Potential Problems For Summerslam & NXT Takeover: Brooklyn

[Jack-Hammer]

Both the cards for SummerSlam and NXT Takeover: Brooklyn are jam packed with matches. The cards currently look like this:

SummerSlam

1. Winner Takes All - John Cena vs. Seth Rollins
2. WWE Intercontinental Championship - Ryback vs. Miz vs. Big Show
3. WWE Tag Team Championship - Prime Time Players vs. New Day vs. Lucha Dragons vs. Los Matadores
4. The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar
5. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus
6. Elimination Tag Team Match - Team PCB vs. Team Bad vs. Team Bella
7. Dean Ambrose & Roman Reigns vs. Luke Harper and Bray Wyatt
8. Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens
9. Neville and Stephen Amell vs. King Barrett and Stardust
10. Dolph Ziggler vs. Rusev

NXT Takeover: Brooklyn

1. NXT Championship - Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens
2. NXT Women's Championship - Sasha Banks vs. Bayley
3. NXT Tag Team Championship - Blake & Murphy vs. The Vaudevillains
4. Samoa Joe vs. Baron Corbin
5. Apollo Crews (AKA Uhaa Nation) vs. Tye Dillinger
6. Enzo Amore, Big Cass, Zack Ryder & Mojo Rawley vs. Jason Jordan, Scott Dawson, Chad Gable and Dash Wilder
7. Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Dana Brooke vs. Emma
8. Bull Dempsey vs. Elias Samson
9. Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Tyler Breeze
10. Carmella vs. Eva Marie

Personally, I'm not crazy about having such a huge number of matches on the card because it could very easily mean a lot of short, fairly meaningless matches. By the time you factor in entrances, especially for SummerSlam, you're probably going to be looking at a lot of 5 minute matches.

As for NXT Takeover: Brooklyn, it faces the same problem only to a much greater degree. It has the same number of matches as SummerSlam, but half the air time; they're packing 10 matches into a 2 hour show, which will most definitely result in a ton of very short encounters. This is the first of the NXT live specials that I've had my doubts about in terms of quality because, in my opinion, they've packed too much onto the show and a lot is going to feel rushed. I think another potential problem is that several prominent NXT stars are now on the main roster and it's causing a continuity issue; Becky Lynch & Charlotte are allies on the main roster, yet they're opponents here while Owens' presence on the main roster already gives away the ending of the match with Balor, though it'll almost certainly still be entertaining.

 

[klunderbunker]

Both the cards for SummerSlam and NXT Takeover: Brooklyn are jam packed with matches. The cards currently look like this:

SummerSlam

1. Winner Takes All - John Cena vs. Seth Rollins
2. WWE Intercontinental Championship - Ryback vs. Miz vs. Big Show
3. WWE Tag Team Championship - Prime Time Players vs. New Day vs. Lucha Dragons vs. Los Matadores
4. The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar
5. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus
6. Elimination Tag Team Match - Team PCB vs. Team Bad vs. Team Bella
7. Dean Ambrose & Roman Reigns vs. Luke Harper and Bray Wyatt
8. Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens
9. Neville and Stephen Amell vs. King Barrett and Stardust
10. Dolph Ziggler vs. Rusev

NXT Takeover: Brooklyn

1. NXT Championship - Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens
2. NXT Women's Championship - Sasha Banks vs. Bayley
3. NXT Tag Team Championship - Blake & Murphy vs. The Vaudevillains
4. Samoa Joe vs. Baron Corbin
5. Apollo Crews (AKA Uhaa Nation) vs. Tye Dillinger
6. Enzo Amore, Big Cass, Zack Ryder & Mojo Rawley vs. Jason Jordan, Scott Dawson, Chad Gable and Dash Wilder
7. Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Dana Brooke vs. Emma
8. Bull Dempsey vs. Elias Samson
9. Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Tyler Breeze
10. Carmella vs. Eva Marie

Personally, I'm not crazy about having such a huge number of matches on the card because it could very easily mean a lot of short, fairly meaningless matches. By the time you factor in entrances, especially for SummerSlam, you're probably going to be looking at a lot of 5 minute matches.

As for NXT Takeover: Brooklyn, it faces the same problem only to a much greater degree. It has the same number of matches as SummerSlam, but half the air time; they're packing 10 matches into a 2 hour show, which will most definitely result in a ton of very short encounters. This is the first of the NXT live specials that I've had my doubts about in terms of quality because, in my opinion, they've packed too much onto the show and a lot is going to feel rushed. I think another potential problem is that several prominent NXT stars are now on the main roster and it's causing a continuity issue; Becky Lynch & Charlotte are allies on the main roster, yet they're opponents here while Owens' presence on the main roster already gives away the ending of the match with Balor, though it'll almost certainly still be entertaining.

Takeover isn't going to be a problem as matches 6, 7, 8 and 10 and maybe 5 are being taped and airing next week on TV. It was announced as such on last night's show.

Summerslam could be a problem though as the entrances are indeed going to take their time. Coupling that with Jon Stewart doing his stuff and some of the big matches probably getting close to half an hour each and at least one show almost has to be on the pre-show. The celebrity match will be short and I can't imagine the IC Title match going long. Other than that though, it's going to be tight, as always seems to be the case no matter how long WWE makes these things.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

I've read on a few sites that not all of the matches that are on the NXT card are going to be aired. I've even read a report, PWTorch I believe, that said the tag title match won't be aired and are potentially being taped for future episodes of NXT.

I agree that maybe the SummerSlam card is a bit too big, and the build to most of the matches has been mediocre at best. Hopefully it turns out like Mania and ends up being a good card despite a poor build. They did expand the show to four hours, so hopefully that helps.

The issue I think they may run into is that even during Mania this year, they only aired seven matches, and no one match ran longer than twenty minutes. I fully expect a couple of the matches to get bumped to the pre-show.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

Keep in mind that the plan for the main events may be shorter than normal due to Cena's injury and UT's shape therefore it is not necessarily the undercard that gets cut this time around.

 

[Navi]

Keep in mind that the plan for the main events may be shorter than normal due to Cena's injury and UT's shape therefore it is not necessarily the undercard that gets cut this time around.

This is true, plus didn't Sheamus suffer a concussion about two weeks ago, so he might not be 100% either. If you take that into effect, and maybe one or two matches get moved to the preshow, then they might just with 4 hours be able to do it.

Don't know which matches they would move to the preshow though. Would be a shame if it were Cesaro/Owens, this is be one hell of a match.

 

[BeastFromTheEast]

SS does seem to have a lot of matches planned but keep in mind that it has been extended to 4 hours, so that may not be such a problem. It has also been mentioned above that not all of the matches listed for NXT Takeover are actually part of the Takeover card but rather being taped for an upcoming NXT show on the network.

 

[Really?]

Both the cards for SummerSlam and NXT Takeover: Brooklyn are jam packed with matches. The cards currently look like this:

SummerSlam

1. Winner Takes All - John Cena vs. Seth Rollins
2. WWE Intercontinental Championship - Ryback vs. Miz vs. Big Show
3. WWE Tag Team Championship - Prime Time Players vs. New Day vs. Lucha Dragons vs. Los Matadores
4. The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar
5. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus
6. Elimination Tag Team Match - Team PCB vs. Team Bad vs. Team Bella
7. Dean Ambrose & Roman Reigns vs. Luke Harper and Bray Wyatt
8. Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens
9. Neville and Stephen Amell vs. King Barrett and Stardust
10. Dolph Ziggler vs. Rusev

NXT Takeover: Brooklyn

1. NXT Championship - Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens
2. NXT Women's Championship - Sasha Banks vs. Bayley
3. NXT Tag Team Championship - Blake & Murphy vs. The Vaudevillains
4. Samoa Joe vs. Baron Corbin
5. Apollo Crews (AKA Uhaa Nation) vs. Tye Dillinger
6. Enzo Amore, Big Cass, Zack Ryder & Mojo Rawley vs. Jason Jordan, Scott Dawson, Chad Gable and Dash Wilder
7. Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Dana Brooke vs. Emma
8. Bull Dempsey vs. Elias Samson
9. Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Tyler Breeze
10. Carmella vs. Eva Marie

Personally, I'm not crazy about having such a huge number of matches on the card because it could very easily mean a lot of short, fairly meaningless matches. By the time you factor in entrances, especially for SummerSlam, you're probably going to be looking at a lot of 5 minute matches.

As for NXT Takeover: Brooklyn, it faces the same problem only to a much greater degree. It has the same number of matches as SummerSlam, but half the air time; they're packing 10 matches into a 2 hour show, which will most definitely result in a ton of very short encounters. This is the first of the NXT live specials that I've had my doubts about in terms of quality because, in my opinion, they've packed too much onto the show and a lot is going to feel rushed. I think another potential problem is that several prominent NXT stars are now on the main roster and it's causing a continuity issue; Becky Lynch & Charlotte are allies on the main roster, yet they're opponents here while Owens' presence on the main roster already gives away the ending of the match with Balor, though it'll almost certainly still be entertaining.

Takeover will have matches 1-5 in a two hour slot. Uhaa's debut will be a squash. Joe's match will go 8-10 mins. Give the tag titles 20 mins, and that leaves more than an hour for the women and the ladder match. NXT doesn't do a lot of blah blah, so that'll all be fine.

Summerslam has four hours. Brock vs Taker and Cena vs Rollins get 35 mins each. So 70 out of 240 mins are gone leaving 170 mins.

Cena vs Rollins: 35
Taker vs Lesnar: 35
Women: 15
Cesaro vs Owens: 20
Dolph vs Rusev: 15
Tag title: 15
Tag Gimmick: 15
IC title: 10
Orton vs Sheamus: 20
Old Shield vs Wyatts: 20

That leaves 40 minutes for the typical PPV junk and promos. I'd also figure they may shift a match to the pre-show but they don't need to.

 

[OYDK]

Summerslam has four hours. Brock vs Taker and Cena vs Rollins get 35 mins each. So 70 out of 240 mins are gone leaving 170 mins.

I really don't see Brock/Taker going 35 minutes. Lesnar/Reigns went not even 20 and Brock's last match went maybe 12. Taker's last match went less than 15. I wholly expect them to pack a lot of action into 15-20 minutes, which is perfect for those two at this point in their careers. As for Cena/Rollins, they'll most likely go over half an hour but that should easily be the longest match of the night.

I could see where doubts arise when it comes to the time, but there also a number of talents mixed together that could put together a good match in 10-15 minutes. The tag title match for instant, will likely be a 10 minute affair of very fast-paced action. I don't see the attraction match (Amell/Neville vs Stardust Barrett) going longer than 10 and it doesn't really need to. The IC title, Sheamus/Orton, and Ziggler/Rusev will probably suffer the most but I'd say those are the three least anticipated matches on the card. We don't need to see Sheamus/Orton go for 25 minutes again, nor does the IC title match need to overstay its welcome.

I expect WWE to give both Owens/Cesaro and the Diva match a decent amount of time... they'd be dumb not to, especially Owens/Cesaro. As for NXT, I didn't hear that they were only airing half the matches but that would be smart on WWE's part. No way can you fit 10 matches into a 2 hour affair. Hopefully everything turns out alright and we get some good action.

 

[ASKane]

Summerslam is 4 hours with a 30 minute pre show thats a total of 270 minutes which means for the 10 matches they have an average of 27 minutes each which is clearly more than enough to have a good show

 

[wwe fan2009]

yeah, its 4 hours like WM it will be fine. most matches with 10-15-20 mins with Cena Rollins being the longest

 

[cyhh2002]

Something tells me that two matches (possibly the tag team match and Cesaro-Owens) will get bumped to the pre-show in order to make room for a Rock-Authority promo.

 

[Logisticalbooker86]

Some of you would do well to relax. There is no way Cesaro versus Owens gets moved to the pre-show. No chance. The tag title bout will be moved to the pre-show and possibly the IC title given the lack of build.

WWE is taking an ambitious route with this year's event. All of the stars will get their chance to shine, but time must be used wisely.

Here are the things you should really be concerned about

The Crowd - Brooklyn needs to bring it, and they have a ton of wrestling to look forward to. It will be tough to keep the crowd invested in ten plus hours of content (TAKEOVER, SummerSlam, Raw).

Theatre Versus Wrestling - Jon Stewart is a wrestling fan who gets the business and his involvement could be a needed change of pace in a wrestling heavy broadcast. (Even the smarkiest of smarks feels burnout at some point in four hours).

LIMIT THE VIDEO PACKAGES - Most folks paying for this show are aware of the stakes and storylines. Give us just enough of the video packages to offer a big fight feel, but promo videos should not take up much of the show. Nearly all of your time management concerns go out the window if this area is handled correctly.

Last but not least, Match Order
Not much that needs to be said here, match order can help or hinder the flow of the entire night.

SummerSlam needs to deliver, the only plus about the ESPN coverage is the added incentive it gives the men and women involved added motivation to tear the house down.

 

[enviousdominous]

SummerSlam

1. Winner Takes All - John Cena vs. Seth Rollins
2. WWE Intercontinental Championship - Ryback vs. Miz vs. Big Show
3. WWE Tag Team Championship - Prime Time Players vs. New Day vs. Lucha Dragons vs. Los Matadores
4. The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar
5. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus
6. Elimination Tag Team Match - Team PCB vs. Team Bad vs. Team Bella
7. Dean Ambrose & Roman Reigns vs. Luke Harper and Bray Wyatt
8. Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens
9. Neville and Stephen Amell vs. King Barrett and Stardust
10. Dolph Ziggler vs. Rusev

The one match I see being ended very quickly is the Stephen Amell match, even if it wasn't planned to end quickly. If the Brooklyn crowd turns up the heat like northeastern crowds tend to do, they'll be booing the shit out of Stephen Amell. Celebrities are fun, but a crowd of smarks is usually eager to tear into an inexperienced performer.

I really don't see Undertaker and Lesnar putting on a clinic. There will definitely be slow entrances and lingering questions after it's over, I think Undertaker will be saying "Just pin me Brock" at around the 15 minute mark. So I'm predicting 30 minutes tops for them.

I think they're going to do something silly with the Orton vs Sheamus match, just to save time and not risk making either one of them look bad. I'm believing the hype that suggests that Sheamus will be cashing in at Summerslam, so he'll probably just get himself DQ'd quick to take his penance loss and still look strong.

Dolph vs Rusev is getting no press from what I can tell, and that's as much as I think it deserves. I really hope they have a quick match and put their idiotic feud behind them.

The one match they can't skimp on in front of Brooklyn is Owens vs Cesaro. I expect the crowd to pop huge, do the "THIS IS AWESOME" chants and cheer wildly for both men. Every other match seems no better than filler to me, this is the one match that I would be paying to see as an audience member.

I don't think anyone cares about the Intercontinental Championship anymore. Ryback has been looking more agile, but he's still just a one-note performer.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

With 4 hours for SummerSlam, I doubt WWE will have trouble getting all the matches plenty of time.

Cena vs. Rollins - 25
Taker vs. Lesnar - 15
Owens vs. Cesaro - 15
Orton vs. Sheamus - 12
Wyatt & Harper vs. Ambrose & Reigns - 12
Ziggler vs. Rusev - 10
Divas 3-Way Tag Match - 10
Tag Team Titles - 10
Stardust & Barrett vs. Neville & Arrow - 8
IC Title - Pre-Show

That's a roughly guesstimated 2 hours of wrestling. That leaves 2 hours for entrances, video recaps of feuds, Jon Stewart's segment, incessant replays, backstage segments, WWE Network ads, the pre-show panel, and post-match segments (return, celebration, etc).

 

[MartialHorror]

The 'Carmella Vs Eva', the 4-man Tag Team and Bull Dempsey matches weren't on TakeOver. Personally, I thought it was an exceptional show. Wonderfully paced and 'Banks Vs Bailey' was amazing. SummerSlam is going to be hard to pull off...as 4 hours and 'properly paced' don't go well together.