The night wrestling's 'Big Four' grew to four hours of spectacle
In short: In 2015, SummerSlam broke a long-standing tradition by expanding its runtime to match the legendary WrestleMania. This shift transformed the event into a marathon of scripted drama, featuring high-stakes rematches and complex multi-team battles that redefined the scale of WWE's second-biggest annual show.
The 2015 SummerSlam was a landmark for the 'Big Four'—the promotion's original major pay-per-views. For the first time, the event expanded to a four-hour duration, a length previously reserved exclusively for WrestleMania. This expansion coincided with a significant logistical shift: after being held annually in Los Angeles from 2009 to 2014, the event moved to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. It was also part of a unique 'triple-header' weekend, sandwiched between NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn and Raw.
The main event served as a high-tension rematch between The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar. Following Lesnar's victory over The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXX in 2014, the two faced off again in a match defined by technical controversy. The official missed the surrender because he failed to observe it, even though the bell sounded once the timekeeper noticed The Undertaker yield from a Kimura lock. This allowed The Undertaker to continue, eventually winning after surprising Lesnar with a low blow and a Hell's Gate submission hold.
Beyond the main event, the card featured complex narrative threads built over months on Raw and SmackDown. These included three-team elimination matches involving groups like 'Team Bella,' 'PCB,' and 'Team B.A.D.,' as well as 'Winner Takes All' stakes for the WWE World Heavyweight and United States Championships. The event also served as a pivotal moment before the 2016 brand extension, acting as one of the final major shows under the previous structure.
The show was notable for its variety of match types, including fatal four-way tag team matches and triple threat title bouts. It featured special guest host Jon Stewart and highlighted diverse storylines ranging from celebrity appearances with Stephen Amell to intense rivalries between figures like John Cena and Seth Rollins.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: SummerSlam (2015)
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