Seth Rollins and Matt Riddle were originally set to go one-on-one this Saturday night (July 30) at SummerSlam 2022 in Nashville, Tennessee. However, plans changed and the match has been postponed. WWE says Riddle was injured by Rollins on this week’s Raw and is unable to compete, but reporting suggests it’s all a work.
From where I’m sitting, Riddle vs. Rollins was a top three match on the card in terms of workrate, and I’m surprised that WWE is removing it from one of their biggest shows of the year. There’s also the fact that Rollins and Riddle are upper card stars in WWE and would typically be included on the SummerSlam lineup. There must be a hell of an angle that Triple H has in mind for one or both of these men if he doesn’t mind pulling them from the event so abruptly.
With the caveat that there’s one more episode of SmackDown left before WWE’s biggest party of the summer, Rollins and Riddle now join a long list of notable WWE stars who are not booked for SummerSlam. Here’s the current list I’ve come up with, in no particular order:
- Drew McIntyre has been dealing with Sheamus and the Brawling Brutes on SmackDownand it’s assumed Drew will headline September’s Clash at the Castle event in the United Kingdom.
- Asuka and Alexa Bliss have been competing in the women’s tag team division even though there’s currently no clear way to win the vacated titles. Bliss also recently held the 24/7 jobber title for a few moments.
- Omos hasn’t found a steady dance partner since his multi-PPV feud with Bobby Lashley ended.
- AJ Styles isn’t currently booked for SummerSlam either. After a rough patch where he was putting over The Judgment Day, Styles has been winning matches on Raw. However, he’s been a side player against heels (Theory, Miz) who have bigger fish to fry this weekend.
- Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods are feuding with The New and Vicious Viking Raiders. These teams are scheduled for a match on tomorrow’s SmackDownrather than SummerSlam the following night.
- Madcap Moss defeated Happy Corbin multiple times, but Corbin is the one who got a SummerSlam match on the other side of their feud.
- Kevin Owens missed a lot of WWE television this month, but he did return this week on Raw and could presumably join the SummerSlam card if WWE comes up with an angle for him on tomorrow’s SmackDown.
- Intercontinental Champion Gunther has been linked to Shinsuke Nakamura on television lately, but given Nakamura’s loss last week against Ludwig Kaiser, I don’t think Gunther vs. Nakamura is happening in Nashville.
- Shanky is a future WrestleMania main event star, but he’s definitely not main eventing this weekend’s SummerSlam event.
McIntyre, Styles, Sheamus, and Kingston are all former WWE champions. Owens is a former Universal champion. Bliss and Asuka are former women’s champions. If SummerSlam was a two night event, most of these wrestlers would probably be on the card. However, once WWE made room on the show for part-timers / attractions like Brock Lesnar, Pat McAfee, Logan Paul, Roman Reigns, and Ronda Rousey, that created a crunch for everyone else on the roster for a card that consists of eight matches.
Will Rollins and Riddle take any solace in the fact they are joining a deep group of talented wrestlers and Omos on the sidelines? I guess it all depends on whatever angle WWE has planned for them going forward.
Which wrestlers currently missing from the SummerSlam card surprise you the most, Cagesiders?