WWE SummerSlam: Ranking every main event in history
By Luke Norris
23. SummerSlam 2010: Team WWE vs. The Nexus
If we were going on straight match quality here, this would probably be ranked a little bit higher than it is. However, there is the booking factor here and that’s what’s keeping it so low. The Nexus invasion was a breath of fresh air for WWE in 2010. It’s essentially what the WCW/ECW Invasion angle should have been like in 2001 … and they pulled it off with guys that were not established stars in Wade Barrett, Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, David Otunga, Michael Tarver, Darren Young and Skip Sheffield, who would later become Ryback. The fact that they invaded Monday Night RAW and took out guys like John Cena and CM Punk only enhanced their status and it was a beautiful thing.
As the summer went on, the new stable would go on to attack many other superstars, including then-General Manager Bret Hart. Hart would go on to become part of Cena’s “Team WWE”, who would face The Nexus at SummerSlam in a 7-on-7 Elimination Match. Cena and “The Hitman” would be joined by Edge, Chris Jericho, R-Truth, John Morrison and a returning Daniel Bryan. A big brawl ensued before the match got underway, which started with two Nexus members getting eliminated rather quickly. Team WWE would then lose three of their guys before once again gaining the advantage with two eliminations.
The Nexus would then eliminate Jericho and Edge before losing Heath Slater, leaving Daniel Bryan and John Cena to take on Wade Barrett and Justin Gabriel. And this is where things got tricky. Bryan would be eliminated by Barrett after interference from The Miz and it was now a 2-on-1 situation for Cena. You can guess what happened next. All the momentum that the stable had gained over the summer was gone in about six minutes. The original plan, according to Jericho and Edge, was for The Nexus to win this match. However, Cena changed things and wanted the win himself, something he at least later admitted was a mistake. But that doesn’t change what happened that night and one of the best storylines in years for WWE ended up being a waste.