WWE SummerSlam 2018: Daily DDT Staff Makes Predictions
By Bryan Heaton
Photo Source: WWE.com
WWE Championship Match
AJ Styles (c) vs. Samoa Joe
Bryan Heaton: Championship feuds getting personal is no surprise, but Styles and Joe have taken it to new levels. It’s fascinating to watch as the two build a huge feud after all their history together — and barely mention any of it, and instead starting fresh. I think Styles will hang on to the championship through the release of WWE 2K19, but Joe may win the title on release day — or a few weeks later at the 1000th episode of SmackDown.
Christopher Jeter: SmackDown is loaded with heels, so I’ll pick Styles to win and keep his title. I hope that he eventually gets a chance to main event a PPV this year because his reign feels a lot like C.M. Punk’s reign in 2012.
Trace Johnson: This match should be excellent given the history between these two and the talent they both possess, but I’ll say Styles retains his title with the feud continuing past SummerSlam. It’s too good of a program to be a one-off match.
Ashley Leckwold: AJ has been practically untouchable in his second run as WWE Champ. Whether it’s been Rusev, Brock, Shinsuke, Shinsuke, Shinsuke… Well, you get the point. Still, no one has gotten under his skin the way Samoa Joe has and that might just be the upper hand the Samoan Submission Machine needs to finally claim the gold.
Joshua Raibick: Samoa Joe has lacked a real marquee victory of late, but I think the Samoan Submission Machine finally gets the job done. Salute to AJ Styles for his incredible Championship run, but it is time to have a changing of the guard.
Joe Soriano: Samoa Joe isn’t winning, sorry. I love Joe, but with all the trash he’s talked about AJ Styles’s family, it would be borderline insanity for him to end Styles’s lengthy reign so quickly. Styles is the WWE 2K19 cover guy, and I buy into the logic that he’ll hold the title for even longer partially because of his status as the cover guy.
At the end of the day, the only thing I care about is being entertained. And I have a feeling I will leave this match feeling more excited than I did before it.