SummerSlam weekend was, by in large, a wild success for WWE and one of the most entertaining weekends the company has had all year. From NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn 4 through Tuesday’s SmackDown, it was, for the most part, a very well put together weekend of wrestling across all of their various shows.
However, there were some curious decisions by WWE that left fans scratching their heads. On the SummerSlam card, one of the biggest “wait, what?” moments came in the Money In The Bank briefcase match between Kevin Owens and Braun Strowman. After months of feuding, with Strowman destroying Owens by various feats of strength, including throwing Owens off of a cage, the final blowoff was set with stipulations that favored Owens, as Strowman would lose the briefcase if he lost by any means, including DQ.
Many thought this could mean Owens would take the briefcase, or at the least it would force Strowman to fight within the rules and possibly lead to a more even matchup. Instead, Owens lost in like 90 seconds without even sniffing any offense, as he got bulldozed outside the ring twice, chokeslammed onto the ramp, and then swiftly pinned once back in the ring.
For a former Universal champion, it seemed like a strange decision to have him get straight up squashed in this spot. If you also felt that way, you aren’t alone, as “Stone Cold” Steve Austin wasn’t a fan of the booking either, as he explained on The Steve Austin Show.
“I hope Kevin Owens can claw his way back to where he was. Hopefully, they’re booking him to get back to where he was. I’m a big fan of both guys. I’m friends with both guys, but, man, with Braun, Braun is a big guy. And Kevin has been in the picture for a lot of titles, held a lot of titles, and I just thought, ‘man, he didn’t get s–t in, so, eh, I just wasn’t a fan.” Austin continued, “Yeah, I just didn’t think Kevin Owens needed to get steamrolled because he’s a top guy. And, obviously, Braun Strowman is still green, but he’s a top guy. They’re grooming him for bigger and better things, but KO didn’t need to get squashed in the process.”
With the way they booked the main event, I absolutely understand wanting to make Strowman look really strong. They needed the menacing Monster Among Men to be an actual threat to Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns, to the point that it would force Lesnar to feel it necessary to try and destroy him rather than stay focused on the task at hand with Reigns. However, I feel like there’s a way to make Strowman look strong without having him demolish Owens without Owens even getting so much as a single offensive move in.
The way they handled Strowman on Monday’s Raw was much better, as they allowed the Shield to beat him down thanks to The Damned Numbers Game (TM), but Strowman still fought them off at times and got some offense in before being overwhelmed. That could’ve been the approach taken in Owens-Strowman, with Owens getting some work in but ultimately just getting overpowered by Strowman. You could’ve done all those same spots in a 6-minute match where Owens opens it on fire but it doesn’t matter because Braun is Braun, and the feeling about Strowman wouldn’t have been any different but Owens would look like a competent wrestler and now Local Jobber #3.
(h/t Wrestling Inc.)
