9. The Rock vs. Brock Lesnar (SummerSlam 2002)
WWE.comBack in 2002, The Rock was just starting to make waves in the movie industry and had begun turning his eyes away from the ring and toward the brighter lights of Hollywood. The fans were catching on to the fact that he was on his way out the door and began to feel resentment toward the man who they felt they had helped make a superstar abandoning them. Meanwhile the young rookie Brock Lesnar was fresh off his King of the Ring victory and heading into SummerSlam to challenge The Great One. He was riding a wave of momentum stronger and faster than anyone since Goldberg and the clash was shaping up to be epic. 2002s SummerSlam was one of the better WWE cards in history, and this title match, along with the much-anticipated return of Shawn Michaels had the crowd at a fever pitch. The Rock had been the beneficiary of an insane amount of fan support, but mid-match things began to shift. Whether due to animosity over his newfound movie star status or a hunger for a fresh face at the top, the crowd turned on Rock and sided with Lesnar. It was entirely organic and only added to the electric atmosphere. And to top it off, in addition to the greatest training montage since Rocky IV, the match was fantastic, cementing Brock as a major player who was ready for the spotlight that was being shone on him. The Rock, being the true professional that he is, began to play up the heel role the fans were placing him in and put the rookie over strong for the title. It was a great example of a superstar being used to make someone and The Rock should be commended for it.