Chris King’s Top 10 Brock Lesnar WWE SummerSlam Matches

Chris King ranks Brock Lesnar’s Top 10 Best WWE SummerSlam matches, from The Rock and CM Punk to his chaotic 2022 showdown with Roman Reigns.

‘The Beast Incarnate’ Brock Lesnar has wrestled twelve times at SummerSlam with a 6-6 record.  This year Lesnar battles ’The Ruler’ Oba Femi inside Hell in the Cell, and this might be his retirement match in his hometown. 

Lesnar has had some hard-fought battles against the greatest superstars in WWE history,, including The Rock, CM Punk, Triple H, The Undertaker, and ‘The Tribal Chief’ Roman Reigns. Chris King is ranking his top ten Lesnar SummerSlam matches. 

10. Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton: SummerSlam 2016 

‘The Viper’ Randy Orton and Brock Lesnar were from the alumni OVW class of 2002 and were scheduled to fight each other for the first time in WWE history at SummerSlam. This was the first match for brand supremacy with Orton on SmackDown and Lesnar on Raw. I’ll never forget when Paul Heyman was declaring that The Viper would never hit an RKO on his client and then he freaking did. It was such an iconic moment. 

Unfortunately, this match was very one-sided, and Orton barely got any offense against The Beast. Orton tried to gain some momentum after delivering an RKO on the announce table, but all that did was piss off Lesnar. He then proceeded to take off his UFC gloves and pummel Orton with stiff shots to the head, causing him to bleed. The referee then declared Lesnar the winner due to TKO. 

9. Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns (Universal Championship): SummerSlam 2018 

The only thing the WWE Universe hated more than Brock Lesnar’s reign of terror was the person handpicked to win the Universal Title, ‘The Big Dog’ Roman Reigns. For years since the demise of The Shield, despite the crowd’s displeasure in his character, Reigns was booked to be “the guy.” In 2018, Reigns and Lesnar had already wrestled several times, and it was a failed experiment. Their matches were very formulaic: Superman Punch, Spear, F5, rinse and repeat. 

The only saving grace was Mr. MITB Braun Strowman, who announced as soon as the bell rang he would cash in immediately after the match. His distraction to Lesnar was the opening The Big Dog needed to win the Universal Championship that night.

8. Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H: SummerSlam 2012 

After an eight-year absence, Lesnar returned with a vengeance, wanting to prove who the alpha male was in WWE. He targeted then-COO Triple H, who wouldn’t be bullied into his ridiculous demands, so he broke his arm with his patented Kimura submission hold. After months of teasing confrontation, HHH, the wrestler, challenged The Beast to a fight at SummerSlam. 

HHH tried to survive the onslaught of Lesnar and managed to get some offense in, but The Beast dominated the majority of the match. His target was his opponent’s injured arm and his relentless attack with the dangerous UFC hold. ‘The Game’ finally tapped out to avoid getting his arm broken once again by Lesnar. 

7. Brock Lesnar vs. The Rock (WWE Championship): SummerSlam 2002 

Brock Lesnar’s rookie year in WWE was unprecedented, dominating the King of the Ring tournament. ‘The Next Big Thing’ was booking so strongly and was positioned as a top-tier main event player from the jump. His match against The Rock for the WWE title was viewed as his coronation as a dangerous threat for years to come. 

The championship match started inordinately with the champion laying his title down at the ramp and running into the ring to face his challenger. Both superstars delivered a great performance and were able to showcase their skills on separate occasions. The red-hot crowd was fully behind Lesnar and was ready for a changing of the guard. The Beast countered a final Rock Bottom into a thunderous F5 to win his first WWE Championship in his first title match! 

6. Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena (WWE World Heavyweight Championship): SummerSlam 2014

At Wrestlemania 30, Brock Lesnar ended The Undertaker’s historic undefeated streak in front of a shocked crowd. The next step to cement his legacy as one of the greatest of all time was to become the world champion. Lesnar’s longtime rival John Cena was the champion, and The Beast was ready for a fight to conquer the world of professional wrestling. 

As soon as the match started, Lesnar delivered a ferocious F5 to Cena and got a near-fall. Cena should have stayed down for the three-count because what transpired was the most one-sided championship match in WWE history. The Beast took the champion to Suplex City and unmercifully beat down Cena from pillar to post. After fifteen minutes of pure dominance, Lesnar delivered another devastating F5 to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship in convincing fashion. 

5. Brock Lesnar vs. CM Punk: SummerSlam 2013 

Paul Heyman screwed over his longtime friend ‘Best in the World’ CM Punk and cost him the MITB ladder match. Heyman’s reasoning was because he couldn’t beat The Beast, his client. Punk never was afraid of a fight and was ready to fight Lesnar at SummerSlam, in a match dubbed “The Best vs. The Beast.” 

A resilient Punk went toe-to-toe with the former UFC champion and gave a great performance that night. Not many superstars could handle a beating from The Beast and live to talk about it. Punk took his eye off his opponent to exact revenge on Heyman, and it cost him the match. After a gutsy performance, The Beast delivered an F5 to secure the victory. 

4. Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker: SummerSlam 2015 

A year prior, Brock Lesnar ended The Undertaker’s undefeated streak at WrestleMania 30. The Beast won the world championship, but that wasn’t enough. Lesnar’s advocate Paul Heyman continued to brag about his client’s greatest achievement to date every single chance he got. At Battleground, ‘The Deadman’ cost Lesnar the world championship. Undertaker was pissed about how Lesnar had been mocking him for over a year and got his revenge.

The two superstars would have a chance to settle the score at SummerSlam. Before Undertaker could take his entrance coat off, The Beast came right at him, and the fight was underway. Lesnar took his opponent to Suplex City and hit multiple F5s, but to no avail. Undertaker tapped out of the referee’s view, and Lesnar stopped the hold, thinking he won. While the referee was distracted, The Deadman low-blowed his opponent and locked back in Hell’s Gate. A defiant Lesnar flipped off Taker and passed out, evening up the score to 1-1 in their rivalry. 

3. Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes: SummerSlam 2023 

On the Raw-after-WrestleMania 39, Brock Lesnar turned on ‘The American Nightmare’ Cody Rhodes, pretending to be his tag team partner against Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa. At Backlash, Rhodes barely survived The Beast by pinning Lesnar while in the Kimura Lock for a shocking victory. On the lead up to their second match, Lesnar broke Rhodes’ arm. At Night of Champions, Lesnar evened the score, passing out his opponent in the submission hold. Both superstars would compete in a rubber match at SummerSlam. 

The American Nightmare utilized fast-paced offense throughout the match, juking and finding his moments to strike. The Beast Incarnate dominated his opponent with German suplexes and using his brute strength and agility to stop Rhodes’ momentum. A resilient Rhodes took The Beast’s best and still would not quit despite being thrown around like a rag doll. The American Nightmare miraculously countered an F5 into a trifecta of CrossRhodes to conquer Lesnar. Rhodes earned the respect of his rival, as Lesnar raised his hand in victory. Something you don’t always see from The Beast. 

2. Brock Lesnar vs. Kurt Angle (WWE Championship): SummerSlam 2003 

Brock Lesnar and Kurt Angle became friends after their five-star classic at WrestleMania 19, where The Beast won the WWE championship. Angle had surgery, and during his time away, Lesnar would carry SmackDown as a dominant champion. Both superstars would produce some of the most memorable and entertaining backstage segments in WWE history, making fun of each other. At Vengeance, Angle would regain the title in a triple-threat match alongside The Big Show. Lesnar would respectfully challenge his friend to a rematch at SummerSlam, but it was declined by Mr. McMahon himself.

McMahon fought Lesnar in a cage match with Angle appointed as the special guest referee. Prior to the match, The Beast suffered a “concussion” and still competed. During an F5 attempt, Lesnar fell to the ground, and McMahon went for the cover, but Angle refused to count. While McMahon was in the Ankle Lock, The Beast kicked up and revealed it was all a ruse. This flipped a switch in Lesnar as he became more ruthless than ever before. 

Both former Olympic athletes were set to collide in a historic WrestleMania rematch where Angle would utilize a more technical wrestling approach while The Beast used his power and freakish strength to intimidate his opponent. Despite Lesnar’s impressive performance, Angle continued his assault with the Ankle Lock to secure the victory via submission. There will never be two superstars at the caliber Angle and Lesnar were. 

Honorable Mention: Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns vs. Samoa Joe vs. Braun Strowman (Universal Championship): SummerSlam 2017 

Picture all four juggernauts of WWE colliding for the universal championship in a car-crash main event. That’s exactly what this match was. Roman Reigns speared Lesnar through the barricade. Strowman powerslammed Lesnar through two announce tables and flipped the other on top of the champion and sent the champion on a gurney to the back. All three superstars battled it out until The Beast Incarnate came back to finish what he started. Lesnar delivered a thunderous F5 to Reigns to successfully retain his universal title! 

1. Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns (Universal Championship): SummerSlam 2022 

‘The Tribal Chief’ Roman Reigns defeated Brock Lesnar in a historic winner-takes-all match at WrestleMania 38 to become the WWE Undisputed Champion, and that didn’t sit well with The Beast Incarnate. WWE quickly announced that both superstars would compete in a last man standing match at SummerSlam.

Cowboy Brock drove a forklift to the ring, which completely confused Reigns and Paul Heyman, who were awaiting his arrival. Lesnar made his own in-ring announcement on top of the forklift and threw the mic to The Tribal Chief. Seconds later, The Beast leaped off the forklift to pummel his rival. Both superstars used every move in their respective playbooks to gain victory, but to no avail. Midway through the match, Lesnar hauled the champion inside the overhead guard and lifted him up and dumped him over the ring ropes. Seeing The Beast laughing his ass off was unsettling to say the least. 

After Lesnar was unable to conquer Reigns, he decided to lift the damn ring with his forklift, which sent the champion crashing to the outside. The Usos tried to intervene for their cousin but ate nasty belly-to-belly suplexes from a pissed-off Lesnar. The Beast delivered an F5 to his former advocate and finally got his comeuppance for his betrayal. Austin Theory came down to cash in his MITB briefcase, but he took an F5 on the outside for his troubles. The Universal Champion and The Usos piled every single piece of table and debris on top of Lesnar to survive and retain his title in one of the craziest matches in SummerSlam history. 

Will The Beast add another huge win to his SummerSlam record against The Ruler at this year’s event, or will Oba Femi put an end to Lesnar and win their rubber match and end their rivalry? What kind of chaos and destruction will we see inside Hell in the Cell on August 1st?