With SummerSlam once again looming we thought it would be fun to take a look at the best match from every edition of WWE's summer spectacle.
00:00 - Start
00:55 - 1988
01:12 - 1989
01:25 - 1990
01:40 - 1991
01:56 - 1992
02:08 - 1993
02:24 - 1994
02:40 - 1995
02:54 - 1996
03:07 - 1997
03:23 - 1998
03:43 - 1999
04:03 - 2000
04:25 - 2001
04:44 - 2002
05:00 - 2003
05:16 - 2004
05:30 - 2005
05:49 - 2006
06:10 - 2007
06:26 - 2008
06:45 - 2009
07:02 - 2010
07:16 - 2011
07:36 - 2012
07:55 - 2013
08:18 - 2014
08:35 - 2015
08:55 - 2016
09:14 - 2017
09:33 - 2018
09:51 - 2019
10:08 - 2020
10:18 - 2021
10:32 - 2022
10:48 - 2023
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00:00 - Start
00:55 - 1988
01:12 - 1989
01:25 - 1990
01:40 - 1991
01:56 - 1992
02:08 - 1993
02:24 - 1994
02:40 - 1995
02:54 - 1996
03:07 - 1997
03:23 - 1998
03:43 - 1999
04:03 - 2000
04:25 - 2001
04:44 - 2002
05:00 - 2003
05:16 - 2004
05:30 - 2005
05:49 - 2006
06:10 - 2007
06:26 - 2008
06:45 - 2009
07:02 - 2010
07:16 - 2011
07:36 - 2012
07:55 - 2013
08:18 - 2014
08:35 - 2015
08:55 - 2016
09:14 - 2017
09:33 - 2018
09:51 - 2019
10:08 - 2020
10:18 - 2021
10:32 - 2022
10:48 - 2023
SUBSCRIBE TO partsFUNknown: https://bit.ly/2J2Hl6q
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/partsfunknown
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/partsfunknown/
Buy wrestling merchandise here: https://www.wrestleshop.com/
Unlock the secrets to working in professional wrestling, sign up to https://www.wrestlingmasterclass.com/
Read more Feature content here on WrestleTalk.com: https://wrestletalk.com/features/
Youtube Channel Comments Policy
We appreciate the comments and opinions our viewers provide. Do note that all comments are subject to YouTube auto-moderation and manual moderation review. We encourage opinions and discussion, but harassment, hate speech, bullying and other abusive posts will not be tolerated. Decisions on comment removal are made by the Community Manager. Please email us at support@wrestletalk.com with any questions or concerns.
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:00The most summer-slam time of the year is once again upon us, with the Summer Spectacular
00:04only two weeks away, now in brown.
00:07The most summery color of all, thank you Cleveland.
00:11Earlier this year we took a look at the best match from every Wrestlemania, and it was
00:14a ton of fun, so why not do that again with the other big show on the WWE calendar?
00:20Rest assured, there will be a worst version of this list, because what near 40-year-old
00:25show doesn't have a little bit of good and a little bit of bad?
00:29Thankfully for present Tempest, now is the time for the good.
00:32I'm Tempest, hailing from PartsFunKnown, and this is the greatest match from every
00:36summer slam.
00:37But before we get on with our list, make sure of course that you like this video, subscribe,
00:40and enable notifications to always on so you never miss a fun list just like it.
00:44And if you like video game content, why don't you check out our new channel, Control Freaks,
00:49where we play the best couch co-op, competitive, and spooky games around.
00:53You'll see a clip from one of them at the end.
00:551988, the Megapowers vs. the Megabucks.
00:58Usually, power and money would go hand in hand, and they'd all be evil.
01:02Side note, shout out to the 80s for Miss Elizabeth's swimsuit bottom being so racy that it was
01:07the big spot of the match.
01:09Wish I could show these people what Liv Morgan's up to these days.
01:121989, the Ultimate Warrior vs. Rick Rude.
01:15Maybe the most consistent rivalry of the Ultimate Warrior's career.
01:18Would that be fair to say?
01:20Between solid matches at WrestleMania 5, here, and SummerSlam 1990, I think it just might
01:24be.
01:251990, the Hart Foundation vs. Demolition.
01:28Bret Appreciation Part 1, God bless the tag teams providing actually great wrestling matches
01:33to the end of the Hulkamania era.
01:35Bret in a best-of-three-falls match with a title change given plenty of time?
01:39More please.
01:401991, Bret Hart vs. Mr. Perfect.
01:42Bret Appreciation Part 2, the Solo Star Edition.
01:46I mean, it may not have had three falls, but it has the other boxes checked.
01:50If you had a match embodying the Intercontinental Championship of the era, you'd be hard-pressed
01:55to find a better one than this.
01:561992, Bret Hart vs. British Bulldog.
01:59Bret Appreciation Part 3, the Dave Bradshaw was there edition.
02:03The match virtually all British pay-per-view main events are compared against, at least
02:07in Dave's mind.
02:081993, Bret Hart vs. Jerry Lawler.
02:11Bret Appreciation Part 4, the Overcoming the Evil Clown Edition.
02:15Doesn't matter if this is only six minutes, ends in DQ, and follows a match with an evil
02:19clown, Bret was the first Mr. SummerSlam and maximized the minutes he was given.
02:241994, Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart.
02:27Bret Appreciation Part 5, the My Brother Bret Edition.
02:31At the time, this was the best cage match ever, but even still, sometimes I wonder how
02:34magical Bret vs. Owen for the title would have been had they had the latter match Bret
02:39had wanted them to have.
02:401995, Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon.
02:43How do you follow a revolutionary new match that many viewed as perfect?
02:47Well you make the more exciting man in the match the babyface this time so the people
02:50are actually meant to cheer him.
02:52Yeah, that'll do.
02:541996, Shawn Michaels vs. Vader.
02:57Even Shawn throwing a tantrum in two separate restarts couldn't ruin the only highlight
03:01of SummerSlam 1996.
03:02Somehow the exact same thing can be said about our most previous entry too.
03:06Funny that.
03:071997, Bret Hart vs. The Undertaker.
03:10More Bret Appreciation!
03:12Shawn's work as special guest referee accidentally costing Undertaker the WWE title is still
03:16being used as the framework for referee bollocks decades later and served as a great finish
03:21to an otherwise great match as well.
03:241998, The Rock vs. Triple H.
03:26The eternal rivalry between The Rock and Triple H has many chapters, detailed on our WrestleTalk
03:30original on the subject, but an often overlooked one is the pair having a great ladder match
03:35together.
03:36You wouldn't think it given their styles, but grit over spectacle and an MSG crowd in
03:411998 went a long way.
03:431999, Mankind vs. Triple H vs. Steve Austin.
03:47Steve Austin, in addition to being one of the greatest brawlers and technicians in wrestling
03:50history, is also one clumsy fellow at times, highlighted here by managing to flip over
03:56the ropes, get completely tied up, and hook his knee brace on the rope so he couldn't
04:00escape.
04:01Highlight of the whole show if you ask me.
04:032000, TLC 1.
04:05It may be a ladder match with more furniture, but if you're going to establish the TLC
04:09match as a new classic stipulation, you want a match like this to take the lead with its
04:13death-defying stunts.
04:15Guys dangling from the ring, missed swanton bombs, Matt Hardy's perilous plunge, Lita
04:21bonking her head on the ladder, honestly, that might be the thing that makes me cringe
04:25the most.
04:262001, Kurt Angle vs. Steve Austin.
04:28The best match to ever end in a DQ, not only because the match preceding the finish was
04:34f***ing brilliant, but because the DQ serviced the story of this cowardly Austin out of options
04:39against an Olympic hero who could not be beaten.
04:42One of the best ever.
04:442002, Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels.
04:47The build for this match may not have made a lot of sense, but thankfully Shawn Michaels
04:50is the kind of wrestler who could be out of a WWE ring for four and a half years and come
04:54back like he never missed a day.
04:56I say the kind of wrestler, but he may be in a category by himself on that one.
05:012003, Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar.
05:03The least remembered of their trilogy, but still fantastic in its own right.
05:07The only one where Kurt got his win back, but he did it as a superb babyface giving
05:12Brock more of a challenge than the shark he F5'd in the commercial for the show.
05:162004, Randy Orton vs. Chris Benoit.
05:19The forgotten Summerslam main event for very obvious reasons, but also one of the best
05:24matches in the young career of Randy Orton and one of the only times Chris Benoit got
05:28to simply defend the title in the main event of a pay-per-view.
05:302005, Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero.
05:33WWE has to run this back with Rhea and Liv, right?
05:36Like Dom sitting in the front row with a social worker and everything.
05:40Whether they would be able to match the quality of two of WWE's best ever having a messy,
05:44dangerous, and entertaining ladder match is yet to be seen, but it would be a tall task.
05:492006, Edge vs. John Cena.
05:51You know, if I have to see one more sign that says if Blank wins, we riot, I'm gonna start
05:57a riot.
05:58Empty threats.
05:59You don't mean it, you cowards.
06:01No one rioted when Edge won this very good Summerslam main event in John Cena's hometown.
06:06If you're not in the Hammerstein ballroom at an ECW show, I don't want to hear it.
06:102007, John Cena vs. Randy Orton.
06:12John Cena vs. Randy Orton?
06:14On a positive list.
06:16I mean, this was still new at the time, but rest assured, their match at Summerslam 2009
06:20will receive no such praise with its Brett DiBiase run-in.
06:24Brett DiBiase appreciation part never.
06:262008, Edge vs. The Undertaker.
06:29An actually brilliantly told Hell in a Cell match with a simple story of Edge using his
06:33strengths to try and overcome Undertaker and Hell in a Cell only to be smoten for his sins.
06:39And then thrown in an actual Christian depiction of Hell.
06:42Makes it a bit wacky, but the match is still good.
06:452009, Jeff Hardy vs. CM Punk.
06:47That's one big ass swanton.
06:49I know Jeff Hardy is kinda known for such things, but my god, what a way to put an exclamation
06:55mark on the best singles TLC match we had seen to that point.
06:58Just ignore Jeff digivolving into The Undertaker at the end.
07:022010, Team Cena vs. Team Nexus.
07:05Not often you'll see this match on a positive list, but this is a bad Summerslam with
07:09very few redeeming qualities, so John Cena burying seven guys at once in a solid main
07:13event match will have to do.
07:152011, Randy Orton vs. Christian.
07:18This is a real comfort match of mine.
07:20A great plunder match putting to bed a fantastic rivalry that is maybe the best of Orton's
07:25career.
07:26Would have been nice to ever get to see Christian get a proper run as world champion in WWE
07:31without Orton stomping methodically on that dream's limbs, but I'll take the great
07:35matches.
07:362012, Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler.
07:38I love how WWE pitched this as Chris Jericho finally winning the big one after having a
07:432012 where he exclusively lost on pay-per-view.
07:46I mean, I wouldn't usually consider winning an opening match against a mid-carder to be
07:51the big one, but at least it was the best match of a middling Summerslam.
07:552013, Brock Lesnar vs. CM Punk.
07:58What wasn't a middling Summerslam was this from 2013, complete with the two best matches
08:02WWE put on all year.
08:04While Cena and Bryan may have carried more significance, Brock and Punk's high-octane
08:08Extreme Rules match takes the cake.
08:11Punk hits a GTS to the gut, perhaps on accident, or perhaps to take advantage of Brock's
08:16diverticulitis.
08:17Who's to say?
08:182014, John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar.
08:21One of the most unique pay-per-view main events in WWE history.
08:25It remains surreal to think it actually happened even 10 years later.
08:30If you have to give Cena the title again at this point in his career, this is a hell of
08:34a way to justify it.
08:352015, John Cena vs. Seth Rollins.
08:38It's a shame this match is best remembered for John Stewart's shenanigans and not the
08:4219 minutes of brilliant wrestling that came before it, because truthfully, Seth beating
08:47John Cena to win a second belt should have been the biggest highlight of his WWE title
08:51reign.
08:52And I guess it is, but also, John Stewart.
08:552016, John Cena vs. AJ Styles.
08:58The run of John Cena wrestling the breakout Internet Darling of the Year at Summerslam
09:02made for many great matches, but none greater than this, with the 2016 Wrestler of the Year
09:07AJ Styles.
09:09Helps that Cena LOSES all of these Summerslam matches.
09:13Gotta love that.
09:142017, Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman vs. Samoa Joe vs. Roman Reigns.
09:19They did the match.
09:20They did the monster match.
09:22The monster match.
09:23It was a graveyard match.
09:25I'm surprised no one ended up in a grave after the destruction left behind by one of
09:29the most bonkers car crash matches ever in WWE.
09:332018, AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe.
09:36Not the first match on this list to end in DQ, but while a match like Austin vs. Angle
09:41justified its finish, this one felt like an attempt to stretch this story out a while
09:45longer.
09:46It does enough to earn its place atop Summerslam 2018, but in hindsight, Joe should have just
09:50won the title here.
09:522019, Seth Rollins vs. Brock Lesnar.
09:54When the bell rings, this Toronto crowd was not f***ing with babyface Seth Rollins after
09:58the horrendous 2019 he had had to this point, but by the end, they were all losing their
10:04minds to see him win back the Universal title.
10:06I know, because I was one of them.
10:092020, Drew McIntyre vs. Randy Orton.
10:11This is the best match ever to be won with a backslide.
10:14That's what I remember about it, and I'm not re-entering the Thunderdome to double-check.
10:182021, Edge vs. Seth Rollins.
10:21I don't know why the entry is titled that way.
10:24It should obviously say Seth Rollins vs. Brood Edge.
10:28The start of the trilogy that serves as the biggest highlight of Edge's WWE return run.
10:332022, Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar.
10:35Congratulations, WWE!
10:37After seven and a half years, you finally got Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar on a best-of
10:41list, and we all know why.
10:43There's only one reason.
10:45It's Roman catching that microphone.
10:47Chef's kiss.
10:48And 2023, Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar.
10:52For a story that was never given a reason to exist in the first place, Brock Lesnar
10:55vs. Cody Rhodes did have a very satisfying ending.
10:59A simple match of a hero overcoming the monster with effective imagery and a show of respect
11:04at the end.
11:05At least it helped give Cody something to do for a few months, like all great Summerslam
11:09feuds should.
11:10And that's our list.
11:11Make sure, of course, that you like this video and subscribe to PartsFunKnown, and leave
11:13us a comment down below if you disagree with any of our choices.
11:16But also check out this clip from our new video game channel, Control Freaks.
11:22Look at that, Holly!
11:29When I meet Dom, like, Dom's such a liar villain.
11:33You set the kitchen on fire and did nothing about it.
11:36I couldn't help.
11:37Dom is hard to please.