10 Times WWE Creative Changed A Match On The Fly
2. Shinsuke Nakamura's Clean Win Against John Cena
It's not every day that fans witness a superstar get a clean win against WWE's resident Superman, John Cena. It has happened very rarely, and the 1 August 2017 episode of SmackDown was one of those occasions where Shinsuke Nakamura defeated John Cena.
The two superstars competed in a WWE Championship No.1 contender's match, with the winner earning the opportunity to face Jinder Mahal for the title at that year's SummerSlam. While Nakamura defeated John Cena without outside interference, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the original plan was to have Baron Corbin interfere during the contest and cost Cena the opportunity.
The notion of the match undergoing a last-minute change emerged when WWE.com posted a recap article saying Corbin interfered, while no such thing happened on television. Instead, Corbin attacked Nakamura after the show went off air, and Cena made the save and put Corbin through the announce table. While Nakamura went on to unsuccessfully challenge Mahal for the title, Cena cost Corbin the MITB contract and then defeated him in a singles match at SummerSlam 2017.