2023 WWE SummerSlam results, recap, grades: Roman Reigns retains his title as Jimmy Uso turns on Jey Uso

The Bloodline story is one of family turmoil. Jey Uso suffered the ultimate blow at SummerSlam on Saturday night from Ford Field in Detroit. Jey Uso appeared to have the undisputed WWE universal championship and status as “Tribal Chief” secured before his twin brother Jimmy Uso delivered a treacherous blow.

“Main Event” Jey Uso certainly lived up to his moniker in the marquee bout of SummerSlam. He was on the verge of overcoming both Reigns, one of the most dominant champions in WWE history, and The Bloodline’s enforcer Solo Sikoa. But it was the surprising return and allegiance change of Jimmy Uso that cost him everything.

SummerSlam also played host to a match between Cody Rhodes and Brock Lesnar fitting of their trilogy, the emergence of a couple fan favorites and much more.

CBS Sports was with you all night, providing updates, recaps and grades for all the action. Read on for our thoughts on each match from SummerSlam in Detroit.

Logan Paul vs. Ricochet: Ricochet exploited his experience edge in the early moments of the match but Paul leaned on his strength to turn the tide soon after. Paul was an arrogant punk from start to finish. The crossover star provoked ring announcer Samantha Irvin, who is also Ricochet’s fiancee, and ripped a power slam from Ricochet’s tag team partner Braun Strowman. The first highlight-reel moment of the match was a Spanish fly from the apron to ringside where both men landed on their feet. That was followed shortly after by Paul landing a buckshot lariat from inside the ring to the outside. The execution of both spots was shaky. Ricochet and Paul started finding their groove later on. Ricochet performed a tidy top rope hurricane neck breaker; afterward, Paul hit a stunning moonsault into a tornado DDT combination. 

The superstars traded big moves and near falls in the closing stretch of the match. The final sequence started with Ricochet missing a 630 splash. A member of Paul’s entourage handed the influencer brass knuckles while the referee was checking on Ricochet. Paul clocked Ricochet with the hardware and pinned him. A solid entry into Paul’s unique WWE career but a notch below the rest. Obviously, the scale of the match was never going to compete with a main event title match with Roman Reigns. The more glaring issue was the complex high spots. Paul is supremely athletic and those feats pop when sprinkled into the format of a typical WWE match. But some of the spots with Ricochet — much like their near botch at Money in the Bank —  require a very refined skill set that Paul doesn’t have quite yet. It was a wise finish: Paul needed a win and Ricochet is padded in defeat. Paul def. Ricochet via pinfall. Grade: B

Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar: Rhodes wisely got the jump on Lesnar the moment the match started. Rhodes rattled off a pair of Disaster Kicks before Lesnar swatted him out of the sky. The start of the match was an atypically back-and-forth example of the modern Lesnar formula. It pointed to the familiarity between the two men. It still did not take Lesnar long to take over and deliver an extended beatdown on his opponent. The former UFC heavyweight champion flung Rhodes from one side of the ring to the next. The first close call of the match saw Rhodes drag his battered body into the ring on the count of nine after eating an F-5 ringside. Lesnar’s second F-5 was delivered violently onto the announcers’ table, which collapsed. Again, Rhodes scraped himself into the ring just before a decisive 10 count. Rhodes desperately clung onto a turnbuckle and ripped it off the corner as Lesnar executed another German suplex. 

Rhodes finally turned the tide by side-stepping Lesnar ringside and hitting him with steel steps. It was Disaster Kicks and Cody Cutters galore as Rhodes tried and failed to fell the beast. Rhodes attempted his signature Cross Rhodes, but Lesnar countered with a kimura, the same move that caused Rhodes’ storyline broken arm months ago. Rhodes forced a rope break and snatched his own kimura after Lesnar collided with the padless turnbuckle. Rhodes finally conquered his foe by slipping out of an F-5 and landing a trio of Cross Rhodes. 

Lesnar embraced Rhodes post-match, shook his hand, and raised it for the WWE universe to celebrate. This was arguably the best match of the Rhodes vs. Lesnar trilogy. It was believably competitive with Rhodes’ cleverness, unrelenting spirit and Lesnar’s ego bridging the strength and experience gap between the two. Lesnar would have likely won on two occasions had he pinned Rhodes but underestimated his foe’s determination by settling for count outs. The respect shown at the end of the match is a huge endorsement from Lesnar to Rhodes. Rhodes def. Lesnar. Grade: A

SummerSlam Battle Royal: The enormous Omos terrorized the field in the early portion of the 20-man match. Omos eliminated the first three superstars and shucked off a combined assault by six others. Tommaso Ciampa rattled off three consecutive eliminations as well before he was tossed by big Bronson Reed. Santos Escobar earned an important mental edge against Austin Theory, who he will challenge for the United States championship on SmackDown, by clotheslining him out of the ring. Omos continued to dominate the field with simultaneous eliminations of Butch and Matt Riddle, but his success spurred a union between his remaining opponents. Every superstar left in the ring struck Omos. The flurry was punctuated by a Phenomenal Forearm by AJ Styles, Omos’ former mentor. 

The final three superstars in the field were former world champions AJ Styles and Sheamus, and battle royal frontrunner LA Knight. Kross interfered in the match to help eliminate his rival Styles. That left only Knight and Sheamus. Knight leapt from the ring to the top rope to intercept Sheamus and toss him overhead. It was a nice touch as Knight badly whiffed on that same sequence the previous night on SmackDown. A clothesline sent Sheamus to the floor as the crowd erupted in support of Knight. A very solid battle royal. The sequences involving Omos were fun to watch, a few underappreciated superstars — including Chad Gable — performed well, and the right man won. No complaints here. Knight def. Sheamus and 18 others. Grade: B

Ronda Rousey vs. Shayna Baszler (MMA Rules match): Rousey and Baszler competed in a match that evoked their experiences as mixed martial artists. The MMA Rules match could only be won via knockout, submission or referee stoppage. The estranged friends exchanged hip tosses and dominant positions on the ground early. Rousey fired off a number of body punches and unsuccessfully chased an armbar. Each superstar turned the tide with a dynamic strike. Baszler landed a very believable head kick on Rousey that sent her flying out of the ring. Rousey returned fire with a less pleasing flying knee. The ringside officials checked on Baszler after she suffered an apparent arm injury, which contradicts the nature of an “MMA Rules” match. Rousey tore the medical staff off of Baszler and the fight continued. The UFC alums traded submission attempts with Baszler ultimately choking out Rousey with the Kirifuda Clutch. 

MMA-style matches are very hard to pull off and that’s especially visible as someone who regularly covers combat sports. This match was a mixed bag. Rousey and Baszler seemed willing to lay in their shots, which made moves like the head kick really pop. The format was also a change from the typical WWE formula. Unfortunately, there were a lot of disjointed scrambles. The medical intervention was a head-scratcher. That should have resulted in a stoppage victory. Baszler def. Rousey via technical submission. Grade: C

Intercontinental Championship — Gunther (c) vs. Drew McIntyre: Expectations were that Gunther and McIntyre would beat each other black and blue. They did just that. The European superstars walloped on each other with thudding clotheslines and splintering chops that echoed through Ford Field in Detroit. The first near fall favored McIntyre. The Scottish superstar rolled through a powerbomb, landed one of his own and immediately followed with a Future Shock DDT. Gunther eventually struck with his signature powerbomb, but it was not enough to keep the challenger down. McIntyre laid into the intercontinental champion with a flurry of shots and a huge claymore kick that nearly scored him the win.

The final sequence saw Gunther and McIntyre fighting on the top ropes. Gunther shoved McIntyre and the challenger unluckily landed with the ropes between his legs. McIntyre was incapacitated and ripe for the picking. Gunther landed a top rope splash, followed through with a clothesline and powerbomb for the three-count. It won’t live up to the surreal quality of their triple-threat match at WrestleMania, but Gunther vs. McIntyre was a tidy affair. It was a clever finish too. McIntyre getting low-blowed by the ropes protects him in defeat while giving Gunther a tactical and technically clean victory. Gunther is approximately one month shy of breaking The Honky Tonk Man’s record for the longest intercontinental title reign in WWE history. Gunther def. McIntyre via pinfall to retain. Grade: A-

World Heavyweight Championship — Seth Rollins (c) vs. Finn Balor: The mind games began before the bell rang. Rollins entered the arena wearing the same vest he wore seven years ago at SummerSlam. On that night, Rollins legitimately injured Balor, which resulted in Balor relinquishing the inaugural universal championship one night after winning it. Balor reminded himself what he was fighting for by painting “seven” on the shoulder that was injured that fateful night.

The pendulum swung repeatedly in this bitter feud with a world title at stake. Balor repeatedly targeted Rollins’ arm and shoulder with submission holds in a measure of vengeance for the injury he suffered in 2016. His intentions were made abundantly clear when he tossed Rollins into the ringside barricade with a buckle bomb. It was the same move that Rollins legitimately injured Balor with at SummerSlam seven years ago. Rollins later returned the favor with a pair of buckle bombs inside the ring. The match’s first significant near fall saw Rollins dodge a Coup de Grace and land a Pedigree. That spurred Damian Priest — the Money in the Bank briefcase holder and Balor’s Judgement Day teammate — to walk down the aisle. Priest cracked Rollins with a hard punch that set Balor up for his own Pedigree and a near fall.

Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio also appeared to aid Balor but he insisted on winning by his own merit. Rollins landed a Curb Stomp and Balor hit Group de Grace amid the chaos but neither could put away the other. Priest tossed the briefcase into the ring much to Balor’s chagrin. As Balor went to retrieve the briefcase, Rollins curb stomped his head through it while Priest had the referee distracted. The segment ended with Priest staring down Rollins with little regard for Balor’s health. Rollins and Balor put together a much better match than their Money in the Bank meeting. The Judgement Day is more popular than ever so it’ll be interesting to see how WWE presses forward with the recent friction between Balor and Priest. The finish was a little convoluted but the callbacks to their universal title match seven years ago were well executed, the in-ring content was great and all parties can move in interesting directions. Rollins def. Balor to retain. Grade: A-

WWE Women’s Championship — Asuka (c) vs. Bianca Belair vs. Charlotte Flair: There was a lot of bravado and one upmanship taking place between Belair and Flair. Handsprings, counters and the exchange of hard strikes were all executed in an effort to outdo the other. Most triple-threat matches are structured like a carousel where two superstars engage in combat while one is recovering outside. This match was ripe with dynamic flurries featuring all three women. Flair expertly chopped her foes back and forth, Belair landed a combination DDT neck breaker on both opponents. The big highlight reel of the moment saw Flair soar through the sky, landing a moonsault on Belair from the top rope to ringside. Belair was eliminated from the equation after hitting the steel steps hard and appearing to injure her knee. Medical staff escorted Belair toward the back while Asuka and Flair fought tooth and nail.

Flair had the victory within reach after trapping the champion in a Figure Eight lock. Belair defied the medical staff, limped back into the ring, climbed the ropes and crushed Flair with a 450 splash. The finish came after Asuka blinded Flair with poison mist while Flair had Belair trapped in the Figure Eight. Belair dodged Asuka’s kick and rolled her up for the three-count. The match was contested at a refreshingly quick pace with some seriously impressive moments, particularly Flair’s moonsault to the outside. It was disjointed at times, but that is to be expected when you pack so much into a match. It was maybe a little too much. Belair reclaiming the title from Asuka so soon after her long reign was an unusual decision but would make a lot of sense just a few moments later. Belair def. Asuka and Flair via pinfall to win the title. Grade: B+

WWE Women’s Championship — Bianca Belair (c) vs. Iyo Sky: Belair is in the process of a slow-burn heel turn after a long stint as a fan-favorite champion. Her bad attitude started when Flair was gifted a title shot upon her return before Belair got her contractually mandated rematch against Asuka. Belair winning the title on Saturday was a device to further her descent into bitterness. However, Damage CTRL’s Bayley and Sky laid out Belair seconds after she delivered a gutsy performance to win the WWE women’s title. Sky cashed in her Money in the Bank briefcase, flattened Belair with a moonsault and scored the victory. Sky has a lot of upside as a champion and the fans have really taken to her. WWE can expand on Belair’s villainous side while slowly morphing Sky into a hero. That could eventually lead to a strong feud between Sky and Bayley as well. Sky def. Belair to win the title. Grade: B+

WWE Undisputed Universal Championship — Roman Reigns (c) vs. Jey Uso (Tribal Combat match): Reigns flaunted his size and experience edge in the first act of their epic encounter. Uso was the one who challenged Reigns to Tribal Combat and used the no-disqualification ruleset as a means to bridge the gap between him and his cousin. Eventually, Reigns took over and physically urged the crowd to quiet as the fans at Ford Field chanted for Uso. Reigns battered Uso with a kendo stick as a symbolic punishment for his treachery. The underdog challenger endured a long beating before finally biting back. Uso countered Reigns’ signature spear with a kendo stick shot and proceeded to whip him with the bamboo sword until it splintered. Uso followed it up with a stunning front flip dive over the ropes onto Reigns ringside.

Reigns scored the match’s first near fall after catching Uso in midair with a Superman Punch. Uso swung the momentum in his favor with a super kick and Uso Splash. Uso channeled months and years of pent up frustration into a steel chair and expelled it through Reigns’ spine. That’s when the plunder started to pile up. Reigns powerbombed Uso into a pile of chairs. Later on, Uso drove Reigns through a wooden table with a Samoan drop. Uso proceeded to whip his older cousin with a strap as the action spilled into the crowd.

Reigns’ history-making reign as universal champion is due in large part to the support of The Bloodline. SummerSlam was no different. Solo Sikoa emerged from the crowd, laid out Uso with a Samoan Spike and drove him through a table. Reigns was in shock after inadvertently striking Sikoa with a spear. The break in focus gave Uso crucial time to hit the champion with a spear for a deep two count. The inadvertent strike sent Sikoa into a frenzy. The Bloodline’s enforcer struck Uso but engaged in an argument with Reigns that allowed Uso to spear Reigns through the ringside barricade. Uso incapacitated Sikoa and hit Reigns with a chain of signature moves. Uso’s victory was assured before Uso was assaulted by a masked assailant. The assailant revealed himself as Jey Uso’s twin brother Jimmy Uso. Reigns was shocked by the revelation but capitalized anyway to win the match.

The outcome of the match is a lot to process. Jey Uso looked tremendously strong in defeat by nearly overcoming both Reigns and Sikoa. The idea of Jimmy Uso turning on his twin brother is peculiar and could trend into ridiculous soap opera. The match proceeding it was typical Bloodline stuff: slow at times and very compelling at others. I’ll give WWE the benefit of doubt in a long-arching story that is usually fantastic. But tonight has left this viewer confused and was overall a step below the Match of the Night quality typical for these superstars. Reigns def. Uso to retain. Grade: B+