Summerslam 2018 Predictions: Match card and Winners

Summerslam is basically WWE's version of a smaller Wrestlemania. Advertised as 'The Biggest event of the summer', Summerslam is arguably the most stacked PPV after Wrestlemania. While the latter serves as a conclusion for year-long feuds, Summerslam is generally the event that starts all the major rivalries that continue till the Wrestlemania season.

While the trend of 'conclusive decisions' has been somewhat broken by the recent Wrestlemanias, Summerslam has rarely provided a clean finish in the main event of the evening. Lesnar vs Orton, Bryan vs John Cena and Lesnar vs Undertaker have seen controversial finishes in the main event.

Nevertheless, Summerslam is an event which enriches us with the direction that the company will take for the rest of the year. New feuds are generated, old rivalries are reinstated, heel turns are brought about and the card is filled with marquee matches. Today, we look at some of the potential rivalries for the 2018 edition of 2nd biggest PPV by the WWE.

Intercontinental Championship - 6-man bout (possibly ladder)

Participants: Dolph Ziggler(c), Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Baron Corbin, Bobby Roode, Elias

Possible multi-man bout

On every big PPV, WWE has a match in which they dump all the upper-midcard superstars which are not involved in a rivalry. These superstars have no direction going into the bout, and are likely to fail. For Wrestlemania, the Andre the Giant Battle Royal is specifically designed for this. But Summerslam cannot include a battle royal as it already has a stretched time slot. WWE's solution? Dump all these superstars in a mutli-man match for a mid-card belt.

I followed a fairly simple approach to predict this match. Which brand has more directionless superstars? Raw. Which mid-card belt is on Raw? IC Championship. Is there a fresh feud for IC Championship? No, Rollins vs Ziggler has been around for a fair amount of time. Conclusion: Multi-man match for the IC belt.

Deciding the participants was far more easy. Just lump all the directionless superstars in this match to add some substance to this match. Finn Balor and Corbin don't have a rivalry that deserves it's own match on the Summerslam PPV, Bobby Roode is already involved in the IC Championship picture, Elias is directionless, and Rollins wants redemption.

Deciding the winner is tricky though. The safe decision is to make Ziggler retain the belt. But, Summerslam is not a PPV for safe decisions. The time is right to make McIntyre turn on Ziggler, thus costing him the match and his IC belt, thus igniting their impending feud. Furthermore, Rollins winning the belt will be the best decision for the title and for the man himself. Thus,

Winner: Seth Rollins

Match prediction: McIntyre will turn on Ziggler, thus costing him the IC Championship

United States Championship - Triple Threat Match

Participants: Shinsuke Nakamura(c), Jeff Hardy, Randy Orton

Pure brutality

The US Championship picture just changed for the better. Nakamura finally won his first-ever main-event title by defeating Jeff Hardy in a matter of seconds, thus justifying his heel turn. Plus, Randy Orton returned and turned heel by mercilessly beating up Hardy. I don't care what anyone says about Orton, he is perhaps the most natural heel in this business.

The story-line of this bout just fits: Orton lost to Hardy for the US belt before his injury, thus Orton is back with vengeance. Hardy has lost the belt to Nakamura, thus both Hardy and Orton will come after Nakamura's championship.

The buildup to the match has been great as well. Orton twisting Hardy's ear was one of the most vicious attacks PG WWE has ever seen. Nakamura's title victory is also a welcome change from the underwhelming albeit boring title run of Hardy. Plus, a bad-blood rivalry is always welcome.

However, since Nakamura has just won the belt, it seems unlikely that WWE will be eager to strip him of the US Championship. Also, Hardy and Orton can continue their feud after Summerslam with the added chapter of one of them costing the other the championship. Thus,

Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura

Match prediction: Hardy will be pinned, and Orton will be even more angry as Jeff cost him the match.

SmackDown Women's Championship - Traditional 1 vs 1 match

Participants: Carmella(c), Becky Lynch

Possible title change

This match is on the verge of being announced. GM Paige has decided to give Becky Lynch a title shot at the SmackDown Women's Championship against Carmella, if she beats the latter this week on SD Live. With Charlotte and Naomi on the sidelines, it is almost certain that Becky will face Carmella for the Championship.

Becky has had a string of victories lately against individual members of Absolution and the IIconics, thus her title shot is logical. Plus, Becky has been out of the title picture since late 2016, and her inclusion to the championship picture will be welcome.

It seems likely that Carmella will retain the championship for Charlotte to win the title back when she returns. But, I seriously hope that Becky beats Carmella for the title. I may be biased here, but I HATE Carmella as champ. She comes across as a whiny, no-good champion who wins by fluke. The start of her title reign was good, but the inclusion of James Ellsworth has made her intolerable. Ellsworth is once again the center of a championship rivalry (Remember AJ vs Ambrose?) and Carmella defeating Asuka twice has ruined the latter.

Also, Charlotte vs Becky will be a WAY better rivalry which can conclude with an awesome match.

Winner: Becky Lynch

Match prediction: Ellsworth will face a severe beating either way, possible Charlotte return

Raw Women's Championship - Traditional 1 vs 1 match

Participants: Alexa Bliss(c), Ronda Rousey

Another title shot for Rousey

Like it's SmackDown counterpart, the Raw Women's Championship title picture is almost crystal clear. GM Kurt Angle has agreed to give Ronda a title shot at Summerslam, given that she stays within her limits till the actual match. We all know that Rousey will kick 'her pink-haired a**', but will she win the title?

In my opinion, WWE has booked itself into a corner with this rivalry. Alexa has only just won the title and has only defended it once and Rousey cannot afford another loss, interference or not. Also, Alexa is not ready to lose the championship, and Rousey can't headline the Raw Women's division after only 2 matches.

Hear me out on the Rousey comment before angrily posting in the comments: Rousey is still green, and putting her in the top spot so early will seem unfair to the rest of the roster who have legitimately worked hard for the championship.

Also, this match will definitely be one of the worst at Summerslam. Ronda can exceed expectations once again, but the point is that she has never wrestled an under-average performer like Alexa Bliss. Angle and HHH wrestled for the majority of the match at 'Mania, and Jax is a decent worker. Bliss, on the other hand, has not had even a single great match due to her limited in-ring abilities. Even accomplished wrestlers like Charlotte, Bayley and Sasha Banks have struggled to put up a decent match with her. Hence my comment about the quality of the match.

Anyway, Rousey winning seems like the lesser of two evils to me as she can't afford a loss.

Winner: Ronda Rousey

Match prediction: Will be an underwhelming bout, but watching Rousey beat the sh*t out of Bliss will be a welcome moment.

Traditional 1 vs 1 match

Daniel Bryan vs The Miz

Arguably the most heated rivalry in the WWE

In this list, this match is probably the one that is least likely to happen. Before this week's SmackDown Live, nobody would have included this match in a predictions list. But, Bryan attacking The Miz have raised speculation that they will indeed face each other at the biggest event of the summer.

Miz held a 'funeral' for Team Hell No and came to the ring with Kane's mask on a mannequin and disrespected both members of the decorated tag team. After The Miz proclaimed that Bryan's career is dead, the latter came to the ring and attacked the A-lister, thus raising speculation about a potential match at Sumerslam.

This feud needs no introduction. Ever-since Miz's career transforming promo on an episode of Talking Smack, both of these wrestlers have had heated encounters. Until Daniel Bryan's in-ring return, it seemed that this will only be a dream match. Even after his return, this feud has been the most protected one in the company. It seemed that this rivalry was saved for a big event, in this case - Summerslam.

If this match takes place, it is highly likely that Bryan will lose the bout. Not because WWE hates Bryan or anything ridiculous like that. Bryan will lose only because WWE will milk this rivalry for as long as possible. Thus,

Winner: The Miz

Match predictions: Definitely wouldn't be a clean finish

Wrestlemania rematch - Traditional 1 vs 1 match

Undertaker vs John Cena

Wrestlemania rematch

The Undertaker will wrestle at Summerslam. That is confirmed. He will have a rematch at Summerslam. That is also confirmed. Who will he face? No idea.

Ever since The Undertaker was called out at Wrestlemania 34 by John Cena, he has increased his appearances at wrestling events and has wrestled a lot. He is also in a much better shape than he was a year prior to his return, i.e. Wrestlemania 33. Now, the question is, who will he face?

Undoubtedly, his Summerslam bout will be a rematch of one of his recent matches. So, let's count the possible opponents one by one. Triple H - Nope, he will face him at MSG later this year. Brock Lesnar? He is already booked as the Universal Champion. Bray Wyatt? Not a chance. He is quite below the Undertaker's level at this point. Shane McMahon? Probably, but I don't think WWE will want a rematch of their underwhelming match of Wrestlemania 32. Roman Reigns? Involved in the Universal title picture. Also, WWE wouldn't want him to get booed once again. Rusev? Nah. That only leaves Cena. Thus, my prediction is : Cena vs Undertaker for a Wrestlemania rematch.

I don't believe that the Undertaker will lose against Cena. He needs every bit of momentum he can get following his disappointing loss against Reigns at Wrestlemania 33. Also, it will continue the 'Cena losing' story-line that could have greater implications.

Winner: The Undertaker

Match predictions: Will be a bout mostly for the nostalgia, as both of the wrestlers are past their prime.

Universal Championship - Triple Threat Match

Participants: Brock Lesnar(c), Roman Reigns, Bobby Lashley

Just another Reigns vs Lesnar encounter with a twist

Please take the title away from Brock Lesnar. I don't even care who takes it away from the so-called 'Beast-Incarnate'. Sure, I will boo Reigns if he wins, but I will be glad that at least the Universal Championship will be defended on every PPV and will appear on every Monday Night Raw.

Although the match is not yet fixed, this seems like the logical decision. Reigns will face Lashley (sigh...once again) for a title shot at Summerslam. It does not seem likely that Lashley will defeat Roman two times in a row, so Lashley vs Lesnar is out of the window. Also, WWE will not trust Reigns and Lesnar again after their disappointing bouts earlier this year. So, Reigns vs Lesnar is out of the window (hopefully). The only option remaining is Reigns vs Lashley vs Lesnar.

The triple threat match is not unlikely either. A lot of #1 contender-ship matches have ended with a lack of conclusive decision thus, expect the same to happen this week on Monday Night Raw.

It seems like WWE is finally ready to strip Lesnar of the Universal Championship and hand it to Reigns. It is evident that Reigns will not get cheered no matter how long WWE waits, so it is best to give him the championship. He will not get cheered after his victory, but he will not get booed out of the building either.

But, I will go ahead and make a bold prediction: Strowman will cash-in his MITB contract. Thus,

Winner: Roman Reigns, but Strowman will cash-in his MITB contract.

Match predictions: Lesnar will get pinned by Reigns as it is unwise to take the momentum off Lashley.

WWE Championship - Traditional 1 vs 1 match

AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe

Best for business

This match is a total shot in the dark. There has been absolutely no booking decisions that could have suggested that a match between Samoa Joe and AJ Styles will take place. This match is pure speculation but, when you think about it, it seems like a logical decision.

AJ Styles has been red-hot ever since his championship triumph in late 2017 and has had one of the longest runs with the WWE Championship. Samoa Joe on the other hand, has been a victim of poor booking since his failed championship match against Brock Lesnar. Since the Great Balls of Fire PPV (the name still makes me cringe), Samoa Joe has not been involved in a consistent rivalry or been in the championship picture. Thus, this title shot is redemption for Joe.

WWE could be looking to recreate the magic that Samoa Joe and AJ Styles have created in their bouts in ROH and TNA. Only time will tell if WWE can approach this feud with a proper story-line.

Remember, this match is pure speculation and it will be until GM Paige announces the opponent for Styles on this week's SmackDown. Still, it can be fair to predict that Styles will retain and will soon cross CM Punk's record for the longest reigning WWE Champion.

Winner: AJ Styles

Match predictions: Not enough info