10 Must-See Matches From WWE SmackDown 2002
7. Randy Orton Vs. Brock Lesnar - September 5, 2002
At SummerSlam on August 21, 2016, Randy Orton and Brock Lesnar will battle in what is arguably the night's marquee match. It will be the first time the superstars have waged war since the September 5, 2002 episode of SmackDown.
Lesnar was The Next Big Thing, the youngest ever (at that point) WWE Champion in the midst of his first run with the title. Orton was still trying to find his footing on the main roster and was in something of a slump creatively. Together, they would have the opportunity to show a worldwide audience the chemistry they developed while training down in Ohio Valley Wrestling.
Orton would launch himself off the top rope late in the match, attempting a cross body block, but Lesnar would casually roll through and obliterate the third-generation star with the definitive F-5.
A one-sided affair that saw Lesnar tear through Orton en route to another victory in a long line of them, this was a surreal look at just how different the paths the performers would take over the next 14 years truly were. Their match at SummerSlam promises to be far, far different.