WWE makes history today with its first-ever premium live event in Italy, but Clash In Italy is not simply a landmark show built around the novelty of a new international destination. Emanating from the Inalpi Arena in Turin, today’s event has quietly developed into one of WWE’s strongest top-to-bottom cards of the year. There are only five advertised matches, yet every match has a clear purpose. Roman Reigns and Jacob Fatu are set to take their increasingly personal family war into Tribal Combat. Cody Rhodes will defend the Undisputed WWE Championship against GUNTHER in a legitimate dream match. Rhea Ripley and Jade Cargill will run back their WrestleMania showdown with a much different dynamic surrounding both women. Becky Lynch will attempt to stop Sol Ruca’s rapid rise through the women’s division. Brock Lesnar will step back into the ring with Oba Femi after The Ruler handed The Beast one of the most shocking losses of his career at WrestleMania 42.
The biggest question hanging over today’s show is whether WWE can deliver the card exactly as advertised. Jacob Fatu reportedly entered the weekend less than 100 percent after being injured during a Street Fight against Solo Sikoa at a live event in Liverpool. Sol Ruca has also been dealing with an injury concern coming out of Saturday Night’s Main Event. Both matches remain advertised, but the uncertainty has added another layer of tension to a show that already felt important. Clash In Italy was built to feel like a major stop on the road to the summer. Depending on what happens today, it could become the show that completely changes that road.
Here is everything advertised for today’s show
- Roman Reigns (c) vs. Jacob Fatu (Tribal Combat Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship)
- Cody Rhodes (c) vs. GUNTHER (Undisputed WWE Championship)
- Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Jade Cargill (WWE Women’s Championship)
- Becky Lynch (c) vs. Sol Ruca (WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship)
- Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar
Roman Reigns and Jacob Fatu have reached the point where a standard championship match is no longer enough. Reigns retained the World Heavyweight Championship against Fatu at Backlash, but he did not put an end to the problem. Fatu attacked Reigns after the match, then completely lost control the following night on Raw by targeting The Usos and attacking officials. When his future in WWE was placed in jeopardy, Fatu responded by challenging Reigns to Tribal Combat.
That stipulation carries real meaning because it forces Reigns to confront the history he helped create. Reigns has already survived Tribal Combat against Jey Uso at SummerSlam 2023 and Solo Sikoa during the Raw on Netflix premiere in January 2025. Those matches were not technical showcases. They were violent family battles rooted in power, loyalty, manipulation and the question of who truly deserved to stand at the head of the table.
Fatu brings a different kind of danger. Jey wanted freedom. Solo wanted recognition. Fatu wants control, and he has the physical tools to take it. He is explosive enough to overwhelm opponents with speed, powerful enough to match Reigns in a fight and reckless enough to make the entire match feel unstable. If Fatu is healthy enough to compete at full strength, this should be a brutal match built around heavy strikes, sudden bursts of offense and the constant possibility that outside involvement could turn the fight into complete chaos.
The injury concern changes the tone. WWE has spent weeks presenting Fatu as a threat capable of pushing Reigns deeper than almost anyone else on the roster. If he is limited, the match may need to become more methodical and storyline-driven. Reigns has always been excellent at slowing a match down, controlling the pace and making every major movement feel important. Tribal Combat gives WWE enough flexibility to protect Fatu if necessary while still delivering a dramatic main event. The key is making sure the stipulation feels like the natural conclusion to the rivalry rather than a way to disguise a physical limitation.
Cody Rhodes vs. GUNTHER is the cleanest wrestling match on the card and may ultimately become the best match of the show. This is a true clash of styles. Cody is the emotional centerpiece of WWE, a champion who thrives on momentum, resilience and the ability to survive when a match begins slipping away from him. GUNTHER is the exact opposite. The Ring General does not need chaos. He does not need shortcuts. He does not need a complicated game plan. He breaks opponents down one chop, one hold and one calculated decision at a time.
The road to today’s match has been straightforward but effective. GUNTHER attacked Cody on SmackDown and made it clear that he wanted the Undisputed WWE Championship. After refusing to simply sign a contract on Cody’s terms, GUNTHER defeated Royce Keys in a No. 1 contender’s match, officially signed the deal and joined SmackDown. That simplicity works because the matchup sells itself. Cody does not need a deeply personal grudge to make this compelling. GUNTHER is a championship-level threat with the credibility to beat Cody without a fluke, and Cody is the type of opponent who can pull a layered, dramatic title match out of The Ring General.
Expect GUNTHER to attack Cody’s body early, cut off his breathing room and force the champion to fight from underneath. Cody will need to survive the chops, avoid getting trapped in a prolonged sleeper hold and create openings for the Cross Rhodes before GUNTHER takes complete control of the match. A title change would not feel out of place. Neither would Cody finding a way to survive by the narrowest possible margin. That uncertainty is exactly what makes the match feel important.
Rhea Ripley vs. Jade Cargill is a WrestleMania 42 rematch, but the circumstances have changed. Ripley enters as the WWE Women’s Champion. Jade enters as a former champion with more edge, more aggression and backup in the form of Michin and B-Fab. Ripley has been forced into an uneasy alliance with Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss to keep the numbers even.
Jade made her final statement on SmackDown by defeating Alexa and dropping her with Jaded onto a steel chair after the match. That was the correct go-home angle because it made Jade feel dangerous again. The match cannot simply be a repeat of WrestleMania. Jade needs to wrestle like someone who learned from the first encounter. She should use her strength more effectively, take away Ripley’s ability to build momentum and force the champion to deal with the possibility of outside involvement.
Ripley remains one of WWE’s most protected and reliable stars. She has the presence to control the atmosphere of a major title match before the bell even rings. Jade has the athleticism and physical credibility to stand across from her without feeling out of place. The most interesting part of the match may be the finish. WWE has created enough moving pieces around both women that the result could advance several storylines at once without taking away from the championship.
Becky Lynch vs. Sol Ruca is the match with the most potential to elevate someone. Sol has made an immediate impression since arriving on Raw, and WWE has not wasted time placing her across the ring from one of the most established women in company history. Becky initially believed she had outsmarted Sol at Saturday Night’s Main Event, but her decision to deliberately involve referee Jessika Carr during a Sol Snatcher resulted in a disqualification and another title match being made for today.
The uncertainty surrounding Sol’s physical condition has become part of the story. Becky has mocked her relentlessly and treated the possibility of Sol missing the match like another example of an inexperienced challenger being unable to handle the spotlight. That is exactly how Becky should approach this feud. Her current character works best when she treats every rising star as someone who has not earned the right to share the ring with her.
Sol does not need to dominate the match. She needs to look like she belongs. Her athleticism gives her an obvious highlight-reel advantage, but Becky’s experience should force Sol into a different kind of fight. Becky will attempt to slow the match down, target the injured area and turn every mistake into a lesson. Sol’s biggest opportunity will come when the pace accelerates and she can create space for the Sol Snatcher. Whether she wins the championship or falls short, this should be the match that tells viewers how seriously WWE intends to position her moving forward.
Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar may be the most intriguing match on the entire card because WWE has taken one of wrestling’s most familiar formulas and flipped it. Brock is usually the force of nature waiting at the end of someone else’s journey. At WrestleMania 42, Oba beat him. Lesnar left his boots and gloves in the ring, creating the impression that The Beast may have wrestled his final match.
That did not last.
After Oba spent the following weeks issuing open challenges and building momentum, Lesnar returned on Raw and attacked him. The message was clear: Brock could not accept that Oba had beaten him and moved on without him. Today is not merely a rematch. It is a test of whether WWE truly sees Oba as the next dominant attraction or whether WrestleMania was the first chapter of a longer story designed to give Brock his victory back before a final showdown.
The match should not be overly complicated. It needs to feel heavy. Oba and Brock should wrestle like two men trying to prove that the other one does not belong in the same ring. Suplexes, power exchanges, short bursts of violence and very little wasted movement should define the match. Oba already owns the biggest win. Brock enters today needing to prove that WrestleMania was not the end of his story.
The online conversation surrounding Clash In Italy has reflected how strong the card is on paper. Fans have debated whether today is the right time for Jacob Fatu to finally overthrow Roman Reigns, whether GUNTHER could realistically end Cody Rhodes’ title reign and whether WWE will use Brock Lesnar’s return to set up a third match with Oba Femi later this summer. The injury concerns surrounding Fatu and Sol have complicated the discussion, but they have also made the show feel less predictable. That is not how WWE would have drawn it up, but it has created a genuine sense that today could go in several different directions.
The bigger picture matters. Clash In Italy is WWE’s first premium live event in the country, but it also represents the company’s continued commitment to treating international markets like major destinations rather than occasional novelty stops. Turin is not receiving a filler show. It is receiving Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes, GUNTHER, Rhea Ripley, Jade Cargill, Becky Lynch, Brock Lesnar and Oba Femi on the same card. That is a statement.
Final thoughts
WWE Clash In Italy does not need seven or eight matches to feel important. Today’s card is compact, focused and filled with matches that can shape the next several months of WWE television.
Roman Reigns vs. Jacob Fatu carries the most storyline weight. Cody Rhodes vs. GUNTHER has the highest in-ring ceiling. Rhea Ripley vs. Jade Cargill could reshape the top of the women’s division. Becky Lynch vs. Sol Ruca is an opportunity to solidify a rising star. Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar is a battle over whether WWE’s future is ready to move past one of its most dominant attractions.
The injury concerns are impossible to ignore, but the official lineup remains one of the strongest WWE has put together this year. If the five advertised matches take place and receive the time they deserve, Clash In Italy has every chance to become much more than a historic first. It could become one of the defining shows of WWE’s summer.
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I’m the quiet one until the bell rings then I’ve got takes. I live for WWE NXT and TNA, I want every promotion to succeed, and I will absolutely roast the bad decisions on sight (because someone has to). Anime taught me to respect long-term storytelling; wrestling taught me that sometimes the plan is “we panicked” and called it “unpredictable.” The Miz got me into all of this, so yeah I appreciate confidence, commitment, and the art of talking like you’re already the main event. Now I bring that same energy to the page as the main writer for Late Night Crew Wrestling because if you’re not here to be must-see and tell the truth, why are you here?!