'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
WWE SummerSlam 2019 has finished and everyone in the WWE Universe is reeling from the main event during which Seth Rollins defeated 'The Beast Incarnate' Brock Lesnar clean to regain the WWE Universal Title.
However, that was just one of twelve matches on the show, including the pre-show with Charlotte Vs. Trish Stratus, Buddy Murphy Vs. Apollo Crews, Kofi Kingston Vs. Randy Orton, Becky Lynch Vs. Natalya, and Kevin Owens Vs. Shane McMahon among others.
Whilst you'd expect every match on a WWE PPV to be of a high standard, and that was indeed the case for SummerSlam, it is indeed inevitable that some of the above matches stand out over the rest!
But on this stacked SummerSlam card which matches were the stand-out ones? Which matches are the ones that if you don't have enough time you absolutely must see? Which are the matches that were a class apart or where something awesome happened?
Well, let's take a look at at the four must-see matches from WWE SummerSlam 2019
#4 The Fiend Vs. Finn Balor
I'm going to kick this thing off with the in-ring debut of Bray Wyatt's new 'The Fiend' gimmick against a 'Demon-less' Finn Balor, a match that has been on the cards since Wyatt returned and attacked Balor on an episode of Monday Night Raw.
This match is on the list not because of the in-ring content, not because it's a potential candidate for 'match of the year', but because WWE absolutely nailed every element of it and the in-ring debut of 'The Fiend' will probably go down as one of the best in-ring debuts in WWE history.
The Fiend's entrance was incredible, he was introduced as 'The Fiend' in his own special font and not Bray Wyatt. He's also holding the severed head of his previous in-ring character as a lamp and he has a cool heavy metal remix of his previous theme tune. It's amazing.
Naturally he then squashed Finn Balor, including a moment where he literally snapped Balor's neck, but somehow doesn't kill him. He then picked up the win with the Mandible Claw. Wyatt then disappeared from the ring leaving a bewildered and defeated Balor. It was awesome. AWESOME.
See WWE Summer Slam Results, Highlights of event, & more on WWE Summer Slam Results page
#3 Drew Gulak Vs. Oney Lorcan
One of the main reasons why I loved this match was purely because it was one of NXT's most consistently great performers in Oney Lorcan getting a huge spotlight on a WWE main roster PPV. Honestly, Lorcan has been fantastic for such a long time so it was amazing that he competed for an actual WWE title on SummerSlam of all places.
Add to the mix that it's a Cruiserweight match on a SummerSlam pre-show with Drew Gulak as the reigning champion defending his title and you are basically guaranteed a great match and they certainly didn't disappoint.
This is, of course, exactly why the Cruiserweights are often put on the pre-shows of WWE pay-per-views because they can be reliably trusted to put on a decent showing and get the crowd revved up for the main show.
As you'd expect in a match between Gulak and Lorcan it was a hard-hitting affair and I really cannot stress exactly how hard-hitting it was. Lorcan has always worked stiff and this iteration of 'angry' Gulak is particularly mean so that's exactly what we got in the ring.
Sadly, because I am a fan of Lorcan, Gulak retained his title to get SummerSlam going but at least it has led to this wonderful tweet in response to the loss from Lorcan so swings and roundabouts!
#2 Charlotte Flair Vs. Trish Stratus
All the women's matches on the SummerSlam card actually delivered, including the WWE Women's Tag Team Titles match between IIconics and Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross on the pre-show, but the absolute pick of the bunch was the one that went on last - Charlotte Flair Vs. Trish Stratus.
I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting much from this match having fallen into the obvious trap of assuming Stratus wouldn't be able to do all that much given her long time away from the ring and subsequent ring-rust. I was wrong. What followed was perhaps the best Trish Stratus match of her career.
There wasn't anything too elaborate or extravagant, just good old-fashioned heel vs. face work, heaps of ring psychology with Stratus selling a leg injury as she climbed up the ropes, and some neat little moments to get the crowd going. For example, Stratus hit a huge Hurricanrana and garnered 'this is awesome' chants from the crowd.
It ended with Charlotte Flair tapping Stratus out with the Figure Eight submission maneuver after being forced to survive it herself earlier on in the match. This was the right decision and definitely helped pushed Charlotte back towards the title picture!
#1 Seth Rollins Vs Brock Lesnar
It's not often an actual main event match is the standout match of the evening, especially when one of the competitors in the main event is Brock Lesnar. But by the time SummerSlam had finished everyone was in no doubt that Rollins and Lesnar stole the show.
In fact, this was the match that finally turned people around on Lesnar's recent WWE run, people have been against him being champion because he is 'part-time' and 'can't/won't wrestle' and only does 'two moves'. But here Lesnar proved, as he did against Bryan, Balor, and Styles it's worth adding, that he is a world-class wrestler.
And as for Rollins, he was getting booed earlier on in the show and had the crowd chanting 'burn it down' by the end of the match. He truly cemented himself at the top of Raw with what must be considered an upset win. But the cherry on top is that not only did he pin Brock Lesnar clean, but he did so whilst 'injured'.
There was early drama with Rollins hitting an early Stomp, there was a ridiculous high-spot with Rollins launching himself from a ring-post onto the announcers' table. There was Lesnar ripping Rollins' tape off by swinging him around like a rag-doll. The match had everything!
