The 10 Best Rivalries in WWE Summerslam History
10. AJ Styles vs John Cena
On the Memorial Day edition of Monday Night Raw back in 2016, John Cena made his triumphant return from injury four months ahead of schedule. On his first night back, Cena made a statement to all the new superstars arriving to the main roster for this “New Era” announcing that the future must first go through him, “The Face That Runs the Place.”
Enter AJ Styles, who after losing two back to back pay-per-view title matches against WWE Champion Roman Reigns, turned heel and joined Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson in an exclusive Club. This kickstarted Styles’s summer long quest to #BeatUpJohnCena.
The two spent the next couple months trading wins, with The Phenomenal One pinning Cena in their first singles contest at Money in the Bank, then Cena returning the favor during a Six Man Tag at Battleground. At Summerslam, all the chips were on the table, and Styles needed a big win. And Mr. P1 delivered on just that in a classic bout.
Following that night, Cena disappeared for a bit, and within a month’s time, Styles won his first WWE Championship. His summer 16 feud with John Cena was essential in Styles’s WWE evolution to becoming the Champ That Runs the Camp.