There will be nine separate title matches taking place at Summerslam. The odds that none of them change hands are infinitesimal. It is all but guaranteed that someone is losing their title this Sunday. But we’re not going to be talking about those people. Instead, we’ll be discussing the people who probably aren’t losing.
These are not based on betting odds or anything, so if you lose a lot of money, that’s not my fault. I’m not a prophet.
Alexa Bliss
Alexa Bliss faces her greatest challenger yet: Rowdy Ronda “Baddest Woman on the Planet” Rousey. Despite this, I’ve got this feeling that Rousey isn’t becoming champion just yet. Alexa has the ever-present Mickie James Alicia Fox by her side, and it’s more than likely that she gets involved in the match somehow. I don’t think Rousey is going to be pinned, but she’s not a champion just yet.
Evolution is a mere two months away, I feel WWE is saving Rousey’s coronation for their first ever all women’s PPV (insert Stephanie McMahon growl here). It’s not that hard to stretch the feud out just another two months, especially given that Alexa Bliss is exactly the kind of heel who would run from a fight for as long as possible.
Of course, Ronda has to be protected as well, so expect a screwy finish at Summerslam. Maybe Ronda gets disqualified or something. Who knows? Long story short, Bliss is retaining at Summerslam.
Shinsuke nakamura
Last month at Extreme Rules, Shinsuke Nakamura won the United States Championship through some seriously nefarious means (i.e. punching Jeff Hardy in the dick). Jeff Hardy had a rematch the next Smackdown, but was unable to regain his title. The two will meet again at Summerslam for what I’m assuming is the last time.
I feel like Nakamura is retaining because the most interesting person in the whole story isn’t even in the match. Randy Orton has been watching in the shadows and attacking Hardy. Many were assuming that Orton would be added to the US title match, but so far that hasn’t happened.
There are also the rumors that Jeff Hardy is working hurt. These have been going around for the past five months but yet Hardy still shows up on TV all the time so no one really knows what’s up. If he isn’t injured, then I’m assuming that he and Orton will lock horns later on, and Nakamura will go on to do other things.
Dolph Ziggler
I know Dean Ambrose just returned. The big bad lunatic man (who is seriously swole right now) will be in the corner of his good ol’ buddy boy Seth Rollins. How are Dolph and Drew supposed to survive that?
I honestly believe that Ambrose could be turning heel soon. He’s obviously one of the best faces on the roster right now, but Raw is seriously outbalanced. When Lesnar isn’t around (which is pretty much all the time), Raw doesn’t really have a top heel. Kevin Owens is being bullied by Braun Strowman, and Elias is losing to Bobby Lashley. Who’s next? Jinder Mahal? Please.
Plus, it would be all sorts of cool to have Dean and Seth feud for a couple of months before Dean wins and sets his sights on the Universal Championship, which will hopefully be out of Lesnar’s hands by then. With Lesnar going back to UFC, Raw will need a top heel. Summerslam could be the turning point for that.
the b-team
It is all sorts of incredulous that someone would have the audacity to claim that Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel could actually win a match, but that’s 2018 for you. Former champions Bray Wyatt and Matt Hardy (who had an absolutely uneventful reign as champions) are out of the picture, and at Summerslam, the B-Team takes on the Revival.
It sounds almost sacrilegious to some, but I don’t think the Revival are winning at Summerslam. I feel like the B-Team is being saved for the Authors of Pain later down the line. Of course, the question does remain: who will face the Authors of Pain afterwards? Alas, that’s just the sorry state of Raw’s tag team division.
I fully expect Bo and Curtis to eke out a win at Summerslam before getting absolutely slaughtered.
