10 Fascinating WWE SummerSlam 2001 Facts

2. Booker T Feels He And The Rock Clashed Stylistically In The Main Event

Steve Austin Kurt Angle SummerSlam 2001 Ankle Lock
WWE.com

It was certainly bizarre to have the main event of SummerSlam feature a WCW World Heavyweight Championship match, but not much of 2001 felt particularly normal. Booker T defended his army's top belt against The Rock, who had recently returned after filming The Scorpion King.

Booker attested in his autobiography that he wasn't used to Rock's working style (there were many clashes between WWE-style workers and the WCW imports, so he wasn't alone), and Booker noted that he "didn't take control as much as I should've" in making both men look good during the body of the match.

Although the match ended up being fairly good, it suffered a bit from not only having to follow Angle/Austin, but the struggles Rock and Booker had compiling a 15-minute bout with their different working styles.

Contributor
Contributor

Justin has been a wrestling fan since 1989, and has been writing about it since 2009. Since 2014, Justin has been a features writer and interviewer for Fighting Spirit Magazine. Justin also writes for History of Wrestling, and is a contributing author to James Dixon's Titan series.