SummerSlam has been one of WWE's "big four" Pay-Per-View events since it first took place in August of 1988. At that time, WWE had already aired four WrestleManias and they figured they could add SummerSlam as the PPV that followed it about four months later. It was a smart move right off the bat because it allowed WWE to continue certain storylines from WrestleMania or begin new angles. With Survivor Series and the Royal Rumble also in place, fans had four major events to look forward to every year. Now that we live in an era where there's a PPV every month, an event like SummerSlam could seem less important just because there are so many shows. However, WWE has done a great job of making it feel special after all these years because SummerSlam is generally regarded as one of the best PPVs of the year. Most years it's even better than WrestleMania. There have been a lot of great moments in SummerSlam history going back to the first one with Hulk Hogan & Randy Savage teaming up to beat Andre the Giant & Ted Dibiase and last year's show with that awesome Brock Lesnar win against CM Punk. Remember him? Over the course of last 26 years, a lot of great moments have happened at SummerSlam. We could probably pick 50 things pretty easily, but today it's about the top 15 moments in SummerSlam history. Some are obvious. Others may be considered obscure. Let's get to it.
15. Daniel Bryan's Return At SummerSlam 2010
Daniel Bryan was fired from WWE for choking Justin Roberts with a tie on Raw. It happened during the angle when The Nexus destroyed John Cena to end the June 7, 2010 edition of Raw. We had no idea when he was going to return. The main event of SummerSlam in 2010 saw John Cena leading a team of WWE Superstars against the seven remaining members of The Nexus. When the 7th man of Cena's team was supposed to be announced, it was The Miz that walked out. However, Cena told him that it wasn't going to be him. It was going to be somebody else. Then Daniel Bryan came back and he was the perfect fit for the team. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqTIkhZ9SeA Bryan's return wasn't known by the internet wrestling community. He was still wrestling on indy shows most weekends and had indy shows booked past August too, so when he came back it was a genuine surprise.
John wrote at WhatCulture from December 2013 to December 2015. It was fun, but it's over for now. Follow him on Twitter @johnreport. You can also send an email to mrjohncanton@gmail.com with any questions or comments as well.
