CM Punk, Cody Rhodes Beat 2 Rivals at SNME as Nick Aldis Sparks SummerSlam Fallout

Q: Will SmackDown's GM Nick Aldis trade his suit for wrestling gear to battle the formidable Gunther?

Yes. All signs point to Nick Aldis stepping into the ring against Gunther, likely at SummerSlam. The storyline now strongly supports that direction. On Saturday in Minneapolis, Aldis directly cost Gunther in the tag match by pulling the referee out and then striking Gunther with the WWE title belt, setting up CM Punk and Cody Rhodes’ win. That came after Gunther had already choked out Aldis earlier in the show, escalating their conflict beyond a typical general manager-versus-wrestler dispute. The broader reporting also backs it up. Multiple wrestling reports have said WWE has held serious internal discussions about an Aldis-Gunther program, with the expectation that Aldis himself—not a handpicked replacement—would face Gunther. Some reports have gone further, describing the match as effectively set for SummerSlam. Aldis is not a retired figure. He is a former TNA and NWA world champion who has remained ring-ready, even if he has not yet wrestled in WWE. That makes this more than a one-off angle: WWE appears to be using Gunther’s attacks and Aldis’ retaliation to justify Aldis’ in-ring debut for the company. Nothing is official until WWE announces it, but based on the latest angle and the reporting around it, Aldis trading his suit for wrestling gear to fight Gunther now looks highly likely.

3 articles · Updated · Bleacher Report · Jul 19

Madison Square Garden saw CM Punk and Cody Rhodes beat Gunther and Sami Zayn in a tag match, keeping Gunther and Zayn out of the SummerSlam WWE Championship bout.
Nick Aldis swung the finish by yanking the referee from the ring after Gunther had powerbombed Rhodes and appeared to have the pin secured.
Punk then hit Gunther with a GTS and dragged Rhodes onto him before referee Charles Robinson recovered to count the three.
The result adds more tension to a SummerSlam title match already set between Punk and Rhodes, who had only just agreed to face each other.
That feud grew out of a chaotic title picture: Zayn beat Rhodes 9 days before Raw, Punk then returned to win the belt from Zayn, and Gunther had pushed for another shot.