Early Match Card Predictions for WWE SummerSlam 2023 After Money in the Bank Results
WWE unofficially kicked off the road to its SummerSlam premium live event on Saturday, August 5 with Money in the Bank, an show that provided a glimpse into the company's creative plans moving forward.
Family feuds wrote their latest chapters, champions successfully defended their titles and two Superstars earned themselves guaranteed opportunities at top titles whenever they see fit.
Who will end up on the SummerSlam card and what can fans expect at the top of the card?
Find out with this early look at one of the most prestigious lineups of the year.
Undercard
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Predictions for the undercard of the August 5 show are:
- WWE Women's Championship Match: Bianca Belair vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Asuka (c)
- Intercontinental Championship Match: Drew McIntyre vs. Gunther (c)
- Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Match: Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn (c) vs. Finn Balor and Damian Priest
- Becky Lynch vs. Trish Stratus
- LA Knight vs. Logan Paul
- Shayna Baszler vs. Ronda Rousey
World Heavyweight Championship Match: Seth Rollins vs. Dominik Mysterio
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In the closing moments of the World Heavyweight Championship Match at Money in the Bank, Finn Balor and Damian Priest teased tension within The Judgment Day.
With that dissension likely to be hinted at further in the coming weeks, expect them to be put into a situation where one can turn on the other, like the aforementioned tag team title match proposed in the undercard.
That leaves Rollins without an obvious opponent and one member of Judgment Day without any direction for SummerSlam: Dominik Mysterio.
Rollins and Mysterio have a history at SummerSlam.
Three years ago, Rollins was Mysterio's first WWE opponent in one of the most emotionally fueled matches in recent memory. A lot has changed since then, including the young competitor's status as the most hated villain in the company, thanks to his entitled, cowardly personality.
A tainted victory over Cody Rhodes in a Money in the Bank rematch, perhaps due to interference from Brock Lesnar (more on that in a moment) could be the emphasis for Mysterio receiving a title opportunity.
The match is not nearly the biggest, most important, or most interesting for Rollins but it is one with enough backstory to drum up interest and keep both guys on the card.
It will be on WWE Creative to develop more credible opponents for Rollins moving forward so this situation does not present itself.
Alternate Opponent: Logan Paul
Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar
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Cody Rhodes and Brock Lesnar have waged war twice in 2023, with The American Nightmare winning the battle at Backlash and The Beast evening the score at Night of Champions.
The rubber match should, and will, take place in Detroit at the Biggest Party of the Summer.
Rhodes removed the cast on his arm during his match with Mysterio at Money in the Bank, revealing the broken bone suffered at the hands of Lesnar is fully healed. That puts him at 100 percent and ready to avenge his defeat at the hands of The Beast in Saudi Arabia.
The matches they have had to this point have been big on story and that will likely be the case again, with an opportunity to wrap up the program in grand fashion.
Rhodes should win to keep momentum on his side but if there was ever a match that was going to incorporate blood on the part of the babyface, this would be the one.
A gutsy performance where he fights from underneath and conquers the heel on one of the biggest stages WWE has to offer is just what he needs to propel himself into the fall and stay hot enough for the Royal Rumble at the start of 2024.
Undisputed WWE Universal Championship Match: Jey Uso vs. Roman Reigns
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Jey Uso became the first Superstar since December 15, 2019, to pin Roman Reigns, winning The Bloodline Civil War for The Usos.
The first man to pin Reigns in WWE way back in 2013, the one relative who has consistently stood up to his egotistical cousin, and the guy whose betrayal of the family has put The Tribal Chief's historic run in jeopardy, Jey's career has built to this.
The entire Bloodline storyline has built to The Right Hand Man opposing The Head of the Table after years of manipulation and gaslighting, abuse of power and loyalty.
It is the ultimate endgame for this story, one last battle between two cousins who have been inseparable since childhood.
Jey stands up for himself, his family, and the future of the Samoan wrestling dynasty against a guy in Reigns who bought into his own hype and allowed Paul Heyman to warp his judgment.
There has been a lot of time, energy, and resources put into this storyline over the last three years to get to this point and if the plan is not to put this in the main event of WrestleMania, doing it at the second-biggest show of the year feels like an appropriate consolation prize.
The crowd will be hot and the emotion will be at a high. Based on the extraordinary performances of the Superstars in question during their first two cinematic classics, expect more of the same.
