The pro wrestling world is about to take over Nashville for SummerSlam 2022 Weekend. Not only will WWE have more than 30,000 fans inside Nissan Stadium for Saturday’s premium live event, but the Starrcast convention is back and promotions like GCW, New Japan Pro-Wrestling and Black Label Pro are all running shows inside the Nashville Fairgrounds. The weekend will then conclude with the Ric Flair’s Last Match pay-per-view at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium, featuring wrestlers from almost every major pro wrestling promotion in the world.
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Below are seven matches you should go out of your way to see this weekend. Which show are you most excited about? Let us know down in the comments!
Ric Flair & Andrade El Idolo vs. Jeff Jarrett & Jay Lethal (Ric Flair’s Last Match)
However you may feel about “The Nature Boy” stepping back in the ring for one more match, you can’t deny the intrigue the Starrcast folks have managed to build around this match. Will it be the best bell-to-bell match of the weekend? Probably not. But there’s definitely a chance it can deliver the most emotional moment of the weekend.
Impact World Championship: Josh Alexander vs. Jacob Fatu (Ric Flair’s Last Match)
It’s obscene just how many promotions are going to be represented at Ric Flair’s Last Match, but Impact Wrestling has a good chance to outshine all of them. Josh Alexander has been stellar as Impact World Champion and now he gets to face someone in Fatu who utterly dominated MLW’s main event scene for over 800 days.
Raw Women’s Championship: Bianca Belair vs. Becky Lynch (SummerSlam)
Even though it will have the biggest crowd of the weekend, SummerSlam‘s card is looking a little rough. It just lost Riddle vs. Seth Rollins and six of its eight matches are rematches from WrestleMania 38, Money in the Bank, or in the case of The Mysterios vs. Judgement Day, this week’s Raw. But Belair vs. Lynch wound up being one of the undisputed highlights of WrestleMania and they’ll likely find a way to top that this time around.
Kushida vs. Alex Shelley (NJPW’s Music City Mayhem)
Kushida is back in New Japan and he’s taking on his old Time Splitters tag team partner. This match alone makes the New Japan event worth buying.
GCW World Championship: Jon Moxley vs. Blake Christian (The People vs. GCW)
It’s a Jon Moxley GCW World Championship match in the year of our Lord 2022, you knew it was making the list.
Mike Bailey vs. Tony Deppen
“Speedball” Mike Bailey has been making a strong case to be considered one of the best wrestlers of 2022, even if most of his national exposure has been in Impact Wrestling’s X Division. A match against ROH’s Tony Deppen should continue that trend.
Konosuke Takeshita vs. Nick Wayne (Black Label Pro: The Gang Crosses The Line)
It’s a battle of two of AEW’s biggest prospects. Even though he has lost every major TV match, Takeshita has consistently impressed fans every time AEW gives him an opportunity on either Dynamite or Rampage. Meanwhile, online wrestling fans are seemingly buzzing about a new Nick Wayne match every weekend.
Honorable Mentions
- Bandido vs. Laredo Kid vs. Rey Fenix vs. Taurus (Ric Flair’s Last Match) — A four-way match with four of the best luchadors in the world should make for an outstanding spot fest.
- Violence is Forever vs. Shark Boy & Dan The Dad (Black Label Pro: The Gang Crosses The Line) — Violence is Forever has been climbing up the ranks of the independent scene as a tag team, especially in Tennessee. Having Shark Boy and Dan all but guarantees this will be a comedy match, but it should still be a fun one.
- Alan Angels vs. Jonathan Gresham vs. Konosuka Takeshita vs. Nick Wayne (Ric Flair’s Last Match)— This match still seems up in the air given Gresham’s situation, but if it happens it could wind up stealing the show.
- Impact Knockouts World Championship: Jordynne Grace vs. Deonna Purrazzo vs. Rachael Ellering (Ric Flair’s Last Match) — It may be the only women’s match on the show, but it has three of Impact Wrestling’s best Knockouts.
- Hiromu Takahashi vs. Blake Christian (NJPW Music City Mayhem) — “Time Bomb” matches are usually can’t-miss affairs, and this is just one in what looks like a loaded weekend for Blake Christian
- Jon Moxley vs. El Desperado (No Disqualification) (NJPW Music City Mayhem) — It’s an odd matchup, but most of New Japan’s roster is busy with the G1 Climax tournament back in Japan. Plus, Moxley matches in a New Japan ring are typically excellent.
- Undisputed WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar (Last Man Standing) (SummerSlam) — If nothing else, it will be interesting to see if WWE sticks to its promise of this being the final Reigns/Lesnar match.
