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Last year, SummerSlam was supposed to take place at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. However, due to COVID-19, SummerSlam took place in Orlando, Florida at the WWE Thunderdome (Amway Center), in front of zero fans. SummerSlam 2020 was the 33rd iteration of the show, and the first WWE pay-per-view held at the Thunderdome.
SummerSlam 2020 was headlined by then Universal Champion Braun Strowman defending his title against "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt in a Falls Count Anywhere match. Also notable on the show was the in-ring debut of Dominik Mysterio, taking on Seth Rollins in a street fight.
So, let's go back and look at the winners of each of the 9 matches at the 2020 SummerSlam, and see where they are today.
#8. SummerSlam Pre-Show Winner: Apollo Crews
At SummerSlam 2020, Apollo Crews defended his United States Championship against MVP on the pre-show. The Hurt Business were not allowed ringside for the match, allowing Crews the ability to hit MVP with his finisher to retain his title.
Since SummerSlam 2020, Apollo Crews has not only turned heel, but has debuted a new character. Crews declared himself Nigerian royalty and began speaking with a Nigerian accent. Crews (real name Sesugh Uhaa Mumba) is actually of Nigerian descent which makes the character seem a tad more believable.
At WrestleMania 37, Crews challenged Big E for the Intercontinental Championship in a Nigerian Drum Fight. With the help of his new muscle Commander Azeez (previously Babatunde), Crews became the Intercontinental Champion for the first time in his career. Crews lost the title to King Nakamura on an episode of SmackDown in August 2021.
#7. SummerSlam 2020 Opening Match Winner: Bayley
After the pre-show, the opening match for SummerSlam was Asuka's first match of the night, challenging then WWE SmackDown Women's Champion Bayley for the title. With Sasha Banks at ringside, Bayley was able to roll Asuka up after she knocked Banks off of the ring apron to retain her title.
Banks and Bayley would lose their WWE Women's Tag Team Championships to Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. At Hell in a Cell, Bayley's SmackDown Women's Championship reign would come to an end at 380 days at the hands of Banks.
Bayley was named captain of Team SmackDown at Survivor Series, and entered the Royal Rumble at number 1 but was eliminated by the eventual winner Bianca Belair. Bayley had some unsuccessful attempts at reclaiming the SmackDown Women's title and unfortunately suffered a torn ACL at the Performance Center on July 9th, an injury that will sideline her for 9 months.
#6. SummerSlam Match 2 Winners: The Street Profits
At SummerSlam 2020, Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford put their Raw Tag Team Championships on the line against Andrade and Angel Garza and retained their titles.
Two months after SummerSlam, The Street Profits were drafted to SmackDown, and the SmackDown Tag Team Champions (The New Day) were drafted to Raw. The Street Profits and New Day swapped titles, and The Street Profits became just the second team to acquire WWE Tag Team Triple Crown (tag titles in NXT, Raw, and SmackDown).
The Street Profits lost the SmackDown Tag Team Championships to Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode in January 2021. In June, Montez Ford suffered a partial rib fracture causing him to be out of action for months, while Dawkins was seen in singles matches. Ford returned in August as he and Dawkins defeated Ziggler and Roode.
#5. SummerSlam Match 3 Winner: Mandy Rose
At SummerSlam 2020, Mandy Rose battled her former Absolution and Fire & Desire teammate, Sonya Deville, in a no disqualifications match, with the loser leaving the WWE. Mandy won the match (which was originally a hair vs. hair match) and Sonya began a hiatus from the company.
Since her win at SummerSlam, not much has happened for Mandy. Her romantic angle with Otis has ended, and her brief tag team with Dana Brooke has met the same fate. Mandy Rose has recently been moved to NXT, but her reasoning for being there has yet to be revealed, with some believing it will be in a managerial role for some time.
#4. Match 4 Winner: Seth Rollins
Seth Rollins was right in the middle of his Monday Night Messiah gimmick when SummerSlam 2020 rolled around, and he fought Dominik Mysterio, who was making his in-ring debut for the WWE. With Murphy in his corner, Rollins was able to defeat Dominik, making him an impressive 7-1 at SummerSlam.
Following his SummerSlam victory, Seth has been very busy in and out of the ring. He dropped the Messiah gimmick shortly before going on paternity leave for the birth of his and Becky Lynch's child. He returned at the 2021 Royal Rumble but was eliminated by the eventual winner Edge. Rollins began feuding with Cesaro where he would face him 4 times, winning 2 out of the 4.
Rollins will face Edge at this year's SummerSlam, making him just 1 of the 2 winners from SummerSlam 2020 that have matches at SummerSlam 2021.
#3. SummerSlam Match 6 Winner: Asuka
Asuka competed once again at SummerSlam 2020 after failing to defeat Bayley earlier in the night. Much like how Sasha Banks accompanied Bayley to the ring for her match, Bayley accompanied Sasha to the ring for hers. Asuka was able to walk out of SummerSlam with the title, and Bayley and Sasha's friendship was brought into question again.
After SummerSlam, Asuka mostly defended her title against Zelina Vega, and began feuding with Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax with Lana (and later Charlotte) on her team.
Rhea Ripley challenged Asuka for the title at WrestleMania 37, which Asuka would lose, ending her reign at 231 days. Asuka hasn't been seen since losing the Money in the Bank match in July 2021.
#2. SummerSlam Match 7 Winner: Drew McIntyre
Around the time of SummerSlam 2020, Drew McIntyre was on top of the WWE world. He was in the middle of his first WWE Championship reign, and was facing Randy Orton at SummerSlam. McIntyre defeated Orton, but would lose the title just 2 months later to Orton in a Hell in a Cell match.
McIntyre regained the WWE Championship after defeating Orton less than a month later. Drew made successful retentions against stars like AJ Styles, The Miz, Keith Lee and Goldberg. At Elimination Chamber, The Miz cashed in the Money in the Bank briefcase to defeat McIntyre for the title.
Unsuccessful challenges to regain his title against Bobby Lahsley have led to McIntyre being involved in a feud with former 3MB partner Jinder Mahal. He will face Mahal at SummerSlam 2021, where Veer and Shanky will be banned from ringside.
#1. SummerSlam Main Event Winner: "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt
In the main event of SummerSlam 2020, newly crowned Universal Champion Braun Strowman put his title on the line against his former Wyatt Family partner, Bray Wyatt. Bray Wyatt's "Fiend" gimmick was in a rough spot with the fans at this point, as the momentum he had garnered before the COVID-19 pandemic seemed to have faded at the time of his SummerSlam match.
Wyatt defeated Strowman to become Universal Champion for the second time in his career. This match was also notable due to what happened afterward, as Roman Reigns returned to the ring and seemingly (at that time) turned heel. Just a week later, The Fiend lost the Universal Championship to Roman Reigns.
Following his title loss, The Fiend joined forces with Alexa Bliss and entered into a long feud with Randy Orton. Orton set The Fiend on fire at TLC, and 3 months later The Fiend returned with a new charred look. At WrestleMania 37, The Fiend lost to the Orton again, and the next day he appeared in a Firefly Funhouse segment saying he was looking forward to a fresh start.
That Firefly Funhouse appearance was the last time we would see Bray Wyatt in the WWE, as he was released on July 31, 2021, ending his 12-year career with the company. Rumors around the wrestling business stated that The Fiend was scheduled to return sometime in August, and potentially have a match at SummerSlam 2021. Both Wyatt and Strowman were released from the company shortly after main eventing SummerSlam 2020.
