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From the main event twist to Dominik Mysterio's impressive in-ring debut, WWE SummerSlam 2020 featured many contrasting moments.
Without a shadow of a doubt, this year's SummerSlam Pay-Per-View was a must-see event. It was engaging from start-to-finish and despite some criticisms, it will go down in history as one of the most memorable WWE events of 2020.
What are your thoughts on this year's SummerSlam Pay-Per-View? Leave your opinions in the comments section below.
Here are the five biggest news stories from WWE SummerSlam 2020.
#5: Roman Reigns returned to beat down Braun Strowman and the new Universal Champion Bray Wyatt
WWE SummerSlam 2020 was billed with the tagline "you'll never see it coming", and for every prediction made for this event, a Roman Reigns return took the WWE Universe by surprise.
Going into the main event, people had no idea what to expect from "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt vs. Braun Strowman, since this feud has been highly unpredictable.
Alexa Bliss was touted to be a major factor, but that didn't turn out to be the case when everything was said and done. Instead, Roman Reigns returned and claimed back his yard after Bray Wyatt won the Universal Title in a good match.
The Big Dog's absence has been felt across the WWE brand ever since he pulled out of this year's WrestleMania due to health and safety reasons during the pandemic.
The Fiend has mostly been an unstoppable force in WWE if the Goldberg encounter is pushed aside. Now that Roman Reigns is back, fans are excited for what should literally be a "clash of the titans" down the road.
Even Strowman vs. Fiend was billed as a "King Kong vs. Godzilla" contest. And with Roman Reigns being put into the equation, one can only imagine what the end result will look like.
#4: Sonya Deville lost against Mandy Rose in a "Loser Leaves WWE" Match
Heading into the WWE match which should settle Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville's heated feud, for the time being, the odds were stacked against Deville on the basis of booking and real-life events at the same time.
This clash was initially supposed to be a "Hair vs. Hair" Match. But due to some traumatic circumstances that Sonya Deville experienced in real-life recently, a stipulation that revolved around one's head being shaven became quite silly and inappropriate. This is why Sonya's character raised the stakes and announced a "No Disqualification Loser Leaves WWE" Match instead.
The match itself was fine. But if a live audience were present in a physical sense, Mandy Rose may have received a wave of jeers from the WWE Universe. It was difficult to sympathize with Otis and Mandy doing caterpillar moves in the ring after Sonya lost the match.
Not only has Deville's character work been excellent, but it wasn't hard to deduct that she was the better in-ring performer compared to her rival. After WWE SummerSlam, let's hope that the person behind the Sonya Deville character gets ample time to heal when it comes to her mental well-being.
#3: Asuka became the new RAW Women's Champion as WWE took the next steps for a potential 'Sasha Banks vs. Bayley' feud
Asuka was set to challenge both Bayley and Sasha Banks for their respective brand's women's titles at WWE SummerSlam. The Empress of Tomorrow failed to capture the gold against Bayley early on during the Pay-Per-View.
It wasn't exactly a good start for Asuka both in terms of in-ring action and title victories. But later in the night, Asuka and Sasha Banks put on one of the best women's matches that the fans have witnessed in a while.
The RAW Women's Title bout was a back-and-forth contest between both competitors. And one of the pressing questions for this match was whether or not Bayley would pay back the favor and help Sasha retain her gold.
Even though Bayley did yell words of encouragement at her best friend, Asuka defeated Banks in a clean title victory.
While The Empress of Tomorrow celebrated her title win, it became obvious that the tension between The Golden Role Models has never been higher in WWE.
Sasha and Bayley are set to defend their Women's Tag Team Titles at WWE Payback, and it will be interesting to see whether or not they stay on the same page in a few days.
#2: Drew McIntyre retained his WWE Title against Randy Orton through an underwhelming finish
Drew McIntyre and Randy Orton's feud on WWE RAW has been one of the biggest attractions for the company recently, where several legends suffered being on the receiving end of Orton's punt kicks.
But the feud itself transitioned to the next level during Ric Flair's recent appearance on WWE RAW two weeks ago.
Orton and McIntyre's SummerSlam match was supposed to capture the same intensity as the storyline did. But what fans got was a pretty underwhelming finish to a promising match.
McIntyre simply retained his WWE title by applying a backslide maneuver on Orton, which was nothing but a safe way to conclude the bout without compromising the momentum of either competitor.
Maybe this story isn't over yet, which would warrant a rematch between the two at WWE Payback or at any other future date.
Either way, it would be unsatisfactory if fans don't get to witness a proper showdown between the two with a more direct outcome for the sake of this heated feud.
#1: Dominik Mysterio vs. Seth Rollins proved to be a masterclass in storytelling
Although Dominik Mysterio lost against Seth Rollins at WWE SummerSlam 2020, the match was a highly emotional saga for the WWE Universe.
Not only was Dominik's performance up to the mark as a WWE Superstar, but Rey Mysterio did a great job by showcasing his acting chops as a concerned father.
At the end of the day, bouts like these are perfect examples of how to combine the story and wrestling together to achieve the best possible output. It also serves as a great example of how long-term storytelling pays off in the end. Seth Rollins and Rey Mysterio's feud began in a standard way, but it resulted in a great outcome in the form of Dominik's in-ring debut.
Rollins solidified himself as one of the most despicable heels in WWE today, and fans can't wait to see what's next in store for Dominik Mysterio.
On a side note, WWE's costume department deserves a special shout-out for creating some unique attires for this year's SummerSlam event.
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