In January, former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar ran through the 7-foot, 500 pound Big Show at the Royal Rumble. In April, Lesnar did the unthinkable and ended The Undertaker’s legendary WrestleMania undefeated streak at WrestleMania XXX.
Now, Lesnar is looking to add a major accomplishment to what has already been an incredible year inside the squared circle when he challenges John Cena for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tonight at WWE SummerSlam at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles.
How to Watch
Tonight’s broadcast begins at 7:30 p.m. ET with the SummerSlam pre-show, featuring a match between Cesaro and former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam.
The broadcast rolls on with SummerSlam at 8 p.m. ET. It can be viewed on the WWE Network (www.wwenetwork.com – $9.95/month with a six-month commitment) and also on some pay-per-view providers ($54.95 HD/$44.95 SD).
Can Lesnar Capture Gold?
Brock Lesnar’s second WWE run has been one of the most frustrating tenures of any professional wrestler ever. After coming back to sports entertainment after a mixed martial arts run which saw him capture and defend the UFC heavyweight championship, Lesnar should’ve come into WWE and been an unstoppable force. Instead, he lost his first match back.
He’d pick up wins, but the wind was already out of the sails. Then, naturally, he lost to Triple H at WrestleMania 29. That’s why nobody in their right mind believed Lesnar would actually beat The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXX. If Lesnar had been an unstoppable monster the entire time, a serious discussion would’ve had to take place. Instead, any discussion of Lesnar beating Undertaker was widely regarded as something that would get a “LOL” response on the internet – and rightfully so.
So when Lesnar actually did pin The Undertaker, the response was appropriate – complete and utter shock. To be fair, this fact has been brought up nearly each week on WWE television since, so they’re certainly getting mileage out of it, but just imagine how much bigger this match would be had Lesnar beat the brakes off Cena in his first match back at Extreme Rules 2012 – and run roughshod over each and every opponent since.
For as special as UFC Brock Lesnar was, it’s truly amazing how a company which can determine its own outcomes, WWE, has completely managed to marginalize him.
Still, the task at hand is here: Cena vs. Lesnar for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tonight at SummerSlam. Can Lesnar become champion for the first time since February 2004? And if he does, does it matter?
Lesnar as the unstoppable WWE World Heavyweight Champion could’ve meant something. It angers me how badly WWE has botched this. There was zero reason for Lesnar to lose to either Cena or Triple H. This could’ve been so much bigger.
Cena and Lesnar engaged in one of the most physical matches in recent memory at Extreme Rules 2012. Not only that, it was one of the most thrilling matches of the decade. If they can replicate that magic – and there’s no reason for me to believe they won’t – this match has a lot of potential.
Does WWE put its world championship on a part-time performer in Lesnar? That’s a big if, no doubt about it. If I were WWE, though, I don’t even make this match unless Lesnar is winning. If Lesnar loses, it completely negates his win over The Undertaker, making that a completely meaningless result.
Let’s hope WWE does the right thing.
Prediction: Brock Lesnar d. John Cena
McMahon returns to in-ring action
WWE has stacked SummerSlam with matches that should deliver from top-to-bottom.
Believe it or not, the night’s second-most highly anticipated match is a grudge match between Stephanie McMahon and Brie Bella.
It’s been years since McMahon stepped inside a WWE ring to compete, but her rivalry with Brie Bella has hit another gear and has become some of the most intriguing television WWE has produced this year. It’s unique, feels real, and has been well done from all sides. McMahon has reinvented her on-screen persona from someone you’d rather never see again to one of the most hated (in a good way) personalities in WWE. She does what she does extremely well.
In this one, McMahon is going to have a few tricks up her sleeve to come away with the win here.
Another highly anticipated grudge match takes place at SummerSlam when former partners Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins collide in a lumberjack match. Rollins, the “Money in the Bank” briefcase holder, has been on the run from the psychotic, eccentric Amborse ever since turning on him in early June.
These two are going to be out to steal the show – and they probably will. Let’s go with Ambrose to win this one.
It’s truly amazing how the feud between Rusev and Jack Swagger has clicked. Rusev, along with his manager Lana, are straight out of the 1980s, keying on current political situations to gain heat. This will be a flag match with Rusev representing Russia and the “Real American” Swagger representing the United States.
Randy Orton still hasn’t received his mandatory rematch for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship and he’s angry at Roman Reigns for it not happening yet. These two have been wrestling each other on a lot of house shows, so what they have in store for the fans should be well produced. Reigns is on a roll and this is no time for him to lose.
Chris Jericho takes on Bray Wyatt. This feud hasn’t really clicked for me. With Jericho winning last month, it would be shocking if Wyatt didn’t win here.
Two championships are also on the line. Dolph Ziggler challenges The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship and AJ Lee defends the Divas Championship against Paige. Let’s pick Miz and Paige to walk away from the City of Angels with gold.
Overall, this is WWE’s second strongest card of the year on paper. It’s tough to see this one not delivering. Watch this show.
Stay with us right here at bloodyelbow.com for complete coverage of WWE SummerSlam 2014.
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