WWE went all out for its annual SummerSlam pay-per-view (PPV) this year, promoting it as, essentially, a second WrestleMania in 2015. On top of bringing back the Undertaker for a rematch with Brock Lesnar, the show was expanded to four hours, just like the "Showcase of the Immortals."
It's an interesting call considering the circumstances and there's admittedly some concern at how the company will deliver on it. In an interview with IGN, Steve Austin comes right out with it:
"You're going to have to have a lot going on to fill four hours of action. But if anybody can do it, obviously WWE can. They seem to be the masters of creating content. They've got a very large roster right now. But it remains to be seen. I'll be watching it. It's one of my favorite events of the entire year. It goes - for me - WrestleMania, Royal Rumble, Summerslam. The big three. All the rest are very important, but obviously this being four hours is big. That's a hell of a long time to fill. They better have some good stuff. To keep these guys entertained."
They are indeed masters of creating content but how compelling is said content?
Here's the current match card:
- Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar
- Seth Rollins vs. John Cena
- Roman Reigns & Dean Ambrose vs. Bray Wyatt & Luke Harper
- Ryback vs. Big Show vs. The Miz
- Team Bella vs. Team B.A.D. vs. Team PCB
- Stephen Amell & Neville vs. Stardust & King Barrett
- Randy Orton vs. Sheamus
- Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens
- Prime Time Players vs. New Day vs. Los Matadores vs. Lucha Dragons
- Rusev vs. Dolph Ziggler
That's 10 matches for four hours, not many of which are all that interesting. That's without mentioning that former Daily Show host Jon Stewart has been recruited to guest host the event.
They better have some good stuff indeed.
SB Nation presents: An interview with Seth Rollins