WWE SummerSlam ended on a strange note as Brock Lesnar defeated Randy Orton by TKO after busting Orton open with a vicious elbow to the top of the head that caused Orton to pour blood onto the mat.
The way the finish went down was legitimately confusing to some as there was so much blood that it appeared as if the blow and cut may have been unintentional. It soon became clear -- as Lesnar continued to attack Orton and eventually delivered an F5 to SmackDown commissioner Shane McMahon -- that the cut was planned even if the severity of it was not intended.
But for anyone questioning whether Orton got busted open for real by taking a hardway, this picture of Orton's head posted to Facebook by Monday Night Raw general manager Mick Foley should be all you need to see.
The whole finish was strange, especially now that we're in the PG-era of WWE where blood is frowned upon. Pictures of the incident on WWE's website are only shown in black-and-white. The hardway finish was reportedly the planned way for the match to end, though it's hard to imagine they meant for it to be that bloody.
There is also a report from The Wrestling Observer that there was an unscripted, off-camera altercation backstage after the fight between Lesnar and Chris Jericho, who had come up to check on Orton and was upset about the finish.
It will be interesting to see how WWE handles the whole situation, especially in the face of criticism for how SummerSlam was booked with a non-finish in the United States Championship match and the strange TKO ending to the Lesnar-Orton match closing the show.
