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Ric Flair vs Chris Jericho
Result: Ric Flair wins by submission, forcing Chris Jericho to tap to the Figure-Four Leglock.
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
From the rapidity of the night’s first match, a more methodical contest followed between two studied veterans of the game. Ric Flair and Chris Jericho had become firm opponents on RAW leading up to this meeting, with Jericho prepared to end the career of the Nature Boy following his interruption of a Fozzy performance on RAW.
Both men being submission specialists, it was surprisingly more of a brawl than you would traditionally expect. They would trade punches and chops constantly, with few wrestling maneuvers actually taking place, as Y2J attempted to out cheat the dirtiest player in the game.
However, Flair made a few uncharacteristic botches, including a mess up of his patented roll up the turnbuckle to the ring apron, and his offense was 80% chops to the chest. A lot was therefore placed on the shoulders of Jericho, who in turn didn’t put in the most solid performance of his career. But it speaks volumes of the entire event that many would state this was the worst match, when on most other cards it would have probably been in the middle of the pack.
At least the fans could enjoy a traditional Flair finish, as with the referee briefly blinded, he dropped Jericho with a low blow, before forcing him to tap out to the Figure-Four.
Callum’s Take: This proved to be the weakest match on this particular SummerSlam card, which was a shame considering the experience and showmanship of the men involved. Jericho and Flair just weren’t on their A-game.