Ex-WWE Star Recalls Violent Match Against Brock Lesnar

Brock Lesnar has left multiple opponents in a bloody mess.

Many former foes of The Beast have acknowledged the physicality that is to be expected when standing across the ring from Lesnar, who has a reputation for being one of the most intense athletes in company history.

Despite a hard-hitting affair to be expected, some Lesnar bouts have gone from rough to downright uncomfortable, such as the ending to the Randy Orton clash at SummerSlam 2016.

One of Lesnar’s most infamous matches came during his first run in 2003, where the former World Champion faced one-legged wrestler Zach Gowen. With Gowen’s mother in attendance, Lesnar would deliver multiple chair shots and F5s, requiring a stretcher needed to take the inspirational wrestler to the back.

The False Finish caught up with Zach Gowen 20 years on from the violent encounter. Gowen reveals how he was pitched the idea of going one-on-one with Lesnar and how they made it so that The Beast was hated after the match:

“As I get there [to ‘SmackDown’], they tell me the idea of me and Brock, which I’m really ecstatic about because I’m like, ‘I know we can do something really, really special here, I know it.’ All the pieces are there, and we put the match together and it’s one of the most violent matches in WWE history. It was only five, six minutes long. They needed Brock to be hated, and creative thought to themselves, ‘How can we get Brock [hated]?’ Like you said, beat up the local kid with one leg in front of his mom, bloody mess.”

Needing to get colour for the match, Gowen stated that he had no prior experience using a blade, resulting in the crimson mask seen in the post-match assault:

“That was the first time I ever [bladed] in my life was on ‘SmackDown,’ which is why it’s a lot. It wasn’t supposed to be that much, but I didn’t know what the hell I was doing. Again, not something you’ll ever see WWE do again.”

Although Gowen was the victim of the violent assault by Lesnar the use of the chair meant that The Beast was disqualified from the match, adding Gowen’s name to the short list of wrestlers who have a recorded victory over the former UFC Champion.

Brock Lesnar Remains An Intimidating Opponent 20 Years Later

Still a formidable foe in 2023, Brock Lesnar would manhandle Cody Rhodes during their rubber match at SummerSlam. However, the former WWE champion would show The American Nightmare respect after the loss, something that Rhodes has admitted he was not expecting.

H/t to Wrestling Inc.