Reported SummerSlam Plans for the US Championship

Recent weeks have seen Shinsuke Nakamura, Randy Orton and Jeff Hardy share stage time. That's no accident, as it's being reported that this trio of Superstars will meet for the US Championship at SummerSlam.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter via Cagesideseats writes that WWE is bound for this direction and could announce the match as soon as Tuesday's episode of SmackDown.

This doesn't come as too much of a surprise as these three men have been involved since Extreme Rules. That night saw Randy Orton return right after Shinsuke Nakamura pinned Hardy to become the new US Champion. While it looked like Orton was set to attack both men, he only targeted the limping Hardy. Two days later he unleashed a gratuitous beatdown of Hardy this time making it bad enough for Hardy to need medical attention. We haven't seen hard since, but he could be back as soon as the evening.

With this triple threat on the loom, it speaks to the current strength of the Us championship. As the 2018 Royal Rumble winner, Nakamura has been a priority this year. while that didn't land him a turn as WWE Champion, he's still been atop SmackDown since WrestleMania. And now that future Hall of Famers like Orton and Hardy will be chasing him, the US Championship feels important.

Before Orton put him on the injured reserved, it was reported that Hardy was dealing back issues. Things were bad enough for the 40-year old to limit his use of the Swanton Bomb as the move irritated his injury. By Orton attacking him WWE bought Hardy a few weeks to heel up. By the time SummerSlam arrives, Hardy should be in good shape.

Right now, we'd guess Nakamura retains his US Championship in Brooklyn. Seeing that he just earned the title, WWE wouldn't accomplish much by having him lose it at the Barclay's Center. Guys like Orton and Hardy are bonafide stars in WWE and can be stuck anywhere in the card and fans will buy it. While Nakamura is just as talented he hasn't been around long enough to have cultivated such a fruitful relationship with the fanbase. In short, Nakamura needs the belt more than Orton and Hardy.

Now that Orton is back to playing the heel, we can expect him to start rising towards the man event, with the possibility of getting a shot at the WWE Championship by year's end. That all depends on who is champion this fall. Right now AJ Styles is enjoying one of the lengthier runs with the title and if he stays on top he and Orton will likely have a program. But Samoa Joe would love to play spoiler.