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Add FightsATW on GoogleThe second night of the 38th annual WWE SummerSlam continued in the ‘Twin Cities’ of Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the U.S. Bank Stadium. After an emotional night one that saw Brock Lesnar declare Oba Femi “the future” and himself “the past,” the night two card was centered around the 12-year-long feud with Roman Reigns that began when Seth Rollins ended the dominant reign of The Shield with a single chair shot. Unlike last night, where the main event was a tough decision made at the final hour, the main feature of night two was in its undeniable position.
Still, tonight felt different from top to bottom with a major return taking place just moments after a major shakeup was announced to the first match of the night. Surprise finishes and unexpected payoffs to different stories gave night two a ‘big time’ feel that was mostly missing from night one.
Darius Rucker sang the National Anthem; Triple H and Stephanie’s daughter had the honors on night one to open the broadcast, while the Minnesota Vikings’ star wide receiver Justin Jefferson acted as the intermediary between the co-main event and the featured bout of the evening. The “Super Troopers” gang was also in the building promoting the third installment of their cult comedy classic.
Roman Reigns(c) VS Seth Rollins—WWE Heavyweight Championship
Seth Rollins popped the crowd with his entrance by featuring The Shield entrance graphics and music, though it eventually morphed to his more modern schtick as he came out in a special ring gear full of bright colors that were meant to contrast the all-black attire that he evolved out of to become ‘The Architect.’ Roman, on the other hand, used the dramatically slow entrance that has become his staple on PLE shows (and WWE weekly TV).
They ate up the time even more at the start of the match, milking the crowd anticipation. Rollins was able to take the initial momentum in the match before Roman made a brief stand. Eventually, they made their way out of the ring and towards the Spanish announce desk, the place that The Shield made their name early in their WWE lore.
Nick Khan was seated at the corner aisle entrance. He was caught on camera watching Seth gear up for a spear onto Roman through the timekeeper’s barrier, only to be caught by Roman in a front headlock, where he took full control after putting Seth through the table. However, Seth put Roman through a table just moments later and then quickly attempted to finish the match by hitting the champ with a pedigree for the nearest of near-falls.
Roman hit Seth with a Superman Punch for his own near-fall moments later. Seth hit the stomp on Roman after he failed to land the spear, but it still was not enough to put away Reigns. Roman was able to slap a guillotine that nearly put Seth out, but he managed to hang on and hit Roman with a spear of his own for another near-fall. The climax of the match saw counter after counter, with Rollins getting Roman up for a power bomb after being ‘buckle bombed’ moments later. Then, in a scene that mirrored Roman’s Mania match with Punk, where they sat across from each other, exhausted, having a conversation about it always being between the two of them.
They traded blows until the ref caught a stray and went down, and that is when Rollins paid homage to Jon Moxley, and the commentators referenced ‘Dean Ambrose’ as he was known in WWE. The ref got up just in time to be hit with a spear from Roman—yet another missed spear from the champ.
In the match’s finale, Rollins was left with a chair in his hand similar to The Shield turn all those years ago, but this time, Roman was aware and caught Rollins with a shot. That allowed Roman to switch positions with Rollins, only he threw away the chair in a moment that suggested he was letting go of that beef.
Seth turned another Roman spear attempt into a second pedigree before hitting the curb stomp, allowing the challenger to attempt a ‘super stomp’ from the top turnbuckle that Roman was able to reverse into consecutive spears. Another spear later, and the ref found himself conscious and in perfect position to count the 1-2-3 for the successful defense for Reigns.
Roman defended successfully in a clean and decisive win over his longest-running feud. Roman officially tied up ‘all loose ends,’ as the commentators put it, claiming this win exercised ‘The Visionary.’ Both men seated in opposite corners, Roman was the first to get up, extending his fist towards Rollins in a show of respect while Seth ‘retired’ his Shield mask in the center of the ring and extended his fist in solidarity to close the show.
Penta(c) VS Chad Gable—Intercontinental Championship
It was billed as the Chad Gable payoff after one of the most emotional character arcs in recent history, not to mention his chase for the IC title that ended unsuccessfully when he failed to dethrone Gunther—the all-time reigning champion at the time. Many believed this match could steal the show with their in-ring work, and they certainly gave their best effort, producing an outstanding match and possibly the best ‘pound for pound’ on either night.
A combination of mat work, traditional wrestling, and high-risk maneuvers made this an athletic masterpiece. This hinged on excellent in-ring storytelling with the emotional facet resting on Gable’s effort and Penta’s resistance—demonstrated by the spot where Penta attempted to put Gable away with a ‘Mexican Destroyer’ on the ring apron, but he could not hit it clean enough to finish Gable.
In the end, Gable sank into the ankle lock, and despite a valiant effort to hold on, the champ eventually tapped. Gable was immediately emotional with tears of realization as he held the IC title in the corner. Penta put over Gable in the aftermath, and Gable’s family joined in on the celebration, complete with his son in matching ring gear.
Dom Mysterio VS Danhausen—Human Monies on a Pole Match
This was always set up to be a comedy schmozz, but they leaned into it more to give a clear distinction between this match and the ladder match that followed. A storyline that ran far longer than anyone predicted went all-in for its final chapter with JD McDonaugh making a run-in early in the match. JD’s place in the match spawned the ‘MiniHausens’ to showcase their own impressive brand of lucha abilities.
Joe Hendry was given his ‘guitar spot’ to help Danhausen after their concert was interrupted by The Judgment Day with the help of boxer Ryan Garcia on WWE RAW. The match’s finale happened shortly after, with Danhausen cursing Dom off the ropes just inches from ending the match.
Dom fell off the ropes, and Danhausen made his way up the turnbuckle and won the ‘human monies’ that were already in his possession, but now that the stipulation made him the rightful owner, he decided to distribute the cash, depicting the kayfabe vampire around the ring to fans and commentating.
Charlotte Flair VS Jade Cargill VS Lash Legend VS Chelsea Green VS Tiffany Stratton—WWE Interim Women’s Championship (SD) 5-Way Ladder Match
Lash Legend was the final addition to this match after qualifying on Friday’s SmackDown, but the build towards this match mostly centered around the continuing feud between Flair and Cargill. The ladder match has historic roots within SummerSlam, so the women’s roster was given a lot of trust coming into this match, and they delivered in every way.
Stratton hit some ‘death-defying’ high-risk maneuvers and made it look easy while Jade and Lash showcased their undeniable power—they actually looked like a very formidable team when they worked together. Chelsea Green, however, was the star of this match, completing her full-circle character arc after overcoming her ‘fear of heights’ storyline a couple of years ago.
She nearly had her grips on the title twice before she was stopped, but she also prevented Stratton from winning by tossing her from the ladder in the ring onto the other challengers. Chelsea should have won it there but was stopped by Jade’s faction.
However, in the match’s finale, Chelsea’s dreams and efforts were finally realized when she was the one standing tall atop the ladder to unhook and claim the interim title. It was a great moment, and one Chelsea very much deserved, further separating the night two’s amazing show from night one’s emotional program.
Trick Williams(c) VS Baron Corbin —United States Championship
In perhaps the most surprising booking of the night, the rocket ship that had been on the back of Trick Williams since his WrestleMania win was dislodged by the returning Baron Corbin. Corbin made a shocking return and immediately targeted the champion and his ‘furry title.’ Lil Yachty brought out the champ, and the crowd was fully on his side, but Corbin made the match physical from the jumpstart.
It was tactically beneficial for Corbin as he set the tone for the match in a way that Williams was constantly fighting against. For example, there was a moment when Williams hit the challenger with a switch kick, only to let Corbin keep the fight script stiff. Baron won the title after taking advantage of an untimely distraction from Yachty (who took a table spot earlier in the match).
Finn Balor VS Sami Zayn VS Kevin Owens VS Gunther—Fatal-Fourway #1 Contender’s Match for Undisputed World Title
The match was booked as the card opener, and it set the tone for the entire night as both Sami Zayn and Finn Balor made their entrances only to find out their singles match was to become a fatal four-way. As FightsATW.com covered last night in the post-show, Nic Aldis handed in his resignation to Triple H following his loss to Gunther, only to have the boss reinstate him as SmackDown GM.
In a possible show of respect to Gunther, Aldis made him part of the match, meaning the shot at Punk’s title was also on the line for the man who has had a run of bad luck in title matches. The crowd went crazy, but the match was not yet fully booked, and after Gunther made his entrance, Aldis made another addition with a returning superstar.
Kevin ‘KO’ Owens made his return after reports suggested that his wrestling days were possibly over, and that is when the crowd lost it. This felt awesome given fantasy bookings, but no real reports suggested his return. He and Sami acknowledged their history in the middle of the ring by hugging it out before a respectable competition ignited.
Owens left little doubt that he was 100% back as he hit a high-risk maneuver outside, executed to perfection. KO would end up picking up the pinfall victory over Sami after hitting his friend with the ‘stunner.’ The fans went nuts celebrating KO’s surprise return win, but the camera caught a very dejected Sami on the outside with Owens celebrating on the inside. This tremendous shot encapsulated the entire moment.
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