To counteract the upcoming rundown of the superstars missing from the Monday Night Raw and SmackDown Live rosters for SummerSlam 2018, let’s talk about the lucky few who will be booked to not only perform, but likely steal the show in some fashion.
This could be in a scripted or non-kayfabe sense when factoring in everything from pure wins and losses to how much emphasis someone is given, to their momentum carrying over after the event, match performance quality and pretty much everything that could get people to talk about these particular men and women more than anybody else.
When looking at the card currently scheduled for the pay-per-view, this is my shortlist for the superstars who will stand out at SummerSlam 2018.
Note: Plenty of people on this super long card will make an impact, but I’m trying to limit myself to just 5 segments of the night, essentially, which I think will dominate the discussion.
The New Universal Champion
Maybe I’m foolish for thinking this AGAIN, but I’m working under the assumption that Brock Lesnar is going to drop the Universal Championship, and it’s only a matter of which one of the three potential options will walk out with it.
Logic tells me Roman Reigns. My preference would be Braun Strowman. My gut tells me Kevin Owens.
I like all three, but I hate how Reigns has been booked and I feel like whether he wins or loses, or wins and then loses to a cash-in, it will be a failure, but WWE will act like it isn’t, and it will still be the top thing people talk about—just in a negative way.
Strowman is someone I feel is over enough with the crowd that if he were to win the title, people would go nuts and be very, very receptive of this entire event because of it ending on a more positive note.
I’m a big fan of Owens and I think he’s underrated and underutilized, so I’m more than cool with him being the champion, but I think this will be a case where people are in a tizzy and mostly optimistic until they realize it will force a Reigns vs. Owens Hell in a Cell match where Reigns will probably win the title, and then, it will be more of a negative discussion than anything else.
In any fashion, whoever walks out with the Universal Championship—even if it’s Brock Lesnar, for that matter—will likely be the absolute hottest topic people are talking about after the event is over and done with.
Ronda Rousey
Putting the Raw Women’s Championship on Ronda Rousey feels like an inevitability, and even if that wasn’t the case, she would still be one of the more talked about people on the card due to her popularity.
She will remain one of the biggest marketing targets for every single show she participates in, until WWE is given a reason to stop making her a focal point.
This is simply a guarantee, and it’s just a matter of whether she will be the story or just one of the stories that keeps being brought up on Monday Night Raw and onward.
I’d lean more towards her being the #2 most talked about thing in both WWE as well as mainstream media, as she’s sure to get more news coverage than nearly everybody else on this event.
Look out for “Ronda Rousey Wins WWE Women’s Title” and other headlines popping up all over the place and more than any other title changes or results.
Samoa Joe
If Samoa Joe doesn’t win the WWE Championship from AJ Styles, I don’t know who will. Randy Orton? I don’t think so. Andrade “Cien” Almas? He’s better suited for the United States title. The Miz? I’d be down for it, but I’m not banking on that happening.
Joe pretty much needs to win the championship here. He’s done almost nothing since coming up to the main roster and this would help rectify that problem by giving him the legitimacy he’s been lacking, as his NXT Championship clout has slowly leaked over time.
Whenever I say I’m fairly confident about something, I become less confident, as I start to fear that WWE will go in the complete opposite direction just for spite, but I’m going to put the jinx out there in the universe that Joe will win the title, become the new top dog on SmackDown Live, and secure his worthiness.
Dean Ambrose
Seth Rollins and Dolph Ziggler may be able to put on a great show in their match, but rest assured, if Dean Ambrose makes any kind of appearance, he’s stealing the spotlight from anything that preceded his arrival.
Maybe he pops up to help even the odds against Drew McIntyre and help out Rollins. Maybe he actually interferes and screws Rollins, turning heel in the process.
One way or another, if The Lunatic Fringe does something at SummerSlam, he’s going to be one of the highlights of the night and something that fans will be on their feet about.
Shared Glory: The Miz and Daniel Bryan
If I had to pick one match that had the potential for both stars to come out of it looking great and like equals in terms of the spotlight, it would be the one between The Miz and Daniel Bryan.
In a way, it comes off to me like WWE can’t possibly lose in this segment.
If The Miz wins, he gets more heat, with or without Bryan sticking with WWE and the feud possibly continuing onward. If Bryan wins, he effectively closes the chapter on his career in some regards by beating his NXT pro who was with him from the very start of his WWE tenure.
The crowd will be hot for it, the match will be fun and the storyline will either end fittingly or have more fuel thrown onto the fire. Win/win.
Those are my picks, but who do you think will end up being the primary focal points? Drop your predictions in the comments below!
