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WWE will host its thirty-third annual SummerSlam this Sunday at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. Due to the impact of COVID-19, the WWE Universe won't be present physically in attendance for the first time. Instead, fans can be seen live virtually on LED boards in the venue courtesy of a new experience called the WWE "ThunderDome".
WWE's "Biggest Party of The Summer" has produced a lot of memorable images in the past three decades that will be remembered for years to come. Classics like the Ultimate Warrior's win over The Honky Tonk Man at the inaugural SummerSlam or Bret 'The Hitman' Hart's loss to his brother-in-law, the British Bulldog at the main event of SummerSlam 1992 will encapsulate the event for many fans.
SummerSlam 2020 just a few days away. Aug. 19is World Photography Day, so let's take a look at five iconic images that have defined SummerSlam over the past decade.
#5 Team WWE vs. The Nexus - SummerSlam 2010
The summer of 2010 saw a tumultuous feud between The Nexus, a faction of rookie Superstars from NXT's 1st season led by Wade Barrett, and the rest of the WWE roster. The Nexus demanded then-General Manager of RAW, Bret Hart, to grant them full-time contracts. When they were denied, they attacked him and put him out of commission. This forced WWE Chairman, Vince McMahon, to appoint a new anonymous General Manager for RAW, who then signed all the members of Nexus as full-time WWE Superstars.
The Nexus continued to assert their dominance over the rest of the men's locker-room and targeted John Cena. This all came to a head at SummerSlam 2010 where Cena led a team of WWE Superstars against The Nexus in a Seven-on-Seven Elimination tag team match.
As you can see in the photo above, the match got off to a hot start from the get-go. In the end, Team WWE prevailed over The Nexus after Cena, who was the last remaining member in the match, eliminated Justin Gabriel and Wade Barrett.
#4 John Cena vs. CM Punk - SummerSlam 2011
At SummerSlam 2011, the WWE Universe witnessed a battle between two WWE Champions. John Cena and former WWE Superstar, CM Punk, who were both WWE Champions after the fallout from Money in the Bank, met in the ring to determine who was the undisputed WWE Champion.
Chief Operating Officer of WWE, Triple H, officiated the match between Cena and Punk as the special guest referee. Going into the match, Punk questioned Triple H's motives for being the guest referee and doubted if he could remain impartial in the match. However, an impassive Triple H is stood in the corner of the ring wearing the referee's stripes while Cena and Punk battled it out as you can see in the image above.
After a back-and-forth fight, Punk pinned Cena in the climax to win the match after he hit him with the Go To Sleep even though Cena's foot was on the bottom rope. However, the surprises didn't end there because as soon as Punk won the match, Kevin Nash returned and attacked him from behind to shock the crowd. Afterward, Alberto Del Rio cashed in his RAW Money in the Bank contract and pinned Punk to leave SummerSlam as the new champion.
#3 Charlotte Flair wins the WWE RAW Women's Championship - SummerSlam 2016
SummerSlam 2016 saw two of the "Four Horsewomen of WWE" face each other when Sasha Banks defended the WWE RAW Women's Championship against Charlotte Flair. This was Banks' first title-defense as she had won it almost a month ago from Flair on an episode of Monday Night RAW.
Both WWE NXT alum renewed their hostility from their days from the "black and gold brand" in this heart-pounding match, giving it their all to prove who was the better wrestler. During the closing moments of the match, it looked like Banks could walk out of SummerSlam as the winner. She had Flair trapped in the Bank Statement, but the "The Queen" tilted onto her back and applied all of her weight to pin Banks's shoulders to the mat.
As a result, Flair got the three-count and walked out of the ring as a two-time RAW Women's Champion. Later, struck the pose in the photo above to assert her dominance over the women's division for years to come.
#2 Seth Rollins defends the IC Championship against Dolph Ziggler - SummerSlam 2018
In 2018, WWE RAW Superstars, Seth Rollins and Dolph Ziggler, engaged in a heated feud over the Intercontinental Championship. It all came to a head at that year's SummerSlam. Going into the match, Ziggler was the reigning Intercontinental Champion having defeated Rollins in an Iron Man Match at Extreme Rules 2018 to retain the title.
Ziggler had some help in the form of Drew McIntyre, who interfered in the Iron Man match at Extreme Rules allowing "The Show-Off" to pick up the victory. At SummerSlam, Rollins had back-up in the form of a returning Dean Ambrose, who stayed in "The Architect's" corner.
In the match at SummerSlam, Ambrose defended his former Shield brother from harm by performing a Dirty Deeds on McIntyre when he tried to interfere. In the end, Rollins secured the victory after he hit Ziggler with The Stomp to win the IC title for a second time. Rollins would later go on to have an impactful reign as an Intercontinental Champion.
#1 The Fiend makes his debut - SummerSlam 2019
Last year at SummerSlam, Bray Wyatt debuted her twisted and supernatural alter-ego, "The Fiend," in a match against Finn Balor. After he took out WWE Hall of Famers and legends such as Mick Foley, Kurt Angle, and Jerry 'The King' Lawler, "The Fiend" set his sights on SmackDown Superstar, Finn Balor. That night, Balor was a guest who used wild-card rule on the July 15, 2019 episode of Monday Night RAW.
The next week on SmackDown, Balor challenged Wyatt to a match at SummerSlam. The Firefly Fun House version of Bray appeared on the TitanTron and told: "The Extraordinary Man Who Can Do Extraordinary Things" that he would face "The Fiend" at "The Biggest Party of The Summer."
At SummerSlam, "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt made an unforgettable and chilling entrance, which is still talked about to this day. In the match, The Fiend dominated Balor in a one-sided performance. As can be seen in the image above, "The Fiend" went for Sister Abigail to finish the match. Then, he changed his mind and applied the Mandible Claw on Balor to get the victory.
