Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins and Real Winners and Losers of WWE SummerSlam Night 2 Match Card

Night 2 of SummerSlam looked to take WWE to the next level with big surprises and unforgettable matches at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

Kevin Owens made his shocking return to earn the next shot at CM Punk's Undisputed WWE Championship. Baron Corbin completed his own WWE return with a United States title victory over Trick Williams.

Chelsea Green captured the Interim WWE Women's Championship. Chad Gable finally won the Intercontinental Championship. Roman Reigns closed the chapter with Seth Rollins with a definitive victory.

Some stars delivered in a big way, while notable names fell short. Check out all the real winners and losers from WWE SummerSlam Night 2.

Winner: Kevin Owens

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Kevin Owens

Kevin Owens is back, and he is the No. 1 contender to the Undisputed WWE Championship held by CM Punk.

It would have been enough to see KO back wrestling again. Instead, fans were gifted the guarantee that The Prizefighter is fully back and ready to compete at the main event level.

It is hard to imagine a better return for Owens, especially since it sounded like he might never return when he withdrew from action just before WrestleMania 41.

After an underwhelming Night 1 of SummerSlam, The Prizefighter delivered the moment of the weekend.

Hopefully, his winning continues because with Owens' return, the new goal should be to give him his long-awaited second reign as world champion.

Loser: Sami Zayn

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Sami Zayn

Sami Zayn walked into SummerSlam believing he would get a fair one-on-one opportunity to earn a rematch for the Undisputed WWE Championship.

Instead, SmackDown general manager Nick Aldis added both Gunther and the returning Kevin Owens to the match at the last minute, costing Zayn his fair shot at another golden opportunity.

This does fuel Zayn's victim complex as he is justified in feeling like a fair opportunity was taken from him.

However, title opportunities do not grow on trees, and the man in Zayn's way is his own best friend.

It will be interesting to see what Zayn is willing to do to get the WWE Championship back.

Loser: Trick Williams

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Trick Williams

Trick Williams arrived on SmackDown with major hype and was crowned United States champion at WrestleMania 42.

His title reign since then has been up and down, but it did not feel like it was time yet to move off him.

WWE disagreed, betting on the returning 41-year-old Baron Corbin over the rising 32-year-old star.

This could allow Trick to begin heading toward the main event level, but that scene is packed with big names.

It seems more likely that he will fall back into a midcard role for the rest of the year unless he reclaims his gold in a rematch.

Winner: Baron Corbin

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Baron Corbin

Chalk another one up for returning stars. Baron Corbin won his return match in WWE and captured the United States Championship.

It was clear after his victory that The Nomad was genuinely moved by holding WWE gold again.

This was a much-deserved moment for Corbin, who was doing some of his best work in WWE before an abrupt release in 2024.

While the match with Trick Williams wasn't great, Corbin at least looked in good shape from his regular work in MLW before his return.

Hopefully Corbin will get chances soon to show what he can do in matches that flow better. Plenty of babyface opponents on SmackDown await.

Winner: Chelsea Green

Chelsea Green was the obvious underdog in the ladder match for the Interim WWE Women's Championship.

Three of her four opponents were former champions, and Lash Legend had a near-half-foot height advantage over her.

Still, once the bell rings, anything can happen, especially with all of Minnesota behind Green.

The underdog prevailed after Tiffany Stratton and Legend, as well as Charlotte Flair and Jade Cargill, took each other out, leaving her a clear path to the gold.

The only concern for Green, though, is that she's only an "interim" champion at this stage, and she will eventually have to contend with the top woman in WWE, Rhea Ripley.

Losers: The Men of The Judgment Day

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Danhausen and Dominik Mysterio

While Raquel Rodriguez captured the Women's Intercontinental Championship on Raw and Liv Morgan retained the Women's World Championship at SummerSlam, success did not continue for Dominik Mysterio.

The AAA Mega champion was embarrassed by the comedic antics of Danhausen, who again made him and JD McDonagh look foolish.

At no point in this match did Mysterio look like the top star of AAA, let alone a former intercontinental champion.

It was all about again putting over Danhausen, who has only seemed to drag his opponents down to his level since arriving in WWE.

While Danhausen remains a popular act, it may be time again to reevaluate who he should be feuding with on a roster that mostly needs to be taken seriously.

Winner: Chad Gable

Chad Gable finally won the Intercontinental Championship, a title he has sought for years to fully validate his WWE run.

This was the best match of the weekend, especially for action per minute, highlighting the technical chops and athleticism of Gable and Penta throughout.

Gable even got to do it in his home city of Minneapolis with his family allowed to celebrate with him afterward, establishing this as the most important moment in his career.

Following the end of his run as the Original El Grande Americano, Gable could have fallen off. Instead, WWE embraced a veteran who fans wanted to see succeed.

This is the start of the most important run of Gable's career. A great run as intercontinental titleholder could solidify him as a future world champion.

Loser: Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins made major promises about the biggest match of his and Roman Reigns' rivalry. He guaranteed victory, confident he had The OTC's number.

Instead, The Visionary fell short, solidifying Reigns as the clear face of the brand going forward.

While this was the expected result, it was nonetheless disappointing for Rollins, who suddenly looks directionless.

Reigns has put his biggest rival behind him, leaving the open question of who will be the next man up to truly challenge The Tribal Chief.

Besides Oba Femi, the title picture is murky for Reigns, and it would have been far clearer with a fresh champion in Rollins.

Winner: Triple H

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Triple H

After months of struggling creative, SummerSlam Night 1 was a decent if forgettable show, relying heavily on matches that did not quite deliver on the hype.

Night 2 did not deliver better action, but it did deliver much better spectacle. It was a night all about the stories and creativity of WWE moving into a fresh direction.

Earlier in the week, chief content officer Triple H told fans on WWE Radio to focus on enjoying the show rather than criticizing the creative.

He backed those words up with a show that will primarily be discussed in terms of the wild creative swings of Night 2 over the work of the talent.

Outside of the two men's world title matches, no contest got even 14 minutes, not allowing anyone to steal the show from the two 30-minute singles battles.

By the end, SummerSlam delivered good vibes and memorable moments, which is exactly what Triple H wants fans to care about.

The CCO won back many fans by finally letting midcard underdogs prevail, but that goodwill masks the fact that he continues to use the same main event booking playbook that created WWE's current creative downturn.