DAPC Wrestling Roundup: Tay Melo Walks, AEW Returns, and SummerSlam Takes Shape
Welcome to the DAPC Wrestling news roundup for Saturday, July 25, 2026. Tony Khan spent an hour taking questions two days out from Redemption and actually answered some of them, the SummerSlam card nearly doubled in size on Friday night, Cody and Punk finally stood in a ring together and got mean about it, and a former WWE tag champion turned up somewhere he hasn’t been in a while.
1. Tony Khan Grants Tay Melo Her Release, Confirms Anna Jay Re-Signed
Speaking on the AEW Redemption media call Thursday, Tony Khan confirmed that Tay Melo asked for her release and that he granted it. Khan said Melo approached him after her recent tag loss on Collision and that she “wanted to step away from AEW and wrestling.” In the same call he confirmed her real-life friend and frequent tag partner Anna Jay recently signed a new AEW deal with significant time left on it. Jay has not wrestled since June 6 and underwent an MRI after that match, so the new contract does not come with a return date attached.
Source: PWTorch
The DAPC Take: I always liked Tay, but she never really recovered from being paired with her husband a few years back. Fans definitely did not take to them showing obnoxious affection on screen and for some reason could never get past it.
2. Khan Updates Hangman Page, Swerve Strickland, and MJF Ahead of Redemption
The same media call produced status reports on three of AEW’s biggest names. Khan called Hangman Page’s in-ring return imminent following Page’s recent promo on Collision. He said Swerve Strickland is off television because of outside commitments (Strickland spent the week working San Diego Comic-Con) and promised a fuller update after Redemption. On MJF, Khan said he is resting after last month’s match with Kenny Omega and has wrestled through major injuries this year, so the time off is about long-term health. Asked about the wave of names hitting free agency, Khan said only that he is keeping an eye on things and that there is a lot of talent out there.
Source: F4W/WON
The DAPC Take: It is insane how deep the AEW roster is that Hangman, Swerve, AND MJF can be out and the shows don’t feel less special. That being said, their imminent returns are always welcomed.
3. The SummerSlam Card Nearly Doubled on Friday Night
Friday’s SmackDown loaded up the August 1-2 SummerSlam card at WWE’s SummerSlam host venue, U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. Finn Balor won a fatal four-way over Trick Williams, Royce Keys, and Damian Priest to earn a shot, and his Undisputed WWE Championship number-one contenders match with Sami Zayn is now official. Nick Aldis vs. Gunther was made official and immediately turned physical, with Gunther putting Aldis through a table after promising to “end your career before it has properly started.” Fatal Influence vs. The Bella Twins and Paige was added, and Charlotte Flair and Chelsea Green both qualified for the interim Women’s Championship ladder match. That brings the announced card to eleven matches with one ladder-match spot still open.
Source: 411Mania
The DAPC Take: I wish these wrestling promotions would have more matches solidified before a week out from the PPV/PLE, but I guess it comes with the territory of having waaay too many of them.
4. Cody Rhodes and CM Punk Finally Talked, and It Got Personal
The SummerSlam main-event build got its first real face-to-face on SmackDown. Cody accused Punk of hitting him with the title belt on purpose at Saturday Night’s Main Event; Punk insisted it was an accident. Cody then walked through the whole history: that Punk’s 2011 pipe bomb pointed him toward the career he has now, and that people always wished it had been Punk instead of him. “I don’t sweat any of them, but you,” Cody told him, framing SummerSlam as the only way the story closes. Punk’s answer was shorter. He said Cody cannot handle facing someone he loves, and that at SummerSlam, “I’m going to break his heart.”
Source: PWTorch
The DAPC Take: I’m sure this will be a good match, but honestly the story is pretty mediocre and I expect it to last well past Minneapolis.
5. Doc Gallows Spotted Backstage at AEW’s Nashville Tapings
Former WWE tag team champion Doc Gallows was backstage at both the Dynamite and Collision tapings at The Pinnacle in Nashville this week. No word on why he was there or whether anything is in the works with AEW. Gallows and longtime partner Karl Anderson have been WWE-affiliated for most of the last decade, and the Bang Bang Gang’s ongoing feud with The Dogs is running right now on AEW television, so the timing at least raises an eyebrow.
Source: PWInsider
The DAPC Take: Or maybe he just wants his son to get hired? I guess we will see!
6. Abyss Is Getting a WWE Action Figure, Despite Never Having a WWE Match
Ringside Collectibles used San Diego Comic-Con to reveal a first-ever WWE Mattel figure of TNA Hall of Famer Abyss, who has never wrestled a match for the company. He was unveiled alongside new figures for Dominik Mysterio, Danhausen, CM Punk, and a set of AAA wrestlers. Abyss has worked for WWE behind the scenes as a producer since 2022, which is presumably how a Monster’s Ball icon ends up on a WWE toy shelf.
Source: Ringside Collectibles
The DAPC Take: Abyss genuinely ruled and I am all for this!
More from DAPC Wrestling
- AEW Redemption Predictions: Ten Matches in Montreal, and We Want Your Picks — every match on Sunday’s card, with a pick on each one.
- AEW Collision Spoilers (7/25): Two Ladder Qualifiers, a Guitar Shot, and Ospreay Snaps — how the Redemption ladder match filled out.
- AEW Dynamite (7/22): Kevin Knight Made It Ten, Then Made It Personal — the streak that set up his world title shot.
- DAPC Wrestling Roundup: Tickets Move, Bayley’s Clock Ticks, and Please Not Tom Brady — the follow-up on SummerSlam ticket sales.
