Ranking the 8 greatest SummerSlam main events of all time

#4 Brock Lesnar vs The Rock (2002)

Lesnar vs Rock

2002 was a year of transition for the WWE. They were getting out of the Attitude Era the previous year when they were met with the Invasion Era. After WrestleMania X8, WWE was in a rare identity crisis. The company went through a name change and almost saw disaster strike heavily, with the Plane Ride From Hell. The rosters split and it was time for new talent to flourish. We saw new superstars graduate from OVW, none being as impressive as Brock Lesnar.

Lesnar was the fastest-rising star in the history of the company, as he won the King of the Ring tournament and absolutely manhandled Hulk Hogan on SmackDown. The WWE Undisputed Championship was changing hands left, right and center as we saw four different champions between WrestleMania and SummerSlam, truly a transitional period. The latest Champion The Rock was on his way to Hollywood and would leave after SummerSlam. This caused the fans to turn on him and side with the Next Big Thing.

We had a big-match feel for this collision between eras in the Nassau Coliseum. The Rock, who had seen it all in the WWE, against the new big star in town, Brock Lesnar. If there is anything we learned from this, it is that Brock Lesnar is a freak of nature. But we already knew that. Lesnar would end up conquering the People's Champ in an emphatic and decisive victory.

At 25 years of age, Brock Lesnar had become the youngest ever WWE Champion in history and solidified himself as a legitimate main-event star. SummerSlam marked the end of the transition, WWE was now in the Ruthless Aggression Era. The rosters were split and new talent was being groomed to become greats. Brock Lesnar vs The Rock was the match that symbolized the rise of the new talent in the company.