10 SummerSlam
Main Event Mashups
Approximately 50 wrestlers have main-evented SummerSlam since the event was created in 1988 (and for purposes of this exercise, we're considering the last scheduled match on the show as the "main event"). What if we mashed them up to create new(ish) dream matches between some of the headliners?
SummerSlam 1992 was dubbed "The SummerSlam You Thought You'd Never See," but this column is even moreso.
The Ultimate Warrior vs. Yokozuna
The Ultimate Warrior (who main-evented SummerSlams 1990 and 1991) never faced Yokozuna (who main-evented SummerSlam 1993), though they probably just missed each other during their respective WWF runs. While the match wouldn't have been a technical classic, the sight of Warrior attempting to press-slam his fellow WWE Hall of Famer could have been something to behold.
Randy Savage vs. John Cena
Admittedly, the careers of Randy Savage (who main-evented SummerSlams 1988 and 1989) and John Cena (who main-evented SummerSlams 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014) were decades apart. But imagine the hype leading up to a well-built match between The Macho Man and The Champ?
Bret Hart vs. Hulk Hogan
A match between Bret Hart (who main-evented SummerSlams 1992, 1997 and 2010) and Hulk Hogan (who main-evented SummerSlams 1988, 1989, 1991 and 2005) was allegedly scheduled for the 1993 event following their brief interaction at WrestleMania IX. Hart and Hogan also met in tag team matches over the years and even one-on-one in WCW... but nothing that came close to the hoopla that would have surrounded a SummerSlam main event.
Triple H vs. The Man They Call Vader
Would a match between Triple H (who main-evented SummerSlams 1999, 2000, 2003 and 2012) and Vader (who main-evented SummerSlam 1996) be one-sided towards The King Of Kings? Most likely. But it would have had a great tag line: WHAT TIME IS IT? Time To Play The Game.
The Mega Bucks (The Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase and Andre The Giant with Virgil) and The Triangle Of Terror (Sgt. Slaughter, Col. Mustafa and Gen. Adnan) vs.
The Nexus (Wade Barrett, Skip Sheffield, Heath Slater, Michael Tarver, David Otunga, Justin Gabriel and Darren Young)
One of the most heel-based faction battles in WWE history would feature The Mega Bucks (who main-evented SummerSlam 1988) and The Triangle Of Terror (who main-evented SummerSlam 1991) against The Nexus (who main-evented SummerSlam 2010). Interestingly, not one of these groups won their respective SummerSlam main events!
Shawn Michaels vs. Seth Rollins
A match between Shawn Michaels (who main-evented SummerSlams 1996, 2003 and 2005) and Seth Rollins (who main-evented SummerSlam 2019) would likely be a Match Of The Year candidate, with both men having a reputation for stealing the show.
The Undertaker vs. Ravishing Rick Rude
Would a bout between The Undertaker (who main-evented SummerSlams 1994, 1997, 1998, 2008 and 2015) and Ravishing Rick Rude (who main-evented SummerSlam 1990) be considered a mismatch? Well... yes. Yes in every conceivable way. But imagine The Ravishing One wearing trunks with The Undertaker's wife on them? Or the thought of Paul Bearer and Bobby Heenan brawling at ringside? There's definitely enough there to make this SummerSlam worthy.
Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Roman Reigns
Stone Cold Steve Austin (who main-evented SummerSlams 1998 and 1999) versus Roman Reigns (who main-evented SummerSlams 2017 and 2018) is one of those dream matches you never knew you wanted until right now. Yet a confrontation between two of the company's most dominant champions in the past 25 years is incredibly intriguing and would likely live up to the hype.
Diesel vs. Brock Lesnar
There aren't many scenarios in which Diesel (who main-evented SummerSlams 1995 and 2003) would be an underdog in, but facing Brock Lesnar (who main-evented SummerSlams 2002, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019) would be one of those. Still, it would be entertaining to see big men from different eras in a main event clash.
The Rock vs. Edge
Even though The Rock (who main-evented SummerSlams 2000, 2001 and 2002) has faced Edge (who main-evented SummerSlams 2006, 2008 and 2010) in random one-off matches before, a SummerSlam match during their respective peaks would have been incredible. Even the verbal battles between these two would have been enough to boost PPV buys.
Who did we miss?
In case you're curious, the following wrestlers also main-evented SummerSlam:
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Brutus Beefcake (1989)
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Zeus (1989)
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The British Bulldog (1992)
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Lex Luger (1993)
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Evil Undertaker (1994)
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King Mabel (1995)
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Mankind (1999)
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Kurt Angle (2000)
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Booker T (2001)
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Goldberg (2003)
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Chris Jericho (2003)
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Randy Orton (2003, 2004, 2016)
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Chris Benoit (2004)
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CM Punk (2009)
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Jeff Hardy (2009)
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Daniel Bryan (2010, 2013)
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John Morrison (2010)
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R-Truth (2010)
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Braun Strowman (2017)
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Samoa Joe (2017)
In addition, Alberto Del Rio (2012) and Randy Orton (2013) cashed in Money In The Bank following scheduled SummerSlam main events.