Always an important show, SummerSlam has quickly exploded into an even bigger weekend for wrestling. Sunday Night's event will see plenty of history guaranteed to be made, before anyone even takes to the squared circle. Below are some pre-show facts and stats we've compiled.
Really?
* Zeus told Grantland that he raked in nearly $150,000 for his SummerSlam appearance in 1989.
* Bret Hart stated during a Kayfabe Commentaries interview that a ladder match between he and Shawn Michaels was an alternate booking plan to his match with Davey Boy Smith in 1992.
* Alberto Del Rio is the only man to ever perform in the opening and closing match at a SummerSlam, which he did in 2011.
* 2016 will be John Cena's 13th consecutive SummerSlam with a match, which is a record.
* Jesse Ventura was a guest referee for two SummerSlam main events: 1988 and 1999.
* Hulk Hogan had the longest stint between SummerSlam matches, going from 1991 to 2005.
Championship Fun
* The average match time for a WWE United States title match on the PPV portion of SummerSlam was under 6 minutes until 2015.
* John Cena has lost five consecutive championship matches at SummerSlam.
* Brutus Beefcake withdrew from two Intercontinental Title matches in storyline. In 1988 against Honky Tonk Man, and 1990 against Mr. Perfect.
* SummerSlam 2014 was the first time in SummerSlam history that every title defended on the show changed hands. 2003 saw all of the champions successfully defend their titles.
* Only Alberto Del Rio and Randy Orton have cashed in their Money in the Bank briefcases at SummerSlam, with both winning the WWE Title.
* The Intercontinental Title has changed hands 14 times at SummerSlam. Dolph Ziggler's title victory in 2014 was the first time the championship had changed hands on the show since 2008.
2015 Stats
* Charlotte, Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks, Nikki Bella and Tamina all competed in their first SummerSlam matches. 2015 was Alicia Fox's first SummerSlam match since 2010.
* The triple threat tag team elimination Divas match was the first of its kind in SummerSlam history.
* Luke Harper, Stephen Amell, Sin Cara, Kevin Owens, Diego, Fernando, Neville, Xavier Woods, and Kalisto all performed in their first Summerslam in 2015.
* 2015 marked the fifth straight year John Cena is involved in a World Championship match at SummerSlam.
* 2015 was the first time the WWE United States Championship haf been defended on the PPV portion of SummerSlam since 2005.
* 2015 was The Undertaker's first SummerSlam match since 2008.
Dominant Superstars
* Hulk Hogan is an undefeated 6-0 at SummerSlam events.
* The Ultimate Warrior went 5-0 at SummerSlam.
* The Undertaker the most matches in SummerSlam history, with 16, and the most number of wins in SummerSlam history, with 10.
* Rob Van Dam has won three SummerSlam pre-show matches.
* Jim Duggan, John Morrison, Bart Gunn, Tatanka, and the Road Warriors all went 3-0 at SummerSlam
* Both Edge and Triple H had six match winning streaks at SummerSlam, but had already experienced losses earlier in their careers at the event.
* Big Show went unbeaten throughout his first 12 years in the WWE at SummerSlam. This stat is a little misleading, as he rarely performed on the show. He was finally defeated in 2012 in a match against CM Punk and John Cena.
Not-so-dominant Superstars
* Brie Bella, Rikishi, Mabel, Mideon, Great Khali, Marty Jannetty and Tito Santana are all winless at SummerSlam.
* Booker T has never won a match at SummerSlam, leaving him with an 0-5 record.
* John Cena has the most losses in SummerSlam history, with 8.
* Jeff Hardy also possesses an 0-5 record at SummerSlam.
2016
- Sami Zayn, American Alpha, Mojo Rawley, The Vaudevillians, Tyler Breeze, Finn Balor, Apollo Crews, Carmella, Alexa Bliss, Enzo Amore Big Cass, Karl Anderson, AJ Styles and the Ascension are all performing on their first Summerslam.
- 17 talents are scheduled to make their Summerslam debuts, up from 14 in 2015.
- The 13 scheduled matches for this year are the most in Summerslam history.
- If Brock Lesnar main events Summerslam, it will be his fourth time closing the show in five years
