New Picks for Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins and WWE SummerSlam Night 2 Match Card
Night 2 of WWE SummerSlam 2026 will have its work cut out for it with a majority of the matches on Night 1 ranging from good to great.
CM Punk and Cody Rhodes' Undisputed WWE Championship clash didn't feel as epic as it should have yet still delivered at a high level, specifically with the return of Randy Orton at the end. Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar inside Hell in a Cell also failed to hit the mark but still featured a decisive conclusion to their rivalry and was followed by an uncharacteristic endorsement from Lesnar to Femi.
The bar has now been set for Night 2, which looks slightly less loaded on paper but could ultimately exceed expectations depending on the booking and what gets time to shine.
That includes a history-filled main event between Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins over the World Heavyweight Championship and a five-way Ladder match to crown an Interim WWE Women's champion.
In the wake of a newsworthy Night 1, these are the new picks for SummerSlam's Night 2 match card.
Intercontinental Championship: Penta vs. Chad Gable
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The Intercontinental Championship has long eluded Chad Gable, but no longer. In his hometown of Minneapolis, SummerSlam 2026 will be where he finally captures the coveted title.
The timing couldn't be better coming off his heavily-praised Mask vs. Mask showdown in AAA back in May. His redemption arc has been one of the more compelling stories on WWE TV heading into the event, and there's no more perfect payoff than him taking the title he's been fighting for since 2023.
Penta deserves his own acclaim for the tremendous work he's been doing as Intercontinental champion these past five months. Although there are more opponents for him to defend against on the Raw roster, this is a now or never moment for the Olympian.
If Penta does drop the belt to Gable on this show, he'd then be free to ascend the card and possibly set his sights on the World Heavyweight Championship, just in time for WWE's tour of Mexico this September.
Prediction: Chad Gable wins the Intercontinental Championship.
Human Monies on a Pole Match: Danhausen vs. Dominik Mysterio
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Danhausen went from not being featured on AEW TV for over two years to becoming a virtually overnight sensation in WWE. His rapid raise and surge in popularity in a relatively short span of time can't be overstated.
However, there is such thing as overexposure, and that's exactly the risk WWE is running right now by featuring him as prominently as they have been this summer.
Constantly mentioning his association with the now-NBA Finals champions the New York Knicks and turning it into a storyline was logical. Having him face and beat JD McDonagh in Madison Square Garden at Saturday Night's Main Event was fine, but it's reached new levels of absurdity with him feuding with the AAA Mega champion Dominik Mysterio.
The Judgment Day laying waste to Danhausen and Joe Hendry during the abysmal concert on Raw indicated Danhausen might have a chance of upsetting Mysterio at SummerSlam. That was before Danhausen got his revenge by fending off Mysterio with the Minihausens on SmackDown days later.
Even with the bout being comedic filler, under no circumstance should Mysterio be losing to Danhausen. The crowd would likely be pleased, but it'd unquestionably put Mysterio in a worse spot ahead of his upcoming defense of the AAA Mega title at Triplemania 34.
Prediction: Dominik Mysterio wins.
United States Championship: Trick Williams vs. Baron Corbin
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Baron Corbin returned to WWE in shocking fashion on the July 10 edition of SmackDown and immediately targeted United States champion Trick Williams.
Carmelo Hayes was involved in the mix for the star-spangled prize at the time as well, but he has since disappeared from programming for inexplicable reasons. What should have been a Triple Threat has turned into a one-on-one outing between Corbin and Williams instead.
Williams has had a solid run as champion, even if his title defenses have paled in comparison to those of the champs that came before him. For as over as he is at the moment, he wouldn't be damaged by dropping the gold to Corbin at SummerSlam.
This is the best Corbin has been booked on the main roster in many years and to have him lose would be a waste of his momentum. Him taking the title would effectively put Williams in chase mode and ideally bring some other babyfaces into the championship conversation.
Prediction: Baron Corbin wins the United States Championship.
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Interim WWE Women's Championship 5-Way Ladder Match
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With Rhea Ripley's injury causing a seismic shift in SmackDown's women's division, a five-way Ladder match will be held at SummerSlam to determine an Interim WWE Women's champion.
Charlotte Flair and Jade Cargill were originally the top two picks to win before it was announced on Friday's SmackDown that they are set for one-on-one battle on next week's episode. It's unlikely that one of them would win the title and immediately face the other in a long-awaited singles match on SmackDown.
That leaves Tiffany Stratton, Chelsea Green and Lash Legend as the remaining options. As the reigning Women's United champion, Stratton has no need for a secondary title, and Green would only be good for the moment and not an eventual unification match with Ripley.
Legend hasn't been fully established on her own yet, but she is a fresh face and could be a formidable threat to Ripley once she returns. It would force WWE to do something different while also allowing Flair vs. Cargill to be a non-title feud.
Prediction: Lash Legend wins the Interim WWE Women's Championship.
Undisputed WWE Championship No. 1 Contender's Match: Sami Zayn vs. Finn Bálor
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Night 1 of SummerSlam saw CM Punk successfully retain the Undisputed WWE Championship in a hard-fought war with Cody Rhodes, albeit after interference from the returning Randy Orton.
Their bad blood is surely far from over, but a new number one contender will be crowned when Sami Zayn and Finn Bálor battle for the next shot at SummerSlam. Their match came together on short notice but could end up being a show-stealer based on the talent involved.
Zayn's whole shtick is that he believes the company is conspiring against him, so it would make more sense for him to fail again and have to earn another opportunity at the title down the road. Rushing into him getting a rematch would mean blowing it off before it can build more steam.
Meanwhile, Bálor has been rolling since joining SmackDown and should be back in the main event mix. He and Punk already faced off twice earlier this year, but one more encounter between them on SmackDown or at Saturday Night's Main Event would be a worthy attraction.
Prediction: Finn Bálor wins.
World Heavyweight Championship: Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins
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The highly-anticipated final chapter of The Shield's saga will headline Night 2, though the outcome hardly feels like it's in much doubt.
The story is that Seth Rollins has Roman Reigns' number and that Reigns has never beaten Rollins in a major singles match. The only way that ends is with Reigns finally conquering Rollins and retaining the World Heavyweight Championship.
Reigns holding onto the gold for the foreseeable future isn't all that exciting depending on how often he appears on television, and Rollins doesn't need yet another run with the top title. It's time to get stars such as Oba Femi in championship contention, and with Femi having just beat Brock Lesnar on Night 1, we could and should be looking at that becoming a real possibility in the fall.
With the Undisputed WWE Championship not changing hands, fans may expect the World Heavyweight Championship to change hands instead, but that would merely delay the inevitable. Rollins must defeat Reigns and put their rivalry to rest once and for all.
The Usos and Jacob Fatu were bested by LA Knight, Solo Sikoa and Royce Keys on Saturday night, so they shouldn't factor into the finish whatsoever.
Prediction: Roman Reigns retains the World Heavyweight Championship.
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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