Top 10 greatest SummerSlam debuts of all time

This pay-per-view events is called the biggest party of the summer

WWE SummerSlam is one of the greatest wrestling pay-per-views in the wrestling industry. It is the second grandest event after WrestleMania, that traditionally occurs during the month of August. Having a match at this big event is a dream for many, where it took years for some to be a part of this event. So here is a list of top 10 greatest SummerSlam debuts of all time, featuring WWE Superstars who had utilized their opportunity to make it memorable for years.

10. Liv Morgan: 2022

At Money in the Bank, Liv Morgan became Miss. Money in the Bank and cashed-in her championship contract the same day against Ronda Rousey to become the SmackDown Women’s Champion for the first time. Rousey got the championship rematch at SummerSlam against Liv Morgan. Although being the SmackDown Women’s Champion, Liv is considered as weak as Rousey was the one who was dominant and had a clear upper hand.

However, Liv Morgan pulled yet another upset by pinning Ronda Rousey for the second time to retain her SmackDown Women’s Championship. Although the win was criticized for its controversial end, there is no better way to win a debut match at SummerSlam by defeating “The Baddest Women on the Planet”.

9. Rey Mysterio 2002

Having a SummerSlam debut weeks after WWE debut is like a living dream, Rey had such a moment. Rey Mysterio made his WWE debut in 2002 against Chavo Guerrero at SmackDown and marked his debut win. After two weeks, Mysterio joined hands with Edge and John Cena to take on Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, and Kurt Angle, where Mysterio pinned Kurt Angle for the victory.

Angle insulted Mysterio at the Backstage where Rey confronted him and challenged him for a match at SummerSlam. Rey Mysterio had the upper hand over Kurt Angle during the initial part of the match as he hid under the ring and took down Angle with head scissors. The match showcased the high flying tactics and ground abilities of Mysterio. However the match didn’t turn out well for Mysterio as he submitted to ankle lock, it remains one of the greatest SummerSlam debuts.

Also Read: Ranking the top 11 best WWE superstars on the roster currently

8. Braun Strowman 2017

Brock Lesnar was the Universal Champion at the time, where his championship was in a three way threat as Roman Reigns, Braun Strowman and Samoa Joe urged for a title shot. The match at SummerSlam was made a Fatal 4-Way Match for the Universal Championship, where if Brock Lesnar loses he will leave WWE with Paul Heyman. On such a high profile main event, Braun Strowman made his SummerSlam debut in a most dominant way.

Although the debut didn’t result in a victory, Strowman was the dominant wrestler among all the other three opponents. Strowman Power Slammed “The Beast” through the commentary table and took him away for medical attention, got a bleeding cut in the head via steel stairs, hit multiple Running PowerSlams to the champ and co-opponents. With a monstrous performance, Strowman’s SummerSlam debut made 8th in our list.

7. Roman Reigns: 2014

After The Shield got splitted, Roman Reigns got his singles push and was in the list of #1 Contenders for the WWE World heavyweight Championship. He had a feud with the Authority and had a 2 on 1 Handicap match with Kane and Randy Orton. When Triple H was about to announce the #1 Contender to face Cena at SummerSlam, Reigns attacked Orton resulting in a one on one match between them, marking the SummerSlam debut of Roman Reigns. Randy Orton and Roman Reigns had a tough fight, where Roman Reigns won the match by spearing Orton by countering the punt kick.

6. Bobby Lashley: 2021

SummerSlam is not an easy pay-per-view for the WWE Superstars to get featured in although being a powerhouse of the business, one such example is Bobby Lashley. It took almost 15 years for “The Almighty” Bobby Lashely to have a debut match at SummerSlam since his WWE debut. But the wait was worthier, as he debuted in the prime of his career against one of the greatest wrestlers and a legendary Hall of Famer.

Bobby Lashley made his SummerSlam debut in 2021, where successfully defended his WWE Championship against Gold Berg. Lashley almost humiliated Berg and ended in a referee stoppage as Berg was unable to compete due to a leg injury. After the match Lashley continued his domination by attacking the injured leg of Berg and attacked Berg’s 15-year-old son with “Hurt Lock”, who came to the aid of his father.

5. AJ Styles: 2016

AJ Styles not only had one of the greatest WWE debuts of all time and he also had one of the greatest SummerSlam debuts of all time. In 2016, when Styles walked into the company it made an instant impact on the main roster. He soon was placed among some of the top wrestlers of the company and feuded with some of the greats.

He established himself as a heel by joining hands with fellow Bullet Club mates Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson by attacking returning John Cena, resulting in a match between them at Money in the Bank, where Styles won. They had a rematch at SummerSlam, marking the SummerSlam debut of AJ Styles. There is no better way to make the debut more memorable than defeating the GOAT. Styles won the match with a clean pinfall over Cena and claimed himself as the “New Face of WWE”.

Also Read: Ranking the top 10 best storylines in WWE history

4. Daniel Bryan: 2010

WWE was in a serious threat by the arrival of The Nexus (a team of NXT rookies of the first season). The Nexus invaded Raw and caused a violent attack on Cena, CM Punk and other ring members including the commentators, camera men and ring announcers, shocking the entire WWE fans. They continued their attack week after week demanding a WWE contract for all the members of Nexus. John Cena was the main target of them, as he was the face of the company and they expanded their targets by attacking all other wrestlers. Cena formed “Team WWE” with Edge, Chris Jericho, John Morrison, R-Truth, The Great Khali and Bret Hart to face The Nexus in a 14 Man Elimination Tag Team Match at SummerSlam.

Team WWE is one member short to face the 7 member crew of Nexus, they asked The Miz to join on their side but he regretted it. At SummerSlam, when The Miz came to join Team WWE, Cena rejected him and made The Miz’s NXT Rookie, Daniel Bryan the 7th member of Team WWE. Daniel Bryan was a former member of Team Nexus who got kicked out of the team before. Daniel Bryan had a great SummerSlam debut by eliminating two members of The Nexus and was one of the final two members of Team WWE. He got eliminated by Wade Barrett after The Miz attacked him for taking his spot.

3. Ronda Rousey: 2018

Ronda Rousey made her WWE debut in 2018 and made a huge impact on the company’s women’s division. She gained her first championship match at Money in the Bank to face Nia Jax for the Raw Women’s Championship. When Rousey was about to taste the victory, Alexa Bliss cost the match by attacking both Rousey and Jax with the MITB briefcase which she won earlier that day and cashed-it on Nia Jax to become Raw Women’s Champion for the third time.

Bliss then defended her championship against Jax at Extreme Rules, after which Rousey returned and attacked Bliss resulting in a match at SummerSlam and suspension to Rousey until SummerSlam. Ronda Rousey had her first SummerSlam match by winning the Raw Women’s Championship for the first time. 

2. Finn Balor: 2016

Finn Balor made his main roster debut on Raw weeks before SummerSlam as a part of 2016 Superstar Shakeup. As a result of the brand split, WWE Championship became the brand exclusive title of SmackDown and Raw had no primary titles. So, the Raw Commissioner Mick Foley and Stephanie McMahon introduced the Universal Championship as the counterpart of the WWE Championship.

An Universal Championship Tournament was announced and the winner will be crowned as the Inaugural Universal Champion. Balor competed in the tournament and defeated some of the default main eventers of the company and made his way to the finals at SummerSlam. Seth Rollins on the other hand defeated fellow competitors and became the other finalist. At SummerSlam, Balor had his SummerSlam debut and faced Rollins in the finals to become the inaugural Universal Championship. On the first SummerSlam match winning the first championship and becoming the first ever champion is like a living dream. Thus securing the No.2 spot on our list.

Also Read: Top five WWE superstars who lost their main event push after getting injured

1. Brock Lesnar: 2002

Brock Lesnar won the “King of The Ring” Title, earning a championship contract for the WWE Undisputed Championship at SummerSlam. The Rock was the Undisputed WWE Champion at the time, who had won the championship by defeating The Undertaker and Kurt Angle in a Triple Threat Match at Vengeance. The Rock & Hulk Hogan had a match against Lance Storm & Christian for the WWE Tag Team Championship, where Lesnar interfered and cost the championship opportunity of The Rock & Hulk Hogan. Hogan challenged Brock Lesnar to a match with a stipulation to defend Lesnar’s Championship opportunity on the line.

Lesnar accepted Hogan’s challenge and won the match by referee stoppage as Lesnar’s “Bear Hug” made Hogan unconscious. Lesnar kept interfering in The Rock’s match and made a distraction which turned into a brawl at the final episode of SmackDown before SummerSlam. They finally had the WWE Undisputed Championship match at SummerSlam, where Brock dominated the initial part of the match and Rock countered it in the mid-match. Both delivered a Rock Bottom on each other, Rock attacked Paul Heyman by hitting Rock Bottom over the commentary table.

Rock attempted a Rock Bottom and People’s Elbow, but Lesnar countered it with a F-5 to become the WWE Undisputed Champion for the first time. On the SummerSlam debut, against one of the greatest, winning the first championship, and recording a Guinness World Record for the Youngest WWE Champion is the greatest SummerSlam debut of all time.