SummerSlam 2024: Biggest Takeaways And What Happens Next
In the eyes of most people, WWE’s SummerSlam 2024 PLE delivered. Overall, most of the matches went chalk, and most of the returns and swerves were telegraphed in advance. However, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. There were a couple of unexpected moments, too! The event really gave us a lot to digest and even more to unpack over the next weeks and months. From several new champions being crowned to the drama of the Judgment Day, there is so much to talk about.
SummerSlam 2024 gave us what Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer called “an angle event.” While it is fair to say that the show was filled with angles for storylines…isn’t most professional wrestling like that, Mr. Meltzer? It is odd to make this event out to be some sort of anomaly compared to other wrestling shows. Of course, WWE Creative has shifted from the norm under Triple H. In fact, Triple H claimed during the post-show that “we have not seen anything yet,” which is exciting to hear.
However, before we get to all that, we need to discuss this event. Specifically, we need to dive into the biggest takeaways from SummerSlam 2024 and then discuss what might come next.
THE JUDGMENT DAY IS OVER…MAYBE
What a night for the purple gang of WWE. First, “Dirty” Dom finally did what we all saw coming for weeks. He betrayed his “Mami,” Rhea Ripley, and cost her a chance to win back her WWE World Women’s Championship. His liplock with Liv Morgan sent shockwaves through the WWE Universe and left Rhea both broken and fuming at the exact same time.
Damian Priest was just as angry about this, but he had his own problems. Later that night, he faced Gunther when Finn Balor came out. At first, Balor appeared to be there to help Priest, but we’d soon see Balor betray his stablemate. This ultimately cost Priest the World Heavyweight Championship. This was surprising to many, but WWE had been building this type of animosity with the two dating back to even before WrestleMania 40.
So, Judgement Day is over, right? Well, maybe.
The truth is that what we might be looking at is a schism and a rip between the factions. Priest and Ripley would be out. Meanwhile, JD, Carlito, Dom, Finn, and Liv Morgan are in. Our guess is that they tell Priest and Ripley that they were too focused on themselves. They lost sight of the collective group, but Liv helped them and put the focus back on the unit.
The other question is, who does Priest and Ripley get to even the odds? Rhea and Liv cancel each other out but Priest is woefully outnumbered. Very few allies would be willing to step up. Maybe Sami Zayn and Jey Uso could team up with Damien but something tells us they might have other business to attend to over the next few months.
The Judgement Day might be over as we know it, but this chapter is at the beginning.
LIV MORGAN IS A SUPERSTAR…OFFICIALLY
The WWE universe has always liked Liv Morgan, but after SummerSlam 2024, it’s a full-blown love affair. We finally see what Dom sees. The truth is that this run over the last few months has been big for Morgan. It is literal superstar-making, and last night was a culmination.
The biggest question people had when watching Liv was if she could come off as believable against an opponent. This is especially a problem when that opponent might be twice her size. No one would expect Liv to manhandle Rhea Ripley, but we needed some way to make her credible.
Liv was sneaky, calculating, and exploited weaknesses all night long. Of course, we could have expected her to go after her shoulder, and she did. However, constantly slipping out of the ring and taking every extra shot was part of her brilliance in the match. It felt believable.
Now Liv will be one half of the most talked about and most hated couples in WWE history. The road in front of Liv looks clear with bright blue skies. Nothing is stopping her at this point. If WWE is wise, they are going to let her hold onto the WWE Women’s World Title for quite some time.
GUNTHER’s WORLD TITLE REIGN STARTS NOW…GET COMFORTABLE
One of the obvious picks on the night was Gunther winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. While you might not have had Balor helping him out, the outcome was still the same. The reign of “The Ring General” on top of the RAW card is upon us.
If his reign as the WWE Intercontinental Champion is any indication, you should not look for him to lose that championship any time soon. This guy has lost just three times since coming to the main roster. The odds that he loses in the next 6-12 months feel foolish. Also, in order to take the title off of him, you need a story that is compelling enough to do it.
With stars like Drew McIntyre, CM Punk, and Seth Rollins in a hate triangle of their own, there doesn’t appear to be the level of credible challengers waiting in the wings to dethrone Gunther any time soon.
Jey Uso, Bron Breakker, and Ilja Dragunov are possible candidates. However, Jey might be busy, and Bron just won the IC Title..so he will be dealing with a load of challengers soon. Ilja, who beat Gunther for the NXT UK title, is not quite ready to take the crown and be the champion.
If this writer were a betting man, we’d say he’d still be holding the title this time next year. Get comfortable because we’re going to be here awhile.
THE CLOCK IS TICKING FOR NIA JAX…LITERALLY
We’re all happy to see “Queen” Nia Jax get her second WWE Women’s Championship after beating Bayley in their SummerSlam 2024 match. She earned it with a great run since she came back to the WWE last year. However, this story is not about who has the title but who is waiting in the wings to take it from her.
Tiffany Stratton is over and couldn’t cool off if she tried at this moment in time. Seriously, the clock is ticking closer and closer to “Tiffy Time” with that championship.
The vibe between her and Nia is fun with the Queen and the “Princess,” but that storyline will tire quickly. It’s possible that they could throw Nia into feuds with Naomi, Bianca Belair. and Jade Cargill to keep the momentum going. However, something tells us that’s not how it’s going to work out.
The WWE sees big money in Bianca vs Tiffany or Jade vs Tiffany.
While Nia will get her run, this feels like it could be short-lived. Could it last a month? It could be longer than that, but it’s very unlikely that Nia will make it to the end of the calendar year with the title around her waist.
Nia Jax can hear it right now. It’s “Tiffy Time.” Almost.
CM PUNK vs DREW McINTYRE IS GETTING MESSY…AND NOT IN A GOOD WAY
It is incredible to have a story this good for 8 months involving CM Punk, despite Punk not being able to wrestle for most of it. That’s storytelling at its finest. Of course, props go to Drew, who is on the run of his life and doing the best work he ever has.
Something about last night felt off, however.
Punk has been clear-headed about everything up to this point, including not getting too bothered by Seth. He’s laughed off Seth’s attempts to get under his skin. He’s been clear that Drew is his own worst enemy.
It didn’t make sense for CM Punk to get so bent out of shape about seeing the bracelet on Rollin’s wrist at SummerSlam 2024. Win the match and take the bracelet back. It’s not as if Seth was running down the entrance ramp to the back. He was the referee for the match!
Plus, it’s confusing to add Rollins to the mix when the physical part of the feud between Drew and Punk is just getting started. Adding Seth does make for more angles to play. However, what we should be getting is the blood feud that culminates in the most violence and aggression. To this point, what Seth has done to Punk is very small compared to what Drew has done.
Putting them in the same feud at the same time feels like a miscalculation.
This is likely to continue for at least another few months. We saw how much they could do with just two people. Therefore, the twists and turns with another party in the mix could make for some epic moments. It feels a bit forced, but we’re here, and things will only get more complicated.
BRON BREAKKER IS OFFICIALLY A WORLD DESTROYER…ENTER JOHN CENA
This wasn’t a squash match, but it wasn’t particularly close. We believe WWE is trying to tell the story that when focused and locked in appropriately, there isn’t a person on the planet who can break Bron Breakker. He’s capable of beating anyone at any time. His match at SummerSlam 2024 should have put the rest of the locker room on notice.
Similar to the Gunther issue, there doesn’t seem to be a person who can take on Bron with the exception of maybe one of the all-time greats who lacks the IC title in his resume. You “can’t see him” now because he’s doing “Hollywood” things, but you’ll see him eventually.
Pairing John Cena with Bron could be incredible if done right. That would begin with WWE not just using Cena to put the young talent over. Rather, using Cena to tell a compelling story in his last year of active wrestling. Having Bron stand in the way of Cena crossing off the one thing that evaded him his entire career could make for incredible matches.
Also, the idea of a powerful Bron against one of the strongest wrestlers of all-time, John Cena, is a ticket that might just sell itself.
EXPECT A MULTI-LAYERED BLOODLINE STORY
Roman Reigns returning at SummerSlam 2024 was as satisfying as we expected. Solo Sikoa had been talking trash for weeks, but the Original Tribal Chief came back and handled his business. Roman will return to television soon, and it will be interesting when he does. However, this story is just beginning.
Roman is outnumbered. Even if he wants the Bloodline back in his grasp, he’ll have to even the numbers. Solo’s team is likely to stick by him, no matter what. Roman has alienated everyone he could call back into the fold: Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, and Sami Zayn. If Roman is going to restore order to the Bloodline, he’ll have to mend some fences first.
Then there’s the “Final Boss.” Remember early on when Roman was away, and Solo said he’d been talking to the Tribal Chief while he was away? Are we sure he was talking about Roman? We doubt it. You can bet he was talking about The Rock, who might have been the one making every call. Also, for a guy as unhinged as The Final Boss, guys like Tama Tonga and Jacob Fatu seem exactly like the kind of people he would approve of.
There’s still the issue of the Universal Championship. Roman is going to want that championship back at some point. Where does he stand with Cody, and where does Cody stand with him? Can Reigns try to recapture his championship when he might have a whole family to contend with?
We can’t remember if this is the bottom of the third, top of the ninth, or if we’re in extra innings. Yet the story has been compelling, and we believe there’s a ton of room to grow this story even more.
