The Real Story Behind This Controversial SummerSlam Main Event
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- Seven years after the events of SummerSlam 2016, fans are still talking to this very day about the moment in which Brock Lesnar struck Randy Orton in the head with his elbow with such force that he busted open The Viper and left him in a pool of his own blood, concussed and drowsy. It is still a wonder as to why in the PG Era of WWE that this sort of incident was allowed, as it has emerged through stories and rumors that this was the plan all along. Brock Lesnar seems to often get a pass when it comes to blood, though only if it comes via the hard way. There are more takes to look at when it comes to this incident too, specifically regarding the “fight” between Lesnar and Chris Jericho.
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In 2016, Brock Lesnar was the hottest act in professional wrestling, bar none. The former UFC champion had managed to convince Vince McMahon to let him go fight inside the octagon one last time and despite a long lay-off, the Beast Incarnate emerged victorious against a top 10 heavyweight in Mark Hunt. Lesnar was the featured attraction for the historic UFC 200 card and despite not being the last fight on the card, Hunt versus Lesnar was regarded as the people’s main-event.
After UFC 200, Lesnar was slated to face Randy Orton at SummerSlam. Orton and Lesnar had never shared a ring before and this was the main selling point, the first encounter between two of the most destructive WWE superstars around. The buildup was simple but effective and the match was eagerly anticipated by fans. This was a dream match and with the hype on Lesnar, it was sure to be a match to remember. And it was, but for an entirely different reason.
UPDATE: 2023/12/20 14:30 EST BY ANDREW KELLY
Seven years after the events of SummerSlam 2016, fans are still talking to this very day about the moment in which Brock Lesnar struck Randy Orton in the head with his elbow with such force that he busted open The Viper and left him in a pool of his own blood, concussed and drowsy. It is still a wonder as to why in the PG Era of WWE that this sort of incident was allowed, as it has emerged through stories and rumors that this was the plan all along. Brock Lesnar seems to often get a pass when it comes to blood, though only if it comes via the hard way. There are more takes to look at when it comes to this incident too, specifically regarding the “fight” between Lesnar and Chris Jericho.
Brock Lesnar Versus Randy Orton Was A Dream Match
WWE Billed This As A Big "Dream Match"
Towards the end of the match, Brock Lesnar actually went UFC on Randy Orton. For most of the contest, Lesnar was dominant, suplexing Orton over and over again. Orton struck with a few RKOs and even teased kicking Lesnar in the head, but he ran into an F-5, and after failing to secure a pinfall, Lesnar removed his gloves and busted Orton open with some vicious elbows. The Apex Predator was busted open and bleeding profusely. The match was declared a TKO victory for Lesnar and even after the referee halted the match, Lesnar got a few more shots on Orton anyway. Shane McMahon came down to check on Orton, and he ate an F-5 for his troubles.
The event went off the air quickly and fans began to wonder what had actually happened. Some speculated that this was a legitimate shoot and Orton had done something to piss off Lesnar. In the buildup, Orton had referenced the fact that Lesnar failed a drug test at UFC 200, on live television. Maybe this was some sort of payback on part of Lesnar? The wrestlers backstage were just as confused as the fans. There was a sense of panic and resentment as many felt that Lesnar had gone too far. This led to a confrontation between Lesnar and Chris Jericho, who was a close friend of Orton. As soon as Lesnar returned to the back, Jericho was there to confront him. It got heated and even Triple H was told to back off by the two of them, and Vince McMahon had to step in.
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|---|---|---|
Chris Jericho & Kevin Owens defeated Enzo Amore & Big Cass | 12:08 | |
Charlotte Flair defeated Sasha Banks (c) | 13:51 | WWE RAW Women's Championship |
The Miz (c) defeated Apollo Crews | 5:45 | Intercontinental Championship |
AJ Styles defeated John Cena | 23:10 | |
Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson defeated New Day (c) via DQ | 9:09 | WWE Tag Team Championships |
Dean Ambrose (c) defeated Dolph Ziggler | 15:18 | WWE Championship |
Nikki Bella, Natalya, & Alexa Bliss defeated Becky Lynch, Naomi, & Carmella | 11:04 | |
Finn Balor defeated Seth Rollins | 19:24 | Universal Championship |
Brock Lesnar defeated Randy Orton via TKO | 11:45 |
So, what really happened on the night of SummerSlam 2016? There was a lot of evidence that indicated that Lesnar had gone off script. Supposedly, Lesnar and Orton did not talk to each other before the match and referee Mike Chioda mentioned during an interview that the atmosphere before the PPV was pretty tense. Then you have Chris Jericho confronting Lesnar backstage and the fact that Lesnar had gone off-script on live television before as he was a big enough star to get away with it. Despite copious amounts of evidence suggesting that this was a shoot, it wasn’t. This was how the match was supposed to end. Orton knew it. Lesnar knew it. Vince and Triple H knew as well, but everyone else did not.
Brock Lesnar Busting Randy Orton Open Was A Work
Randy Orton Allowed Brock Lesnar To Legit Elbow Him
The finish was gruesome and uncomfortable to watch, but it made Lesnar look dominant and powerful, as he had laid waste to a legend in Orton like nobody had ever done before. The company was looking to continue his run as a monster heel and capitalize on his recent UFC victory, and despite the controversy, it was a success.
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SummerSlam is the second biggest WWE show, but the event has been through many ups and downs. There are harsh realities worth talking about.Orton himself said that he knew it was a planned finish per an interview with USA Today's For The Win, and he knew a concussion was coming. He was glad that the two had managed to create a buzz in the company, but he was also pissed off with the fact that he had to miss a couple of weeks due to the concussion. Moreover, Orton was the guy who actually went over to calm Chris Jeircho down, assuring him that it was a work all along. So in a nutshell, WWE intended to give Orton a legitimate concussion on the night of SummerSlam 2016 and push Lesnar as a destructive fighting machine. This happened, despite all the anti-concussion measures in place. WWE literally booked a concussion on one of their biggest stars.
Match Result | Event | Match Length | Additional Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Brock Lesnar defeated Randy Orton | WWE SummerSlam 2016 | 11:45 | ended via TKO |
It Is A Shock That WWE Allowed Brock Lesnar To Bust Open Randy Orton The Hard Way
WWE Has Been Opposed To Blood For Years
With concussions becoming more and more at the forefront of sport in recent years, with there being a lot more care taken when it comes to most preventing these sorts of injuries and making sure they don't get worse, it is a huge surprise that WWE allowed a finish like this to take place - partciularly in the PG Era where blood and gore is kept to an absolute minimum. Referee Mike Chioda noted in an interview with James Romano of Wrestling Shoot Interviews that he was surprised that Vince McMahon and those in WWE gave the okay for this sort of booking.
"Brock gashed him open and I could tell there was something going on, but I didn’t know if it was really Brock towards Randy or if it was just Brock listening to what the office wanted him to do. Randy had a little bit of heat at that time. He gashed him open real bad over the forehead. You could tell he was going for it because he was just elbow to forehead. I was kind of shocked that they would do that because concussion protocol was still strong at that time.” (H/T Sportskeeda)
Brock Lesnar has pulled out this tactic a couple of times to add realism to his feuds, notable with his return feud against John Cena where the 16-time World Champion was busted open in a brawl, and later at WrestleMania 34 when Reigns was busted open the hard way with elbow strikes from Lesnar. In truth, it never feels worth it to risk any sort of serious injury with a former UFC World Champion belting down legit elbows.
Brock Lesnar Gets A Free Pass With Blood In WWE
There Aren't Many Who Blood In WWE, But Lesnar Is One Of Them
As previously noted, Lesnar has busted open a few wrestlers in WWE over the years with the same technique, but whilst he is given free reign to do that, he also has the freedom of getting bloodied up himself. In the WrestleMania 31 main event, he struck the ring post so hard that it was gushing blood from the forehead, and even as recently as 2023 in his feud with Cody Rhodes, he smashed his head on the turnbuckle to draw blood in what was a planned spot according to Fightful Select - “We’re told that blood was planned for the match. WWE sources at least claimed that things went the way they were supposed to.” Lesnar is allowed to do this, just as long as he doesn’t blade.
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“Obviously the idea was to get hardway blood. The elbow was designed to cut him open, and I don't know how badly [Orton] was hurt. From what I can gather, due to no one talking about anything going awry, that was probably close to what was supposed to happen, if not exactly what was supposed to happen... There was no doubt that [Lesnar] was looking to open him up.” H/T Sportskeeda.
Randy Orton Has Debunked The Rumors Of A Backstage Fight
Despite Rumours, There Was No Real Life Heat
The rumors circulating after SummerSlam were of course that Chris Jericho and Brock Lesnar nearly got into a fight. Given that Orton’s kids and family were watching from ringside, Jericho stood up for his friend and colleague due to not knowing the whole thing was planned. Although talk to this day suggests that a fight was going to take place, Randy Orton has debunked the chance of a fight even happening when speaking in an interview with Sports Illustrated.
“You hear all these things about how they were going to fight, but I don’t think Jericho wanted to fight Brock, I’m just going to throw that out there. I think he was coming up to just make sure everything was cool. It’s unfortunate that in that small space, with the dozen bodies in there, somehow that leaked and everybody knew about it. That’s very unfortunate. It was blown way out of proportion, and Jericho just wanted to check on one of his fellow boys in the locker room.” H/T Sports Illustrated
Many backstage incidents in WWE and in professional wrestling as a whole have often been blown out of proportion, and according to Orton that seems to be the case here, with a fight never being a real possibility for what was likely a quick exchange of words which was shut down by those present immediately.
