12 Match Star Ratings For WWE SummerSlam 2019

5. Kevin Owens Vs. Shane McMahon

Brock Lesnar Seth Rollins
WWE.com

A whole load of bullsh*t happened, but nowhere near enough to bury the lede.

The prevailing impression, very rare for a first pay-per-view encounter in a new programme, was that Kevin Owens outsmarted the heel. This was enough: so often in the Network era, WWE, to prolong a rivalry, frames the babyface as a hapless dork. This dumbass, lazy approach has killed the Miz's momentum this year - he is now a talk show host who willingly relinquishes a Big 4 PPV payday, if we're meant to think that deeply - but here, Owens definitively defeated Shane McMahon.

The match wasn't great. Shane took too much offence, the role of Elias was very much a passé sports entertainment trope, and KO's internal moralising was more consistent with Johnny Gargano's character than his own. Still, Shane played his role well enough - the little d*ckhead who begged for a chair shot, as opposed to the guy who can easily hang with the new top babyface - and it didn't outstay its welcome.

WWE being WWE, the feeling never quite goes away. Owens didn't win "fairly", which will justify Shane's claim to an inevitable rematch.

Still, this was better than Owens getting his foot stuck in the commentary table, or some sh*t.

Star Rating: **3/4

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!