Brock Lesnar has had a legendary list of SummerSlam moments. Few superstars have had as many memorable matches at WWE’s big 4 pay-per-view. With The Beast scheduled for a third match against Cody Rhodes on August 5th, FOW has compiled a selection of Lesnar’s greatest SummerSlam moments:
The Perfect Debut
Has anyone ever had a better first SummerSlam than Brock Lesnar. Beating one of the biggest stars in history and capturing the top prize in WWE in the same match, Lesnar cemented himself as The Next Big Thing in 2002, beating The Rock and becoming WWE Champion for the first time in his career. With the crowd even turning on The Great One, Lesnar’s meteoric rise in a short space of time was cemented in what was his 6th pay-per-view match.
The Shocking Loss
Lesnar had been pinned and beaten in 2002, but never submitted. Following an excellent main event against Kurt Angle at WrestleMania 19, the rematch was set with Lesnar being the dominant heel and Angle the babyface champion. Both men put on another technical classic, with a finish no one saw coming. Following an ankle lock applied for a lengthy period of time, Lesnar shockingly submitted to the Olympic Gold Medalist, once again suffering a rare clean loss in his first WWE run.
The Return Match
Following an 8 year plus hiatus, Lesnar would return to the company. Starting not as strong with a defeat to John Cena at Extreme Rules, Lesnar would turn his attention to Triple H at SummerSlam, following storyline disputes with the returning Superstar’s contract. Returning to dominant fashion at the summer pay-per-view, Lesnar took down Triple H to stand tall over the authority figure.
The Most Shocking Squash Match
Three things in life are guaranteed, death, taxes and even in defeat John Cena must put on a valiant showing. Lesnar challenged this third belief in the biggest way possible in 2014. With the most one-sided match against Cena ever seen, Lesnar hit 15 suplexes and 2 F5’s to become the man at the top of the mountain 12 years on from the first reign.
A Bloody Affair
Never one to shy away from controversy, Lesnar faced Randy Orton in a first time ever match in 2016. While suplexes and RKO’s were to be expected, no one could have predicted the finish. The match was stopped by TKO when Lesnar repeatedly struck Orton in the head to cause The Viper to bleed profusely and reportedly cause a concussion. WWE had [and still does] an anti-blood policy in 2016, making the hard way cut even more of a surprise.
4-Way Carnage
How do you make a Brock Lesnar match more destructive? Add more people! The Beast had the odds firmly stacked against him in 2017, defending the Universal Championship against 3 challengers; Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe and Roman Reigns. Barricades were broken, announce tables were destroyed and Lesnar was even taken briefly to the backstage area. With a wild match and 3 credible challengers, it was nothing short of a miracle that Lesnar came out of SummerSlam still the champion.
Vehicular Mayhem
When Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns were announced to battle one final time in a Last Man Standing match at SummerSlam 2022, the WWE Universe collectively groaned as the rivalry had been exhausted and Last Man Standing matches can feel long and too stop start. Lesnar over delivered in the 2022 match by driving a tractor to the ring and nearly flipping the ring over. While the end of the match felt like it had slightly outstayed its welcome, the ring flip and use of machinery made this one of the all time great SummerSlam moments and one of the best Last Man Standing matches in recent memory.
Featured image: WWE
