The landscape of the Women’s World Championship picture for SummerSlam was decided on this past Monday’s episode of WWE RAW. The new champion, Naomi, found her victory celebration cut short by interruptions from both Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY, the two competitors she bested to win the title.
Both Ripley and SKY confronted Naomi in the ring, each staking their claim as the rightful top contender for the championship. The heated argument drew out RAW General Manager Adam Pearce, who addressed the situation with a major announcement for the upcoming premium live event.
Citing the scale of the first-ever two-night SummerSlam, Pearce declared that the championship attractions must be bigger than ever. He then confirmed that Naomi will defend her Women’s World Championship in a three-way match against both Ripley and SKY at the event, scheduled for August 2 and 3 at MetLife Stadium.
This title defense comes just after Naomi’s stunning championship victory at WWE Evolution. During the main event between then-champion IYO SKY and Rhea Ripley, Naomi cashed in her Money in the Bank contract, turning the contest on its head and pinning SKY to win the title. The victory marked her first championship since 2017 and came after she had already competed in a grueling No Holds Barred match against Jade Cargill earlier in the night.
As the new champion, Naomi has officially moved from SmackDown to the RAW brand, stating in a post-Evolution interview that she is now where she “needs to be” and intends to “create pure hell and havoc.”
The newly announced three-way match joins an expanding card for SummerSlam, which already includes Cody Rhodes vs. John Cena, Tiffany Stratton vs. Jade Cargill, and a tag team bout pitting Randy Orton & Jelly Roll against Drew McIntyre & Logan Paul.