SummerSlam 2023 Predictions – The Wrestling Estate

In this week’s roundtable, The Wrestling Estate Staff discuss their predictions for SummerSlam 2023.

What’s your view on the state of the WWE product at this point in the year?

Steven Jackson

I’m loving WWE right now. The in-ring product is solid, they’re developing new stars and the Bloodline storyline is just sensational!

Tathya Sachdev

Solid. The stuff that people care about – the main event picture and the upper mid-card, at least on the men’s side – it’s better than it has been in years. The women’s division has felt “meh” ever since we came out from the pandemic, and I don’t really see anything clicking on that front, besides Rhea Ripley. And while the Judgement Day act has been a pleasant surprise as to how successful it has been, Ripley is still not wrestling much on TV. The filler stuff, on SmackDown and especially Raw… is filler.

Live attendance is setting records left, right and center. The ratings are doing off-the-charts impressive vis a vis the time we are in.

The creative transition has been steady, so I expect the product to peak around WrestleMania 40, when we’ll probably see a seismic shift when Roman Reigns finally drops the Undisputed Championship. How WWE consolidates the new dynamic following that will be very interesting.

Russ Good

WWE’s doing fine, though everything feels close to jumping the shark. The Bloodline story is pulling in viewers at a shocking rate, but it’s got to end at some point. The Judgment Day are towing the line between incredibly popular and overexposed. Seth Rollins is beginning to rely too much on wardrobe and a song along.

Fortunately, there are some promising things on the horizon. Bobby Lashley’s Hurt Business 2.0 is a cool idea and a heel Street Profits team is a great addition. Chad Gable has been getting a ton of screen time. LA Knight (YEAUH) is due for a big push if he wins that thrown- together battle royal. Bray Wyatt might be back soon, which is at least good for a month or so. And I’ll be interested to see what Cody Rhodes does for the next six months or so.

Jack Goodwillie

The state of WWE is good… not great. I mean, businesswise, it’s actually in fantastic shape. The company is making more money than ever, but that doesn’t tell the full story because most fans don’t care about things like that. For as historically great as I think WrestleMania 39 happened to be, the follow-up has been mediocre at best. I also feel like the company could have done itself a big favor in having Cody Rhodes beat Roman Reigns at WrestleMania.

Having said that, not all is lost. It seems as though Cody and Roman are on a collision course for WrestleMania XL. I also believe the rebranding of the men’s and women’s world championships has thus far been a net positive for the shows, and WWE is now sitting on a potential golden goose in LA Knight. Sure, the women’s division could be booked better, but have you seen the alternative? Sure, there could be more stories for the midcard, but have you seen the alternative? That’s not a game I like playing, but it is an undeniable fact about the state of pro wrestling right now.

Also worth noting that ever since Nick Khan stepped into the company president role, WWE has sort of rebranded itself as a big show brand. No, not that Big Show. But shows like Raw and Smackdown are more missable than ever. Premium Live Events, however…. not so much. WWE has not missed on a single pay-per-view this year and I don’t expect SummerSlam to buck that trend.

John Corrigan

Based on all the relevant business metrics, WWE hasn’t been hotter in years. As far as my interest in the product goes, I didn’t even realize SummerSlam is this weekend. But with WrestleMania 40 tickets going on sale soon, I expect my interest level to pick up as friends and family anticipate the biggest show of the year returning to the “City of Brotherly Love.”

This weekend’s result pending, was putting Cody Rhodes with Brock Lesnar the correct move?

Steven Jackson

I feel it is the right move. The two have been feuding for several months and this can possibly be the blow off. Brock Lesnar is almost ‘Mr. Summerslam’ so I’m hopeful he’ll deliver another classic with Cody too.

Tathya Sachdev

Cody Rhodes’ run following his heartbreaking and rather shocking loss at WrestleMania has been his true test. Fans were dreading the worst in terms of booking and reception, but I feel that it could not have gone much better than this. His popularity has continued to soar, with Brock Lesnar having been the perfect dance partner.

WWE is making Cody’s story about the CHASE, which is definitely the right way to go about things.

Remember that when AEW began, Cody said, “wins and losses matter here.” In WWE, if a babyface wins too much, too early, or even one of those, the crowd turns on them fairly quickly. Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns have both been handled very well post-WrestleMania, and with how they have been delivering on all fronts over the past year, I was always willing to give them the benefit of the doubt when Rhodes did not win at Mania. Well, at this point, I don’t know how Cody Rhodes should and will be presented over the next eight months, but as long as the endgame is the WWE Championship, I feel that Cody and the company have more than earned my trust.

Russ Good

Cody stole a win and was essentially murdered by Brock to get to this point, so it makes sense that they’ll end their bitter rivalry with a sick and brutal match type like *adjusts glasses* oh…a regular singles match!

The pairing is okay and Brock likes Cody enough to sell for him, which he’s gonna need to do on Saturday to really put WWE Cody back on the road to Roman Reigns. It could have been handled better but it wasn’t bad.

Jack Goodwillie

If, and I mean IF Cody Rhodes was to lose to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania (he did), and the plan is to get him ready for a rematch at next year’s WrestleMania (it seems to be), then WWE needs to prioritize Cody being in the highest priority feuds possible. There is no high profile feud a wrestler can have without a title being in the equation than a feud with Brock Lesnar.

I do think the feud has gotten a little stale. Lesnar sans Paul Heyman can only do so much, and it’s become a bit of a meme that not even the wrestlers can fully wrap their heads around why they’re feuding. That said, these matches have delivered in the ring and kept Cody successfully relevant with eight months to go til WrestleMania and five months to go until the Royal Rumble. For the record, I think Cody beats Lesnar clean and moves to a mini-feud with The Judgment Day.

John Corrigan

The feud certainly hasn’t hurt Cody, but just imagine how much more meaningful it would’ve been if it was Lesnar chasing Cody over the WWE Championship, which as long as Roman Reigns holds onto, “The Beast” can’t challenge for.

What is one undercard match you’ll have your eye on?

Steven Jackson

Gunther vs. Drew McIntyre. Two European wrestlers ready to tear it up in Detroit! Can’t wait!

Tathya Sachdev

Gunther vs Drew McIntyre. Of course, Gunther needs to retain on Saturday; no question about it. But I firmly believe that the feud should continue into the fall.

On a side note, I don’t see anyone besides McIntyre who could realistically take the title off Gunther and do justice to everything he has done to re-establish the Intercontinental Championship. That doesn’t necessarily mean McIntyre has to be the one, and definitely shouldn’t be winning in Detroit.

Russ Good

If anything that isn’t Bloodline-related is considered the undercard, I’ll throw Gunther versus McIntyre as my hope for the match of the night. These big meaty men are gonna be slappin’ meat for a good ten or fifteen nasty, brutal minutes…and I’m here for it.

Jack Goodwillie

Ronda Rousey vs. Shayna Baszler. These women have been waiting more than a decade to have this match, and as much as Rousey may publicly lament her creative, in the ring, it’s her and Shayna’s world. I don’t like that Becky Lynch vs. Trish Stratus was “cut” from this show. But Rousey vs. Baszler is not a match I’d have cut to have it on. In fact, I’d have had both matches on, but perhaps that’s another rant for another day.

If the rumors are true about Rousey being on her way out, I expect her to put her best friend over pretty strong in what will hopefully be a memorable SummerSlam moment.

John Corrigan

Rousey vs. Baszler, especially if the rumors are true that it’s the former’s final match in WWE. Regardless of what the storyline is, it’s something of a dream match for these two legit fighters to tangle albeit in a non-legitimate environment.

Will Bray Wyatt appear on this show as has been rumored? What would he do?

Steven Jackson

I hope Bray does appear and it’d be cool if he came out after Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins match. See if he can challenge for the World Heavyweight Championship at some point.

Tathya Sachdev

Umm… should he? I have got absolutely nothing against the guy, but does he really fit into the current landscape in WWE? I don’t think so.

That said, let’s say he does return. Wyatt and the creative team need to have a strong understanding of what they’re trying to do and have a concrete longterm plan. That’s the only way this works.

Russ Good

Cody needs something to do. But more than half of the field for the Slim Jim Battle Royal is still unannounced, so I’ll go the easy route and say Wyatt makes his shocking return as another new version of himself, then loses (or just leaves) and he and LA Knight begin a program.

Jack Goodwillie

My heart says no, because if he does get involved I see him entering a feud with Cody Rhodes and that’s not something I necessarily want for Cody. My brain, however, says yes. If we don’t get Bray Wyatt here, we may never get him again. Rumor and innuendo has sort of followed the guy given the cryptic nature of his characters.

We hear so much. Is his absence related to injury? Attitude? Creative? There’s no clarity there, but Wyatt is an attraction, so if there’s ever a time to bring him back, it’s SummerSlam. My concern is his complete inability to elevate the guys he works with. He doesn’t even have to elevate them, but wrestlers just have a way of coming out looking worse after working with him. The only guy who wasn’t affected seems to have been LA Knight, and that is not because of anything Wyatt did.

I’ll say he latches himself back onto Seth Rollins. For as much as I think Seth has had an argument for the best wrestler in the world over the last 12-16 months, it could do both him and Bray some good to right the wrong of their last feud. Not to mention, I believe Seth will need something else to do in the event Finn Balor wins the World Heavyweight Championship and enters a Judgment Day power struggle with Damian Priest.

John Corrigan

Bray Wyatt will gnaw on Seth Rollins, actually biting his nose off and sparking another wonderful feud between the two.

Fill in the blank: SummerSlam 2023 ends with __.

Steven Jackson

Summerslam 2023 ends with Roman Reigns…Still the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion and the Tribal Chief!

Tathya Sachdev

Roman Reigns retaining over Jey Uso following a ton of shenanigans and setting up the next chapter in The Bloodline Saga.

Russ Good

Our Tribal Chief, the head of the table, the leader of the Bloodline standing tall over his fallen cousin. Solo Sikoa, Jimmy Uso, and Paul Heyman at his side. Thousands acknowledging his greatness.

Then the audience is asked if we smell what the Rock is cookin’, and the most electrifying man in sports entertainment avoids any issue with SAG/AFTRA by returning home, effectively pushing Cody Rhodes out of the title picture for another 18 months.

Jack Goodwillie

Jimmy Uso TURNING on Jey Uso to set up what will be an awesome build to WrestleMania XL.

One of my biggest booking edicts, things you should look to do whenever you can, is to make as many big matches as possible. This is why I was in favor of Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania. Cody facing anybody else at WrestleMania, even Solo Sikoa, only yields one big match with Reigns vs. Sami Zayn. With Cody in the spot, you could build a storyline around the relationship between Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens and really give both guys a huge moment.

Both matches headlined Night 1 and Night 2 of WrestleMania 39, so I rest my case.