the closing stretch of Cena's final run. But they had to go and ruin it...
Written by Max Everett
The unthinkable has happened; Brock Lesnar has returned to WWE. He is currently named in Janel Grant's lawsuit as the person that Grant says Vince McMahon was going to traffick her to. Lesnar's name appears 44 times in Grant's lawsuit. McMahon was trying to entice Lesnar to re-sign with the company and allegedly promised he could have sexual encounters with her. Grant says McMahon provided her personal cell phone number to Lesnar with the promise that Grant "would do anything" requested of her. Lesnar allegedly began texting her to arrange a meeting on more than one occasion, with the meetings not happening only because she told him she had COVID and there was bad weather. Grant alleges that Lesnar ordered her to send a video of her urinating and called her a b****.
On Saturday, WWE announced they would no longer be holding press conferences, because God forbid anyone be held accountable for their awful decisions. Now we know why. As Night Two went off the air, John Cena was laid out with Brock Lesnar basking in the background while "Executive Producers: Paul Levesque and Lee Fitting" was plastered on the screen. Following the show, Levesque appeared on WWE's post show and informed the audience that new babyface, Cena, was the one who requested Lesnar to return to the company. Cena has publicly declared his love for him, so none of this is the least bit surprising. Speaking of Levesque, he shared an office wall with Grant's office that was specially built just for her where she alleges she was abused at work.
How can any woman in that locker room or that company feel safe with Lesnar around? How can they trust Cena after a betrayal like this? How can they trust their boss who not only brought Lesnar back, but has proudly been at the White House with a 34-time convicted felon (who was informed his name appeared in the Epstein files), WWE HOFer Donald Trump? So proud that they aired the clip all weekend. How can they trust Nick Khan, who is Corporate Office Number 1, or Stephanie McMahon, who is Corporate Officer Number 3, in Grant's lawsuit. Michael Hayes is a booker for "SmackDown" and on "WWE UnReal;" in Grant's lawsuit, she alleges Vince directed her to make sexually explicit content for Hayes and his crew and threatened her if she didn't comply. WWE is always going to be a Boys Club with people like these in charge.
But hey, at least we got Evolution 2 after seven years. I'm sure it's just a coincidence that we got an all women's PLE three weeks before SummerSlam. They knew Lesnar was returning and they wanted to pretend like they give a f*** about the women they employ. These women deserve better and so do fans, especially female fans. WWE just told them they don't care about them. They only care about themselves and making money.
Written bySamantha Schipman
