2026 WWE SummerSlam results, Night 2 grades

Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins have finally healed from the "chairshot heard 'round the world." In 2014, Rollins imploded one of WWE's most legendary groups by striking his Shield brethren. At the conclusion of 2026 WWE SummerSlam on Sunday night, both men are finally ready to move on. SummerSlam Night 2 was built around Reigns' desperation to be cured of Rollins' haunting betrayal. Sunday's headliners may wrestle again, but they've finally found closure 12 years after The Shield unraveled. At the conclusion of their WWE World Heavyweight Championship match, Reigns and Rollins finally bumped fists, bringing their journeys from upstarts to main event superstars full circle.SummerSlam Sunday started and ended on emotional highs. The fulfilling conclusion to The Shield story came after Kevin Owens' surprise return at the beginning of the card. Owens was back in action 17 months after neck and spinal cord injuries put his career in jeopardy. He immediately reinserted himself atop the card and on a first-time collision course with undisputed WWE champion CM Punk.2026 WWE SummerSlam results, Night 2 gradesKevin Owens makes surprise return, secures title shot vs. CM PunkFinn Balor vs. Sami Zayn vs. Gunther vs. Kevin Owens (No. 1 Contenders for WWE Championship): Opening the show, Balor and Zayn had prepared to wrestle one another. Thanks to Nick Aldis, who was reinstated as SmackDown general manager, that reward became much harder to capture. Aldis altered the match, first adding Gunther coming off his victory over Aldis on Saturday, and then, more surprisingly, pushing a returning Owens into the fray.Owens ran into the ring shot out of a cannon. He flattened Balor and Gunther with corner cannonballs before hugging Zayn, his best friend. There was real emotion behind their embrace, but there was a match to be won, which led the best friends to an immediate hockey fight. You wouldn't know Owens suffered a near-career-ending neck injury by the way he wrestled. He crushed his three foes with a swanton bomb to the floor, planted Balor with a fisherman's buster and even took some decent bumps. SummerSlam Night 2's opening match was certainly "The KO Show." The offense largely belonged to him. Owens worked his legitimate injury history into the match. Always a thoughtful in-ring psychologist, he repeatedly grabbed his neck after taking impact. This came into play most prominently after Zayn got his knees up on a blocked swanton bomb. Zayn expressed concern over his friend's health but ultimately prioritized the title shot. He geared up for a Helluva Kick that Gunther intercepted with a sleeper hold. Ultimately, a series of stunners sealed the match for Owens in his triumphant return. The bout was far too short considering the quantity and quality of talent involved. Maybe that was by design, considering that Owens hadn't wrestled in 17 months (March 2025). The surprise was fantastic, and the right person won. A feud between Punk and Owens is the freshest and most interesting option. The action was a short sprint but worthwhile in the grand scheme of things. Owens def. Zayn, Balor, and Gunther via pinfall. Grade: B+Baron Corbin crushes Trick Williams, Lil YachtyUnited States Championship -- Trick Williams (c) vs. Baron Corbin: Corbin's second stint with the WWE has been shockingly efficient. He fought with the ferocity one would expect from someone with his martial arts experience. A three-time Golden Gloves boxing champion, amateur wrestler, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitor, he was supremely physical from the jump. Corbin struck with meaningful impact, including a Deep Six ringside. Williams' powerful frame provided opportunities to work into the match. Most notably, he muscled up Corbin for a Book End. Williams also had the benefit of rapper Lil Yachty in his corner, who struck Corbin with a kendo stick while the referee was distracted. In the end, Corbin's veteran savvy got the better of the main roster rookie. Corbin sent Yachty flying through a table before eviscerating Williams with a title belt to the head and End of Days. Corbin's victory marked his second U.S. Championship reign, his second-ever title reign after originally joining the main roster in 2016. This time, it came less than a month after rejoining the promotion. This was a solid U.S. title match. Williams has a natural it-factor that really illuminates Corbin's lack of intangibles. However, Corbin is undoubtedly a good performer with a great work ethic. Hopefully, Williams bucks the recent trend of U.S. champions who weren't elevated in defeat. Corbin def. Williams (c) via pinfall to win the U.S. title. Grade: C+Chelsea Green completes underdog story in milestone ladder matchInterim WWE Women's Championship -- Charlotte Flair vs. Jade Cargill vs. Tiffany Stratton vs. Lash Legend vs. Chelsea Green (Ladder Match): The chaotic affair started with a frenetic pace. Legend's sheer power was the first element showcased. She caught Stratton mid-hurricanrana off the corner ringside, hurling her into the corner post. Then she nabbed Green by the neck, intercepting her suicide dive and slamming her into a ladder. Stratton and Green had a unique advantage as occasional partners. Once they shook off the cobwebs, their tandem offense got the better of powerhouses Legend and Cargill. Unfortunately, they also took most of the damage. Green took Jaded directly into a ladder wedge between the middle ropes, and Stratton was powerbombed onto a separate ladder. Later, Green, deeply apologetic, shoved Stratton off the ladder onto the rest of the field stationed ringside, which she turned into a Swanton Bomb. If not for B-Fab and Michin interfering on Cargill's behalf, Green would've won the match. Green lay rag-dolled in a tree of woe with her feet hanging off the lower rungs as others battled for the belt. However, after everyone else had laid each other out, Green sprang to life. She crunched back onto the ladder, climbed up, and retrieved the title.The lowest point came during a spot preceding Stratton's wipeout. Flair found herself suspended perilously in the air after Cargill pulled the ladder out from underneath her. The intention was for Flair to drop into Cargill and Legend's arms, but it didn't work out. Flair hit the mat feet first, after which her opponents struggled to lift her back up. I don't know who cleared this idea. Cargill is not reliable enough for a scenario like that, and Flair shouldn't take such risks after tearing her ACL, MCL and meniscus a few years ago.A fine ladder match with a great fake-out. WWE often energizes the crowd by having an underdog hero reach for the prize, only to fall short. It seemed Green would occupy that role in this ladder match. However, they ultimately pulled the trigger in a clever way that rewarded one of WWE's hardest workers. The outcome was far more memorable than most of the moments preceding it. Green wins interim women's WWE title. Grade: B-Dominik Mysterio leaves SummerSlam with empty pocketsDanhausen vs. Dominik Mysterio (Human Monies on a Pole): Danhausen has $100,000 to put towards his next blimp or cloning device. During the King and Queen of the Ring tournaments, Judgment Day paid Danhausen six figures to curse their tournament opponents. Danhausen took the money and cursed Mysterio and Liv Morgan instead. After SummerSlam, Mysterio has no claim to the money. Mysterio, desperate to put the money back in Judgment Day's vault, enlisted JD McDonagh early in the match. In a rare change of fortune, the villainous group didn't have the numbers advantage. The Minihausens leveled the playing field, and Joe Hendry tilted the balance in Dahausen's favor. Ultimately, Danhausen retrieved the bag of money hanging from the corner pole and celebrated by showering the fans with Danhausen dollars. Professional wrestling is a variety show at its best. A comedy match shouldn't be graded with the same criteria as a technical masterclass. I think it's safe to say, however, that this was arguably Danhausen's least interesting major match. There were no real surprises or inventive twists, like the first time he introduced the cloning machine. Their SummerSlam was an uninspired cash grab. Danhausen def. Mysterio. Grade: DChad Gable, 40, finally wins the singles goldIntercontinental Championship -- Penta (c) vs. Chad Gable: Gable has been in the WWE system since 2013. He's never won a singles title. Now 40 years old, it's conceivable that Sunday was his last chance to break the curse. The competitors shook hands to start the match, immediately setting a different tone than their previous encounters. For a long time, Gable was lucha libre's greatest critic. But after losing a Mask vs. Mask match against El Grande Americano, Gable acquired a deep respect for the Mexican art. Gable endured quite the beating as the hometown underdog. Penta religiously targeted his shoulder and neck, at one point connecting with a diving Mexican Destroyer onto the apron. Penta uttered, "I'm sorry" as he zeroed in on a potential match-ending attack. But Gable struck back with equal ferocity. He landed a German suplex to the apron, followed by a moonsault to the floor. In the final moments, Gable ducked under a second Mexican Destroyer and snatched an ankle lock. The moment he locked down the leg lace, Penta frantically tapped. Post-match, Penta congratulated Gable and wrapped the title around his waist as tears crept down Gable's cheek."My name is Chad Gable. And I was born, raised, and I lived in Minneapolis, Minnesota," Gable, surrounded by his family, said after the match, blood still trickling from his head. "This is my family who stood by me through the highs and lows, all the way to this moment where I can finally say that I'm the Intercontinental champion." The stars really aligned here. What started as a midcard comedy angle with El Grande Americano organically developed into a main event feud for AAA. It elevated Gable as a heroic underdog and gave his character a new dimension necessary for his ascent. WWE did something they don't do enough -- going with the flow. An unexpectedly great story, a match that lived up to and delivered the right outcome. Gable def. Penta (c) via pinfall to win the intercontinental title. Grade: ARoman Reigns beats Seth Rollins, choosing growth over egoWorld Heavyweight Championship -- Roman Reigns (c) vs. Seth Rollins: A match bursting with ego culminated in closure. While it's hard to say that Rollins and Reigns will never wrestle again, it certainly feels like this chapter of The Shield's unraveling is over. Rollins, generally considered the more skillful and cerebral wrestler, largely outworked Reigns in the early portions. His agility, technique and ability to get under Reigns' skin kept the champion uncomfortable. Reigns' powerhouse style became more effective once the action spilled into the crowd. Rollins overindulged with the head games as the brawled back ringside. The challenger had Reigns reeling against the barricade but spent too long mocking his ex-Shield stablemate. Reigns stopped an attempted spear with a front headlock powerbombing Rollins through a commentary table. It should've been the turning point, but Reigns made the same mistake. His compulsive talk trash gave Rollins crucial time to recover before flipping the script and powerbombing Reigns through a table. Both men barely beat the 10 count, but Rollins rolled in a split second sooner, giving him a small window to execute a Pedigree that unraveled into a series of nearfalls. Reigns kicked out at 2.9 before delivering a Superman Punch that put Rollins in similar peril. Rollins leapfrogged over an attempted spear, rattling Reigns' head against the lowest turnbuckle. Rollins wasted no time on this occasion. He bounced off the ropes and drilled him with a Stomp for another nearfall. Rollins only covered half the ground with his signature superplex into a Falcon Arrow. During the transition, Reigns countered with a deep guillotine choke. A subsequent spear tied the nearfall tally. Rollins once again took the lead with his own spear, coming off trash talk from Reigns. One would think that a tactician like Rollins would've learned his lesson by now, but the deep vitriol spurred bad decision-making. Rollins spent crucial time provoking Reigns, giving the champ an opening to rip pages from Rollins' playbook after a buckle bomb. A response buckle bomb and Stomp from Reigns continued the pendulum swing. Their deep loathing boiled over as they convened in the center of the ring, unable to stand. Reigns and Rollins traded barbs before rising to trade fists. The referee became an unintended victim of the battle, leaving space for the main eventers to indulge in overdue therapy. With the referee unconscious, Rollins retrieved a steel chair with a goal of recreating the night in 2014 when Rollins had imploded The Shield by striking Reigns' back with the chair. Reigns snagged the chair. However, when presented with the chance to get retribution by hurting Rollins the same way, Reigns dropped the chair, symbolizing his effort to move on. A series of big moves culminated in three spears and a clean win for Reigns, who defended the title without The Bloodline's help. Reigns and Rollins stared at each other while seated in opposite corners after the match. Following some contemplation, Reigns invited Rollins to bump fists, an acknowledgment of their growth and callback to their group's signature celebration.What a fantastic piece of storytelling. More than a decade after Rollins' betrayal, Reigns finally found the strength to move on. While it's hard to believe this will be the last time he and Rollins ever wrestle, the outcome provided closure to their past issues. It was a masterclass in professional wrestling, especially in-ring storytelling, and easily the match of the weekend for a two-night SummerSlam that was a mixed bag in some ways. Reigns (c) def. Rollins via pinfall to retain the world heavyweight title. Grade: A+