25 Best Wrestling Shows EVER
17. WWE SummerSlam 2002
WWE tried everything to recover the glory years in 2002. It was the year of pure, rapid-fire desperation. They burned through a seismic development or huge match on a near-enough weekly basis - but when they calmed the hell down and told two very different but beautifully simple stories, the fans connected with it. Where every metric was down and down badly from 2001 - Survivor Series, for example, drew 340,000, down from 450,000 - SummerSlam was the aberration. The 2002 show drew 540,000, down only 30,000 from 570,000 in 2001.
The return of Shawn Michaels and the success of the unprecedented Brock Lesnar monster push drove those buys - and WWE delivered.
Shawn Michaels Vs. Triple H was unbearable drama. Michaels was histrionic in his selling at times, but he earned what would become his signature story beat on his first night back. The Unsanctioned Street Fight bordered on the harrowing - the ultra-rare match that is performed safely but feels in the moment like a line has been crossed.
Brock Lesnar Vs. The Rock, on the back of a unique and compelling sports-oriented build, wasn’t as good - but it was hot and effective.
The undercard without being blow-away great was without flaw nor a lull, and Kurt Angle Vs. Rey Mysterio was the idealised pro wrestling opener; a sub-10 minute sprint in which an infuriated Angle killed and then failed to kill Rey with his unhinged intensity and power advantage. Their chemistry was amazing, and this wasn’t a lengthy match that happened to open the show: it was a proper opener designed to unglue the crowd without tiring them out.