The Greatest Match From Every WWE SummerSlam Ever

Miz can be an easy punchbag for WWE fans, but while he’s better than a lot of folks give him credit for, it’s fair to say that his angle with Daniel Bryan made him more interesting than he had been in years. Their panel show bust up brilliantly walked the line of work/shoot/worked shoot, with Bryan accusing Miz of avoiding injury due to his soft style, and Miz reacting in explosive fashion.

Whatever the truth behind the angle, the two mesh together beautifully here. Miz’s heel work is simple, old school stuff, mocking Bryan’s “Yes!” celebration and strapping on some of his foe’s patented submissions, but it works wonders: the crowd are dying to see him get the whooping he deserves, and when Bryan starts laying into him with kicks, or stretching him out, the audience laps it up.

Miz grabs the win in cheap fashion, after socking Bryan with a foreign object handed to him by his wife. It’s a hot, old fashioned match that’s given enough time to play out, and does wonders for both performers.