Since its inception, SummerSlam has probably been the most notable showcase of WWE’s present. That was incorrect in this performance, with SummerSlam signaling a big change for many of WWE’s biggest stars.
Titles changed hands, factions fractured and one of wrestling’s biggest stars made his return many months later, far from the highlights.
In some ways, SummerSlam was not only laying the groundwork for what remains of the present, but also the long build up to 2025’s WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas.
If you’re looking to get caught up in the wild world of WWE, we’ve got you covered. Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about where problems arise now.
New champions in quota
Check out the full list of WWE Champions here
Gunther, who set the record for the longest reign as Intercontinental Champion at 666 days, defeated Damian Priest to become the heavyweight champion. Years ago, there were reports that Vince McMahon had lost faith in Gunther as a top WWE player despite his presence as a cornerstone of the now-defunct NXT UK. With McMahon reportedly out of WWE due to his sterling reputation amid sex trafficking and abuse scandals that are now being investigated at the federal level, Gunther finally got his chance to shine and he hasn’t been disappointed.
Then lifting the Intercontinental Championship with a record-breaking reign that still featured plenty of fantastic suits, fans were willing to buy Gunther as a top-tier champion. After beating Priest, he now has the chance to end up being like that. His name protection is now in place as he will protect the name against WWE legend Randy Orton at Bash in Berlin on August 31st.
Nia Jax also captured a global name at SummerSlam, leading the indisposed Bayley to win the WWE Women’s Championship. This performance has been an incredible redemption performance for Jax, who was once removed from WWE and considered by many to be reckless and threatening in the ring. On the other hand, he has been a slow hand and produced the best work of his career in 2024, both in the ring and in front of the microphone. Then winning the Queen of the Ring match, Jax did her best to fit her name and performed excellently in ending Bayley’s reign.
Two alternate titles changed hands at SummerSlam, with LA Knight defeating Logan Paul to win the US Championship and Bron Breakker eliminating Sami Zayn to become Intercontinental Champion.
Knight’s long career progress now has its culmination with an important victory in the roster championship. There was a point where Knight could have been one of the top two or three men in WWE, but one of the biggest boosts was lost when he rose up in an attempt to defeat then-undisputed champion Roman Reigns. Knight still achieved a great championship, and not too quickly given that he is a few months shy of his 42nd birthday.
Breakker is the other end of the spectrum, ending up on his twenty-seventh birthday and being treated as a monster powerhouse who could be a cornerstone of WWE programming for the next decade, if not longer. Zayn is a popular figure in wrestling and scored a victory over Breakker, but Breakker’s victory at SummerSlam was inevitable and now it’s up to him and WWE not to ruin his momentum.
What’s going on with The Bloodline?
Roman Reigns returned to SummerSlam, entering and destroying the new Bloodline that looks nothing like the gang he built with his cousins, The Usos, in 2021. Upon returning, Reigns awards Solo Sikoa his undisputed title for the WWE Championship. WWE. towards Cody Rhodes.
Then Reigns lost the name to Rhodes at WrestleMania 40, disappearing from WWE TV. Sikoa decided to fill the management void, expelling Jimmy Uso from the gang and leading a new Bloodline with Tama Tonga, Tonga Loa and the gang’s emerging megastar, Jacob Fatu. As evil as the gang was under Reigns, Sikoa’s version added a mix of wild unpredictability and instability rooted in Sikoa’s effort to preserve his insecurities as the real new version of the “man” within the team.
Sikoa had also announced himself as the new “Tribal Chief” and told Paul Heyman that Reigns would never return. He would pay a high price for those moves and now things are set for Reigns vs. Sikoa, or, more likely, Reigns’ Bloodline vs. the Sikoa version.
This can be successful in your first main era in Survivor Sequence: Wargames. It’s easy to see Sikoa, Tonga, Loa and Fatu taking Reigns, Jey and Jimmy Uso and a miracle wife (Rhodes?) into WarGames.
What about the date of the ruling?
Judgment Date went through a huge overhaul in the wake of SummerSlam. Although it has been known for months that Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley have been moving away from the gang’s roots, they are formally out. It cost Priest the World Heavyweight Championship when Finn Balor interfered again and again to support Gunther and Ripley lost her relationship with Women’s World Champion Liv Morgan when Dominik Mysterio turned his back on her and helped Morgan obtain the title. victory, followed by sharing a kiss with Morgan after the attack.
On the one hand, he is dehydrated from feeling sorry for Priest and Ripley. Mysterio is with the gang because Priest and Ripley manipulated him into turning his back on his own crowd and never actually addressed those moves that became the babyface side. But Ripley and Priest are done with the family now more than ever.
The new Judgment Date, introduced at Uncooked’s subsequent SummerSlam, is Balor, Mysterio, Morgan, JD McDonagh and Carlito. Those five will most likely be many months away, as Priest and Ripley will seek revenge at every turn.
What alternative stories will dominate the coming months?
The problems between CM Punk and Drew McIntyre are far from over. McIntyre suffered an attack at SummerSlam when Punk lost the spotlight over the bracelet his wife made him, which McIntyre stole. When Punk saw the bracelet on visiting referee Seth Rollins’ wrist, he lost focus and instead of finishing McIntyre, he went after Rollins. That opened things up for McIntyre to hit a low exhaustion and finish off Punk.
Obviously, the story bears no resemblance to its conclusion and McIntyre once again had the bracelet on Uncooked, sending Punk out of a disagreement with Rollins in the ring in a chase match against an indisposed McIntyre.
Punk’s renunciation of hoops turned out to be a sinful thing for Rollins, as he was caught off guard by Bronson Reed. Seeking to build a name for himself, Reed unleashed a ferocious attack on Rollins, including delivering six Tsunamis. Rollins was left spitting blood and it is certain that Reed had a great story during the attack. This is great, as Reed wants a chance to see if he’s a major player and Rollins wants an opponent to work on the day he returns to the ring after his return from trauma against Priest ended in a surprisingly sinful attack from Rollins.
With the first post-SummerSlam SmackDown taking place on Friday, fans will surely get a glimpse of what lies ahead for the “blue brand.”
