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What’s the story?
In the main event of SmackDown Live, Shinsuke Nakamura defeated John Cena and will now go on to fight for the world title at SummerSlam.
"The King of Strong Style" will take on "The Modern Day Maharaja" Jinder Mahal for the WWE Championship at the Biggest pay-per-view of the Summer.
In case you didn’t know...
Cena confronted Mahal on last week’s episode of SmackDown and made his intentions known regarding the WWE Championship.
Also Read: WWE News: Baron Corbin attacks Nakamura following Smackdown; Cena makes save
However, before he left the arena, General Manager Daniel Bryan informed Cena that he would have to defeat Nakamura for the right to face Mahal for the WWE Championship and booked this week’s first-time match between The Face That Runs the Place and the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion.
The heart of the matter
Nakamura seemingly had the match won early on in their bout and attempted a Kinshasa only for Cena to evade it and land an Attitude Adjustment for a near fall.
Cena would hit Nakamura with another Attitude Adjustment and rolled through to attempt a third, but Nakamura countered and hit Cena with an inverted exploder suplex and a Kinshasa for the win.
Cena was rumoured to be Mahal’s eventual SummerSlam opponent, back in May, but his loss tonight means he does not have an opponent for the big show.
The result of their number one contender's match confirms Nakamura vs. Mahal as this year’s WWE Championship match at SummerSlam.
This not only marks Nakamura’s first WWE Championship opportunity, but Mahal’s second championship opponent since his title reign began at Backlash.
What’s next?
Tune in next week to see the development of the feud between Nakamura and Mahal as they prepare to fight for SmackDown’s biggest prize.
Cena has had a match at every SummerSlam since 2004, so he will more than likely have an opponent revealed in the next two weeks.
However, Cena not having a match at the pay-per-view could be used to rationalize his rumoured exclusivity to RAW, which is set to happen after SummerSlam.
Author’s Take
Nakamura facing Mahal isn’t a dream match, but it definitely feels like something new.
And as long as they avoid another Punjabi Prison match, their match should be fine.
What makes Sting special? His first AEW opponent opens up RIGHT HERE.
