Saturday Night’s Main Event returns with a card built around one wrinkle that could reshape SummerSlam: a stipulation match between CM Punk and Cody Rhodes against Gunther and Sami Zayn that could turn the WWE Championship picture into a four-way.
This edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event carries more weight than usual because of that single stipulation. Everything else on the card matters, but the tag match is the reason this show is worth clearing two hours for.
Full Card Predictions
| Match | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Danhausen vs. JD McDonagh (No DQ) | Danhausen wins |
| Paige & Bree Bella (c) vs. Fatal Influence, tag titles | Fatal Influence wins the titles |
| Bayley vs. Lyra Valkyria | Lyra Valkyria wins |
| CM Punk & Cody Rhodes vs. Gunther & Sami Zayn | Gunther and Sami win, setting up a four-way at SummerSlam |
Why the Tag Match Is the Real Story
WWE has already sold SummerSlam tickets for a Punk-Cody one-on-one match. Changing that match this close to the show only makes sense if the promotion is trying to add intrigue for buyers who are on the fence, and a four-way does exactly that.
A four-way also solves a real booking problem. Punk just won the title. Having him lose it back to Cody one-on-one this soon undercuts the win, but a four-way lets Sami and Gunther absorb the fall instead, while Cody and Punk can still build toward a program down the road.
It is worth remembering how rarely Saturday Night’s Main Event gets used this way. WWE typically treats it as a showcase special rather than a storyline pivot point, which makes tonight’s stipulation stand out even more.
Other Notes From the Card
- Danhausen continues to be positioned as a top act in the Judgment Day feud, building toward a possible SummerSlam match with Dominik Mysterio.
- Paige and Bree Bella have outperformed expectations as a team, but a title change to a fresh SmackDown group makes sense for Madison Square Garden.
- The Lyra Valkyria gimmick shift has been rocky, but a win here would position her as Bayley’s likely replacement in the upper card.
By the time Saturday Night’s Main Event wraps up, WWE will have either confirmed a four-way at SummerSlam or quietly walked back the idea entirely. Either outcome tells us something real about how confident the company actually is in ticket sales for the two-night show.
This card follows directly from the fallout of Night of Champions and continues the storylines flagged in our look at SummerSlam’s babyface booking problem. For more on how the Bloodline dynamics factor into all of this, see our Bloodline summer takeover breakdown and the King of the Ring bracket recap.
