The Elimination Chamber has provided the WWE universe with countless unforgettable moments since the match’s inception back in 2002.
The WWE has devised some extreme match types over the years, but the Elimination Chamber ranks up there with the most extreme in history. The match has helped define the 21st century in the WWE as well as helping superstars obtain career-defining moments.
This match has led to countless memorable moments, but which moments stand out above the rest? There are many that could have made the cut, but with that being said, let’s take a look at the top 10 greatest Elimination Chamber moments in history.
10. John Morrison’s Acrobatic Show: February 20, 2011
A superstar that never quite reached his potential in the WWE was John Morrison. Despite this, Morrison’s athleticism and in-ring ability were never in question and he provided some outstanding moments in the WWE over the years.
The most memorable moment of his WWE career arguably came during the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view in 2011 when he, alongside John Cena, CM Punk, R-Truth, Randy Orton, and Sheamus, competed for the right to compete in the WWE Championship match at WrestleMania 27.
Cena would go on to predictably win, but the match was arguably stolen by Morrison with some of the craziest athleticism the WWE has seen. During the middle of the match, Morrison decided to climb to the top of the chamber while Sheamus was in the ring. He definitely had bad intentions for The Celtic Warrior, but it turned out to be better than anybody expected.
Morrison hung from the top of the chamber and twisted his body directly onto Sheamus some 10-15 feet below. And that would be the end of Sheamus’ night as Morrison got the elimination before being eliminated by Punk later in the match.
He never made it as a main eventer in the WWE, but Morrison provided the company with some lasting memories, including this incredible spot in the 2011 Elimination Chamber match.
9. Jeff Hardy’s Swanton Bomb: February 15, 2009
Arguably no superstar in WWE history has provided as many high-flying moments than Jeff Hardy has provided over the years. For years, Hardy pushed the envelope of what the human body is supposed to do with some insane moments.
One of his best moments came at No Way Out in 2009 in the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match alongside Triple H, Edge, The Big Show, The Undertaker, and Vladimir Kozlov. Hardy wouldn’t win the match, but his performance in the match was very impressive.
A shining example of this came in the middle of the match when his attentions were set on Big Show. The Charismatic Enigma wanted to make sure Show was eliminated and out of the picture. And despite Hardy not actually pinning Show himself, his actions directly led to The World’s Largest Athlete’s elimination.
Hardy scaled to the very top of a chamber pod and nailed Big Show with a massive Swanton Bomb before Triple H pinned Show and eliminated him. It was an awesome moment that ranks among the most memorable in the match’s history. Even though Triple H won the match, Hardy proved he is capable of stealing the show.
The year 2009 was arguably the best year of Hardy’s career and his epic Swanton Bomb at No Way Out in 2009 is among the best moments in his storied career.
8. Rob Van Dam’s Frog Splash: November 17, 2002
History was made in 2002 as a totally new match concept was introduced to the WWE universe in the Elimination Chamber. The match would make its awaited debut at Survivor Series 2002, but the WWE universe had no idea what to expect out of this match.
The fans would quickly find out just what to expect, total chaos. Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Chris Jericho, Booker T, Kane, and Rob Van Dam competed in the first-ever Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship. But the match would take a crazy turn early on courtesy of RVD.
Van Dam was known for his extreme nature already by this point, but he took his extreme nature to another level in the Elimination Chamber match. While competing against Triple H, RVD decided to roll the dice in his quest to try and win the World Heavyweight Championship to a level that hadn’t been seen before.
With The Game grounded, Van Dam climbed to the top of a pod and would hit Triple H with a viscous Five Star Frog Splash that would go on to injure The Game’s throat. Keeping in mind this was the first-ever Elimination Chamber match, RVD set a precedent that is still being felt to this day involving these matches.
RVD had a very memorable pro wrestling career, but one of his most defining moments came at Survivor Series 2002 in the first-ever Elimination Chamber match.
7. Undertaker Chokeslams MVP: February 17, 2008
The stakes were high at No Way Out 2008 in the SmackDown Elimination Chamber match. The winner of the match would go on to earn a World Heavyweight Championship opportunity at WrestleMania 24, and The Undertaker would make sure that honor went to him.
Alongside Batista, Finlay, MVP, The Great Khali, and Big Daddy V, The Undertaker went to war for a major opportunity. And midway through the match, Taker made his devilish presence felt on MVP to the point where MVP wouldn’t be around in the match any longer.
Taker and MVP were fighting when MVP decided to scale towards the top of a pod, but he probably didn’t expect what was coming next. He tried to fend off The Deadman, but that would only last so long as Taker ended up hitting MVP with an insane chokeslam from the top of the pod to the ring below.
Finlay would go on to pin MVP, but what The Undertaker did caused the elimination. Taker would go on to win the Elimination Chamber and faced Edge in the WrestleMania 24 main event where he defeated The Rated-R Superstar and won the World Heavyweight Championship. His performance at No Way Out 2008 helped make his run towards the world title even better.
The Deadman has been a major factor in the WWE for nearly 30 years, but his epic chokeslam at No Way Out 2008 is still one of the most underrated moments of his career.
6. Bray Wyatt Wins WWE Championship: February 12, 2017
By the beginning of 2017, many wondered if Bray Wyatt would ever breakthrough and win a world championship. But at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view of that year, Wyatt would answer those questions in arguably one of the best Elimination Chamber matches of all-time.
Wyatt joined John Cena, The Miz, Baron Corbin, AJ Styles, and Dean Ambrose inside the Elimination Chamber for the WWE Championship. The Eater Of Worlds had an impressive showing that really got started when he eliminated Cena, the then-WWE Champion. This elimination ensured that there would be a new WWE Champion.
The match came down to Wyatt and Styles with both men fighting for the right to be called WWE Champion at WrestleMania 33. The two went at it with a lot of tense moments, but in the end, Wyatt’s Sister Abigail put things away and he won his first-ever WWE Championship.
While his reign as WWE Champion and feud with Randy Orton was far from impressive, this was still a big moment for Wyatt. Not to mention, the quality of Elimination Chamber match that he won in was outstanding. His career has gone downhill since being WWE Champion, but that doesn’t lessen this moment.
No matter where his career goes from this point. The Eater Of Worlds will always be able to say he won the WWE Championship inside the Elimination Chamber.
5. Goldberg’s Dominance: August 24, 2003
Bill Goldberg emerged from obscurity to being the face of WCW in a matter of only a few months back in WCW’s glory days. But once the company folded in early-2001, many speculated if Goldberg would ever make his WWE debut.
And the night after WrestleMania 19 in 2003, Goldberg made his long-awaited WWE debut at the expense of The Rock. It wouldn’t take Goldberg long to establish into one of the WWE’s top stars on the Raw brand. And at SummerSlam 2003, Goldberg vied for the right to be called World Heavyweight Champion inside the Elimination Chamber.
Goldberg, Triple H, Chris Jericho, Kevin Nash, Randy Orton, and Shawn Michaels fought inside the second-ever Elimination Chamber match, but Goldberg’s performance was a sight to behold as the match got going. Once he made his entrance from his pod, Goldberg would unleash on any and everything.
Nobody was safe from Goldberg, including Jericho who got speared through one of the pods. The match came down to Triple H and Goldberg, but The Game’s craftiness and a sledgehammer handed to him by Ric Flair won the match for Triple H and he retained his championship. But regardless of the outcome, Goldberg was nothing short of a force to be reckoned with.
He didn’t win the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam 2003, but Goldberg stole the show and staked his claim as arguably the WWE’s most dominant force at the time.
4. Edge Enters Both Elimination Chamber Matches In The Same Night: February 15, 2009
One of the single most important WWE superstars in the 21st century was undoubtedly Edge. The Rated-R Superstar blazed a trail as both a tag team performer and a singles performer, but by 2009, he had really hit his stride after several world title reigns.
Edge earned the moniker of The Ultimate Opportunist, and a memorable example of this came at No Way Out 2009. He began the night as the WWE Champion and defended his title inside the Elimination Chamber against Triple H, The Big Show, The Undertaker, Jeff Hardy, and Vladimir Kozlov.
And much to everyone’s surprise, Edge was the first person eliminated in the match. Triple H won the match and became the WWE Champion, but The Rated-R Superstar’s night was far from being over. The World Heavyweight Championship Elimination Chamber match was set to feature John Cena, Chris Jericho, Kane, Rey Mysterio, Mike Knox, and Kofi Kingston, but Edge had other ideas.
The Rated-R Superstar laid out Kingston as he was making his entrance to the ring and would then join the match in place of Kingston. And as the dust cleared, Edge won the whole thing and became the World Heavyweight Champion. It was a very surprising turn of events, but it couldn’t have been more fitting than Edge reaping the benefits.
Edge turned the WWE Championship into the World Heavyweight Championship in a matter of hours at No Way Out 2009 in one of the most memorable performances in Elimination Chamber history.
3. Shawn Michaels Costs The Undertaker The World Heavyweight Championship: February 21, 2010
Nearly a full year ago at the time of the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view in 2010, Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker took part in arguably the greatest match in WrestleMania history at WrestleMania 25. But Michaels’ loss to The Undertaker only fueled his fire to get another shot at ending the streak.
HBK became obsessed with trying to get another match with Taker at WrestleMania 26, but after he failed to win the Royal Rumble match in 2010, he took desperate measure to ensure he would get his sought-after rematch. The Undertaker defended the World Heavyweight Championship against Chris Jericho, CM Punk, John Morrison, Rey Mysterio, and R-Truth inside the Elimination Chamber, but those wouldn’t be the only ones that made an impact in the match.
As the match came down to Taker and Jericho, it appeared like The Deadman had things right where he wanted them. But HBK shocked everyone and emerged from under the chamber structure to hit Taker with a huge Sweet Chin Music, allowing Y2J to pin Taker and win the World Heavyweight Championship.
This ultimately led to HBK vs. Taker part two at WrestleMania only weeks later at WrestleMania 26. And much like the original, this version was nothing short of outstanding as Michaels put his career on the line for a chance to break the streak. However, The Undertaker emerged victorious and Michaels’ legendary career came to an end.
The lengths that HBK went to in order to get another shot at The Undertaker at WrestleMania were massive and resulted in one of the best moments in Elimination Chamber history.
2. Edge Cashes In Money In The Bank: January 8, 2006
Everything has a first, and the first Money in the Bank Ladder Match took place at WrestleMania 21 with Edge becoming victorious. The WWE universe wondered when Edge would cash in on his guaranteed WWE Championship opportunity, but it would shock everyone how it all went down.
At New Year’s Revolution 2006, John Cena defended his WWE Championship inside the Elimination Chamber against Kurt Angle, Shawn Michaels, Kane, Chris Masters, and Carlito. The match would come down to Cena and Carlito and by that point, it was obvious who was coming out on top.
Cena eliminated Carlito to retain his championship, but his night was far from over. WWE Chairman Vince McMahon came out and made a historic statement that Edge was cashing in his Money in the Bank contract for a match with Cena for the WWE Championship, right after Cena was bloody and battered from an Elimination Chamber match.
The Ultimate Opportunist earned that moniker on this night and defeated Cena to become the WWE Champion for the first time in his career. This marked the dawning of Edge as a megastar in the WWE and set the precedent for the majority of future Money in the Bank cash-ins. The Rated-R Superstar would cash in another Money in the Bank contract over a year later as well.
Although it didn’t actually happen inside the Elimination Chamber, Edge cashing in Money in the Bank for the first time in WWE history directly after the Elimination Chamber match at New Year’s Revolution 2006 is one of the most memorable moments in WWE history.
1. Shawn Michaels Wins World Heavyweight Championship Inside First-Ever Elimination Chamber Match: November 17, 2002
Arguably the single greatest WWE superstar of the 1990’s was none other than The Heartbreak Kid, Shawn Michaels. HBK blazed a trail through the WWE during that time, but a back injury in 1998 appeared to have ended his legendary career still in his prime.
Michaels wouldn’t compete in a match in over four years, but at SummerSlam 2002, he defeated Triple H in an epic match. But The Game had the last laugh on that night when a sledgehammer shot to Michaels’ back sidelined HBK for a while. He would return, however, and was part of the first-ever Elimination Chamber match at Survivor Series 2002.
HBK, along with Triple H, Chris Jericho, Kane, Booker T, and Rob Van Dam made history on that night. The match was like nothing seen before in the WWE, and it fittingly came down to the former friends turned bitter enemies in HBK and The Game. The showdown was awesome, especially the ending sequence when Michaels finally got the win with a Sweet Chin Music.
This would be Michaels’ final world title win in his WWE career and was the culmination of one of the best storytelling angles the WWE has ever produced. Most consider this to be the best Elimination Chamber match of all-time, and it’s no wonder why. Michaels’ win was nothing short of incredible and said he was back for good.
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HBK’s triumphant return to the WWE in 2002 and subsequent World Heavyweight Championship win inside the first-ever Elimination Chamber match at Survivor Series 2002 is, without question, the greatest moment in Elimination Chamber history.