WWE Summerslam (2024)

Summerslam is traditionally the second biggest WWE event of the year, behind WrestleMania, of course. I was excited for this year's event, which boasted some interesting matches and high stakes rivalries. I had high expectations for one of the shows that almost always delivers some high quality action.

The show kicked off with the intense rivalry between Champion Liv Morgan and Rhea Ripley over the Women's World Championship. The fued between these two had been really fun in the build up to this show, so I couldn't wait to see what would happen. The match was great. It was an exciting and enthralling start to the PLE, and both women went hell for leather and then some. The drama was top tier and the ending was shocking; I really liked how they did it. It certainly got a reaction from the crowd.

This was followed by a rematch between champion Sami Zayn and the brutal Bron Breakker, once more for the prestigious Intercontinental Championship. Their first match had been a good, though short, encounter - as such, I hoped for more of the same, just longer. That's sort of what we got. The match was still short, but this time things were a little different, and a little more high pace. The winner was who I hoped for, and hopefully this leads to more exciting matches.

The third match of the night saw the US title on the line, with defending champion; the controversial Logan Paul, defending against the Megastar LA Knight. As much as I dislike Paul as a person, his talent within the confines of a wrestling ring is unmistakable. He also has a big media presence, which, whether we like it or not, brings attention to the company. He also has big-time friends, including MGK, who made a surprise appearance. There was only one way I wanted this one to go, and that's pretty much how it went. It was a good match, but the result was the most important thing.

Match four saw the WWE Women's Championship on the line, with Bayley defending her belt against the rampaging Queen Of The Ring; Nia Jax. Based on the storyline going into it, I had an idea of who might win, but I wasn't totally certain. The match was a bit slower than those previously, but still enjoyable. There were some really good spots towards the end, and the finish was exciting and a little bit unexpected.

The fifth match of the evening was the marquee rivalry match between Drew McIntyre and CM Punk, with Seth Rollins as special guest referee. The fund between McIntyre and Punk has been intense, violent and thrilling - I hoped for more of the same from the match. The match was just as physical as I'd hoped it'd be, and so emotionally driven. There was drama, there was theatricals and there was great wrestling. It was the perfect match for a show of this scale. The right man won for the story too, which always helps.

The penultimate match was the World Heavyweight Championship match between El Campeon; Damian Priest, and the King Of The Ring; GUNTHER. I was extremely excited for this one. The champ has worked hard during this reign and the challenger has been incredible of late. The two men chopped the life out of one another, in what was another physical match. I honestly loved it, but the crowd disappointed, for the most part. The finish was very dramatic, and while it was slightly botched, it didn't matter too much, and the shocks worked well.

Before the main event, there was an awkward, if mildly entertaining in-ring segment with The Miz, R-Truth, A-Town Down Under and country singer Jellyroll. It was very clearly there to use up a little time, and I guess it wasn't the worse segment to appear randomly on these shows.

The main event saw 'The American Nightmare' Cody Rhodes defend his Undisputed WWE Championship against the leader of the new Bloodline; Solo Sikoa, in a 'Bloodline Rules' match. Whilst I don't thing anyone doubted who would win, there was still a good match to be had, and that's what my main hope was too. The match emulated much of the drama and chaos of the WrestleMania match between Rhodes and Reigns. It wasn't as good as that one, but it was a solid main event. The finish was the ending we all wanted, and gave fans so much to look forward to in the coming months.

Overall, this was a really good Premium Live Event, full of great matches and so much drama. The three marquee matches on the card all delivered, and all had some very memorable moments, but, quote frankly, all the matches did. Everyone will have a lot of story to get their teeth into in the coming weeks too, which is always good to see.