Every Time The Wrong Match Main Evented WWE SummerSlam

Although it isn’t quite on the level of a WrestleMania main event, being asked to close out the SummerSlam PPV/PLE is still a huge honor and one that suggests WWE’s belief and trust in a particular wrestler. However, over the years SummerSlam has sometimes closed out with the wrong match.

Whether it be a case of another match on the card carrying a far better storyline heading into the event, putting forth a much better match on the night, or the actual main event underwhelming and underdelivering, there have been multiple instances in which WWE made the incorrect choice at the show.

7

Rick Rude Vs. The Ultimate Warrior/Hulk Hogan & Brutus Beefcake Vs. Zeus & Randy Savage (SummerSlam 1989)

• Warrior beating Rude was a strong moment at SummerSlam.
• This was one of SummerSlam 1989’s best matches.
• WWE chose to advertise a movie in the main event of SummerSlam 1989.

SummerSlam 1989 was headlined by Hulk Hogan & Brutus Beefcake taking on Randy Savage and No Holds Barred movie star Zeus, who wasn’t even a real wrestler. WWE opted to promote this movie in what was ultimately a very poor match.

At the time, The Ultimate Warrior was a rising big star in WWE, and ending the show with his big Intercontinental Title victory over Rick Rude would’ve been a great way to sign off the PPV. WWE was in no business of choosing anyone over Hulk Hogan at the time though.

6

Bret Hart Vs. Mr Perfect/Hulk Hogan & Ultimate Warrior Vs. Triangle Of Terror (SummerSlam 1991)

• Hart vs. Perfect was the best of the night at SummerSlam.
• The Ultimate Warrior controversy should’ve stopped this being the main event.
• WWE’s SummerSlam 1991 main event was poor.

SummerSlam 1991 had a messy main event both in execution and behind the scenes. The Ultimate Warrior threatened to no-show amidst pay disputes and was fired soon after, so it would have made even more sense for SummerSlam to close out without this controversial matchup.

A far better choice would’ve been Bret Hart vs. Mr. Perfect for the Intercontinental Championship, which was the best match of the night and one of SummerSlam’s best ever matches. Ending the show with a title match rather than a non-title handicap bout would have been preferable.

5

Bret Hart Vs. Owen Hart/The Undertaker Vs. The Undertaker (SummerSlam 1994)

• Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart in an all-timer WWE match.
• This is WWE’s greatest Steel Cage match in history.
• SummerSlam was main evented by The Undertaker fighting his imposter.

At SummerSlam 1994, Bret Hart and Owen Hart had yet another classic, this time inside a Steel Cage with the WWE Championship on the line. On paper, this sounds like the perfect main event for a WWE PPV and one that would need a mighty huge match to usurp it in that position… but for some reason WWE selected The Undertaker vs. The Undertaker.

This ridiculous imposter storyline was one that would’ve been suited to the middle of the card, but the unhinged directive in WWE led it to closing out the night in an abomination of a match.

4

Razor Ramon Vs. Shawn Michaels/Diesel Vs. Mabel (SummerSlam 1995)

• Ramon vs. Michaels had a rematch from their WrestleMania ladder match classic.
• This was the best match of the night at SummerSlam 1995.
• Diesel vs. Mabel is WWE’s worst SummerSlam main event ever.

Diesel vs. King Mabel was an example of the sorry excuse of the main event scene in WWE at this period of time. Even though they collided over the WWE Championship, there is no way that this should’ve been the show-closer.

The card featured a ladder rematch between Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels, once again battling over the Intercontinental Title. Considering how incredible their WrestleMania 10 match was, WWE should have trusted the pair to end the night in the main event.

3

Finn Balor Vs. Seth Rollins/Brock Lesnar Vs. Randy Orton (SummerSlam 2016)

• Balor & Rollins battled to become the first ever Universal Champion.
• WWE picked the non-title Lesnar vs. Orton.
• The ending to SummerSlam 2016 was terrible.

SummerSlam 2016 featured the historic moment in which WWE introduced a brand new world title; the Universal Championship. On paper, it would’ve made the world of sense for Finn Balor’s major title win over Seth Rollins to be in the main event spot… but as ever during this period, WWE preferred to feature the part-time Brock Lesnar in that big match instead.

Lesnar vs. Randy Orton was billed as a dream match, but it had zero stakes and no titles on the line, also featuring a horrendous finish.

2

Carmella Vs. Becky Lynch Vs. Charlotte FLair/Roman Reigns Vs. Brock Lesnar (SummerSlam 2018)

• The hottest match on the show was Lynch vs. Flair vs. Carmella.
• Lynch’s post-match turn got a major reaction at SummerSlam.
• Reigns & Lesnar had yet another underwhelming PPV main event.

Fans had seen Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar in so many PPV main events, so there was no need for them to be in that spot yet again. Even though Roman Reigns finally got his win over Lesnar, the match was bland and short and far off from the quality of what a WWE main event should be.

Instead, WWE could’ve and should’ve booked the first ever women’s main event at SummerSlam as Carmella defended the SmackDown Women’s Championship against Charlotte Flair & Becky Lynch in a fun bout that featured a big turn in the aftermath, bringing about the biggest reaction of the whole night.

1

Asuka Vs. Bianca Belair Vs. Charlotte Flair/Roman Reigns Vs. Jey Uso (SummerSlam 2023)

• Iyo Sky’s Money In The Bank cash-in was the moment of the night.
• Asuka vs. Belair vs. Flair was a strong WWE Women’s Title match.
• Reigns vs. Uso is an all-time bad SummerSlam main event.

The main event of SummerSlam 2023 was a long, terrible, and overbooked match involving Roman Reigns and Jey Uso. It made sense for the match to be in this spot given the build, but the execution of the bout made it a poor choice. Instead, WWE should’ve gone with the far better Asuka vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Bianca Belair match for the WWE Championship.

Iyo Sky cashed in the Money In The Bank contract in the aftermath, which would have been the perfect feel-good way to sign off on the night.