WWE SummerSlam Results: 5 Things We Learned from Sunday's PPV

SummerSlam 2012, the self-proclaimed biggest event of the summer, is over. 

SummerSlam gave us a new champion. It gave us a Chris Jericho victory before he heads back on the road with Fozzy.  

Daniel Bryan got an upset victory. Triple H tapped out.  

By now, most fans know the results. But what did fans find out about their favorite wrestlers, about the WWE championships beyond the wins and losses?

WWE Believes in Antonio Cesaro

Antonio Cesaro won his first championship with WWE after dispatching of Santino Marella. 

Sure, it was only on the pre-show and it is only the lowly United States Championship, but out of the growing number of incoming young wrestlers, the fact that WWE chose Cesaro to carry the gold shows faith in his abilities. 

Many fans don't know much about Cesaro as of yet, but having the U.S. title in tow should give him more exposure, especially with Night of Champions coming soon. 

A U.S. title reign allows WWE to test the waters with Cesaro, to see how fans react to him without using up a major spot in the card.  

Daniel Bryan Is Still Hot

The Los Angeles crowd went into a frenzy when Daniel Bryan stormed out onto the entrance ramp. The "Yes" chants were as loud as they've ever been. 

Bryan fans likely worried that once his World Heavyweight Championship and WWE Championship feuds ended that he'd be left out of the spotlight.  

It's clear that after his roll-up win against Kane, that WWE plans to have Bryan feud with The Big Red Machine. It's a beneficial position for both men. 

With the current major champions busy, this growing rivalry allows Kane to look merciless in seeking his revenge on Bryan. Bryan gets to show off his craftiness in escaping Kane's wrath. 

Prestige Is Returning to the Tag Team Championship

The tag titles have often gone undefended on recent pay-per-views, but there appears to be a shift happening in the division. 

Not only did R-Truth and Kofi Kingston defend their tag team championship belts, but their match went on near the end of the show, right before the WWE Championship triple threat.  That position indicates a rising importance of the tag titles. 

WWE also wisely didn't let The Prime Time Players win the championship just yet. 

Far too often have the tag titles been handed back and forth after short reigns. Making it more difficult for Titus O'Neil and Darren Young or anyone else to win the straps makes the championships increasingly important—and increasingly valuable. 

Brock Lesnar Has an Achilles Heel

Brock Lesnar looked every bit the beast WWE had been building up as the last few months. But even though he pounded on Triple H until he finally tapped out, WWE opened the door for someone to beat Lesnar down the road.  

Triple H had the most success against Lesnar when he attacked his stomach.  

Wrestlers often attack each other's backs, legs and arms, but you don't often see them target their foe's stomach. Lesnar legitimately suffered from diverticulitis, a disease of the intestines.  

In blurring the line between reality and kayfabe, it makes perfect sense that Lesnar's inflamed insides would be his kryptonite. His next rivals now have a target to aim at during their fight.

WWE has opened the door for a Lesnar upset.  

CM Punk Is Still in Line to Wrestle The Rock

Even though Big Show dominated most of the match-up and even though the match had to be restarted, CM Punk walked out of Staples Center WWE champ. 

In a well-booked match, Big Show came out of it looking like a powerful monster. John Cena looked like he should have won, and Punk looked shrewd and resilient. 

Ever since The Rock announced he would be facing the WWE Champion at Royal Rumble 2013, fans have speculated that it will be Punk who is still champ by then. There were several moments during the triple threat match where it looked like Punk might lose. 

Like he has done since Survivor Series of last year, Punk found a way to win and respect or be respected, he's still on top of the WWE foodchain. If he can survive the next few pay-per-views, we'll see a showdown between The Great One and the Best Wrestler in the World.