WWE SummerSlam 2025 Potential Surprises And Returns
WWE SummerSlam 2025 will be the first-ever two-night edition of WWE's summer spectacle, and it features a slew of matches with major long-term ramifications.
Among them, John Cena will defend his WWE Championship against Cody Rhodes in a Street Fight, a bout that will undoubtedly play a significant role in determining Cena's trajectory over the last five months of his retirement tour. In addition, CM Punk vs. Gunther for the WWE Championship, the likely main event of Saturday's show, will have a domino effect that trickles down Raw's entire main event scene.
The massive show in MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey could feature more than 45,000 fans in attendance for each night, and they may be in for a number of big surprises and blockbuster returns.
Bayley Turns Heel On Lyra Valkyria
When Becky Lynch defends her WWE Women's Intercontinental Championship against Lyra Valkyria, there will be no disqualifications and no countouts. In addition, if Valkyria loses, she can never challenge Lynch for the IC title again.
Well, that sure smells like a recipe for Valkyria to lose in cheap fashion, doesn't it? WWE has not-so-subtly planted the seeds for Lynch to retain with the help of an old rival: Bayley. 'The Role Model' has made it quite clear that she isn't happy about being left off the SummerSlam card, and she has put that blame squarely on the shoulders of Valkyria.
Look, anyone who has watched WWE consistently can tell you that a babyface star being shafted out of a title by a fellow babyface, even if it happens inadvertently, lays the perfect framework for an epic heel turn. With Bayley, Valkyria and Lynch all pursuing the same title in a never-ending vortex of feuds and matches, the best finish at WWE SummerSlam is for Bayley to cost Valkyria the match and turn heel in the process.
Plus, with the No DQs, No Countouts stipulation, WWE is practically telling fans that it will happen even though Bayley remains very popular.
Gunther Beats CM Punk Cleanly
When it comes to the World Heavyweight title match, one scenario that seems to be overlooked is Gunther actually winning cleanly.
With this bout penciled in to headline WWE SummerSlam on Saturday, the prevailing thought is that it will end with some sort of significant storyline development, perhaps with CM Punk winning his first world title in WWE in 12 years. In reality, though, Gunther only just won back the World Heavyweight Championship and is one of the most protected wrestlers in all of WWE.
In other words, it's far from a shoo-in that Gunther loses cleanly, or loses at all, even though the widespread expectation is that Punk is a lock to win at WWE SummerSlam.
Seth Rollins Returns At WWE SummerSlam and Cashes In
Despite suffering what appeared to be a legitimate leg injury at WWE Saturday Night's Main Event, WWE has reportedly penciled in a Seth Rollins cash-in for WWE SummerSlam 2025.
The idea is for WWE fans to think that Rollins will be out of action for several months, only for 'The Visionary' to actually return at SummerSlam mere weeks after his supposed injury. Given that Rollins has vowed time and time again that he will never let Punk become world champion, his cash-in is expected to close out SummerSlam Saturday.
That leaves three potential options: Rollins cashes in during the match to make it a triple threat a la Naomi, or he cashes in afterward, whether on Punk or Gunther. Of those choices, the most logical is Rollins cashing in during the match to ensure that Punk doesn't get to become champion at all.
With such a cloud of uncertainty hanging over Rollins' status, a possible surprise WWE SummerSlam return would send the New Jersey crowd into an absolute frenzy.
John Cena And Cody Rhodes Execute a WWE SummerSlam Double Turn
Although WWE rather recently rejected an idea to turn Cody Rhodes heel, the company has hinted during his feud with John Cena that it's an actual possibility.
The main reason why? Well, Cena is clearly taking small steps toward making a return to his babyface roots, and at times during their rivalry, the two stars have appeared to flip-flop face and heel roles. While that's based largely on crowd reaction more than anything else, it appears to be a virtual certainty that Cena will return to being a fan favorite mere months after his epic Elimination Chamber heel turn.
Of course, Cena transitioning back to a babyface role doesn't necessarily mean that Rhodes turns heel, and it would be risky to turn Rhodes given that he's arguably WWE's most popular star. But the majority of WWE's fan base had given up on a potential Cena heel turn. Then, boom. It finally happened.
Rhodes is in a different spot as WWE's No. 1 full-time face, but if there was ever a time to turn him heel, WWE SummerSlam is it.
The Rock Makes Surprise WWE SummerSlam Return
The follow-up to Cena's heel turn has been married by Travis Scott's 'falling out' with and The Rock's bizarre disappearance from the storyline altogether.
At last word, there also was no real sign that The Rock is returning at WWE SummerSlam. Then again, this is WWE, where it's possible, if not probable, that the company would be tight-lipped about a potential return for its biggest star ever. And if it does happen, SummerSlam is the perfect stage for it.
The Rock has plenty of recent history with both Rhodes and Cena, and the Street Fight stipulation for their SummerSlam matches leaves the door wide open for a convoluted finish. During WWE's creative era under Triple H, many pay-per-view main events have featured numerous run-ins and a plethora of outside interference.
That figures to be the case at WWE SummerSlam, and while it may not be The Rock who does it, that possibility can't be ruled out, either.
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