12 WWE SummerSlam 2019 Impulse Reactions

12. Drew Gulak Vs. Oney Lorcan

Oney Lorcan and Drew Gulak were given the half-empty arena treatment by going on at the midway point of the Kickoff Show which was, as commentator Vic Joseph confessed, still one hour away from the start of SummerSlam proper.

This was a two-pronged insult.

The wrestlers were made to contest a broadly enjoyable encounter in front of - at best - polite applause for the most part. This, just 48 hours after they were almost potentially on the main card. Lorcan's open-handed strikes on the Cruiserweight Champion in the closing stages felt targeted as much at the company for the measure of disrespect as they were at Gulak's face. Little of it mattered when the finish came just seconds later.

The pair fought over an errant ring skirt (!) before Gulak nailed Lorcan with a throat punch as the referee put it back in place. It was a fittingly demeaning conclusion to a match that served as the evening's first significant disappointment.