WWE’s biggest event of Summer 2021 took place last night and boy was there were some decisions made.
The first match of the night saw Alexa Bliss take on Eva Marie in a fun but daft outing. The in-ring action wasn’t much to write home about but the sight of Eva Marie paint brushing Lilly was hilarious and we finally got to see Doudrop stand up for herself.
Bliss put Eva Marie away with a DDT before Doudrop rubbed salt in the wound by declaring her as the loser on the house mic.
The next “match” and a huge controversy was the SmackDown Women’s Championship bout.
Originally scheduled to be Sasha Banks vs Bianca Belair II, but due to “unforeseen circumstances” Banks was unable to perform. The match was put into doubt when reports stated that both Banks and Belair were removed from several live shows, however, WWE continued to advertise the match right up until Belair’s entrance. The fact that they hyped up the rematch and its historical predecessor is beyond baffling and false advertising at the highest level. To say it was a disrespectful decision would be an understatement.
Belair was in the ring when it was announced that the Boss wasn’t in the building and would be replaced by Carmella. The crowd when nucking futs when Lynch’s music hit and Belair’s facial reactions were great. What happened next was not so great as Belair dropped the title to The Man in seconds.
Let’s address the controversy. Lynch’s return was epic yet WWE somehow managed to taint it within seconds because the title win came with a heavy cost. Firstly it made Carmella look a chump just having to stand there and get removed from a title opportunity without a fight. Secondly, Belair deserved much, much more than this. She has been a great champion, a fighting champion, and didn’t need to get done this way. Hopefully, there will be some sort of silver lining but judging by WWE’s recent bizarre booking, holding one’s breast isn’t advisable.
It is just unbelievable how WWE are able to mess things up, especially the much-anticipated return of Becky Lynch.
The following match was the triple threat match for the RAW Women’s Championship.
Despite the frustrating build to the match, all three wrestlers had their working boots on and put on a great performance. Charlotte shined throughout, stealing the show and possibly the night.
The match followed the WWE triple threat formula with two wrestlers in the ring while one lays outside, but that didn’t detract from the action in the ring.
The trio worked incredibly but it was all about Charlotte who was at the centre of pretty much everything that went down. There were some great sequences, breathtaking near falls and a climactic finish.
The only and major problem with the outcome of Charlotte winning is why put the title on Nikki ASH in the first place? The whole angle was done in reverse. Nikki won the title and then played the underdog rather than fighting from underneath to finally reach the top. While the decision to put the title on Charlotte is logical it came at the cost of Ripley and Nikki getting mowed down by the Charlotte express. Both former champions now have a long way to go to rebuild themselves as credible challengers. The decision to put the title on Charlotte may be an unpopular one but she once again showed she is one of the best wrestlers operating today.
Let’s get to the winners and losers:
Winner: Becky Lynch
It was brilliant to see Becky Lynch finally make her return to WWE after over a year. The pop was perfect and her reaction to the welcome back was emotional.
She looked phenomenal with her confidence and swagger on full display. She strutted down to the ring as if she had never taken time away. The crowd ate up everything she did on the mic and erupted when the match was set. Cheers flooded the arena when she won the title as the Man made her emphatic return.
It is just so great to see her back, however, WWE chose to make a bizarre decision that Lynch cannot be blamed for at all.
Winner: Charlotte Flair
Charlotte Flair was excellent here. She owned the match and put on one of the performances of the night.
Flair is one of the most consistent wrestlers in the world and has her act down to perfection. As the superior athlete with a family name, heritage and dynasty quickly becoming her own she is at times unstoppable.
The decision to put the belt back on Flair might not be the most popular one but one thing for sure is that she shows out on every single PPV she is on.
Loser: Bianca Belair
Bianca Belair went from participating in one of the most anticipated wrestling rematches in recent times to jobbing out in seconds. It is no way to treat any wrestler, let alone the SmackDown women’s champion.
A tonne of credit must be given to Belair who must’ve gone through a myriad of emotions before going out there and took it all in the chin in seemingly good spirits. But that is where the positivity ends as this decision was Kofi Kingston levels of wrong.
As mentioned earlier hopefully it works out in the future. But we will have to wait for another week to find out.
Loser: Nikki ASH
Nikki ASH was never portrayed as a champion and constantly downplayed on TV to remind us. The build with her as champion consistently falling to her challengers is supposed to lead to her overcoming the odds and prevailing. But WWE chose not to and continued to show her as a fluke champion who had no reason to remain at the top of the mountain.
Hopefully, Nikki ASH will rebound as she has shown time and time again that she is a determined and tenacious talent.
Final Thoughts:
A show that should have been so much more. Becky Lynch’s return should be the talk of the town, but the way WWE did Belair dirty severely tainted it. RAW’s exasperating booking continues as is the point that no one is on Charlotte’s level, except Lynch that is. Now the promotion’s two golden girls hold the gold there may be some effective and thought out booking applied to the women’s division.
What did you make of SummerSlam and the decisions made? Who are your winners and losers? Sound off in the comments below.
