elimination chamber

Wrestling Recap: Elimination Chamber Match (Survivor Series ’02)

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The Date: 17 November 2002
The Venue: Madison Square Garden; New York, New York
The Commentary: Jim “J.R.” Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler
The Referee: Earl Hebner
The Stakes: Six-man Elimination Chamber match for Triple H’s World Heavyweight Championship

The Build-Up:
Over its many decades as the dominating force in sports entertainment, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) has created some of the industry’s most successful competitors, changed the face of pay-per-view entertainment, and delivered some game-changing match types. In 1987, the then-World Wrestling Federation (WWF) struck it big with WrestleMania, a pay-per-view showcase that was so successful that WWF Chairman Vince McMahon strong-armed many cable companies into showing their follow-up event, Survivor Series, over the National Wrestling Alliance’s (NWA) Starrcade pay-per-view. Although the show was famous for featuring a series of ten-man elimination tag team matches, this format was shaken up in 2002 with the introduction of the “Elimination Chamber”. This was a merciless steel structure that forced four men to wait in “bulletproof pods” as two others fought in the ring, with each participant joining the match at random at regular intervals and wrestlers being eliminated by pin fall or submission until only one is left standing. At this time, the WWE’s hefty roster was split into two distinct brands, Raw and SmackDown!, and the Elimination Chamber was first introduced by Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff as a means to out-do his blue branded rival. The chamber would prove the perfect staging ground to force World Heavyweight Champion Triple H (who was in the midst of a “Reign of Terror” alongside his Evolution allies, “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair, Randy Orton, and Batista) against his five top challengers, men he had spent the previous year humiliating and destroying both in the ring and in backstage segments. While Chris Jericho, Kane, Booker T, and Rob Van Dam all had legitimate beef with Triple H, the real story heading into the match was the return of Triple H’s former D-Generation X teammate, the “Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels. HBK had been famously sidelined with a career-ending back injury in 1998 and Triple H had flourished as a main event heel in the interim. Although HBK functioned as an on-air personality, he made an unexpected in-ring return in June 2002 and was set to reunite with Triple H before his friend viciously attacked him, leading to a brutal street fight at the 2002 SummerSlam that briefly took HBK off television before he dramatically returned to Raw to be the final entrant in the first of what would become an annual event match for the WWE.

The Match:
I was massively invested in wrestling by 2002. While I was mainly watching SmackDown! due to the limitations of my Sky package, I still followed Raw and caught the odd pay-per-view so I was fully aware of Triple H’s dominating run with the World Heavyweight Championship. Honestly, 2002 was one of my favourite times in wrestling just for the stars and music involved: Jericho was played to the ring by Saliva, Kane was sporting perhaps my favourite look of his and had a banging theme song, and Triple H made regular use of Motörhead both as a singles star and as part of Evolution. Things went a little extreme during this time and Triple H started absorbing other belts along the way, which was a bit of a mistake (and clearly upper management agreed as they restored the Intercontinental Championship soon enough) but it was a good way to showcase new faces in the main event scene. Some of these guys, like Rob Van Dam and Booker T, were overdue their time in the sun while others, like Chris Jericho and Kane, could easily be slotted into the title picture without any issue. Of course, the big story of the year was HBK’s incredible comeback. HBK hadn’t been an active wrestler when I started watching but his reputation preceded him and I was completely caught up in the drama and hatred that quickly brewed between him and his former best friend since it was our best shot at seeing Triple H relieved of his championship belt. I remember also feeling a lot of anticipation about the first-ever Elimination Chamber match. I’d never seen a War Games match at the time so the closest analogy I (and most people had) was the Hell in a Cell match, but I was excited about it as it was a nice twist on the traditional Survivor Series match. Triple H and Rob Van Dam kicked off the match (literally in RVD’s case) and immediately rekindled their rivalry from earlier in the year, with RVD working Triple H over with his “educated feet” and martial arts agility.

RVD impressed throughout the match but almost killed Triple H with a botched splash off the top!

RVD continued to press his advantage by back dropping Triple H out of a Pedigree attempt, over the ropes, to the raised steel floor at ringside. RVD followed up by repeatedly launching “The Game” into the chained walls of the chamber, busting him open in the process, and even hitting his backflip/monkey flip combo out on the steel and his trademark Rolling Thunder over the ropes and to the outside! Triple H was unexpectedly saved from a potential Five-Star Frog Splash off a chamber pod when Jericho grabbed at RVD’s leg but the Game ended up crotched on the top rope and taking a rolling senton to the face anyway. Triple H continued to take a beating against the chain-link walls and in the ring, but was given a brief reprieve when Jericho entered the match and got into it with RVD. Things don’t go too well for the self-proclaimed “King of the World”, however, as he got nailed with RVD’s spinning kick for a two count and then took his jumping side kick out the corner, and RVD even managed to pivot in mid-air to briefly cling to the cage and then take Jericho out with a dive off the wall! Despite the blood loss and the beating he took, Triple H walloped RVD with a clothesline; this was enough for Jericho to plant him with a back suplex and try his awesome cocky pin. Although RVD valiantly fought back, Triple H’s Harley Race-style knee strike shut him down and he and Jericho put aside their differences to pummel RVD . RVD dodged a corner splash, however, only to get absolutely planted by a DDT from Triple H. Luckily, the odds evened up as Booker T entered the fray. He rode his recent wave of momentum to go after both Jericho and Triple H and even had time to celebrate with a Spinaroonie before he and RVD went at it. Although RVD still had plenty of gas left in the tank, a couple of big side kicks from Booker T led to a near fall. Not to be outdone, RVD got a two count off a spinning heel kick before Triple H interjected himself into their fight, only to eat a Scissors Kick for his troubles. Although Jericho attacked Booker T before he could make a cover, things got seriously bad for Triple H when his throat was legitimately crushed after RVD miscalculated a Five-Star Frog Splash off a pod. RVD was then anti-climatically eliminated from the match after a Missile Dropkick from Booker T.

Kane’s rampage came to a dramatic end and HBK eliminated Jericho to go on-on-one with Triple H.

Jericho and Booker T frantically went at it as Triple H recuperated, with Booker T dodging the Lionsault and planting Jericho with his snap spinebuster for a two count. Kane was then released from his pod and started hitting everyone in sight. He easily manhandled Jericho, ramming him into the chained walls and then threw him through the pod plexiglass! Kane beat on Triple H for a little before focusing on Booker T, nailing a Chokeslam that allowed the bloodied Jericho to eliminate Booker with a Lionsault. Kane continued to pulverise Jericho on the outside before dumping him back in the ring with a military press. He easily fended off Triple H’s desperate attempts to get back into things and scored a near fall off a suplex before tossing Triple H off the top rope. Jericho countered a Chokeslam with a kick to the balls and finally knocked Kane down with a Missile Dropkick, meaning all three men were down when HBK (and his atrocious brown tights) was finally unleashed. Shawn Michaels went after Jericho and Kane like a house on fire but his momentum stalled after Kane nailed him with a Chokeslam. Kane then hit another on Triple H and caught Jericho in mid-air for a third Chokeslam. However, when Kane tried to hit the Tombstone Piledriver on Triple H, he got blasted with Sweet Chin Music from HBK, drilled with a Pedigree, and finally pinned and eliminated off a Lionsault. Jericho followed up by ramming HBK into the cage wall, drawing blood in the process and leaving him a helpless husk for him and Triple H to beat on in a heinous assault. Triple H dumped his former friend to the outside so he could grind his face against the chains and bounce him off the plexiglass. He and Jericho then took turns pummeling HBK’s bloodstained face, dumping him on the steel floor, and repeatedly smashing him off the chain-link wall. HBK mounted a brief comeback with a flying forearm and a nip-up, but Jericho put a stop to that with yet another Lionsault. However, Shawn refused to be pinned and caught Jericho off-guard with a moonsault for a near fall. Triple H then saved Jericho when HBK had him in his own Walls of Jericho submission hold and started brawling with Y2J after he tried to eliminate his hated rival. Although Jericho almost made the Game tap with the Walls of Jericho, Y2J got nailed with Sweet Chin Music and summarily eliminated by Shawn Michaels, meaning that the match came down to the two former friends going at it once again.

HBK and Triple H’s bloody brawl ends with Shawn toppling the Game and becoming World Champion!

The two bloodied, exhausted one-time allies traded punches, an exchange that ended with Triple H scoring a two count off a massive Arn Anderson-like spinebuster. HBK then found himself tossed outside again and catapulted right through the plexiglass of a pod when he dared to try and hit Triple H with a Pedigree on the steel, though is only resulted in another near fall as Shawn refused to die. Frustrated, desperate to inflict more punishment, Triple H urged HBK to his feet and the two got into a heated slugfest that ended with Shawn getting smashed with Triple H’s knee facebuster. HBK got a measure of revenge on the outside, however, when he reversed a Pedigree attempt into a catapult of his own that saw Triple H’s battered face bounce off the chain-link wall one more time. Shawn Michaels followed with his signature Diving Elbow from the top of a pod but chose to tune up the band rather than go for the pin. Triple H caught Shawn’s foot, however, and drilled him with a Pedigree but the champion was too hurt to immediately capitalise and HBK got the shoulder up at two. Triple H then tried for another Pedigree but Shawn countered with a back drop and then nailed Sweet Chin Music out of nowhere and scored the victory to an absolutely thunderous applause. He then celebrated his big comeback and title victory with tears in his eyes and under a shower of confetti. Considering no one knew what to expect from this first-ever Elimination Chamber match, this was a really good and well-paced contest. The competitors made really good use of the space to showcase how dangerous the structure is and give a taste of the athletic and innovative manoeuvres the chamber’s walls and pods could offer. While it somewhat undermined the narrative of the plexiglass being “bulletproof” to have it smashed in this first match, it worked wonderfully to showcase Kane’s brutality and Shawn’s never-say-die attitude. It’s amazing that Triple H was able to continue the match considering he could’ve been killed from RVDs freak botch, but it didn’t interrupt the flow of the match as these guys all knew how to buy him time to recover. RVD and Jericho stole the match in the early going. RVD’s athleticism and conditioning really impressed me and I was surprised to see Jericho score the most eliminations, and off the Lionsault no less! Kane got a good showing with his power game but I think more could’ve been done to help him stand out as a force of nature, but the one to watch was clearly Booker T. The guy was so popular at this point and I think the crowd would’ve been just as happy to see him or RVD get the win as much as HBK. However, you can’t take away from Shawn’s incredible comeback story. We never thought we’d see him back in the ring, much less a World Champion again, and this was a really emotional, cathartic moment for him and those who just wanted to see Triple H dethroned as champion.

The Aftermath:
Although Booker T, Kane, and Chris Jericho largely faded out of the main event scene in the immediate aftermath to this match, Shawn Michaels and Triple H were far from done with their rivalry, and poor old Rob Van Dam got caught up in the middle of it. RVD was defeated by Triple H to earn the Game a shot at the World Heavyweight Championship in a “Three Stages of Hell” match at Armageddon the following month, where Triple H regaining the belt after enduring a street fight, a steel cage, and a ladder match. While Triple H was busying stinking up the main event scene in horrendous matches with “Big Poppa Pump” Scott Steiner, Kane, Jericho, Shawn Michaels, RVD, and Booker T all competed in the Royal Rumble match and all came up short. Although Booker T earned himself a shot at Triple H’s World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XIX, he was resoundingly defeated despite everything pointing to a big babyface victory! Kane and RVD formed a tag team in the interim and eventually ended up at odds with each other after the Big Red Machine’s dramatic unmasking. Jericho and HBK got into an emotionally-charged feud that only got worse after Y2J’s temper tantrum at WrestleMania XIX, and Triple H went on to have lacklustre matches against Goldberg throughout 2003. HBK and Triple H rekindled their rivalry near the end of 2003. HBK appeared to defeat Triple H for the belt on an episode of Raw that was ruled a draw and the two again went to a no contest in a Last Man Standing match at the 2004 Royal Rumble. This led to HBK interjecting himself into the WrestleMania XX main event. Though he was ultimately unsuccessful, his tumultuous relationship with Triple H would continue on and off over the next few years before the two finally got back on the same page and reformed D-Generation X in 2006.

My Rating:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Great Stuff

What did you think to the first-ever Elimination Chamber match? Who was your pick to win at the time? What did you think the the level of violence on show in the match? Were you impressed that Triple H was able to continue after his injury? What did you think to Shawn Michaels’ big comeback and championship win here? Which Elimination Chamber match or event is your favourite? Whatever your thoughts on the Elimination Chamber, feel free to leave them below or drop a c and be sure to check out my other wrestling reviews!

Wrestling Recap: Elimination Chamber Match (New Year’s Revolution ’06)

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The Date: 8 January 2006
The Venue: Pepsi Arena; Albany, New York
The Commentary: Joey Styles, Jerry “The King” Lawler, and Jonathan “The Coach” Coachman
The Referee: Mike Chioda
The Stakes: Six-man Elimination Chamber match for the WWE Championship

The Build-Up:
In 2006, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) was the undisputed titan of the sports entertainment industry. After buying their competition, the company split their expansive roster into two brands; Raw and SmackDown! each had exclusive wrestlers, belts, creative teams, and even pay-per-view events. While this gave a platform for the fabled “SmackDown! Six” and frustrated audiences with Triple H’s “Reign of Terror”, it inevitably led to an expensive prospect for wrestling fans and an overall sense of brand dilution. Dubbed the “Ruthless Aggression” era, this period saw the rise of up-and-coming stars like John Cena and Batista, the in-ring return of the “Heart Break Kid” Shawn Michaels, the ascension of long-time tag team performer Edge to the main event, and the debut of some ground-breaking match concepts such as the Money in the Bank ladder match and the six-man Elimination Chamber match. Long before he became one of their most divisive figures, John Cena captured his first WWE Championship at WrestleMania 21 and was immediately drafted to the Raw brand to capitalise on his popularity, where he clashed with Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff. Although he triumphed over Bischoff’s hand-picked opponents throughout the year, many of his rivals came back with a vengeance after winning qualifying matches to earn a spot in this Elimination Chamber match, which was the fourth time the company had produced this stipulation. However, waiting in the wings was Edge, who had captured the first ever Money in the Bank briefcase, which allowed him the opportunity to cash-in the contract within for a championship match anytime, anywhere, meaning that the deck was constantly stacked against the streetwise champion.

The Match:
As ever, the first five minutes or so prior to the start of the match was dedicated to selling the brutality of the structure and the rules of the Elimination Chamber before the competitors came to the ring. First up was Kane, right in the middle of his psychotic unmasked gimmick and a World Tag Team Championship run alongside the Big Show, closely followed by one of two rising stars who really didn’t fit in this match, “The Masterpiece” Chris Masters, a ‘roided up freak whose only selling point was his physique and his lame-ass Full Nelson submission that, somehow, managed to get over. The second unlikely star in this match was Carlito, who had history with Cena from their feuds over the United States Championship but was another guy I just found to be bland no matter how many apples he spat in people’s faces. Thankfully, the star power returned to the match when Kurt Angle came to the ring, accompanied by chants of “You suck!” and his unnecessary manager at the time, Daivari, meaning it would be the champion, John Cena, going the distance and starting off against Shawn Michaels. Thanks to finally having a Sky subscription around this time, I was very much invested in the Blue Brand and remember John Cena’s inauspicious debut against Kurt Angle and his evolution from a white-meat rookie into an annoying, self-entitled rapper. However, I never really had strong feelings for or against Cena and it wouldn’t be until the WWE kept going back to Cena as champion again and again at the expense of new stars that I tired of his shtick, but he definitely got his fair share of boos here as the crowd had already started to turn against him.

Although Angle came in all intense, a single superkick was enough to eliminate him in quick fashion…

Thanks to the will of WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, Shawn Michaels and John Cena got the match started (to chants of “Cena sucks!” that the commentary team unsuccessfully tried to explain away) with a bit of chain wrestling that quickly turned into a slap-and-slug-fest and the two trying to ram each other into the heavy chains that made up the cage walls. Back in the ring, HBK won the favour of the crowd with some stiff chops and a dominating performance, scoring the first near fall of the match, though it wasn’t long before Cena turned the tide and HBK was flailing like a fish on the top rope. After HBK took a clothesline over the ropes, Carlito joined the match and immediately attacked Cena, hitting a dropkick and crushing HBK with an impressive somersault senton over the ropes and to the steel floor on the outside! The crowd continued to boo everything Cena did and cheer even Carlito when he planted Cena with a modified flapjack, though Carlito made things worse for himself by targeting both the champion and Shawn Michaels, leading to the two working together to shut him down with a double flapjack for a two count. This two on one situation evened out when Kurt Angle joined the fray and started planting everyone with German Suplexes over and over in an explosion of intensity. Angle specifically targeted Cena and Michaels, two men he’d been feuding with throughout 2005, splitting HBK’s forehead open on the chains, ramming him into a plexiglass pod, and mercilessly beating Cena down in the corner. With his rivals down, Angle tried to score the first elimination when he caught Carlito in his patented Ankle Lock, but Carlito’s ally, Chris Masters, rushed the ring and floored everyone with stiff lariats and power moves. However, when he tried to put the Master Lock on Angle, the Olympic Gold Medallist slipped out and put him in the Ankle Lock, before immediately switching to slapping the hold on Cena after slipping out of the FU, but Angle’s time in the match was suddenly ended when HBK hit the Sweet Chin Music out of nowhere for a three count!

Sadly, the star power was removed from the match, leaving Cena with Masters and Carlito.

Carlito and Chris Masters then isolated Cena and HBK, wearing them down with sluggish, uninspired offense and repeated tosses into the steel mesh of the cage. Any attempt by Cena to fight back was instantly shut down by the double team attack, leaving the two rivals beaten on the mat when Kane finally entered the match. Kane went right for the two men standing, planting Carlito and Masters with a big boot and a sidewalk slam before planting both Shawn Michaels and John Cena with Chokeslams. Chris Masters saved Carlito from the same fate, receiving a sock to the jaw for his troubles, but this bought Carlito enough time to briefly down Kane with the Backstabber. When Kane continued to sit up and fight back, the two took him down again and then anticlimactically scored the second elimination of the match after Master press-slammed Carlito onto the Big Red Monster and the two piled on top of him to pin him down. Consequently, the match returned to the previous formula of Carlito and Masters squaring off against Cena and HBK, with Carlito punishing Shawn on the outside and Masters manhandling Cena in the ring before they isolated HBK. Shawn Michaels made a sudden comeback, however, taking both men down and even delivered his patented diving elbow drop to Cena. Though he was too exhausted to go for a pin, Shawn tuned up the band in the corner and damn-near took Cena’s head off with the Sweet Chin Music but Carlito and Masters made the bizarre decision to rush him before he could eliminate the champion from the match and Carlito even pinned Shawn after hitting one of the lamest and piss-poor finishers I know, the damn Cross Rhodes!

Although Cena survived the Elimination Chamber, Edge cashed in to steal his first WWE Championship!

So, rather than have this lacklustre match at least end with John Cena versus Shawn Michaels, the final stretch was a protracted two on one situation pitting the champion against Carlito and Chris Masters, two young prospects, yes, but guys simply lacking the charisma to get the crowd as invested as an HBK/Cena clash. The crowd, already against Cena, instantly saw this as an attempt to paint the champion as an underdog so the jeers filled the arena as Cena overpowered his two assailants with his “Five Moves of Doom”. Masters saved Carlito from the FU and delivered a brutal DDT to the steel floor, busting him open and leaving him helpless to save himself from being rammed into the steel or being bludgeoned by a beatdown. After planting Cena with a double back body drop from the top rope, Masters tied him up in the Master Lock but was unexpectedly betrayed when Carlito hit a low blow and rolled him up to take him out of the match. Unfortunately Carlito couldn’t capitalise as Cena immediately rolled him up to retain the WWE Championship. Bloody and battered, Cena celebrated to a mixture of cheers and boos, but his night took a turn for the worst when Vince McMahon appeared and announced that Edge was cashing in his Money in the bank contract! Accompanied by Lita, Edge rushed the ring and attacked Cena, frantically trying to pin him quickly and stomping away at the battered champion. Fatigued and caught off-guard, Cena was easy prey for a Spear, but shockingly got his shoulder up off the pin attempt! Stunned, Edge charged ahead with a second Spear and finally put Cena down for the three count to win his first-ever WWE Championship for a much-celebrated feel-good moment for the dastardly heel that almost made this bore of a match worth sitting through.

The Aftermath:
Edge’s win set the standard for future Money in the Bank cash-ins; rarely would a briefcase holder name a time and place for their championship opportunity as it was much easier to cash-in on a beaten and tired champion and the briefcase was generally used as a tool to spotlight an up-and-coming future champion. For Edge, it was his ticket to the main event scene and he began a short feud with John Cena over the WWE Championship. Sadly, Cena would regain the belt from Edge at the Royal Rumble but it wouldn’t be the last time Edge won a World Heavyweight Championship and he was compensated with a star-making performance against Mick Foley at WrestleMania 22. At that same event, Cena defended the belt against Triple H and Shawn Michaels’ issues with Mr. McMahon came to a head in a bloody and brutal no holds barred match between the two. As for Kurt Angle, he jumped back to SmackDown! and captured the World Heavyweight Championship, which he then lost at WrestleMania 22 to Rey Mysterio in a triple threat match, thereby setting Rey on a course for his first emotional, if poorly booked, main event run. Finally, Carlito and Chris Masters would tangle with Kane once more when they challenged the Big Red Monster and the Big Show for the World Tag Team Championships in a losing effort at WrestleMania 22; they would then split up and face off in a short feud that ultimately led to Carlito coming out on top. Of course, this wouldn’t be the last Elimination Chamber match; the infamous “Extreme” Elimination Chamber was held in December 2006 and audiences were guaranteed to see at least one a year when it graduated to a self-titled pay-per-view in 2010, however the following year’s New Year’s Revolution event would be the last carrying that brand name.

My Rating:

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Could Be Better

What did you think to the fourth Elimination Chamber match? Do you enjoy the match concept? Were you a fan of John Cena or were you already sick of his schtick at this point? What did you think to the competitors in this match? Were you shocked to see Edge steal the victory at the end? What’s your favourite Elimination Chamber match and Money in the Bank cash-in? Did you enjoy the New Year’s Revolution event and would you like to see it revived? Whatever your thoughts on the 2006 Elimination Chamber and its participants, share them below or leave a comment on my social media.

Wrestling Recap: Elimination Chamber Match (New Year’s Revolution ’05)

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The Date: 9 January 2005
The Venue: Coliseo de Puerto Rico; San Juan, Puerto Rico
The Commentary: Jim “J.R.” Ross, Jerry “The King” Lawler, and Jonathan “The Coach” Coachman
The Referee: “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels (guest)
The Stakes: Six-man Elimination Chamber match for the vacant World Heavyweight Championship

The Build-Up:
By 2005, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) was the undisputed top dog in the sports entertainment industry; having bought their competition and become an indomitable multimedia juggernaut, the company decided to split their now bloated roster into two distinct brands, with both Raw and SmackDown! receiving their own exclusive wrestlers, belts, and creative teams. Under Paul Heyman, SmackDown! became known as the “wrestling show” and delivered quality matches and storylines thanks to the efforts of the fabled “SmackDown! Six”, rising stars like John Cena, and the brand-exclusive Cruiserweight division. In contrast, Eric Bischoff’s Raw was more about over-the-top storylines and was largely dominated by Triple H’s “Reign of Terror” that saw him maintain a stranglehold on the World Heavyweight Championship, backed up by his Evolution allies (“The Nature Boy” Ric Flair, Randy Orton, and Batista). Though this led to a fondly remembered feud against Triple H’s former D-Generation X running buddy Shawn Michaels and saw Chris Benoit finally capture the big one on the grandest stage of them all, it also included controversial storylines involving Kane and a disastrous main event run for Randy Orton that would lead to him adopting a “Legend Killer” gimmick but also saw his big WrestleMania coronation being usurped by Evolution’s enforcer, Batista, who gained unanimous fan support around this time. After a championship match between Triple H. Chris Benoit, and Edge ended in a double pin, the World Heavyweight Championship was declared vacant and Bischoff had the six top challengers vie for a place in an Elimination Chamber match to battle for the belt. This was only the third Elimination Chamber match so the concept was relatively new in the WWE; it debuted at the 2002 Survivor Series and forced four men to waiting in “bulletproof pods” as two others fought in the ring, with each participant joining the match at random at regular intervals, with wrestlers being eliminated by pin fall or submission until only one is left standing. The two main storylines heading into the match revolved around Triple H; Batista was showing signs of independence and had earned himself the final spot in the match, which angered The Game as he’d already been slighted by Orton and was concerned about Batista’s loyalties. Shawn Michaels being named the special guest referee also threw Triple H of as he wasn’t expected to be impartial given his bloody history with The Game. Chris Benoit’s presence was another thorn in Triple H’s side since The Game had suffered numerous losses to him and Triple H’s years of domination and oppression meant he had few allies heading into this bout.

The Match:
I remember this period of wrestling; I gather many look back on Triple H’s time with the belt more fondly now and it’s true that he eventually made some of the WWE’s biggest stars, but at the time it was absolutely frustrating to watch. What made it worse was that Chris Benoit had already knocked him off the perch (well, technically HBK and Goldberg had also beaten him for the belt but that’s neither here nor there…) and it seemed we were due some fresh faces in the Raw main event scene, but Triple H kept getting involved, basically meaning that the story leading up to WrestleMania 21 was basically the same as the previous year’s WrestleMania XX, only this time it would be the up-and-coming Batista rather than the veteran Benoit finally getting his due. The Elimination Chamber concept also hadn’t been run into the ground; the massive, dangerous steel structure had a real ominous feel to it at this point and the match is still perhaps the most inventive and interesting of the modern era despite becoming an annual event, often without any real storyline justification for it. Edge was the first man to enter a ring pod; this was the start of Edge’s push towards the top of the card and I was all for it. He had proved himself in tag team matches and runs with the Intercontinental Championship and was a much-needed fresh face in the main event scene, but he was edging into tweener territory here due to his problems with HBK. Triple H was out next and was practically livid at having to be locked into a pod by one of his worst enemies and then got into a slanging match with his former protégé, Randy Orton, when he came to the ring looking to regain the championship, though it was pretty clear that he’d lost a lot of the bite and appeal he’d had before turning against Evolution. In comparison, the crowd was much hotter for Batista, who had not only won the right to be the last man to exit his pod but had also vowed not to let the championship slip through his fingers if push came to shove. With the four sealed in their pods, it was up to Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit to kick the match off; these two were no strangers to each other by any means and could always be relied on to put on a clinic. I’ll give this to the creative team, they certainly had a lot of bad blood and crossover going on in this match; everyone had issues with each other and a reason to fight beyond just wanting to be the champion, which made for quite the powder keg as the match got underway.

What started as a wrestling clinic soon broke down into a brutal brawl using the steel trappings of the chamber.

Benoit and Jericho locked up with a series of takedowns, reverses, and tentative holds; Jericho’s attempts to take control were emphatically shut down by Benoit’s patented knife-edge chops and, when Y2J returned the favour, Benoit responded by tripping him into a Sharpshooter attempt. After fighting off the Walls of Jericho, Benoit landed a massive German Suplex, but Jericho managed to slip out of a Crippler Crossface attempt and score a couple of near falls. Benoit cut Jericho off when he went to the top rope and brought the first-ever Undisputed Champion crashing to the mat with a Superplex that saw both men struggling to recover as Triple H entered the match. Triple H went right after Benoit, beating and stomping on him in the corner and wiping out with a couple of hard whips into the corners for a two count while also taking out Jericho with his signature jumping knee strike. Jericho soon laid in the chops to The Game, though, before being taken down by a clothesline; Triple H brutally tossed Benoit out onto the steel platform surrounding the ring and ran him face-first into the thick steel chains that made up the chamber’s walls, busting him open and creating a gaping target for Hunter’s assault. Regardless, Benoit was still able to kick out at two so Triple H went for the Pedigree but, oddly, Jericho interrupted the move rather than potentially remove an obstacle from the match and then reversed another Pedigree into a back body drop that sent Triple H to the steel on the outside. Another slam continued to work over Triple H’s back and a suplex brought him back into the ring for a near fall before Edge joined the party. Edge wasted no time in taking advantage of his wounded opponents, hitting Spear-like moves on Jericho and Triple H before planting The Game with the Edgecution for a close two count and even planting Benoit with an uncharacteristic belly-to-belly suplex! Jericho tried to steal a pin, but Triple H kicked out, then Edge took a tumble to the outside courtesy of a Jericho dropkick but Y2J’s momentum was summarily cut off when Edge raked his eyes and launched him into the chain wall with a catapult and then did the same to Triple H after The Game tried to hit him with a Pedigree out on the steel!

As the match escalated, even HBK fell victim to the competitors and unlikely alliances emerged…

A diving clothesline to Benoit scored Edge a two count, then he feverishly fought out of a Crippler Crossface attempt before being knocked down by an enziguri from Jericho that was also only a two count. The bloodied Jericho and Triple H then went at it, with The Game landing his patented spinebuster for a near fall and Benoit getting the same result with a lovely Northern Lights Suplex to Edge. Triple H finally nailed the Pedigree on Jericho but was too out of it to capitalise; Orton then entered the match like a house on fire, smacking Edge’s head off the chain and leaped at Triple H with a crossbody off the top rope. Orton continued to beat Triple H down to a fair amount of applause (though they mainly chanted for his finisher…), tossing him to the outside and running him into the chain wall, slamming him with his beautiful snap powerslam, and even planting Jericho with an RKO out of nowhere! However, when he tried that shit on Benoit, he got tied up in a version of the Crippler Crossface; Triple H taunted Orton as he struggled in the hold, so Benoit hit ‘Select’ to change targets and locked a Sharpshooter on The Game, only to be hit by an RKO! Edge then tried to take Orton out with a Spear but the future Legend Killer dodged out of the way and caused HBK to take the attack instead! Consequently, there was no referee to count the pin when Edge did hit the Spear on Orton; incensed, Edge manhandled HBK and slapped him, which earned him a dose of Sweet Chin Music and left him wide open for a Lionsault from Jericho and a subsequent elimination. Benoit then saved Jericho from another Pedigree by blasting Triple H with three German Suplexes in a row; Benoit then clambered on top of a chamber pod to land a humongous diving headbutt to Triple H! He and Jericho then called back to their days as a tag team by locking in both the Walls of Jericho and the Crippler Crossface on The Game but, luckily for him, the timer ran down and Batista finally emerged from his pod after an awkward delay that I can only assume was unintentional.

Batista’s path of destruction was cut off by Orton but he was still instrumental in Triple H winning the match.

Batista’s first act was to save his mentor; he fought off Jericho and Benoit with ease, launching them out of the ring and drilling Orton with a spinebuster. He then went face-to-face with Triple H in a tense showdown that had the crowd absolutely begging for them to go at it but the two were jumped by their opponents before they could come to blows. Batista took out a camera man by Military Pressing Jericho into the poor bastard then hoisted Orton up in a wonky looking chokehold before Benoit attacked his knee and brought him to the mat. Orton and Benoit then temporarily joined forces to put the pressure on Batista before Triple H got back into the thick of it by picking each man off; he launched Orton into the chain but then got slammed into the platform by a facebuster courtesy of Jericho that properly got the blood gushing. After a bit of brawling, Benoit was emphatically shut down with a spinebuster from Batista, who then hit a spinebuster on Jericho onto Benoit that allowed him to eliminate the Rabid Wolverine. Jericho was next to go after being decimated by the Batista Bomb, meaning the match came down to a contest between Evolution! Orton struck first, tossing Triple H to the steel platform and smashing Batista off the steel before being launched into the chains from a Triple H catapult that busted him open. Triple H and Batista worked over the bleeding, helpless Orton relentlessly; despite the merciless beating, Orton continued to kick out of their pin attempts, frustrating both men. Although a lengthy onslaught clearly designed to pain Orton as a resilient underdog, this actually worked for the crowd, who were fully behind Orton as he mounted a comeback with some strikes and, indeed, when he hit a low blow and a huge RKO to eliminate Batista, the crowd came unglued! Triple H and Orton then fought on the outside, where Orton repeatedly threw him into the chain wall before hitting another massive RKO. Unfortunately, HBK was busy trying to get Batista and Ric Flair out of the ring so there was no pin fall. In the chaos, Batista blasted Orton with a clothesline; this was enough to leave Orton prone for a Pedigree that awarded Triple H yet another championship victory.

The Aftermath:
J.R said that Batista “dominated” the match but that wasn’t quite true, though it should have been; since the match went so long without any eliminations, I would’ve had Batista be the one to eliminate everyone before being upset by Orton to better paint him as this unstoppable force. Although Evolution celebrated the win, with Batista hoisting Triple H onto his shoulders, it was clear from the footage that The Game could’ve prevented Batista’s elimination and chose not to, a wrinkle that only added fuel to their issues going forward. Orton would win the right to challenge Triple H at the Royal Rumble but, where he came up short, Batista (eventually) emerged as the winner of the Royal Rumble itself. Although Triple H and Ric Flair tried to convince him to challenge JBL, Batista dramatically revealed that he’d had enough of being Hunter’s lackey and their manipulation; Batista went on to capture his first World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 21 and begin his own ascension to mainstream success that remained intrinsically linked to his former mentor. Despite the good reactions he got here, Orton’s time as a fan favourite was largely a dud; to get himself back on track, he decided to challenge the Undertaker at WrestleMania 21. Although unsuccessful and injured in the bout, he did score victories over the Deadman thanks to help from his father, “Cowboy” Bob Orton, during the feud, which took up most of his 2005. Blaming HBK for his loss, Edge got into a short feud with Shawn Michaels that was over with by WrestleMania 21; there, HBK battled Kurt Angle in a dream match and Edge won the first-ever Money in the Bank ladder match, which also included Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit; Edge cashed in the briefcase at the following year’s New Year’s Revolution to win his first World Heavyweight Championship. Although the WWE would continue to produce Elimination Chamber matches, there would only be two more New Year’s Revolution events; the pay-per-view was cancelled in 2007, though the branding was briefly revived for a series of house shows in 2020.

My Rating:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Great Stuff

What did you think to the third-ever Elimination Chamber match? What did you think to the match concept? Were you a fan of Randy Orton’s face turn and would you have liked to see him win it? Did you like the narrative surrounding Batista and were you excited to see him break out on his own? What did you think to Triple H’s reign with the World Heavyweight Championship What’s your favourite Elimination Chamber match? Were you a fan of the New Year’s Revolution event and would you like to see it revived? Whatever your thoughts on the 2005 Elimination Chamber and its participants, share them below or leave a comment on my social media.