The Elimination Chamber is an event that seems like it’s here to stay, as it’s the event that keeps on giving in terms of excitement and violence. In honour of the event coming up this Sunday, listed below are only 10 of the most OMG moments to ever occur within the hellacious structure since its inception.
First introduced by none other than Eric Bischoff (a genius in this business for many reasons), the event, or rather this type of match has been around since 2002. And in its wake, it has left many injured, many successful, and is considered one of the most dangerous stops on the road to WrestleMania.
Shawn Michaels’ epic Chamber Match return
2002 was surely a confusing but exciting time for wrestling fans. Approximately a year before, Vince McMahon purchased his competitor, WCW, and a multitude of wrestlers were now on WWE TV…even older stars that had left the company for the greener pastures of WCW previously…stars like Hall, Nash and yes, even Hogan.
But there was one return that the dawn of the new era brought along with it, and that was “The Show Stopper,” Shawn Michaels himself. He had supposedly retired due to debilitating back injuries way back in 1998, his last match being WrestleMania 14 against Steve Austin, where he dropped the title to The Rattlesnake.
Shawn’s send-off came at the hands of a rather stiff cross from none other than the special guest referee, Mike Tyson.
What a way to go out, eh?
But return he did, and in all his glory.
The match took place at Survivor Series and yes in New York at MSG. Booker T, Kane, Chris Jericho, RVD and of course Triple H were along for the ride, and what a ride it was.
Shawn came to the ring in epic shape. Ring rust? Where? The man didn’t miss a beat. It seemed as though he had been wrestling all along. And he had returned and been in action for a little while before that match of course, so he was definitely ready. And yeah, the match was certainly brutal, but perhaps the biggest OMG moment came at the very end, when he won and took the title, pinning none other than his then former DX teammate, Triple H!
Edge covers The Champ, John Cena, in The Chamber
Following a Code Breaker from out of nowhere from Chris Jericho and a 619 from Rey Mysterio, Edge—always one to make the most out of opportunity—pins John Cena in what was a shocking turn of events in an already exciting match. Did I mention that John Cena was about to execute an FU seconds before?
From No Way Out 2009, that moment just added to the excitement and it was that moment that told the audience watching and everyone at home that it was anyone’s game moving forward.
Wade Barrett powerbombs Daniel Bryan into the chain link
So this one showcased: Daniel Bryan, Santino Marella, Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, Big Show and of course The Great Khali.
There was no way this one wasn’t going to turn ugly and it did. Quite a few epic moments can be remembered from this one, but when Wade Barrett powerbombed Bryan into the chain link and onto the metal floor of that chamber, it certainly resonated with the audience, and probably in Daniel Bryan’s tailbone too.
Chris Jericho goes crashing into the pod
Also from the now infamous 2002 match from Survivor Series, Chris Jericho was definitely one of the innovators of violence, to borrow a phrase from the days of ECW, but that first match really set the tone of what was to come in later years and at later Elimination Chamber matches.
That bump was one that has stood the test of time, as it was the first time we saw it happen. It was repeated many times over, as it is pretty cool to see these poor guys crashing through the pods…hence whey we’ve seen it so often since.
Jericho crashes into the pod…part deux
Which is why they did it again and so soon.
And it obviously wasn’t the only time. The second time was just as vicious if not more, because the second time in an Elimination Chamber match held at SummerSlam 2003, it was Goldberg who speared him through the Plexiglas covering the pod. A special moment is watching Hunter’s face while it all goes down just over Goldberg’s shoulder. Triple H’s facial expressions have always been incredibly appropriate and the word priceless comes to mind, which leads us to our next OMG moment …
Goldberg lets himself into Triple H’s pod
So Triple H is playing heel of old, acting like he doesn’t want to face Goldberg at all. Shades of The Nature Boy for sure. And speaking of good old Ric Flair, he was at Hunter’s side, trying to keep the pod closed at all costs, even trying to keep it closed with his feet while leaning on the barricade. But yet even that wasn’t enough to keep Goldberg out.
He crashed through the Plexiglas partition and had his way with Hunter regardless.
Alexa Bliss makes her mark in the first-ever Women’s Elimination Chamber
In this match were Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, the incomparable Bayley, Sasha Banks, the legendary Mickie James and of course the blissful Alexa Bliss. The match didn’t disappoint at all, especially when Alexa performed her epic feat of acrobatics off one of the pods for an epic moment in the event’s history. These ladies certainly gave it their all and a moment like this was made for the history books and of course articles like this one here. So Bliss won the first ever Women’s Elimination Chamber to boot.
Kalisto comes crashing down
And of course it isn’t only the epically violent moments that stay nestled in our heads when we think back to this event, but the spectacular aerial moments too, as can be proven with Alexa’s aforementioned moment.
This one in particular came from the event held in 2015. The match was a tag team bout and was incredible to watch; especially when Kalisto climbed upward towards the top of the chamber only to come crashing down in all his high-flying glory.
Shawn’s Sweet Chin Music Surprise for The Undertaker
And no, Shawn Michael’s wasn’t officially in this match, but he made a surprise appearance. Perhaps no one was as surprised as The Undertaker.
Shawn snuck in to deliver that perfectly executed kick of his worthy of Chuck Norris, enabling Chris Jericho to secure the victory.
Of course Taker had a few things to say about that later on as time progressed.
John Cena Takes Flight
And how can a list like this be complete without recalling one of the greatest in the business, John Cena? He has had many impeccable moments in the hellacious structure known as The Elimination Chamber, but perhaps this moment that comes from 2017 in the annals of history, landing on Bray Wyatt and AJ Styles with full force is his riskiest—Cena not being one to take to jumping off of anything.
The end of the match certainly didn’t go in his favour, but as always he gave it his all, which is an all-out guarantee by John Cena with everything he does.
And in the end, The Elimination Chamber is an event that is surely guaranteed to give more epic moments like the ones mentioned above and so many others that didn’t make the list.
10 certainly aren’t enough when looking back. But looking to the Elimination Chamber event coming up this weekend, we can surely expect some form of carnage and epic memories to boot.
