SummerSlam 2023 Review

Saturday, August 5th, 2023
Ford Field
Detroit, Michigan

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I was lucky enough to be in attendance for my first ever SummerSlam. The luckiest part of it all was that Kid Rock was only in the introduction and not performing live. The intro itself is pretty good, but kind of weird that they mention only 1988, 1995 and 2013. Who came up with that idea?

Logan Paul vs. Ricochet

Logan had a ton of heat throughout the match. Obviously it was the opener, so the crowd energy was high, but I think it would have been close to the same had this match happened later in the evening. The first big move of the night is a reverse neckbreaker by Paul onto the hardest part of the ring. He then kisses his fiancé in the front row. Logan mocks Samantha Irvin while he's at it. Logan hits the Hogan Paul and Ricochet follows it up with the People's Moonsault. Logan is able to hit a huge back body drop to regain control. Logan hits a Spanish Fly off the apron, but they kind of land on their feet. They start hockey brawling and then Ricochet hits a Spanish Fly on the floor. Logan trips him up back in the ring and pulls him to the floor. Logan hits a Buckshot Lariat from the ring to the floor. Logan hits a crossbody and gets a 2 count. Logan runs into the ring post and Ricochet brings Paul up top and he hits a leaping neckbreaker. Ricochet hits a springboard clothesline, but that's not enough for the victory. Logan goes for a second rope moonsault, but Ricochet catches him. Logan counters that and hits a tornado DDT for another close call. Ricochet goes for the Shooting Star Press, but Logan gets his knees up and gets a 2 count. Logan hits a springboard Frog Splash, but Ricochet is still able to kick out. Ricochet rocks him with a superkick and hits a springboard moonsault, but Logan kicks out. Both guys are doing a nice job of selling, which is always a criticism of modern wrestling from the old timers. Ricochet goes for the 630, but Logan rolls out of the way. One of Logan Paul's buddies sneaks up and hands Logan brass knuckles and he rocks Ricochet with a right hand to pick up the tainted victory. They did a really nice job of making Ricochet look strong here though, which he really needed. Logan also gets a big win after a few losses. 

Match Rating: ***3/4

Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes

Cody goes right after Lesnar, but Lesnar hits him with a quick suplex in retaliation. Cody comes back with two Disaster Kicks that connect, but the third one is blocked by Lesnar. Lesnar hits his shoulder on the ring post and Cody then hits a suicide dive. The crowd was probably about 80% behind Cody, but there was a strong amount of respect for both of these guys. It's hard to argue with that, as both guys have given a lot for the fans over the years. Lesnar just dead lifts Cody and throws him. I love when Brock does some of the stuff that just looks a little rough around the edges, as it adds to the realism that he brings. Cody is among one of the best on the roster at selling, so it's no surprise that he was a natural choice to face Brock. Lesnar is now firmly in Suplex City and just manhandling Cody here. They're now doing the story where Brock destoys him and Cody goes out of the ring and he barely beats the count back into the ring. Brock tells Cody that it's only going to get worse if he keeps crawling back in. After a few times of doing that, Brock goes outside and hits a F5 to the floor. Brock isn't pleased with Cody, so he hits another F5, this time through the announce table. Michael Cole pleads with Cody to stop getting back in there. He doesn't listen, but when he's about to get suplexed again, he rips off the top turnbuckle. For some reason, the announcers don't even make mention of it. Cody goes to use the steel steps, but Brock kicks the out. He goes for another F5, but Cody shoves him into the steel post. He picks the steps up and this time connects. Cody hits a Disaster Kick and then a Cody Cutter. He then hits a double jump Cody Cutter, but Brock kicks out. That was sweet. Brock then slaps on the Kimura and Cody is struggling. He finally gets to the bottom rope and Brock releases the hold. Brock goes for the F5, but this time Cody shoves him into the exposed turnbuckle. Cody now puts on a Kimura lock of his own. Lesnar is able to power his way out of it by driving Cody into the mat. Both man slowly get up. Lesnar goes for another F5, but Cody counters and hits a Cross Rhodes. He hits a total of 3 of them and picks up the victory. A lot can be said about Brock Lesnar, but he should absolutely be remembered as one of the all time greats because of matches like this. He was 100% invested in putting Cody over tonight and he accomplished that. That's not to take anything away from Cody because he was also great here tonight and has proven to be worth every penny that WWE has paid him. Not quite an classic, but it was quite awesome. After the match, Brock shakes hands with Cody and raises his arm.

Match Rating: ****

25 Man Slim Jim SummerSlam Battle Royal

Just as the match is about to start, MVP announces that they still need one more man and it's the man who is going to win it, Omos. Omos quickly eliminates a few guys like Rick Boogs. Otis is eliminated quicker than I expected here, but it leads to a really strong performance from Chad Gable. Tommaso Ciampa is able to dispose of both Viking Raiders and then Shinsuke Nakamura. Ciampa then gets dumped himself by Bronson Reed. The #1 contender for Austin Theory's United States Championship, Santos Escobar eliminates the champ, but then is quickly eliminated by Working The Network favorite Karrion Kross (I kid). Ludwig Kaiser is eliminated by a reverse hurricanrana by Chad Gable. Omos is able to eliminate both Matt Riddle and Butch at the same time. LA Knight takes his turn at Omos, but it ends with him running into a boot. The rest of the field starts to attack Omos. They get him stunned and then all team up to eliminate him to a nice pop. Miz almost eliminates LA Knight and celebrates it, which leads to Knight dumping him out. Miz is furious and Sheamus then eliminates Grayson Waller. Bronson Reed knocks both Sheamus and Knight down. AJ hits the Pele Kick on Kross and eliminates him. Reed knocks Gable out, leaving us with our final four. LA Knight is able to drag Reed over the top and we are down to Knight, Sheamus and AJ Styles. AJ is looking good until he goes for the Phenomenal Forearm and Kross grabs his leg. This allows for Sheamus to eliminate him. Knight and Sheamus now go at it. Sheamus has him up for the Celtic Cross, but Knight gets out and almost knocks him out. Sheamus goes up top, but Knight leaps up and hits a suplex. Knight clotheslines him and picks up the victory for the biggest pop of the night. I knew Knight was crazy over, but it's much more than I even knew. The best way for a battle royal to be good is to actually have wrestlers who are over in it. This one had a handful of that and the crowd was invested in it as a result. They went with the obvious result because it was the right result and thankfully didn't go for the swerve.

Match Rating: ***

MMA Rules Match
Ronda Rousey vs. Shayna Baszler

Well after the huge reaction for Knight, these two were already at a disadvantage. It was absolutely dead silent when this started and the crowd never got invested. Ronda has fallen out of the fans good graces and Baszler has been a lifetime heel. Baszler connects with a roundhouse kick to the head. Ronda is able to come back with a leaping knee to the face of Baszler. Ronda puts on a submission and Baszler is forced to dump both of them over the top rope to break the hold. Medical officials are out to check on her, but Ronda throws them out of the way. They start trading punches and Baszler puts on the Kirifuda Clutch. Ronda gets out and puts on the Arm Bar. Baszler rolls out and puts on an Ankle Lock. Ronda swaps out of it and puts on a choke hold. Baszler has the Kirifuda Clutch on and Rousey is out to put us out of our misery. This went over worse than a fart in church. Considerin that this show went past midnight, this should have been cut. Rousey's second run with WWE has been everything the first one wasn't.

Match Rating: 1/2*

Intercontinental Championship Match
Drew McIntyre vs. Gunther

This was the match I wanted to rewatch the most. After the last stinker, the crowd was pretty quiet to start. They eventually won the crowd over, but it wasn't until the end. I saw a lot of rave reviews for the match, but it didn't feel that way live. If there is one guy that I'm surprised is on the WWE roster, it's Gunther. They have booked him strongly now, so it's easy to see why he is still here, but I was very surprised when he originally signed. The first big moment in the match comes when they are brawling outside and Gunther drops McIntyre on top of the steel steps. We eventually get to the manly men beating each other up spot of the match. McIntyre rolls out from the German suplex and hits a clothesline. McIntyre hits a couple of belly to belly throws. Drew gets ready for the Claymore Kick, but Gunther ducks and hits a double dropkick into the corner. Gunther goes for the powerbomb, but McIntyre counters and hits one of his own. McIntyre hits a Future Shock DDT, but Gunther kicks out. McIntyre wants to go for a Claymore, but Gunther rolls out of the ring. McIntyre decides to hit a somersault dive over the top instead. He goes for the Claymore again, but Gunther hits a dropkick and then a powerbomb for a 2 count. Gunther goes up to the top and hits a splash, but McIntyre kicks out again. Gunther starts smacking McIntyre in the back of the head which leads to them smacking each other. McIntyre hits the Claymore Kick but Gunther kicks out. This was when they had the crowd all the way. McIntyre goes for a powerbomb on the second rope. Gunter blocks it and they start just beating each other some more. Gunther knocks Drew off and crotches him. Gunther is moving fast and furious and hits the powerbomb for the victory. This was much better on TV than live, as I had hoped. It will be very interesting to see what else is in store for Gunther. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

World Heavyweight Championship Match
Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins

Balor attacks Rollins before the bell and they are quickly trading blows. Balor dominates the early part of the match, working a methodical pace. Rollins gets some momentum and grabs Balor by the beard and hits him with some blows to the head. Rollins hits a trio of suicide dives, with the final one driving Balor into the announce table. Rollins goes up top, but Balor is able to get to him first and throws him into the ring post. Balor then hits the buckle bomb into the barricade, just like Rollins did to him 7 years ago. Back in the ring, Rollins is able to hit a superkick but Balor is right back at it. Rollins powers out of the submission and hits two buckle bombs of his own. Rollins hits a huge Frog Splash, but Balor gets the shoulder up. Balor gets a fury of offense before being greeted by Rollins up top for a superplex. Balor counters the Falcon Arrow into a pin attempt, but Rollins is out at 2. Both men are down and the crowd applauds in appreciation. They trade right hands until Balor hits a running dropkick. Balor misses with the Coup de Grace and Rollins hits the Pedigree. Rollins lays on him for the pin attempt and that allows Balor to get the shoulder up. Out comes Damian Priest with his briefcase. Balor kicks out of a pin attempt and right into a right hand from Priest. Balor hits a Pedigree of his own, but Rollins kicks out. Both Balor and Priest are in disbelief. Priest starts waiving and out comes Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio. Priest tries to give Balor the briefcase, but they sort of argue over it. This leads to Balor getting the Stomp from Rollins, but he somehow kicks out. Rollins goes up top, but Dom goes up there. Rollins then leaps and hits Priest instead. Rollins hits the Stomp on Dom, but gets hit with the Sling Blade from Balor. He hits the Coup de Grace, but Rollins kicks out. I'll be honest, they had me there. Priest leaves the briefcase in the ring and then distracts the ref. Rollins gets up and hits the Stomp onto the briefcase before Balor got to it and that's all. This storyline was a lot of fun and Rollins and Balor killed it here. Good stuff.

Match Rating: ****1/4

Triple Threat Match For The WWE Women's Championship
Charlotte Flair vs. Asuka vs. Bianca Belair

We get some nice action to start off that follows the usual triple threat formula. I've mentioned it before, but since literally no one reads any of my reviews, I'll say again that I like triple threat matches more than most fans. Asuka is able to catch Bianca with a knee, but Askua is able to pull Charlotte off. Charlotte hits a top rope crossbody that takes both opponents down. She hits a double Natural Selection and covers both, but only gets 2. Bianca gets a little bit of shine, but both Charlotte and Asuka get their knees up when she goes for the handspring moonsault. Charlotte and Asuka go at it and this time Bianca is able to hit it this time. Bianca is selling her knee afterwards, but she climbs up top anyways. Asuka knocks her down and then Charlotte knocks Asuka down. I hate how long Charlotte took here because I always hate when they all just stand there waiting for her to jump. She didn't really connect Bianca on that one. Asuka escapes out of the KOD but gets kicked off the apron by Charlotte. Charlotte is able to escape a KOD, but ends up in an arm bar by Asuka. Asuka then gets the Asuka Lock on Bianca, but Charlotte comes in and turns that into a pin and Asuka has to break the hold. Charlotte hits a moonsault, but it's still not enough. Bianca charges at Charlotte, but she tosses her over the top rope and falls to the floor and hit the steps on the way down. She is selling an injury and medical staff is checking on her. Meanwhile, Asuka and Charlotte are battling up on the second rope. Asuka hits a superplex and Bianca is heading towards the back. Charlotte hits a Spear, but Asuka kicks out. Charlotte locks in the Figure Eight and now Bianca is limping her way back to the ring. She climbs to the top and hits a 450 splash on Charlotte. That was awesome and I don't think anyone would have been mad if that was the finish. Bianca gets Charlotte up for the KOD, but again gets out of it and we gets some quick action that leads to Charlotte slapping on the Figure Eight on Bianca with the bad knee. Asuka comes in and spits the green mist in Charlotte's face. Bianca gets an inside cradle on Asuka to pick up the victory and become the new champion. That was a fantastic finish and a very good match between three of the best. But that would not be all...

Match Rating: ***3/4

Out comes Iyo Sky and Bayley. They use the briefcase and attack Bianca with it. She cashes it in and here we go. 

WWE Women's Championship Match
Bianca Belair vs. Iyo Sky

Iyo hits the moonsault and we have our second new Women's Champion of the last 60 seconds. Out comes Dakota Kai to also celebrate with her. The crowd absolutely loved all of this. This wasn't a match, so I can't really rate it, but it was a great moment.

Tribal Combat For The Undisputed WWE Universal Championship
Jey Uso vs. Roman Reigns

I should note that there is no reason this match should have started so late, nor should the show have run as long as it did. As with most Roman matches, there's a lot of stalling to start things out. After some Roman dominance, Jey gets his burst of offense and hits a suicide dive. The crowd wants tables, so Jey pulls one out and sets it up outside the ring. Roman is able to stop him before he gets to use it and hits him with the Drive By. Jey goes for a dive, but Roman hits him with a kendo stick. Roman did have more heat on him than I expected. I thought he'd have a little more fan support. Jey finally gets his hands on the kendo stick and he unleashes. He uses it to knock Roman over the top and hits a somersault dive over the top. Jey goes off the top, but Roman nails him with a Superman punch. Roman goes for the Spear, but Jey rolls him up for a 2 count. He hits a superkick and an Uso Splash, but Roman kicks out. Jey uses a chair before throwing in a handful of chairs. They battle up on the ropes and it ends with Roman hitting a powerbomb on the chairs, but Jey kicks out. The biggest problem with this match is that everyone expected interference. As a result, the false finishes aren't working as well and it hurt the drama a little bit. We have a table set up in the corner of the ring now as well. They battle by the apron and it leads to Jey hitting a Samoan drop through the table. Jey then starts whipping Roman with a leather strap. Roman goes out through the crowd, but Jey is out to follow him. They brawl, but out comes Solo Sikoa to attack Jey and put him through a table. They go back to the ring and continue the beatdown until Jey is able to sidestep the Spear and Roman accidentally hits Solo. Jey hits a Spear of his own, but Roman gets his shoulder up. Jey now starts attacking them both with a chair. Solo and Roman seem to be having an argument and Jey hits Roman with a Spear through the barricade. Solo starts attacking Jey, but Jey superkicks him on the table and then hits a splash off the barricade through the table. Jey hits another Spear in the ring on Roman and hits the Uso Splah, but someone pulls him out of the ring. Of course, it's Jimmy. Jey is disgusted and after some time to let it play out, Jimmy hits him with a superkick. Roman then hits a Spear through the table in the corner and picks up the victory. This was the usual lengthy Roman main event match. Jey did a nice job here and picked his spots well. With that being said, they could have easily sliced 10 minutes off of it and no one would have cared. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

I thought this was a great show both live and on the replay. I've been fortunate to go to a lot of wrestling events over the years and this one is pretty high up there. 

Overall Rating: 88%