WWE PPV Review: Summerslam 2012

WWE PPV Review: Summerslam 2012 WWE's annual summer extravaganza remains one of the company's top pay-per-views of the year. Like The Royal Rumble and WrestleMania Summerslam is one event where we the fans know the matches will be lined up to please all. This year the main talking point was the encounter between Triple H and the as yet not as exciting as he should be Brock Lesnar. So did the card deliver? Here is Phil Allely's review of the show. WWE United States Title Match: Antonio Cesaro vs. Santino Marella This fun opener saw crowd favourite Santino tyr to unleash his 'corba' finihser early and Ceraso attempt to put him away with a few decent moves. The finish came as Askana interfered on Cesaro's behalf and Marella fell to a front piledriver. The US Title found a new home with Antoni, as a stunned live crowd watched on. Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Jericho Opening things up proper (The US title scrap was a dark match) Dolph Ziggler attempted to regain some lost momentum, by battling veteran grappler Chris Jericho. With the smart fans knowing that Jericho is set for a short sabatical (to tour with his band Fozzy) this seemed to be Ziggler's night. However even with an injured Jericho and assistance form Vickie Guerrero, it was not meant to be. Ziggler proved to be a worthy opponent, but the wiley Jericho was still able to hold him off and lock in a 'Walls of Jericho' to gain a submission win. Kane vs. Daniel Bryan The once almost indestructible 'big red machine' Kane has lost much of his monster appeal in recent years. Although he is still a formidable foe, when matched with a decent in-ring partner. This bout with Daniel Bryan was one such match where everything worked well and Kane was able to strut his stuff. The men both traded near falls, teased finishers and much more in this by the numbers brawl. Bryan was fortunate to be able to counter a 'Tombstone Piledriver' and roll up Kane for the popular win. Kane went ballistic post-match. WWE Intercontinental Title Match: Rey Mysterio vs. The Miz Seemingly inspired by Batman Rey Mysterio gave The Miz a run for his money in this fast-paced encounter. The pairing worked well together and had some nice back-and-forth action going on in this one. Miz pulled off the surprise win to retain his belt, following a 'Skull Crunching Finale'. World Heavyweight Title Match: Alberto Del Rio vs. Sheamus Irishman Sheamus has been working hard to build himself up as a convincing champion. This scrap with Alberto Del Rio hd its moment, but also showed that Sheamus still needs some work to be a believable world title holder. The action was reasonably crisp, Ricardo tried to interfere as per usual and the champion retained. The end saw Ricardo's shoe used on Del Rio and Sheamus nail an 'Irish Curse' to keep his gold. ADR's foot was on the bottom rope, so did taint the win somewhat. WWE Tag Team Title Match: Titus O'Neil and Darren Young vs. Kofi Kingston and R-Truth We have written here before that the WWE are in dire need of new tag teams. This next match proves that point exactly. Champs Kofi Kingston and R Truth are a very good duo and as such deserve some above par opponents. O'Neill and Young are not too shabby, but there are better teams out there and the WWE need to get them on board if the division is to continue. The champions won with ease and will continue to do so until an equally talented pairing sign up to the WWE. WWE Title Match: Big Show vs. John Cena vs. Big Show As WWE Champion CM Punk has been a revelation. This is a man who for many years was buried by the WWE and was forced to tread water until he proved himself. His in-ring speech last year was the point where Punk's character took off and also the event that made Vince McMahon take notice of Phil Brooks. Now with the belt firmly in his grasp Punk is the man at present in the company and as such he needs to be fed the best quality competitors possible to maintain that momentum. Here he had the combo of Big Show and John Cena to face. Cena and Show are both former champions and have headlined many PPV's over the years. As a triple threat style encounter this was a superb one. This match raised expectations perfectly, the combatants worked very well indeed, even Cena pulled out all the stops to make Punk look good. Show may be nearing the end of his in-ring career, but he can still work a bout that allows him short breaks and breathing space. Punk kept his gold after knocking Cena out of the ring and covering Show. Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar The main event was perhaps the most highly anticipated match of the night. Brock Lesnar has yet to prove himself to be the monster he has been billed as and with Triple H as his opponent this was his chance to reclaim his throne. With Paul (ECW) Heyman in tow Lesnar makes for a formidable guy, his appearance and demeanour are truly scary. The match itself was a brutal affair, Triple H giving as good as he got throughout. The action went both in and out of the ring frequently and Lesnar finally looked as frighteningly powerful as he should do here. The match finished with a nice sequence where Lesnar applied his submission finisher and Triple H finally had to succumb to the pain. The show went off the air with a beaten Triple H barely making it out of the ring, lesnar celebrating and many in attendance believing that Triple H was not only the receiver of a broken arm, but on the cusp of making a retirement announcement. Summerslam was a show that looked good on paper, the matches were reasonable, but nothing special. The world title matches and Triple H/Lesnar bouts made this worth viewing and saved the PPV. This like other recent WWE live shows has proved that the company need to recruit some young (potential main event blood asap. Www.wwe.com By Phil Allely