An Early SummerSlam Preview

For the second year in a row, the WWE presents SummerSlam from the Barclay Center in Brooklyn, NY. Even though the show is more than a week away, what better time than the present to review the biggest card of the summer.

Enzo Amore/Big Cass vs. Chris Jericho/Kevin Owens

Enzo Amore and Big Cass are the most over WWE tag team since the New Day first exploded onto the scene in their baby face role. Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens are a new team that consists of two of the top singles wrestlers on the RAW roster. Jericho and Owens as a team can breathe new life into the tag team division. With the brand split, the WWE needs to increase the amount of main event level tag teams that each brand possesses. While a feud between these two teams is very entertaining, I’m not sure that either duo should be losing at this point. If Enzo and Cass continue to get over the way that they have been, the WWE needs to continue to elevate them. At the same time, it’s way too early to have Owens and Jericho job as a team. I can see this match going either way. However, since Chris Jericho seems to be immune to dropping in popularity and status regardless of how many jobs he does, I’m thinking that Chris Jericho loses the fall for his team. Plus, I think the WWE will be inserting the “realest guys in the room” into the WWE Tag Team title picture very soon. WINNERS: ENZO AMORE/BIG CASS

The Miz vs. Apollo Crews: Intercontinental Championship

On paper, this looks like a big mismatch. The Miz is the veteran, while Apollo Crews is the main card rookie, who really doesn’t have much momentum. The Miz should win. However, this is the WWE, and they have a history of having relative unknowns beating stars. The 1-2-3 Kid beat Razor Ramon to kick off his run, and Santino Marella captured the WWE Intercontinental championship on his first night with the company. It wouldn’t surprise me to see the WWE use this formula to cement Apollo Crews as a new face that will possibly be one of the future players of the SmackDown brand. As easily as I can see this, I believe that The Miz will leave with the gold, but not the victory. I think the WWE will want to keep the feud going, but will not want to use SummerSlam for Crews championship moment. WINNER: APOLLO CREWS by DQ

The New Day vs. Luke Gallows/Karl Anderson: WWE Tag Team Championship

Here we are again. The New Day is defending the WWE Tag Team championships on a pay per view event. Every month, I pick against the New Day, and every month I am wrong. With Big E unable to compete due to his “injury,” I think that will be a major factor. The New Day is the WWE’s top tag team, and most popular team. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson are the greatest heel duo that the WWE has had in a while. I don’t believe that the WWE brought in the top team from Japan to have them job out in their first feud for the championships. Therefore, I think Gallows and Anderson win the belts, and will feud with Enzo and Cass after the New Day receives their failed rematch for the belts. WINNERS: LUKE GALLOWS and KARL ANDERSON NEW WWE TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS

Rusev vs. Roman Reigns: United States Championship

When Rusev faced Cesaro on the August 8th RAW main event for the United States championship, I expected Cesaro to win the championship due to Roman Reigns interference. I just can’t picture Roman Reigns winning the United States title after the WWE spent over two years trying to build him up as the new “face” of the company. Despite Reigns wellness failure, I don’t believe that we have seen the last of a baby face Roman Reigns being pushed as THE GUY in the WWE. I just think the WWE is giving the fans a little breather before Reigns gets pushed down their throats yet again. Rusev has been tremendous lately. He is a great performer, and does something that no main event heel in the WWE does at the moment. Rusev actually draws boos from the fans. He even got the fans to cheer the uncheerable Roman Reigns. Sure, it will not last, because once Roman Reigns goes up against another popular wrestler, like Seth Rollins, Reigns will go back to being booed. In the meantime, the WWE will think that they are back on track with making Reigns the face of the company. I think Roman Reigns gets the Goldberg-like push here. He wins the United States championship, and while still holding the secondary belt, he will eventually win RAW’s top prize, the WWE Universal championship. WINNER: ROMAN REIGNS NEW UNITED STATES CHAMPIONS

Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte: WWE Women’s Championship

The rematch of the match originally scheduled for SummerSlam. Since Sasha Banks was supposed to win the WWE Women’s championship at SummerSlam, I can’t see her losing her first major title defense on the very same show. The question revolving around this match will be what role will Dana Brooke play. Dana is barred from ringside. However, something tells me that she will not obey the rules. I think this would be the perfect spot for Bayley to join the roster full time. Dana runs to the ring to interfere, but Bayley comes out of nowhere to prevent the interference. This should be a really great match. WINNER: SASHA BANKS

John Cena vs. AJ Styles

This will be the third major match that John Cena will be facing AJ Styles in a WWE ring. AJ Styles won the first. John Cena pinned AJ Styles during a six-man match in their second encounter. You know the John Cena feud formula. Heel wins the first match, and Johnny Boy takes the next two to end the rivalry while elevating no one. History tells us that John Cena would win the SummerSlam match. After all, beating AJ Styles has an added bonus. AJ was the face of TNA Wrestling. If Vince would have former WCW wrestlers lose, because he couldn’t let people think WCW was better than the WWE, do you really think he will have a major former TNA guy beat the face of the WWE in a feud? Normally, the answer would be a resounding HELL NO! However, there is a new wrinkle added. John Cena, while still on TV, seems to be going in the direction of the 2001 version of The Rock. Cena is quickly becoming a part time performer. It’s at this point in time that John Cena should be putting people over, and not dominating the show. I’m not saying that Cena should lose to the whole roster. You need to pick and choose those that are deemed worthy enough to beat Cena in a feud. AJ Styles is worthy, and believable enough to beat John Cena in a feud. I think the WWE may actually pull the trigger, and agree with me on this one. Besides, they need to build up a top heel challenger to face the WWE Heavyweight champion. WINNER: AJ STYLES

Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins: WWE Universal Championship

Regardless of who wins this match, this bout should be a classic that steals the show. Even though the new Universal title is supposed to be on the same level as the WWE Heavyweight championship, everybody knows that it’s not. If this was for the WWE Heavyweight belt, I would think that the WWE would never put the title on someone who just got called up from NXT. However, the Universal championship puts the result in doubt. If the WWE really wants to make Balor an instant main eventer, they should put the belt on him by having him cleanly pin Seth Rollins. However, if the WWE is set in their ways, and want Roman Reigns to win the Universal title sooner rather than later, the WWE should have Seth Rollins win the belt, and be the wrestler that loses the championship to Reigns. Personally, I would have had Seth Rollins come back as an official baby face, and have a run with the brand’s top belt as the returning hero from a devastating injury. Since Seth is being billed as a heel, I would put the belt on Balor to make him a new top main event performer, even if he drops the title to Seth Rollins in a month or two. Instead, I think the WWE will go with who they know, and put the championship on Seth Rollins. WINNER: SETH ROLLINS FIRST UNIVERSAL CHAMPION

Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler: WWE Heavyweight Championship

This is an interesting match-up. Dean Ambrose and Dolph Ziggler are two fan favorites that the WWE treated as after thoughts, with the exception of a couple of minor singles pushes. In the beginning of the year, if you had to guess who the participants in the WWE title match would be at SummerSlam 2016, it is extremely unlikely that anyone would have guessed Dolph Ziggler vs. Dean Ambrose. While I am not a big Dean Ambrose fan, I think he’s doing a really good job as the WWE champion. In the build-up to SummerSlam, he dropped the kiddie jokes, and instead is playing the serious “I’m better than you” role that a World champion should be playing. Dolph Ziggler seems re-energized by his push into the main event for SmackDown’s top title. His promo a couple of weeks ago was perhaps the best promo of his career. To pick a winner in this match is very difficult. On one hand, the WWE should have Dean Ambrose win to cement him as the brand’s top baby face star since John Cena is moving to part-time status. On the other hand, a loss by Dolph Ziggler will probably put the final nail in his WWE career as someone who the fans can seriously consider as a main event performer. This would be another push that was started, and then ended abruptly, like so many of his pushes before. I think the WWE will try to continue Dean Ambrose’s push as the top face of the brand, and a championship feud with AJ Styles on the horizon. WINNER: DEAN AMBROSE

Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton

Thus far, the Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton match has been the best built match leading up to SummerSlam. It should be, because whether their match goes on last or not, the Lesnar vs. Orton match is the real main event of the show. Aside from their individual promos and each man invading the other’s show to attack them, the WWE aired an amazing video package that contained pre-recorded comments from both wrestlers. The WWE creates video packages better than any other sports company in order to hype an upcoming fight or event. This time was no different. When the WWE announced the upcoming Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton match prior to Lesnar’s fight at UFC 200, I couldn’t have cared less about seeing the match. However, after the build-up, I can’t wait to see it. I am very intrigued, and am really curious as to who will go over in the match. I can see the WWE having Randy Orton beat Brock Lesnar to show the UFC that “our wrestlers are better than your fighters.” However, I think that aspect lost some luster after Brock failed a USADA drug test. If the WWE does have Orton win, I think the end of the match will be similar to Brock’s WrestleMania XXX victory over the Undertaker, where he put away the dead man only after hitting him with his finisher multiple times. I think if the WWE has Orton beat Lesnar, it will be after three or more RKOs in a row. This will give Orton the victory, but still protect Lesnar as he kept getting up after being on the receiving end of RKO after RKO. Even though, it’s possible that the WWE gives Orton the victory, I can’t see Brock Lesnar losing to Randy Orton. The WWE originally had Brock Lesnar end the Undertaker’s WrestleMania winning streak in order to feed him to Roman Reigns. I still believe that will eventually be the plan one day. WINNER: BROCK LESNAR