NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 21: Daily Show host Jon Stewart addresses runners ahead of the 9/11 Memorial 5K Run/Walk on April 21, 2013 in New York City. Security was tight for the race, as has been the case in large scale events around the country since the Boston Marathon bombings. April 21 marks the anniversary that President Barack Obama signed into law legislation making 9/11 a day of service and volunteerism in memory of the victims of the 2001 attacks. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
By Matt Yoder on

Jon Stewart is taking his talents to the squared circle.  After retiring from The Daily Show, Stewart has been named as host of the WWE pay per view extravaganza SummerSlam this Sunday from Brooklyn.  Stewart is one of the biggest celebrity WWE fans there is and was a guest on an episode of Monday Night Raw earlier this year.  In other words, he actually knows a thing or two about the product and won’t call it SummerFest like Jeremy Piven did a couple years ago.

USA Today broke the news earlier this evening:

In his first major gig since leaving The Daily ShowAug. 6 after a 16-year run, Stewart has signed on to be the host of WWE’s SummerSlam on Sunday. The four-hour event airs live from Brooklyn’s sold-out Barclays Center at 7 p.m. ET/4 PT on WWE Network.

A longtime pro-wrestling fan, Stewart engaged in a “feud” earlier this year with WWE heavyweight champion Seth Rollins — the TV host taunted Rollins online, the wrestler then crashed Stewart’s show, and the twosome settled matters in the squared circle during an episode of USA’s Monday Night Raw in March.

Stewart and Rollins traded several barbs back and forth during the spring that culminated in this appearance on Raw where Stewart got in the ring as Rollins did his own version of The Daily Show.  That appearance culminated in a similar manner to that of many other guest spots on Raw, with a kick to the groin.

WWE is pulling out all of the stops for SummerSlam this year in hopes of boosting WWE Network subscribers.  The company extended the PPV to four hours long (usually only reserved for WrestleMania), the Undertaker returns to action (usually only reserved for WrestleMania) as he faces Brock Lesnar, Arrow star Stephen Amell is wrestling in a tag team match, and now Stewart will be there as host.

On top of all of that happening, former WWE commentator turned ESPN anchor Jonathan Coachman will be there as well.  You might recall SportsCenter actually showed WrestleMania highlights earlier this year so we might see the worldwide leader in sports dive into sports entertainment yet again.

[USA Today]

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