Bryan Alvarez was highly critical of CM Punk’s successful WWE Championship defense against Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam Saturday, calling it one of the weakest major championship matches WWE has produced in years.
Speaking on Wrestling Observer Live, Alvarez didn’t hold back in his assessment of the main event. “I thought this CM Punk-Cody Rhodes match was very bad. I thought this was the worst match involving a major championship since John Cena had that run where he was a heel and all of his matches were bad.”
Alvarez felt the match struggled to engage the Minneapolis crowd for much of its runtime. “This match was so slow. The crowd was dead until, like, the last five minutes or so.”
He was especially critical of Punk’s physical performance, noting that the champion appeared exhausted almost immediately. “CM Punk, for reasons I cannot explain, just like Brock Lesnar, like 30 seconds in, this guy’s purple.”
One of Alvarez’s biggest criticisms centered on Punk’s attempted moonsault, which he described as one of the worst he’d ever seen in a major main event. “He did, I’m pretty sure, the worst moonsault I have ever seen in a main event match on the main roster from any company.”
He also referenced the online reaction to the spot. “They have determined CM stands for ‘Cannot Moonsault.'”
Alvarez pointed to several other moments that he believed failed to come together cleanly, including a sequence where Cody attempted a Cody Cutter. “I think CM Punk was supposed to dropkick him out of midair, but he sort of did a falling Yakuza kick, which the announcers covered for by claiming that his leg hurt.”
He also questioned Punk’s decision to attempt a diving elbow from the ring post through the announce table. “He also tried a flying elbow off the post through Cody and the table, which I couldn’t even believe he conceived of trying.”
Although Cody avoided the attack, Alvarez was surprised Punk escaped the landing without suffering a serious injury.
Toward the finish, Alvarez felt even Cody’s offense lacked its usual impact. “There was one spot at the end where Cody did a Cross Rhodes. It was the slowest Cross Rhodes I’ve ever seen in my life.”
Ultimately, Alvarez said he couldn’t praise the bout despite its importance. “This was a world title match in 2026. Dude, I just can’t. I cannot sit here and say that this match was good. I cannot do that with a clear conscience.”
CM Punk ultimately retained the WWE Championship by defeating Cody Rhodes in the SummerSlam Saturday main event, though Alvarez’s review stands in stark contrast to those who praised the match’s storytelling and closing stretch.
