Based entirely on the size difference of these two superstars, there was a time in the WWE when RVD versus Lesnar would have lasted a grand total of 30 seconds and wrestling fans would have wondered why they ever allowed this kind of lopsided booking to happen on a pay-per-view. Thankfully, fans in 2002 had a much more progressive view about that sort of thing. This was one of the purest examples of speed vs. strength to ever be featured inside of a WWE ring. Give Paul Heyman credit here, too, as he sells every major attack Van Dam is able to land on The Next Big Thing, trying his best to make it feel like Lesnar could genuinely be in trouble. And then he was. All of a sudden, this was RVD's match and we were starting to see the cracks in Lesnar's inhuman strength. That two minute stretch during the end where RVD just keeps finding new ways to kick Lesnar in the face? The most satisfying two minutes of the entire show. The match is also famous for featuring the most badass reversal of an F5 to this day, with RVD turning it into a Tornado DDT and -planting Brock on his caveman head. But, because Lesnar was supposed to be on a Goldberg-ian path of destruction, RVD couldn't get the clean win. Heyman had to drag the ref out of the ring and get into a lame shoving match that culminated in referee Charles Robinson hitting Heyman with a series of ridiculous-looking fake punches. And they didn't even let us see RVD hit the Van Terminator after the DQ! This was all supposedly done to protect Lesnar's image, but how does the big man getting his ass kicked by the IC Champion (regardless of the official outcome) not look weird the next month when he beats The Rock for the Undisputed Championship? So much nonsense here.
