Wrestling Review: WWE SummerSlam – Saturday (2026)

The U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota will play host to two huge nights of wrestling action, as the WWE presents the 39th annual SummerSlam! Starting off on the first night, SummerSlam – Saturday will have in the main event,the rubber match to end them all, as Oba Femi and Brock Lesnar face off one final time, this time inside the unforgiving steel structure known only as Hell in a Cell. In the semi-main event, CM Punk and Cody Rhodes put their fractured friendship to the test as they go one-on-one for the Undisputed WWE Championship, while kicking off the show will be Liv Morgan defending her Women’s World Championship against the woman who beat her only one month ago at Night of Champions to earn this match, Iyo Sky. Plus, the trio of Fatal influence, Jacy Jayne, Fallon Henley, and Lainey Reid will battle Paige., Brie Bella and the returning Nikki Bella. And finally, more big trios action as the makeshift team of LA Knight, Solo Siko and Royce Keys face off with the newest incarnation of The Bloodline, Jacob Fatu, Jimmy Uso, and Jey Uso.

+ Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi (Hell In A Cell): I’ll be honest, I did not know what to expect from this one. There was no way these two were ever going 45 minutes in a bloody war, but I thought there was a real chance it would be some sort of three-minute finisher spam. I am glad to say it was not the latter, but it was also not at all the former. Oba is absolutely the biggest thing in the WWE right now, and my opinion is and always has been to use someone with the name and look of Brock Lesnar while you can. I exclaimed out loud at one particularly unexpected moment here, and if that doesn’t prove I was invested, then I don’t know what does
+ CM Punk (c) vs. Cody Rhodes (WWE Undisputed Heavyweight Championship): another CM Punk main event, another piece of proof that he is the best in the world. I have been a big time CM Punk fan for as long as I can remember, so seeing Punk being in these moments and then better still living up to them is just a fantastic experience for me. He talks the talk and still walks the walk. Oh, yeah, Cody was here too. I am notoriously not a Cody fan, but the live crowds seem to like him, and loud audiences makes for more fun watching for me
+ Nick Aldis vs. GUNTHER: Nick Aldis looked absolutely fantastic. I am a medium-term fan of Aldis from his final TNA days and the NWA run (though I admit, I have never positively reviewed a match he was in across three reviews on here). This story has been brewing for a long time and I was really glad to se eit play out as it should. GUNTHER is one of my all-time favourites for a reason, and this was a differnet kind of match for him; even if he should have been in soemthing ‘bigger’, I’m still glad this match happened and I enjoyed it
+ Liv Morgan (c) vs. Iyo Sky (WWE Women’s World Championship): despite already enjoying their match at Night of Champions, I am surprised I enjoyed this match a lot more than I thought I would. I personally believe the Judgment Day has run its course at this point and needs either a huge shake-up, or simply to be disbanded, but the question of what to do with the members is a tricky one to answer. I echo my own sentiment from last time out that while it does take two people to do this in a convincing and exciting way, Iyo Sky is most certainly one of, if not the best wrestlers in the world and I don’t imagine many could disagree

– Paige & The Bellas (Nikki & Brie Bella) vs. Fatal Influence (Jacy Jayne, Fallon Henley & Lainey Reid): I love Fatal Influence, but boh oy boy, this was not good at all. Brie looked injured, and as much as I do love the Fatal Influence trio, none of them are ring-leaders. This was a match for the story, and clearly not the wrestling — and I don’t care for the story, either
– The Bloodline (Jacob Fatu, Jimmy Uso & Jey Uso) vs. LA Knights, Solo Sikoa & Royce Keys: firstly, it’s good to finally see Royce Keys getting a big moment. That said, he was far and away the least important, focused-on or exciting person in this match. This was acceptable, but I am not a fan of the story and the specific ending of the match was not at all to my liking. Solo Sikoa become a fan favourite was not at all on my bingo card over the last few years, but his charisma in everything he does cannot be overlooked, and he’s got the tools of a big time superstar. LA Knight was also fine, and the crowd still believes; I don’t know if I still do. I am shocked to say Fatu felt unimportant here. I dunno, I expected and hoped for better

Should you watch this event: It was a show of more good than bad, as I would say most wrestling events across all companies are, but those negative above are big ones. There is a problem in the WWE mid-card, and I think they need to solve this sooner than later. Still, seek out the marquee matches and you’ll have a great two-hour block of wrestling.