The Elimination Chamber match has been a staple of WWE for over two decades, initially taking the role as WWE’s answer to War Games, creating its own unique steel structure. The match type has hosted some of the all-time great stars of professional wrestling, and many of the matches have been classics. On the flip side, several Elimination Chamber matches have fallen way short of expectations.
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We will take a look at every Elimination Chamber in WWE history, using TheSportster’s rating system to determine the absolute worst of the worst. These ratings will be compared to those from Cagematch.net and Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
10
Alexa Bliss Vs. Sasha Banks Vs. Bayley Vs. Mickie James Vs. Sonya Deville Vs. Mandy Rose (WWE Elimination Chamber 2018)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 6.75/10
|
Storytelling |
1.75/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1.5/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1.75/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
1.75/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 3.25 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 7.19
Generally, most Elimination Chamber matches have been pretty good to great, with a few being fairly solid. Given the overall quality of the Chamber, the first women’s edition of the match just about slides into the list of worst of all time. A lot of the in-ring work was pretty clunky in this match, and there wasn’t too much interest in the likes of Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville and Mickie James.
The ongoing issues between Sasha Banks and Bayley were told well, and the heel work from Alexa Bliss was the shining light of the match. It was a fine showing from all involved, but it didn’t do anything to wow fans.
9
The Undertaker Vs. Batista Vs. MVP Vs. Finlay Vs. Big Daddy Vs The Great Khali (No Way Out 2008)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 6.5/10
|
Storytelling |
1.5/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1.25/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1.75/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
2/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 2.75 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 6.97
Considering this match featured the likes of The Great Khali and Big Daddy V, it is understandable as to why the technical side of this bout fell short. Their involvement led to a lot of plodding action, though things did improve when they were out of the match.
Aside from The Undertaker and Batista, this match did lack a lot of star power, and it was very clear that most of the field had no chance of winning, ruining some of the storytelling aspects of the match. The final stretch was very enjoyable, with Undertaker and Batista going back and forth, but the things did limp along slowly in the opening half, putting down the list in terms of quality.
8
Asuka Vs. Carmella Vs. Raquel Rodriguez Vs. Nikki Cross Vs. Natalya Vs. Liv Morgan (Elimination Chamber 2023)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 6.25/10
|
Storytelling |
1.25/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1.75/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1.5/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
1.75/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 4 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 6.63
This wasn’t a bad match, but the predictability of an Asuka win really impacted the storytelling and fan investment, not to mention a general lack of star power involved too. The final few minutes were enjoyable, but for the most part the match dragged on at a slow to steady pace, not really getting into the next gear.
Asuka looks great, Liv Morgan provided some elements of character work, but for the most part no one managed to stand too much either in the ring or as a character.
7
New Day Vs. Cesaro & Tyson Kidd Vs. Lucha Dragons Vs. Prime Time Players Vs. Los Matadores Vs. The Ascension (WWE Elimination Chamber 2015)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 6.25/10
|
Storytelling |
1.25/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1.75/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1.5/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
1.75/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 3.25 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 6.27
There were a few highlights to this match, with some wild spots – especially thanks to the Lucha Dragons – but these came amidst a very busy, messy, and hard to follow matchup inside the Elimination Chamber. This was the very first tag team Chamber, and it suffered from having way too many bodies involved.
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The likes of The Ascension and Los Matadores added nothing from a character standpoint, with The New Day doing the heavy lifting in this aspect. There was a lot of convoluted set up to multi-man spots which really took fans out of the action.
6
Bianca Belair Vs. Rhea Ripley Vs. Liv Morgan Vs. Nikki ASH Vs. Doudrop Vs. Alexa Bliss (Elimination Chamber 2022)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 5.5/10
|
Storytelling |
1/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1.75/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1.25/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
1.5/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 3 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 5.66
For whatever reason in 2022, WWE reduced the entry times into the Elimination Chamber, resulting in very rushed and messy action. This massively impacted the quality of this Chamber match to determine the number one contender for the RAW Women’s Title. Even though some of the in-ring work was very strong, particularly involving Bianca Belair and Rhea Ripley, things were just too packed together.
They tried to squeeze a lot in within just fifteen minutes, leading to quick eliminations, messy spots, and an underwhelming execution overall.
5
Roman Reigns Vs. Braun Strowman Vs. John Cena Vs. Elias Vs. Seth Rollins Vs. Finn Balor Vs. The Miz (Elimination Chamber 2018)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 5.5/10
|
Storytelling |
0.5/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1.75/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1.5/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
1.75/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 3.75 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 5.61
For the first and only time, three wrestlers began this match as a total of seven wrestlers entered the Elimination Chamber in 2018. This did make for quite a busy contest that lost its way at times, but thanks to the talent in the ring, much of the technical side of the match was solid and entertaining.
However, the creative direction in terms of storytelling was awful. Few feuds were developed ahead of WrestleMania, and most of the field came out looking weak as Braun Strowman eliminated five men in a row. If Strowman had gone on to win, then perhaps this would have been fine, but instead Roman Reigns came in and eliminated Strowman, who had done all the hard work. With WWE trying to make Reigns a popular good guy, this booking was mind-bogglingly bad.
4
Asuka Vs. Shayna Baszler Vs. Liv Morgan Vs. Ruby Riott Vs. Sarah Logan Vs. Natalya (Elimination Chamber 2020)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 5.25/10
|
Storytelling |
1.25/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1.75/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
1.25/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 2.25 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 4.13
Shayna Baszler going on a clean sweep was a bold booking decision, and she did in fact look very strong in the match. Unfortunately, much of the action up to her entry into the match wasn’t too entertaining, and the lack of star power led to fans becoming disinterested in the main event.
The structure of the match also led to the crowd not caring much, as Baszler simply choking out superstar after superstar was pretty boring to sit through. This was a divisive Chamber match for sure, but for us it sits among the worst of all time.
3
Ryback Vs. Dolph Ziggler Vs. King Barrett Vs. Sheamus Vs. R-Truth Vs. Mark Henry (Elimination Chamber 2015)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 4.75/10
|
Storytelling |
1/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1.25/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
1.5/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 2.5 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 3.34
On paper, this should have been a strong Elimination Chamber match. However, an awkward early entry due to Mark Henry’s pod breaking led to this falling apart. Wrestlers were loudly calling spots on the fly, the action was sloppy, and there was a lot of standing around which led to a restless crowd and a lack of storytelling.
It was fine at times, but the choice of Ryback to win the vacant Intercontinental Championship was a decision not too many fans were overjoyed about.
2
Bobby Lashley Vs. Brock Lesnar Vs. Seth Rollins Vs. Austin Theory Vs. AJ Styles Vs. Riddle (Elimination Chamber 2022)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 4.75/10
|
Storytelling |
0.25/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1.5/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1.25/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
1.75/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 3.5 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 3.66
This Elimination Chamber match was going fairly well at first, though the rushed entries ruined the structure of the match, and it led to spots being crammed inside a very busy ring. Brock Lesnar entered the match last and proceeded to decimate the field, eliminating everyone in quick succession in one of the most baffling and frustrating booking decisions in the history of the Chamber.
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The match lost all its momentum, everyone was made to look weak, and Lesnar winning proved to be a very unpopular call. It wasn’t fun, it wasn’t entertaining, and no one came out of this looking any better than when they went in.
1
Extreme Elimination Chamber (ECW December To Dismember 2006)
Overall Rating From TheSportster: 3.75/10
|
Storytelling |
0.25/2.5 |
|---|---|
|
Technical Ability |
1.5/2.5 |
|
Character Work/Psychology |
1/2.5 |
|
Crowd Reaction |
1/2.5 |
- Dave Meltzer Rating: 2.5 Stars
- Cagematch.net Rating: 4.47
The worst Elimination Chamber match in WWE history came on the ECW December To Dismember show, with the failure of this bout coming down to the booking and storytelling. The popular CM Punk was eliminated first, ruining the atmosphere of the whole bout as WWE sought to push Bobby Lashley, who overcame the monster Big Show. It was a slap in the face to what ECW was all about.
The forced addition of the “extreme” element led to a lazy use of weapons, with the match feeling disjointed instead of being fun. There were some fine moments, but overall this match lacked any sort of energy.
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