After a busy weekend of stacked events for WWE, the company turned its attention toward SummerSlam on Monday Night Raw.
After an incredibly impressive WWE Evolution and a noteworthy Saturday Night’s Main Event, WWE has just two and a bit weeks to build toward its second biggest show of the year.
WWE Raw set up the New Jersey show superbly, announcing a further three matches for the two-night bonanza.
Here is everything we learned from WWE Raw.
CM Punk wins Gauntlet to set up Gunther clash at SummerSlam
Triple H booked the Gauntlet match for a shot at Gunther’s World Heavyweight Championship to perfection.
Having popular babyfaces Jey Uso, Penta, LA Knight, and CM Punk try and take down entrant number one Bron Breakker worked superbly.
It meant Breakker looked incredibly strong by dispatching Uso, Penta, and Knight, and gave Punk the euphoria of finally tackling the beast.
Punk will face Gunther with the World Heavyweight Championship on the line against Gunther at SummerSlam.
Roman Reigns returns to take out Paul Heyman’s faction
After the Gauntlet, Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker attacked the selection of babyfaces but their plan was curtailed by a huge return.
Roman Reigns returned for the first time since the Raw after WrestleMania to take out Paul Heyman’s faction. The OTC shook Uso’s hand, but failed to truly acknowledge Punk in the middle of the ring.
It’s unclear whether Reigns will be facing Breakker in a singles match at SummerSlam, or teaming with Uso to take on The Big Dog and Reed.
Either way, it’s fantastic to have Reigns back in the fold and the incredible crowd reaction is testament to that.
Lyra Valkyria beats Bayley to set up Becky Lynch rematch
Lyra Valkyria and Bayley put on yet another classic, just 24 hours removed from their triple threat with Becky Lynch.
The pair collided in a two-out-of-three-falls match with the winner facing Lynch for the Intercontinental Championship at SummerSlam.
Valkyria eventually picked up the win after falling behind by one fall and she’ll face her rival once again in New Jersey.
The Irish star has truly broken out after a middling first year on the main roster and she absolutely deserves to beat Lynch on the big stage.
Naomi vs Rhea Ripley vs Iyo Sky is confirmed for SummerSlam
After Naomi’s incredible Money in the Bank cash-in, the new Women’s World Champion opened the show with a celebratory promo.
She was interrupted by the two women she had screwed at Evolution, Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky, and general manager Adam Pearce confirmed the trio would collide at SummerSlam.
The WWE Raw women’s division has received a shot in the arm with Naomi as new champion and this could easily be the best match of SummerSlam.
Nikki Bella could get SummerSlam match with Stephanie Vaquer
The entire first half of the show was made up of the women’s division, with Raquel Rodriguez and Roxanne Perez also defending their tag titles against The Kabuki Warriors.
Following that, Nikki Bella competed in her first WWE Raw match for seven years following her appearance in the Evolution Battle Royal.
The WWE Hall of Famer took on and beat Chelsea Green, but she was attacked by The Secret Hervice after the match.
This brought out Stephanie Vaquer to make the save, and she embraced Bella suggesting the two could form a tag team heading into SummerSlam.