Ranking Who Was Really The Man In Wrestling Every Year 1990-2020

19. 2002 - Brock Lesnar

Austin Jericho
WWE

Sweating over the line powered largely by the near-unprecedented strength of his storyline push, Brock Lesnar was the man in 2002 because Vince McMahon told you he was.

A lime-green 'Beast' won - but did not star at - King Of The Ring; what was a predictable vehicle for an obvious mega-push drew its worst rating on pay-per-view since 1998. He fared better at SummerSlam where, helped by the mega-card feel that would later become the norm, his successful challenge of the Rock's WWE Championship drew closer to the Attitude Era peak than its respective Big Five counterparts.

His autumn series with the Undertaker made him; he better put over his viscerally amazing brute strength through great work that, in a very short amount of time, almost matched the booking.

If this reads as faint praise - and it should, because it's an accurate measure of his transparent positioning and an industry in decline - there would be no caveat over a decade later...

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!