10 Gruesome WWE Injuries That Made Us Sick
4. Brock Lesnar's Leap Of Faith Goes Awry (WWE WrestleMania XIX)
Brock Lesnar was more willing, more enthusiastic almost, in 2003 than every subsequent iteration of himself.
Lesnar had to prove himself as 'The Next Big Thing', you see. WWE was entering a period where monikers couldn't just be monikers; if you had a decorative prefix, you needed to prove you deserved it. Shawn Michaels was 'Mr WrestleMania'. Jeff Hardy was 'The Charismatic Enigma'. Mick Foley was 'The Hardcore Legend' - and Brock Lesnar was 'The Next Big Thing'. He was at WrestleMania XIX anyway, wrestling the WWE Championship away from Kurt Angle in a bout scarcely heralded as a great 'Mania headliner on the basis of one spot gone wrong.
John Laurinaitis was the man behind the idea. He advised Brock that he needed to up his game if he were to have a WrestleMania moment, leading to him busting out a Shooting Star Press. Brock had hit the rarely-seen move to perfection during an OVW match, but this wasn't OVW; this was WrestleMania, and any mistakes would be remembered forever.
Brock missed Kurt Angle by a smidge. Dropping all of his weight onto his already-compressed neck in a gnarly visual that doesn't get easier the more you watch it, Brock was unable to stand and celebrate as WWE Champion in what should've been a poignant show-closing moment. He got his 'Mania moment alright - but at what cost?