Since its inception, SummerSlam has been one of the most important shows of the year for WWE. That was no different this year, with SummerSlam signaling a major shift for many of WWE’s biggest stars.
Titles changed hands, factions were fractured and one of wrestling’s biggest stars made his return after many months away from the spotlight.
In many ways, SummerSlam was not only laying the groundwork for the remainder of the year but also the long build to 2025’s WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas.
If you’re looking to get caught up on the wild world of WWE, we’ve got you covered. Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about where things stand now.
New champions in charge
Check out the full list of WWE champions here
Gunther, who set a record for longest reign as intercontinental champion at 666 days, defeated Damian Priest to become the world heavyweight champion. Years ago, there were reports that Vince McMahon had lost faith in Gunther as a major player in WWE despite his presence as the cornerstone of the now-defunct NXT UK. With McMahon gone from WWE seemingly for good amid sex trafficking and abuse scandals that are now being investigated at the federal level, Gunther was finally given the full chance to shine and has not disappointed.
After elevating the intercontinental championship with a record-setting reign that also featured heaps of fantastic matches, fans were willing to buy into Gunther as a top-level champion. After beating Priest, he now has the chance to prove that to be the case. His first title defense is already set as he will defend the title against WWE legend Randy Orton at Bash in Berlin on Aug. 31.
Nia Jax also captured a world title at SummerSlam, taking down Bayley to win the WWE women’s championship. This year has been a fantastic redemption year for Jax, who was once cut from WWE and was considered by many to be reckless and dangerous in the ring. However, she has been a steady hand and produced the best work of her career in 2024, both in the ring and on the microphone. After winning the Queen of the Ring tournament, Jax punched her ticket to a title match and made good by ending Bayley’s reign.
Two other titles changed hands at SummerSlam, with LA Knight defeating Logan Paul to win the United States championship and Bron Breakker taking out Sami Zayn to become intercontinental champion.
Knight’s long career journey now has a signature moment with a main roster championship victory. There was a point when Knight may have been one of the two or three most over men in WWE, but some of the steam was lost when he came up short in a bid to defeat then-undisputed champion Roman Reigns. Knight finally reached a major championship, though, and not too soon given he’s a few months away from his 42nd birthday.
Breakker is the other end of the spectrum, closing in on his 27th birthday and being treated as a monster powerhouse who will be a cornerstone of WWE programming for the next decade, if not longer. Zayn is a beloved figure in wrestling and got one win over Breakker, but Breakker’s SummerSlam win was inevitable and now it’s up to him and WWE to not screw up his momentum.
What’s going on with The Bloodline?
Roman Reigns made his return at SummerSlam, coming in and destroying the new-look Bloodline that resembles nothing of the group he built with his cousins, The Usos, in 2021. In returning, Reigns cost Solo Sikoa his undisputed WWE championship match against Cody Rhodes.
After Reigns lost the title to Rhodes at WrestleMania 40, he disappeared from WWE TV. Sikoa decided to fill the vacuum of leadership, kicked Jimmy Uso out of the group and led a new Bloodline with Tama Tonga, Tonga Loa, and the breakout star of the group, Jacob Fatu. For as evil as the group was under Reigns, Sikoa’s version added in a mix of wild unpredictability and an instability rooted in Sikoa’s attempt to cover his insecurities as the true new version of “the man” in the group.
Sikoa had also declared himself the new “Tribal Chief” and told Paul Heyman that Reigns was never coming back. He would pay a heavy price for those actions and now things are set up for Reigns vs. Sikoa — or, more likely, Reigns’ Bloodline vs. the Sikoa version.
This could reach its first major moment at Survivor Series: Wargames. It’s easy to see Sikoa, Tonga, Loa and Fatu taking on Reigns, Jey and Jimmy Uso and a surprise partner (Rhodes?) inside WarGames.
What about Judgment Day?
Judgment Day went through a major overhaul in the wake of SummerSlam. While it has been clear for months that Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley have been drifting from the heel roots of the group, they are officially out. Priest was cost the world heavyweight championship when Finn Balor repeatedly interfered to help Gunther and Ripley lost her match with women’s world champion Liv Morgan when Dominik Mysterio turned his back on her and helped Morgan get the win, followed by sharing a kiss with Morgan after the match.
On one hand, it’s hard to feel sorry for Priest and Ripley. Mysterio is with the group because Priest and Ripley manipulated him into turning his back on his own family and they have never actually addressed those actions while being turned to the babyface side. But Ripley and Priest are more over with the crowd now than they’ve ever been before.
The new Judgment Day, as introduced on the Raw after SummerSlam, is Balor, Mysterio, Morgan, JD McDonagh and Carlito. Those five are likely in for some long months ahead as Priest and Ripley will be looking for revenge at every turn.
What other storylines will dominate the coming months?
The issues between CM Punk and Drew McIntyre are far from over. McIntyre won their match at SummerSlam when Punk lost focus over the bracelet his wife made for him, which McIntyre stole. When Punk saw the bracelet on special guest referee Seth Rollins’ wrist, he lost focus and instead of finishing off McIntyre, went after Rollins. That opened things up for McIntyre to hit a low blow and finish Punk off.
Clearly, the story is nowhere near its conclusion and McIntyre again had the bracelet on Raw, sending Punk scrambling from a confrontation with Rollins in the ring in an effort to chase McIntyre down.
Punk leaving the ring turned out to be a bad thing for Rollins, as he was blindsided by Bronson Reed. Looking to make a name for himself, Reed unleashed a vicious attack on Rollins, including delivering six Tsunamis. Rollins was left spitting up blood and it’s certain that Reed locked up a major storyline through the attack. This is good as Reed needs the opportunity to see if he can be a major player and Rollins needs an opponent to work while he gets back in ring shape after his return from injury against Priest resulted in an unusually bad Rollins match.
With the first post-SummerSlam SmackDown going down on Friday, fans are sure to get a glimpse into what’s coming down the pike for the “blue brand.”
