Published: 3 seconds ago by SP3 | Last Updated: 3 seconds ago by SP3
Born in Harlem, New York and now living in the Bronx, Sid Pullar III aka SP3 is a lifelong wrestling fan who has been covering the industry for over nine years as a podcaster and writer. His passion for the industry has been documented with over 3,000 videos on YouTube and 8,000 written pieces across multiple outlets, such as WrestleTalk, Sports Illustrated and more.
@TruHeelSP3
WWE
Heading into WWE SummerSlam 2026, there will be some important results on the card that will alter the landscape of the entire company.
From big time title matches to scores being settled, the matches on SummerSlam 2026 Night One will hold a huge amount of significance moving forward.
Considering the bouts already announced, WWE has the opportunity to shape how their company will look for the rest of the year at ‘The Biggest Party of the Summer.’
Here is our full preview and predictions for WWE SummerSlam 2026 Night One, with betting odds courtesy of Paddy Power.
Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi – Hell In A Cell Match
Brock Lesnar and Oba Femi have won win a piece against each other heading into WWE SummerSlam 2026.
At WWE WrestleMania 42 Night Two, Oba Femi defeated Brock Lesnar in what was the biggest win of his career.
After this loss, Lesnar took off his glove and boots to indicate that he had decided to retire from in-ring competition.
‘The Beast Incarnate’ made his return just one month later to attack ‘The Ruler’ and set the stage for a rematch at WWE Clash In Italy 2026.
This led to Lesnar avenging his Mania loss with a dominant win of his own and Femi responding by calling out the legendary star week after week following the premium live event.
Following Oba’s win in the King of the Ring Finals at WWE Night of Champions, ‘The Ruler’ was confronted and low blowed by Lesnar. Femi then challenged Lesnar to a rematch to settle it all at WWE SummerSlam 2026.
With Femi giving up his guaranteed world title opportunity for one more bout with him, Lesnar upped the ante by making the match Hell In A Cell.
Both men walked into the steel structure on Saturday, August 1 looking to end the other’s career and finally prove who is the better man.
Considering his meteoric rise in recent months, Femi has to overcome Lesnar inside Hell In A Cell to cement himself as the newest top star in the company at WWE SummerSlam 2026.
Predictions: Oba Femi
Betting Favorite: Oba Femi (Oba Femi 1/14 Brock Lesnar 11/2)
Fatal Influence vs. Paige & The Bella Twins (Nikki & Brie Bella)
Nikki Bella will be wrestling in her first match since breaking her ankle in March at SummerSlam 2026.
When they were called up to the WWE main roster following WrestleMania 42, Fatal Influence made their presence felt on Friday Night SmackDown by attacking then-WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Paige and Brie Bella.
After chasing the titles for months, Fallon Henley and Lainey Reid defeated Paige and Brie to win the titles at the July 18 edition of WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event.
Now that they have the gold, Fatal Influence feel like they have some control on the SmackDown women’s division.
However, Brie and Paige got some backup for this trio in the form of the returning Nikki Bella who made the save for the duo on the July 24 episode of Friday Night SmackDown.
Setting the stage for a six-woman tag team match, Nikki, Brie and Paige will now look for revenge against Henley, Reid and Jacy Jayne at WWE SummerSlam 2026.
While Fatal Influence are on the rise, this show feels like the right one to put the legends over the upstarts.
Predictions: Paige & The Bella Twins
Betting Favorite: Fatal Influence (Fatal Influence 4/7 Paige & The Bella Twins 5/4)
LA Knight, Solo Sikoa & Royce Keys vs. The Bloodline (Jacob Fatu & The Usos)
WWE SummerSlam will be Royce Keys first PLE match since debuting in the 2026 Men’s Royal Rumble in January.
Following WWE WrestleMania 42, Roman Reigns and The Usos reunited to reform The Bloodline. Then after losing the Tribal Combat at Clash In Italy 2026, Jacob Fatu joined his family in The Bloodline as well.
In the wake of this reunion, LA Knight has become the most vocal detractor to The Bloodline, bad mouthing the group at every turn as of late.
Following his appearance in the aftermath of WWE Clash In Italy 2026, Solo Sikoa has found himself back in the thick of Bloodline drama.
This has led to Sikoa becoming a thorn in the side of Jacob Fatu and The Usos, making their lives a living hell and costing them several matches.
Meanwhile, Royce Keys has gone from one of Fatu’s closest friends in WWE to an enemy of The Bloodline before the fans’ eyes recently.
Now that Knight has come together with Sikoa and Keys, it sets the stage for this big trios match at WWE SummerSlam 2026. Despite this force against them, The Bloodline is the more established team and should have the advantage to win in Minneapolis.
Predictions: The Bloodline
Betting Favorite: The Bloodline (The Bloodline 1/2 LA Knight, Royce Keys & Solo Sikoa 11/8)
GUNTHER vs. Nick Aldis
WWE SummerSlam will be Nick Aldis’ first match since joining the company in 2023.
Following WWE Night of Champions 2026, GUNTHER blamed Nick Aldis for his loss in the Undisputed WWE Championship main event and put his hands on the SmackDown General Manager.
After both men were sent home, GUNTHER took things to the next level when he placed his hands on Aldis, laying him out with a sleeper hold.
This led to Aldis returning to cost GUNTHER and Sami Zayn their tag team match against CM Punk and Cody Rhodes on the July 18 WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event.
Then on the SummerSlam Kickoff, the SmackDown GM and ‘The Ring General’ got into a brawl that set the stage for a grudge match on August 1.
Despite facing one of the biggest stars on the WWE roster, Aldis will surprise fans with his ability in the ring after years of experience in companies like NWA and TNA Wrestling.
However, GUNTHER should stop at nothing to destroy ‘The National Treasure’ in Minneapolis at WWE SummerSlam 2026.
Prediction:Â GUNTHER
Betting Favorite:Â GUNTHER (GUNTHER 1/10 Nick Aldis 5/1)
WWE Women’s World Championship: Liv Morgan (c) vs. IYO SKY
Liv Morgan’s match with IYO SKY at WWE SummerSlam will be her first Women’s World Title defense since winning the gold at WrestleMania 42.
At WWE Night of Champions 2026, IYO SKY defeated Liv Morgan to win the Queen of the Ring Tournament Finals.
Earning a shot at a world title of their choosing at WWE SummerSlam 2026, SKY chose to challenge for Morgan’s WWE Women’s World Championship.
Over the past few weeks, SKY and Morgan have been going back and forth with one another with attacks on WWE Raw.
While she has been having to deal with ‘The Genius of the Sky,’ Morgan has also had to help Dominik Mysterio and JD McDonagh in their feud with Danhausen.
In the midst of this rivalry, Danhausen has cursed Morgan, which led to her loss at the Night of Champions premium live event.
Now that she has been cursed, it feels like Morgan will be losing the gold to IYO on August 1.
Predictions: IYO SKY
Betting Favorite:Â Liv Morgan (Liv Morgan 4/6 IYO SKY Evens)
Undisputed WWE Championship: CM Punk (c) vs. Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes and CM Punk have not faced off against each other one-on-one in WWE in 18 years.
At WWE Night of Champions 2026, Sami Zayn defeated Cody Rhodes and GUNTHER to win the Undisputed WWE Championship.
Rhodes would go on to defeat Jey Uso to become number one contender to face Zayn on the July 6 edition of Monday Night Raw.
However, ‘The American Nightmare’ was taken out by GUNTHER to remove him from his scheduled title bout.
In his place, CM Punk returned in his hometown of Chicago to defeat Zayn to win the Undisputed WWE Championship.
Not wasting any time, Rhodes immediately stepped up to challenge Punk for the title with the match being made for the WWE SummerSlam 2026 premium live event.
Following their win at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event, Punk accidentally hit Rhodes in the face with the Undisputed WWE Championship belt strap, leading to some intense confrontations backstage and at the SummerSlam Kickoff show.
Now that things have been hitting a fever pitch, it feels like both men are teasing a heel turn for WWE SummerSlam 2026.
Rhodes turning heel seems like a strong possibility, but it also feels too soon to take the gold off of Punk and could see him win to lead to that change for Cody after SummerSlam in Minneapolis.
Prediction: CM Punk
Betting Favorite:Â CM Punk (CM Punk 1/4 Cody Rhodes 5/2)
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