WWE Rumors: Vince McMahon Reportedly Planning Something ‘Wacky’ For This Year’s ‘SummerSlam’
Ahead of this year’s SummerSlam pay-per-view, rumors are suggesting that WWE chairman Vince McMahon is thinking of an event that won’t be held at the Performance Center — as have almost all weekly shows and pay-per-views since mid-March — and one that might include a few other unusual, possibly comedic elements.
On Monday, a subscriber-only report from Mike Johnson on PWInsider Elite (via WrestlingNews.co) suggested that there has been some talk of potentially moving next month’s pay-per-view to a beach or a boat, with “some or all” of the matches taking place on the boat. Later that day, this prompted a question from a Wrestling Observer Live listener, who asked co-host Bryan Alvarez what he thinks about the rumor.
“I don’t think so. I know this – I know Vince wants something wacky for SummerSlam,” Alvarez said, as quoted in a separate report from WrestlingNews.co.
“He doesn’t want it to be just another SummerSlam in an empty arena with a bunch of fans wearing masks. He wants to do something different and I’m not sure what it is. I think PWInsider was talking about a bunch of potential different locations.”
Expounding on the above point, Alvarez stressed that he isn’t sure yet what McMahon and other officials are planning, but reiterated that the chairman seems to be cooking up some “wacky” plans as he wants to “do something different” than what fans had seen in recent pay-per-views. The wrestling journalist also noted that if McMahon is considering various locations for its next big event, this might be similar to the setup for the Boneyard Match between The Undertaker and AJ Styles at WrestleMania 36 earlier this year.
Offering its own take on the rumored plans for SummerSlam, WrestlingNews.co wrote that WWE might opt to hold the event at a beach in the Orlando area, which would be safer than holding it inside the Performance Center as far as preventing a COVID-19 outbreak is concerned. The publication pointed out that AEW Dynamite has mostly been held at Daily’s Place, an open-air venue in Jacksonville, Florida — a decision that seems to have helped the rival company avoid any outbreaks since the pandemic started.
The new rumors are just the latest to emerge in the build-up to SummerSlam, which will be airing on August 23. As previously reported by The Inquisitr, reigning WWE Champion Drew McIntyre is expected to defend his title against Randy Orton at the pay-per-view. It has been rumored, however, that the Scotsman might be booked to drop the belt against the 13-time world champion, in order to set up the resumption of Orton’s feud against Edge in the buildup to next year’s WrestleMania.
