Why Roman Reigns Will Lose at SummerSlam, Charlotte Flair Is Revived, More Reaction
Roman Reigns being back in the WWE fold following a three-month hiatus from television has injected some much-needed excitement into SummerSlam season, and it seems abundantly clear what he'll be doing at the event on August 2-3.
Regardless of what form his expected match with Seth Rollins and Paul Heyman's up-and-coming coalition takes, Reigns must lose—especially with so little to gain at this stage of his decorated career.
Charlotte Flair has reached a similar level in virtually having done it all over the last decade, but she too has captured the interest of fans by reinventing herself in her recent alliance with Alexa Bliss.
The duo are slated for a SummerSlam encounter with The Judgment Day for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship, which will provide a better idea of whether the company is willing to go all-in on this new iteration of The Queen.
From Flair's revival to the final nail in The Death Riders' coffin, these are the top takeaways from the week that was in wrestling.
Roman Reigns Will Lose at SummerSlam
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Roman Reigns returning on Raw last week to rekindle his rivalry with Paul Heyman and company was a necessary move.
The SummerSlam 2025 card will benefit from him being on it, even if it's a tag team match pitting him and Jey Uso against Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed.
Coming off Heyman's betrayal of The Tribal Chief at WrestleMania 41, the next chapter of Reigns' character arc should see him show more vulnerability than he has at any point in the last five years.
That can only be accomplished if he falls short at SummerSlam.
He's established enough that he can afford a defeat in his first bout back. If anything, it would encourage the audience to rally behind him more than they already have and force him to hold himself accountable for his actions in the past.
Breakker and Reed still being in the process of finding their footing in this faction with Seth Rollins and needing a defining victory should make the outcome to this clash a foregone conclusion: Reigns will lose—and he will be just fine.
Naomi Will Excel as WWE Raw's New Top Female Heel
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The WWE Raw women's scene was put in a precarious position when Liv Morgan went down with a freak injury ahead of Evolution.
For as deep as the division is, it was in desperate need of a new top heel in her absence—and Naomi has already proved to be the perfect fit for the spot.
The decision to have her successfully cash in her Money in the Bank briefcase and become the new women's world champion was a wise one.
It's still too soon for Rhea Ripley to reclaim the title she was beaten for in March, and Iyo Sky's reign was booked abysmally. Although Naomi may feel like a transitional champ until the time comes for Mami to dethrone her, all signs point to her making the most of it considering the hot run she's been on all 2025 long.
Fresh matches with Ripley, Sky and Stephanie Vaquer await Naomi in the months ahead. She's finally where she has long belonged: among the elite and in the main event mix on Monday nights as champion.
Becky Lynch vs. Lyra Valkyria Is WWE's Best Feud of 2025 So Far
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WWE has produced some strong stories in 2025, but none better than the fantastic feud Becky Lynch and Lyra Valkyria have had over the Women's Intercontinental Championship since the post-WrestleMania Raw.
Lynch could have easily been inserted into the Women's World Championship picture immediately upon returning at WrestleMania 41. She instead opted to work with Valkyria for the not-yet-established women's intercontinental title in an attempt to get both her and the belt over simultaneously.
The storyline has yet to culminate but is undoubtedly the best WWE rivalry of the year up to this point.
Not only has The Man's surprise heel turn revitalized her once-stagnant character, but it's also turned Valkyria into a beloved babyface and legitimized the newly created midcard title for the women of Raw.
The two are now on a collision course for a highly anticipated rubber match with the gold up for grabs at SummerSlam, an encounter that should be won by Valkyria to settle their score once and for all.
Darby Allin Must Destroy The Death Riders
4 of 5"Hangman" Adam Page ending Jon Moxley's tyrannical reign as AEW world champion at All In was not only exceptionally executed but also long overdue.
All Elite Wrestling's Death Riders experiment ran its course many months ago but still isn't entirely over despite Moxley's loss. They were defeated in the main event of Wednesday's Dynamite before attacking Colt Cabana on Saturday's Collision.
A rematch between Page and Moxley for the AEW World Championship is not needed. Hangman should soon shift his focus to other challengers while Darby Allin, one of Death Riders' first targets, puts in the final nail in its coffin.
Page being the one to take the title from Moxley was a more satisfying payoff to the Death Riders story than if it was Allin in that spot, but that isn't to say Allin can't still benefit from beating Moxley and giving the group their comeuppance after putting him on the shelf (in storyline) late last year.
AEW should use this opportunity to gradually phase out Death Riders and use whatever momentum the group has left to elevate other acts.
Charlotte Flair Is Finally a Fan Favorite
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WWE's questionable, inconsistent booking of Charlotte Flair over the last decade has hardly done her any favors as far as endearing her to the audience is concerned.
The Queen will forever be more natural in the heel role than as a babyface, and any attempt to turn her face has often been ill-fated—until now.
Alexa Bliss' organic popularity has translated shockingly well to Flair over the course of their alliance since the spring, and their terrific chemistry as partners has paid dividends in a relatively short span of time.
If the creative team's original plans called for Flair and Bliss to come up short in their pursuit of the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship, it's imperative they pivot. Granted, there isn't much of a women's tag division to speak of, but this unlikely partnership could give the belts a boost and result in The Queen's most compelling character work in ages.
The inevitable rivalry between Bliss and Flair shouldn't be rushed into. There's plenty of more ground to cover before they reach that point, specifically with The Queen as the face getting her flowers for the first time in recent memory.
Those skeptical she was incapable of ever evolving are about to witness a whole other side of the second-generation star that's been waiting to be brought out and make her an undeniable fan favorite.
Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.
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