14 Greatest Rubber Matches In Wrestling History

2. Kurt Angle Vs. Brock Lesnar - Iron Man Match - WWE Smackdown (September 18, 2003)

Lesnar broke into WWE in 2002 and was immediately built up to be a behemoth. He tore through the WWE roster on his way to the Undisputed WWE Championship in 2002. In late 2002, Kurt Angle got embroiled in a feud between Lesnar and Big Show. After Angle €” then WWE Champion €” took Paul Heyman as his manager and denied Brock a title shot, Lesnar attacked Angle and broke his leg (in storyline). Brock beat Big Show at the 2003 Royal Rumble and later that night won the battle royale, lining up a Wrestlemania 19 main event that pitted two of WWE's purest athletes against each other. Angle was the Olympic gold medallist, and Lesnar the former NCAA heavyweight champion and four time All-American. Their matches and the feud was incredibly intense. Lesnar won at Wrestlemania, Angle won the title back at Summerslam and their rivalry came to a head €” rather unusually €” with a WWE Championship Iron Man match on an episode of Smackdown. The match was ferocious, with some great psychology as Lesnar got himself intentionally disqualified for a fall to beat Angle with a chair and pick up some easy pinfalls. Angle fought back from a 4-1 and 5-2 deficit to get the score to 5-4. As the final seconds of the match ticked away, Angle had Lesnar in an ankle lock, but despite the Olympic champion's best efforts, Lesnar hung on until time ran out to retain his championship. Both men came out of the match looking strong, having wrestled their way to arguably the best wrestling match ever aired on free television. The thought of Kurt Angle coming back to WWE fills many wrestling fans with glee - surely re-igniting his feud with Lesnar is the most exciting aspect of his possible return.