Less than one month after the biggest party of the summer, WWE Superstars who believe they got over the short end of the stick at SummerSlam now have a chance to get themselves some payback at, well, Payback, WWE's first Premium Live Event to be broadcasted from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania since Extreme Rules in 2018.

With six matches announced, John Cena locked in as the host, and a special edition of The Grayson Waller Effect with Cody Rhodes as the “Aussie Icon's” guest on the card, fans can expect some good variety on one of WWE's “minor” yearly PLEs, even if the show lacks some of the star power that has elevated seemingly every major show Paul “Triple H” Levesque has booked since taking over creative at SummerSlam 2022.

So, with the show rapidly approaching, here's everything you need to know about the first premium show of the month of September.

How to Watch WWE Payback

Stream: Peacock

Time: 8:00 p.m. ET/ 5:00 p.m. PT

*Watch sports LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Will John Cena get physical?

On the go-home edition of SmackDown, John Cena announced to the world that he was going to be hosting Payback, making it the first time in his professional career that he's in charge of the proceedings of a show.

After the show went off the air, Cena discussed the opportunity with Cathy Kelley and noted that, in WWE, hosts never get physical while performing the duties of their job… except, of course, when Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson cost him a title shot against The Miz at WrestleMania XXVII.

Will Cena become the rare host who doesn't get involved in anything physical? Or will he put some jabroni – Grayson Waller? – on his back while 10,000+ fans cheer his name in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania?  Based on Cena noting that he's committed to WWE for the next eight weeks and will be wrestling matches over the run, the latter option feels like a pretty safe bet.

Related NewsArticle continues below
Jalen Brunson and Tyrese Haliburton
Fans can’t believe WWE predicted Tyrese Haliburton, Jalen Brunson ECF
Nikki Bella, aka Nikki Garca, and Artem Chigvintsev, who the former WWE star will have to pay over six figures in child support, according to their divorce settlement.
Nikki Bella to pay Artem Chigvintsev eye-opening amount in child support
WWE Champion John Cena, who recently gave out dating advice, at SummerSlam in 2021.
John Cena offers NSFW dating advice

Can Becky Lynch finally best Trish Stratus?

Becky Lynch and Trish Stratus have been feuding since all the way back in April of 2023, when the “Goat” turned on “The Man” after the duo lost the WWE Woman's Tag Team Championship belts to Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez.

Since that fateful day, Lynch and Stratus have wrestled five times on television or a Premium Live Event, with “Big Time Becks” coming out on the wrong side of the winner's announcement in every single contest, with Zoey Stark helping to ensure that her new mentor's reunion tour remains a positive experience.

Will that streak of Lynch losses continue at Payback? Or will “The Man” genuinely get her payback in the Steel City, leading to her biggest win of the year and a chance for both acts to take a step forward into the future after a feud that, by Stratus' own admission, had become a little stale? After being snubbed out of a match at SummerSlam, it's only right for a Steel Cage match in the Steel City to serve as the rubber match of the affair, even if it would have been cooler to call the bout Hell in a Cell to really add a definitive ending to the ordeal.

Will Shinsuke Nakamura's back attack strategy blind the “Visionary?”

After seemingly finishing his feud with Finn Balor at SummerSlam, even if it feels like things could heat back up around Survivor Series time, Seth Rollins has found his next challenger for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship in Shinsuke Nakamura, the “King of Strong Style” who hasn't held a World Championship – unless you want to count NXT – since all the way back in 2010 when he was still a member of the New Three Musketeers of New Japan Pro Wrestling with Katsuyori Shibata and Hiroshi Tanahashi.

Is Nakamura the toughest foe Rollins has faced in WWE as of late? No, one could argue that he's a “weaker” opponent than AJ Styles and Finn Balor, who are both former Universal Champions, but in the build-up to the feud, Paul “Triple H” Levesque and his creative team found a solution to that issue: Rollins' broken back.

Can Nakamura, who just turned heel last month, use his hard-hitting, strong-style background to hit Rollins where it literally hurts in order to become the second-ever WWE World Heavyweight Champion of this current lineage? Or will Rollins retain the title and earn renewed interest from the “Archer of Infamy” this fall when WarGames goes back on the table? Fans will find out soon enough.