WWE’s SummerSlam 2023 pay-per-view is still a few weeks away, but three of the heavily-rumored matches were officially confirmed for the card on this week’s Monday Night Raw. The first came at the start of the night when Brock Lesnar returned and delivered yet another beating to Cody Rhodes, accepting his challenge for a tiebreaker match with “The American Nightmare.” While there have been rumors this third encounter might have a stipulation as opposed to their first two matches at Backlash and Night of Champions, none was mentioned during Rhodes’ promo or Lesnar’s brief response.
Another grudge match booked for the show was Ronda Rousey vs. Shayna Baszler. This stemmed from Baszler deciding to turn on Rousey back at Money in the Bank during their WWE Women’s Tag Team match, though Baszler has been portrayed as the hero of the story ever since while Rousey has been positioned as the stuck-up celebrity. This match was apparently booked so quickly due to Rousey having a “hard out” in her current WWE contract.
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Finally, the show got its first title match when it was announced Seth Rollins would once again defend his World Heavyweight Championship against Finn Balor in a rematch from Money in the Bank. Rollins cut a pre-taped promo midway through the show about all of the different potential challengers out there, only to get cut off by Balor with demands of another match. Rollins seemed to pacify him at first, only for Balor to jump him when his guard was down.
WWE SummerSlam 2023 Card & Rumored Matches
While three matches have been confirmed for the show, another handful have either been hinted at or reported on in recent weeks. You can see the full list below:
- World Heavyweight Championship: Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor
- Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar
- Ronda Rousey vs. Shayna Baszler
- Undisputed WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso (Yet to Be Confirmed)
- Becky Lynch vs. Trish Stratus (Yet to Be Confirmed)
- Ricochet vs. Logan Paul (Yet to Be Confirmed)
- Intercontinental Championship: Gunther vs. Drew McIntyre (Rumored)
- SmackDown Women’s Championship: Asuka vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Bianca Belair (Rumored)
- Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships: Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs. TBA (Rumored)
Cody Rhodes’ Documentary Premiere Date Confirmed
Peacock officially announced a documentary centered on the life and career of Cody Rhodes on Monday — American Nightmare: Becoming Cody Rhodes — and dropped the first trailer ahead of its July 31 release date.
The official synopsis for the documentary reads, “Cody Rhodes grew up living in the shadow of his father, WWE Hall of Famer ‘The American Dream’ Dusty Rhodes. In 2016, Cody risked it all by leaving WWE to make a name for himself, becoming the ‘American Nightmare.’ This intimate and revealing documentary follows Cody’s journey away from the WWE, and his return at WrestleMania 38 last year, as he chases the dream of winning the WWE championship, the one title his father was never able to claim. Through never-before-seen footage and unprecedented access, this Peacock Original illustrates the transformation of a man who is blazing a new trail in sports entertainment.”
