Night 1 of WWE SummerSlam was set to end with an anticipated battle for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship between Gunther and CM Punk, and it was quite the rollercoaster for those who tuned in. Punk and Gunther delivered a hard-hitting match that ended up leaving both bloody and on their last legs, and by the end of the match, there was a new World Heavyweight Champion…just not the one you’re thinking of or expecting.
Punk came in with a strategy to avoid Gunther’s brutal chops and the ever-deadly sleeper hold, and he managed to do just that over the first few minutes. Unfortunately, Gunther was able to tag him with a brutal chop to the chest, and yet Punk still found a way to not lose the momentum. Punk kept Gunther from locking in the sleeper by grabbing the ropes, and then he blocked a chop right after, keeping the Champ from getting on a roll.
Gunther was able to catch Punk going up top though, and that’s when the floodgates opened. Gunther chopped Punk’s leg, which caused him to fall down and get tangled in the ropes. Gunther then capitalized further, connecting with several chops on the chest and then knocking Punk down to the mat. Gunther was in control at this point, and though Punk fought his way back with several strikes, Gunther snatched control right back with another monster chop. Gunther focused his attack on Punk’s neck and back, and he was successfully wearing him down. Suddenly, Punk reversed a move into a roll-up pin, but Gunther escaped and then connected with a boot to the face. Punk and Gunther traded chops, but it ended poorly for Punk. After getting taunted by Gunther, Punk hit back with a few chops of his own, but Gunther got the last laugh of this sequence and knocked Punk down to the mat.
Gunther then went for the sleeper hold, and the whole time, Gunther taunted Punk, yelling at him to call him a kid again and that he wasn’t the best in the world. Punk got to his feet and then reversed Gunther’s move and almost had the sharpshooter locked in. Gunther fought out and then slammed Punk to the mat before locking in the sharpshooter, and he was right in the center of the ring. Punk managed to reverse it into a submission though, wearing down the Champion considerably before the hold was broken.
Gunther hit Punk with a suplex and then taunted the challenger afterwards. Punk looked worn down as he took more chops to the chest, but that seemed to wake him up as he delivered several chops of his own. A clothesline couldn’t knock Gunther down, so Punk tried two more and finally got him down with a dropkick. Punk was back in it, and he went for a knee strike, but got caught and almost pinned. Punk managed to kick out, and Gunther was looking a bit flummoxed at Punk’s perseverance. Punk grabbed Gunther’s arm and locked in a Triangle Choke, but Gunther broke out of it and went for a Boston Crab. Punk escaped it and took a brutal chop to the back, but then hit a leg sweep to buy himself some time.
Both superstars were worn down at this point, but Punk then hit a knee strike and a running bulldog into a cover, though Gunther kicked out. Then Gunther and Punk traded shots before Gunther hit a monster dropkick, but Punk refused to stay down. Gunther took the attack to the outside, but once again, he taunted Punk by saying the Title belonged to the best in the world. Gunther then celebrated on the announce table, but Punk tripped him and sent Gunther colliding into the announce table and into the chairs.
When Gunther got to his feet, he was completely busted open and was bleeding profusely from his nose. Punk was on his feet as Gunther tried to stop the bleeding, but Punk didn’t relent. Punk targeted the nose and face and hit a running knee, and then went up top and hit the elbow drop. Punk signaled for the GTS, but Gunther locked in the sleeper on Punk. Punk fought out and then picked up Gunther and hit the GTS on the Champ, but Gunther didn’t fall. Punk went for another one and hit it, and Punk then got the pin and the win. Punk was emotional as he held his newly won Title close, but his celebration was cut short.
Suddenly, Seth Rollins’ music hit, and Rollins came out with crutches alongside Paul Heyman. Rollins started to walk backstage but then stopped and threw his crutches away and took off his brace, revealing he wasn’t injured. Rollins then beat down Punk with the briefcase, and after he made the cash-in official, he hit Punk with a curb stomp and secured the pin, becoming the new World Heavyweight Champion and ending Punk’s reign after just over 5 minutes.
What did you think of Seth Rollins’ return and WWE’s big swerve for Punk? Let us know in the comments, and you can talk all things wrestling with me on Bluesky @knightofoa!
