WWE SummerSlam 2026 kicked off on August 1 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, as the first night of the company’s biggest event of the summer got started. The card was packed with major title matches and personal rivalries, but one of the night’s biggest attractions was the rubber match showdown between Oba Femi and Brock Lesnar.
The rivalry had been brewing ever since WrestleMania 42, where Femi shocked the wrestling world by defeating Lesnar. After the loss, Lesnar left his gloves and boots in the ring, and that threw everyone into the idea that he was retiring. That changed weeks later when he returned out of nowhere and brought down a brutal attack on Femi.
Lesnar eventually got his revenge by defeating Femi at Clash in Italy, but the bad blood between the two wasn’t over by a long shot. After Femi won the King of the Ring tournament and earned a world title match at SummerSlam, he gave up that opportunity to settle the score with Lesnar inside Hell in a Cell instead.
This match was the main event of the night. After all of the entrances and incredibly loud pops from the crowd, the 28-year-old Oba Femi took on the 49-year-old Beast Incarnate for the third time.
WWE famously billed Brock Lesnar from Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he was a two-time All-American and the 2000 NCAA Division I Heavyweight Wrestling Champion at the University of Minnesota. He even went out for the Minnesota Vikings, which was the reason he left WWE the first time. So, fans in the building had a big reason to cheer for him.
We will have to see what is next for Oba Femi. He may be on the way to big things in WWE, and this program with Brock Lesnar could certainly be seen as a catalyst to get him there.
The Hell in a Cell structure lowered, and the two beasts got to work. Brock Lesnar nailed three German Suplexes early on, but Oba Femi jumped right back up. They continued until Brock Lesnar used the ring steps against Oba Femi three times until Oba was laid out in the ring.
Brock Lesnar started picking Oba Femi apart after that with one power move after another. Then Oba Femi was able to slam Lesnar down to create some separation. Oba nailed a few running uppercuts after that, Lesnar tried to hit an F5, but Oba countered out of it to slam Lesnar down twice.
Oba Femi squared Brock Lesnar up for a Fall From Grace, but Lesnar kicked out after taking the finisher. Then Brock sat up and looked Oba in the eyes before hitting three F5s for a near fall. Lesnar looked a bit frustrated after that kickout. Then, Brock got a steel chair, and he started bending it over Oba Femi’s body with shot after shot.
Brock Lesnar started ripping the ring canvas apart after that to expose the wood boards that are underneath the ring. Then, Brock Lesnar nailed a tombstone piledriver on the exposed boards for a crazy two count as Oba Femi kicked out. Fans exploded and chanted “Holy Sh*t” as Oba Femi knocked the chair out of Lesnar’s hands and nailed another Fall From Grace for the win.
Oba Femi celebrated in a big way after that. Brock Lesnar lost to Oba Femi at SummerSlam, as night one in Minnesota closed out as a massive success.
After the match was over, Brock Lesnar got back in the ring, hugged Oba Femi and raised his arm. Then Lesnar got a microphone and cut a promo for the fans as he declared that Oba Femi is “the future of WWE.” Lesnar called himself the past and Oba “the future” in a true passing of the torch moment. They couldn’t have made it any more clear than that, because Oba Femi is the next big thing.
What’s your take on how WWE booked Brock Lesnar versus Oba Femi at SummerSlam this year? Do you believe that this was a great way to cap off night one? Let us know what you think in the comments section!
