Even in the WWE world, where barrel-chested titans and oversized powerhouses dwell, Brock Lesnar stands out. He possesses an eye-popping blend of power, athleticism, agility and a fearsome presence.That all adds up to Lesnar being one of the most imposing figures to ever compete for WWE.It's one thing to hear a scrawny fan marvel at The Beast Incarnate, but pro wrestlers who stepped in the ring with him have long been in awe of Lesnar, too. A collision with Lesnar is no standard collision. It's a showdown with an athletic freak.That was true even before his first WWE encounter.Former New England Patriots guard Stephen Neal met Lesnar in the heavyweight finals of the 1999 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. While Neal bested Lesnar that night, he came away impressed with his opponent.About Lesnar, Neal told theBoston Herald(h/tMichael David Smithof MMA Fighting): "He was just this big, strong, powerful man the wrestling world hadn't seen. He was so big and strong, you didn't want to make a mistake against him."When asked if Lesnar could make it in the NFL, Neal said: "The guy's a beast, man. You've got to give him credit. He's still a powerful beast of a man."Lesnar would end up winning the 2000 heavyweight NCAAs before signing with WWE later that year.At the time, Ohio Valley Wrestling was WWE's developmental feeder system. Lesnar's SummerSlam 2016 opponent, Randy Orton, was one of the many big names who comprised an impressive class of prospects.Orton took notice of him right way. In a promo video for SummerSlam, he recalled first meeting Lesnar:He said: "He shows up big as a house, so everyone was like 'What the hell is that''"Orton faced Lesnar when the two men were still rookies. In 2002, they clashed at a number of house shows and locked horns on SmackDown in September.Years later, The Viper still hasn't faced anyone like Lesnar. On theHeated Conversationspodcast, he toldBooker T: "Nobody's stronger or more powerful than Brock Lesnar. But nobody's quicker, either."That's a common refrain among those who have faced Lesnar.Again and again, Lesnar's old foes remark about how special his physical gifts are. His power pops out at you. His footwork is unreal.Shelton Benjamin knows Lesnar better than just about anybody.He and Lesnar trained together in the late '90s. Both men learned the pro wrestling craft at OVW at the same time. They were tag team partners later on and sometimes adversaries in WWE.During a 2015 interview on theTalk is Jericho podcast withChris Jericho(h/tWilliam Windsorof Wrestling Inc),Benjamin reflected on trying to coach The Beast Incarnate.The former intercontinental champion said:Brock's a modern-day gladiator. He likes hard work. He likes early [mornings]; he's a farm boy. He loves working hard and he was so strong even then. I was an All-American wrestler, and I'm thinking, 'Okay, he's big. I've wrestled guys like that before. The first time I shot him, Brock, all he did was thrust his hips and I went flying backwards.It's not hard to imagine that moment.WWE fans have seen Lesnar suplex the 450-pound Big Show and fling around the mammoth Mark Henry. Sending the far slimmer Benjamin into the stratosphere would take little effort for Lesnar.Those feats of power are whatBob Holly has long pointed to when refuting internet rumors about him sandbagging Lesnar in a SmackDown match in 2002.The infamous incident saw Lesnar pick up Holly for a powerbomb before things quickly went awry. Rather than land on the flat of his back, Holly slipped from Lesnar's grip(warning: graphic footage) and dropped on his head, breaking his neck.Many fans have suspected that Holly was trying to disrupt the match and prevent Lesnar from hitting the move.Holly laughs at that idea. He toldRaj Giriof Wrestling Inc:"If he can pick a 500-pound guy up and throw him over his head, here I'm 228 pounds, you really think I could stop Brock from doing anything to me'"And even though he ended up missing over a year after that match with Lesnar, Holly appreciated the big man's hard-hitting approach.Per Giri, Holly said: "I've always loved working with the guy because he's rough. That's my style. I love it like that and I wouldn't have it any other way."Zach Gowen experienced that roughness firsthand.In 2003, WWE sought to get fans to start booing Lesnar and treat him like a villain. Gowen was to be the catalyst for that shift in audience reaction. Lesnar beat the one-legged wrestler mercilessly in front of his mother, smashing his head with a steel chair and leaving him bloodied.Moments into the match, Gowen noticed how different tangling with Lesnar was.In a columnGowen pennedfor PWMania.com, he described The Beast Incarnate tossing him around in the ring. He wrote:"When Brock picked me up for that first powerbomb, I felt like a toddler being thrown in the air by his dad. Like, there was zero effort needed to whip my 150-pound carcass in the air. "When Lesnar lifted him on his shoulders for an F-5, Gowentold Bleacher Reportit felt like being"on the back of a horse."Hall of FamerRic Flairknows exactly what he means. Flair recalledhis battles with Lesnar during an episode of theWOOOOO! Nation podcast."Every time he would pick me up, I would go, 'Please just be careful,'" Flair said."He twirled me around like I weighed eight pounds."Several other Superstars have spoken of Lesnar's strength with awe in their voice.Roman Reigns, who battled Lesnar at WrestleMania 31 in a slugfest for the WWE title, said in an interview withJonathan Fisherof SEScoops: "Brock is like a gorilla that can just tear stuff. He has mass amounts of strength."Former Olympic weightlifter Mark Henry tangled with The Beast Incarnate at OVW, on SmackDown in 2002 and has been on the wrong end of an F-5 through a table.Speaking withBill Hanstockof UPROXX, he said of Lesnar: "He's big, he's strong, he's enduring and he's a little bit deranged. You gotta be crazy to train like he trains and to accept getting hit in the face."It means a little more when someone who wrestles as The World's Strongest Man comments on your power.Bo Dallas felt that power last year when Lesnar and his manager Paul Heyman called out Undertaker only to see the grinning, grating motivational speaker instead.Lesnar proceeded to German-suplex him five times.Dallas spoke to AL.com'sBen Flanaganabout that night. He said: "There's no controlling Brock Lesnar. You have no idea what he's going to do. At any moment, he could rip your head off. He's Brock Lesnar. He's a beast, and he does what he wants."And about how he felt as he stepped into the beast's lair, Dallas said:"It was intense, awesome and terrifying all at the same time."Despite the size difference between him and Lesnar, there was no fear in Kurt Angle as he took on the powerhouse in an untelevised shoot fight.The Olympic gold-medal winner and two-time NCAA champ met Lesnar in many a predetermined match, but once in 2002, the two men decided to see who was the better legit wrestler.Angle detailed the throwdown in an interview withJustin BarrassoforSports Illustrated's Extra Mustard."It wasn't fun. It was nerve-wracking. Someone was going to win, get hurt or die," Angle said.Thanks to superior technique, Angle was able to beat Lesnar that day, but he came away with a special appreciation for him.Angle told Barrasso: "The man is just a mammoth. When he's healthy, I don't know if there is anyone on the planet who can beat him."When Flair asked Angle about the match on hisWOOOOO! Nationpodcast, the 1996 Olympic wrestling champ talked about how tight and intense it was. After getting the better of Lesnar, he didn't want to face him again."I just never wrestled anyone that was 300 pounds who could go like he did," Angle said. "He's an animal."Over a decade after those accomplished amateurs met outside of the spotlight, Lesnar is still showing off how much of an animal he is.He manhandled the 275-pound Luke Harper and made lifting the 300-pound Undertaker over his shoulders look effortless.At the 2015 Royal Rumble pay-per-view, Lesnar collided with John Cena and Seth Rollins in a Triple Threat match. When The Beast Incarnate got his hands on the smaller Rollins, he chucked him around, at times launching him high above the ring.Rollins had the highest of praise for his powerhouse foe afterward.Speaking on KS 107.5 in Denver in February 2015(h/t Wrestle Zone'sNick Paglino), Rollins said of Lesnar:He's a special case. I've been wrestling for 10 years, and been in the ring with a lot of strong, fast guys. I've never been in the ring with someone who has the combination of speed and power of Brock Lesnar. He's maybe the freakiest athlete I've seen in my whole life. You don't fully understand until you're in his reach. It's a humbling feeling.Dean Ambrose relished being that close to him. The current WWE world champion faced Lesnar at this year's WrestleMania in a No Holds Barred matchup.Ambrose, who cut his teeth on the independent circuit in hardcore matches where he often left bloody, clearly has a sadistic side to him. Appearing on theStone Cold Podcast, Ambrosetold Steve Austinabout being in the ring with Lesnar: "It's invigorating knowing you're going in there with a man who can kill you with his bare hands."Orton will get to know that feeling again at SummerSlam when he squares off against The Beast Incarnate as part of the event's most hyped match.Even though Orton has taken on giants like Big Show and bodybuilders like Cena, he's about to experience something out of the ordinaryeven for the violent realm of pro wrestling. His SummerSlam opponent is a singular physical force.Angle said it best in his interview with Barrasso: "There's nobody like Brock."
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