A main event of epic proportions headlined Tuesday's episode of SmackDown Live as Shinsuke Nakamura and John Cena battled for the right to challenge Jinder Mahal for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam.

The King of Strong Style won the match, but did he emerge from the bout as the biggest winner of the show, or did that honor go to another Superstar.

A Prizefighter, perhaps?

Kevin Owens may have lost his United States Championship match to AJ Styles in controversial fashion, but a post-match confrontation with Shane McMahon helped him recover quickly and impressively

Not so lucky was Owens' longtime friend-turned-bitter foe Sami Zayn.

The Underdog from the Underground again found himself on the receiving end of questionable booking while Rusev, another talented and misused Superstar, suffered an RKO before fans became too excited about the prospects of a renewed push.

Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura

In the most important match of his WWE career Tuesday night, Shinsuke Nakamura shook off all doubt and criticism following his sub-standard pay-per-view showing against Baron Corbin at Battleground and turned in the best performance of his main roster run thus far as he defeated John Cena to cash his ticket to SummerSlam and a date with WWE champion Jinder Mahal.

The King of Strong Style matched move for move with Cena and consistently looked his equal.

When squaring off with a franchise star and all time great, that is not always the case, but there Nakamura was, captivating the audience as he kicked out of Attitude Adjustments and wiggled free of his opponent's grasp before blasting him with Kinshasa for the win.

Sure, there was a scary suplex in which he essentially dropped Cena on his head, but that is forgivable considering the rest of his fairly flawless performance.

A clean win over the measuring stick in professional wrestling is exactly what Nakamura needed to build credibility with those fans who may not have bought into the performer in his first four months with the main roster.

Now the No. 1 contender to the WWE title, his abilities in the ring will be put to the test as he battles a Mahal still trying to find his feet as a main event star. His rivalry with Randy Orton was, to put it lightly, a disappointment.

Will Nakamura be the Superstar to help elevate The Maharaja in the eyes of the fans?

We will find out come August 20 in Brooklyn.

Loser: Sami Zayn

Sami Zayn is one of the best wrestlers on the planet, but his continued mishandling by WWE Creative has threatened to ruin all credibility he has with fans.

Tuesday night, he lost to Aiden English.

The same English who could not buy a win before his Battleground Kickoff Show victory over "The Perfect 10" Tye Dillinger.

And it happened clean, in the middle of the ring, with no controversy or cheating.

Zayn, the same Superstar who tore the house down with Kevin Owens on pay-per-view a year ago, is now nestled uncomfortably in the SmackDown Live midcard.

The blue brand was supposed to be the Land of Opportunity for Zayn. He was supposed to enjoy the type of success he was shielded from on Raw thanks to a lighter roster and more willingness by WWE Creative to take a chance on a Superstar.

Instead, he has been beaten down by Jinder Mahal and programmed against Mike Kanellis in a going-nowhere rivalry. It is unacceptable use of a star of his ability and the type of complete and utter mishandling that ruins stars at a time when WWE is about to lose John Cena and needs as many stars as it can get to try to replace him.

Winner: Kevin Owens

Angry, nasty, relentless Kevin Owens is the most fun incarnation of the character. It is also the most effective, and if Tuesday's show was any indication, it appears as though we may be en route to the rediscovery of that Owens.

After a controversial decision cost Owens the United States Championship, the furious Superstar confronted commissioner Shane McMahon and general manager Daniel Bryan backstage, verbally unleashing his anger on them.

The segment led to the announcement of Owens vs. AJ Styles for the United States Championship at SummerSlam and the revelation that the special guest referee for that match will be none other than Shane-O-Mac himself.

That announcement moves Owens one step closer to a program with McMahon, who has become increasingly prominent in The Prizefighter's story. A high-profile rivalry with the prodigal son would keep Owens at the forefront of SmackDown Live without resorting to repetitive matches.

Owens needs to re-emerge as a dangerous threat to his fellow Superstars rather than an arrogant heel who talks a big game but gets his ass kicked at every turn. If he has to brutalize the most powerful man on Tuesday nights to do so, so be it.

Loser: Rusev

Rusev won a match over Chad Gable that he absolutely needed to in order to retain what little shred of credibility he still has left.

From there, he cut a promo in which he demanded competition and was greeted by Randy Orton, essentially touching off a rivalry between the two. That all seems like a suitable bounce back from his Battleground loss to John Cena, right?

Wrong.

There is no chance in hell Rusev wins an actual rivalry with Orton. None whatsoever. He may underhandedly win a match at SummerSlam to further the story, but their program ends with The Viper posing over Rusev, his arms outstretched, a visual fans have been witnessing for the last 15 years.

This program is not about Rusev's redemption. It is all about Orton recovering from his program with Jinder Mahal and getting back to his winning ways. An RKO, or several, is in Rusev's future. All the excitement for Rusev's apparent elevation does is set his fans up for bitter disappointment if, and when, the inevitable occurs.