10 Memorably Punishing WWE Matches

5. Brock Lesnar Vs. John Cena - SummerSlam 2014

Cena Lesnar Suplex
WWE.com

In 2014, John Cena was unbeatable. He was the biggest star in the company, and kept constantly, unassailably strong. A clean win over John Cena was as big a deal as winning a championship. It didn't happen.

And then Brock Lesnar came along.

To establish Lesnar as the end-of-game-boss of wrestling, he was booked to beat Cena. And not just beat him. Annihilate him. Crush him. Above all, punish him.

Famously, Lesnar hit 16 German suplexes on John Cena during their match. Most brutally of all, the first one dumped Big Match John on the back of his head. It was not only booked to be a relentless punishment of the company's biggest name, it actually was, with bipedal murder machine Lesnar putting a little extra salt & pepper on every suplex.

One of WWE's most glaringly savage matches, it marked a seismic change in the landscape of the company where even Cena was not immune to the living weapon that was Lesnar.

Contributor

Ben Counter is a fantasy and science fiction writer, gaming enthusiast, wrestling fan and miniature painting guru. He was raised on Warhammer, Star Wars and 1980s cartoons that, in retrospect, were't that good. Whoever you are, he is nerdier than you.