Every SummerSlam Main Event RANKED

24. Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton – SummerSlam 2016

Brock Lesnar and Randy Orton was an interesting match. There was really no reason for them to be wrestling when the match was announced in 2016.

Lesnar didn’t have a title so Orton was only challenging him just to have a match. This meant the level of interest in this match wasn’t as high as others.

As a match, the only memorable part was the ending. The rest of the action was fine but not spectacular but eventually, Lesnar had enough.

Lesnar removed his gloves and teed off on Orton’s forehead slicing him wide open. This was a gruesome finish which made Lesnar look even more like a killer.

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23. Bret Hart vs. The Undertaker – SummerSlam 1997

From a storytelling standpoint, 1997 was one of the best years in WWE history. SummerSlam saw one of the biggest storylines of the year culminate with a big WWF Championship match.

Undertaker was taking on Bret Hart with Shawn Michaels as the guest referee. Hart had declared if he lost he would never wrestle in the United States again.

They had a solid main event match before the finish. The finish was pro wrestling wackiness as Bret Hart spat on Michaels causing Michaels to swing a chair and accidentally hit Undertaker.

This allowed Hart to get the pin and win the title. Good match, deserving of their spot in the middle of this list.

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22. The Rock vs. Booker T – SummerSlam 2001

When The Rock returned to the WWF in 2001, he set his sights on the WCW Championship. Booker T had brought the title over from WCW in the Invasion and they clashed at SummerSlam.

This match was fine albeit not terribly exciting. It suffered from having the excellent Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle match go on before it.

People still loved The Rock but this match capped off at being just fine. There wasn’t anything particularly wrong with it but it also never really got going.

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21. Team WWE vs. Nexus – SummerSlam 2010

The Summer of 2010 was defined by this match between Team WWE and the Nexus. John Cena, Edge, Chris Jericho, Daniel Bryan, Bret Hart, John Morrison and R-Truth joined forces to take on the black and yellow invaders.

The match itself was fine and the work was good but the finish was one of the biggest booking blunders in WWE history.

All signs pointed to Nexus getting the biggest win of the year and further establishing themselves as WWE’s new top heels. Except that didn’t happen.

Instead, John Cena insisted on winning the match and submitting Wade Barrett. It killed the group dead and everyone involved knew it was the wrong move.

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20. Triple H vs. Goldberg vs. Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho vs. Randy Orton vs. Kevin Nash – SummerSlam 2003

From one booking blunder to another, SummerSlam 2003 was smack dab right in the middle of Triple H’s reign of terror.

2003 was the year that Triple H took down what remained of WCW. It started with Scott Steiner before he defeated Booker T, Kevin Nash, and finally, Goldberg.

As if this wasn’t frustrating enough, SummerSlam saw the reign of terror enter the Elimination Chamber.

The match was pretty standard to begin with and then Goldberg entered and eliminated Shawn Michaels, Chris Jericho and Randy Orton in quick fashion.

This left only Triple H and Goldberg would be crowned World Heavyweight Champion. Except Triple H hit him with a sledgehammer and pinned him.

This was Goldberg’s time and instead they beat him and allowed him to get the win a month later.

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• main event
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