SmackDown Women’s Champion Naomi took on Natalya on Sunday night at the 30th annual WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view. Here are the highlights.
WWE SummerSlam featured quite a few championship matches on Sunday night, including a SmackDown Women’s Championship battle between champion Naomi, who won the title for the second time by winning a Six-Pack Challenge in her hometown of Orlando at WrestleMania 33, and Natalya, who criminally hasn’t held a title since losing the Divas Championship at the Royal Rumble in 2011.
Natalya earned the right to face Naomi at SummerSlam by defeating Charlotte Flair, Lana, Tamina and Becky Lynch in a Fatal 5-Way Match last month at Battleground. Would this be her night to finally get the gold back around her waist? Let’s check out the highlights.
ON YOUR FEET, @WWEUniverse... it's time to FEEL THE GLOW! #SummerSlam @NaomiWWE pic.twitter.com/DNPGhiVgyJ
— WWE (@WWE) August 20, 2017
#SDLive #WomensChampion @NaomiWWE is breaking out the new tricks early! #SummerSlam pic.twitter.com/K01TS6kbYJ
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) August 20, 2017
Naomi got aggressive pretty quickly and hit a solid blockbuster from the steel steps onto the floor but Natalya, who tied Trish Stratus for the most pay-per-view appearances by a woman on Sunday night (which is pretty cool), turned the tide quickly to get the upper hand.
There she is... Ms. #MITB... What's going through her mind?#SummerSlam @CarmellaWWE @realellsworth pic.twitter.com/LV3oMPPlAE
— WWE (@WWE) August 20, 2017
As Carmella and James Ellsworth looked on from the back, Natalya went to work with some great technical wrestling, including some nice snap suplexes and some submission maneuvers.
Getting stretched? Painful.
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) August 20, 2017
Getting stretched by a HART? Excruciating!#SummerSlam @NatbyNature pic.twitter.com/dfXT2cZDkB
And then, of course, there was this. Ouch.
She calls herself the GLOWSTOPPER for a reason!@NatbyNature is taking it to the #SDLive #WomensChampion @NaomiWWE... #SummerSlam pic.twitter.com/FYK7HCl1V8
— WWE (@WWE) August 20, 2017
There was a little confusion on getting Naomi into it but Natalya got her into the Sharpshooter but Naomi countered it with a weird little somersault before attempting a moonsault from the top that Natalya stopped with the knees before slapping on the Sharpshooter again and winning her first SmackDown Women’s Championship.
The #Sharpshooter... it's a @SummerSlam tradition! @NatbyNature @BretHart #SummerSlam pic.twitter.com/BJfaqKzONj
— WWE SummerSlam (@SummerSlam) August 20, 2017
This wasn’t the greatest match in the world but it was nice to see Natalya walk away from SummerSlam with the championship. She’s certainly earned it.
Congratulations to the NEWWWW #SDLive #WomensChampion @NatbyNature! #SummerSlam pic.twitter.com/f7kUj2WRdV
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) August 20, 2017
Next: WWE SummerSlam: Ranking every main event in history
What did you think of the SmackDown Women’s Championship Match at SummerSlam between Naomi and Natalya? Feel free to join in the conversation in the comments section below and be sure to check in with FanSided each and every day for all of your WWE needs. If you’re looking for even more wrestling news and features, head on over to Facebook and like the Sports Illustrated Wrestling page.