1. The Match Featured John Cena's Most Convincing Job Of Selling Of All Time
There's a moment in the Summerslam title match where John Cena counters a second Lesnar F-5 attempt (after one of the most hellacious and one-sided beatings in WWE history) with a surprising attempt at an Attitude Adjustment which is executed, but Lesnar kicks out while laughing at Cena, giving off a sense that Cena's attempt at a finishing maneuver that has felled nearly every opponent he has ever faced has mightily failed. Of course, the camera zooms in on Cena's face as he's slumped in a corner, and the look of resignation he has is pretty much the most epic thing ever. He doesn't seem angry, he seems resigned, overwhelmed and emotionally defeated. His body refuses to give up, but his soul damn sure had. If what separates pro wrestling from Greco-Roman wrestling is the ability for the best of wrestlers to have at the bare minimum the dramatic chops of the most capable of actors, this moment works. Cena's defeat prior to pinfall is one of those moments where for as much as one may hate the wrestler, you have to appreciate the man. In one look, he conveyed a sense of impending doom about Lesnar's then forthcoming title run that was unadulterated pro wrestling magic of the highest order.
Besides having been an independent professional wrestling manager for a decade, Marcus Dowling is a Washington, DC-based writer who has contributed to a plethora of online and print magazines and newspapers writing about music and popular culture over the past 15 years.
