CURTIS AXEL DEF. CODY RHODES

Following up his huge victory in a highly personal match 

against former buddy (and current Mr. Money in the Bank) 

Damien Sandow at SummerSlam, Cody Rhodes looked to 

insert himself into the Intercontinental Title hunt as he 

battled current champion Curtis Axel. But after Paul Heyman 

distracted Rhodes, Axel hit the neckbreaker to score a huge 

win over the "son of a son of a plumber. The mad scientist 

went on to say The Straight Edge Superstar was "lost," while 

Curtis Axel had "found himself," making the bold statement 

that no Superstar can defeat the reigning Intercontinental 

Champion. Axel then challenged Punk to a match on next 

week’s Raw!Later, Punk would Tweet his response, setting 

the stage for their Monday night clash.