The Birth of the Elimination Chamber: A Milestone in Wrestling History
On November 17, 2002, Madison Square Garden witnessed an unprecedented event in WWE: the first Elimination Chamber match. Six of the most emblematic names in wrestling history faced off in a match that combined elements of a steel cage, War Games, and a post-apocalyptic atmosphere. This event would mark the beginning of a format that would become a fundamental pillar of the company, even with its own pay-per-view event. This fight, which combined legends of the present and the future, resulted in a brutal confrontation that left the fighters with multiple injuries. Through interviews with the protagonists themselves, we explore the key moments of this historic night. In addition to current statements from Triple H and Chris Jericho, and a quote from Shawn Michaels taken from Sam Roberts’ podcast, statements from five of the six competitors, broadcast on the November 23, 2002 edition of WWE Confidential on Spike TV, were also recovered. The main focus of the Elimination Chamber match, which was for the World Heavyweight Championship, was the rivalry between Shawn Michaels and Triple H. Michaels, after his retirement in 1997 due to a back injury, had made sporadic and conflictive appearances on WWE television as a figure of authority, opposing Triple H, which reflected the real tensions between both friends. After more than five years out of action, Michaels returned to the ring at SummerSlam 2002 for a “no-holds-barred” street fight against Triple H. It was a physical battle that lasted 30 minutes, dispelling doubts about his ability to fight. Michaels came to that event hoping for a happy ending he had never had in the business, even though Triple H left him battered with several sledgehammer blows to the back.Michaels returned to television and quickly became immersed in a war for the World Heavyweight Championship. Triple H had won the title in September, after Brock Lesnar made the WWE championship exclusive to SmackDown. He successfully defended the title on five occasions, including victories over Kane and Rob Van Dam, but in the period leading up to Survivor Series, General Manager Eric Bischoff introduced the concept of Elimination Chamber on television.Of course it went well, and I felt good, and before I could make a decision, I got a call from Vince, asking how I felt, and of course [he said] “I have an idea”.
Shawn Michaels
When we got to the Garden and entered the Chamber, it was the first time any of us had seen it. It was a concept I presented and drew on a napkin, and then someone else designed it.
Triple H
We didn’t see it until the day of the show at Madison Square Garden. And it’s one of those things that you can tell was made by someone who isn’t a wrestling person. It was very clumsy, very dangerous. It’s made of real, grated steel; you probably could have made it out of rubber and you wouldn’t have noticed the difference. The walls were very rigid, and they didn’t make any noise when you hit them, so it hurts like hell and sounds like shit.
Chris Jericho
We saw it for the first time and said “Oh, my God! Who built this?”. It was the most horrible thing I’ve ever seen in my life. It took us all day to figure out, like, “How does this work? The doors are going to open… and what is this made of?”. Everything hurt, it was just hard, rigid steel. Even the chain walls. Everyone was saying “Oh, yeah, but it’s a chain”. Yeah, it’s a chain, it moved half an inch and then it was like hitting a bag full of bricks.
Triple H
The first thing that came to mind was: “What can we do with this that the fans might not have seen before?”.
Shawn Michaels
The cage, suspended above the ring from the MSG ceiling, descended slowly as the already familiar “cage fight” music played and the lights flashed dramatically. Jim Ross increased the tension in the commentary. “Ten tons. Two miles of chain used.” In the backstage area, Terri Runnels attempted to interview Shawn Michaels in the bowels of Madison Square Garden, only to be interrupted by Randy Orton’s “RNN” news stunt, as the young star continued to recover from an injury. Then, it was back to business. A typical video of the time, which showed clips and highlights of the weeks and months of preparation, focused particularly on Michaels and Triple H, their SummerSlam match and Michaels’ return to television. There were also clips of each of the participants attacking each other, without a single word of voiceover. Jonathan Coachman has a final word with Triple H, who is with Ric Flair. Coachman: Triple H, in a few moments, the most inhumane and vile match in WWE history will take place, as you must defend your World Heavyweight Championship against five other challengers inside the Elimination Chamber. Triple H: You know, Coach, back in September, I was considered the World Heavyweight Champion because I was the best, because I am the best. In the last three months I have beaten everyone who has been put in front of me; I have overcome every obstacle. But was that enough? No, it wasn’t. You see, I am the object of much envy, Coach. So what it comes down to is tonight. Inside 10 tons of steel, Elimination Chamber, I will face five of the best in this business. And the fact is, when tonight is over, Coach, I will leave Madison Square Garden still being the best. Still being the game. And still THE World Heavyweight Champion because I am like that. Damn. Good. But for now? I have a first-class ticket to hell, and I just want to know who’s coming with me. Bischoff comes to the ring to promote the specifications of the Elimination Chamber, hitting each element of the cage with a piece of steel in his hand to demonstrate that there are no tricks like plastic or rubber in this cage: everything is real, and the snaps of metal on metal prove it. Bischoff: Two miles of chain, more than 10 tons of solid steel designed to punish the human body, and six Raw superstars willing to go through hell for the final prize: the World Heavyweight Championship. He reviewed the rules, because the fans had never seen it before. The already familiar terms were simple: adjacent to each of the four corners of the ring, there were “bulletproof plexiglass and steel” pods, with a man locked inside each pod. The other two participants begin the match, and at intervals of time the pods will open one at a time, letting a superstar into the match. Eliminations occur by pinfall or submission, until one person remains. The six competitors settled into their final rituals backstage, but something occurred to Michaels and Triple H moments before going out to the ring.I was trying to think what I could do, and I also thought about ways I could use it to my advantage.
Rob Van Dam
Bischoff made his exit, and Jericho is the first man to come out to the ring. Instead of his usual entrance theme, Jericho enters with a live performance via satellite of “King of My World” by Saliva from “The World” in Times Square in New York, formerly known as “WWF New York”, a nightclub and themed restaurant in New York City. Booker T came out next. The five-time (five times, five times, five times, five times) WCW champion looks apprehensive as he emerges from the video screen doors that serve as the entrance to the short ramp to the camera.It was the most complex match to put together in history. We had never seen it before. And Shawn said “My God, we haven’t prepared a finish”. I was like “Oh, I’ll say it there. Don’t worry”. He and I just had chemistry together. We did SummerSlam, I hadn’t worked in five years, we never talked about it, right? We just did it. That’s how the business was back then.
Triple H
As he gets excited in the middle of the ring, he unleashes an explosion of pyrotechnic flames that dance towards the sky. Kane is next to come out, and he summons fire from the ring posts before quickly entering his own pod.It was totally intimidating, just seeing something like that. The architecture was totally unreal.
Booker T
Then it was Shawn Michaels’ turn, coming out for his second match after back surgery that seemingly ended his career, to fill the final pod. He does his full pose, with pyrotechnics and bright entrance gear on top of, what quickly became clear, were very brown tights.We had seen photos, but we hadn’t really seen it. People described it as interesting, but I described it as overwhelming.
Kane
With the pods full, Rob Van Dam came out as one of the first two competitors to have to move and work inside this chamber. Triple H followed shortly after, briefly flanked by Flair. Ominously, Ross revealed: “Triple H hasn’t won, 0-6, at Survivor Series.” An earlier comment from JR also noted four title changes early in the night. Triple H handed the title to Earl Hebner, who handed it to another official who then left and closed the structure. The bell rang and the match began. While the fans chanted for Van Dam, he took the initial advantage over Triple H, who received the first blow on the steel when RVD performed a back body drop over the top rope to the outside. RVD also slammed Triple H against the steel chain door four times; the last one actually caused the door to burst open. Triple H was already bleeding.Clearly, he had gotten a crazy haircut and a strange outfit. I remember there was a moment when we were getting dressed backstage and I looked over at him. He had his hair down and he put on this brown thing and looked at me and said “What?”. And I was like “Hmm, nothing”.
Triple H
They take advantage of the structure from the beginning, as Van Dam throws Jericho and begins to climb the chain. Jericho jumped and pulled Van Dam’s leg through the sheath. Triple H climbed to the adjacent corner, and they briefly work together before RVD takes control. Appropriately, the Jericho pod was the first to open, and he and Triple H went to work on Van Dam for the next few minutes. RVD finally regained some control, gave Jericho a clothesline to the outside, and went back to the top rope. In one of the famous spots of this match, he jumped towards Jericho, missed, but grabbed the chain to save himself “like Spiderman”, as Ross said. Then he connected a flying cross-body on Jericho. Jericho and Triple H would quickly regain control with a double irish whip on RVD against one of the steel posts holding the chain, followed by three more blows against the chain and the post from both men. The countdown clock sounds again, the lights flash, and Booker T comes out and cleans house in the middle of the ring. Van Dam, Triple H, and Jericho are each on different sides outside the ring long enough for Booker to perform an Elimination Chamber Spin-a-roonie. Booker T finally connected a scissors kick on Triple H, Jericho blinded Booker and Van Dam sent Booker T flying out of the ring. It was at this point that everything started to go wrong. RVD went to the top rope to prepare a five-star frog splash, but then turned around and instead climbed to the top of one of the pods. He crouched on the edge of the pod, grabbing the chain above for support and did his best to stand up, but couldn’t.I remember the first time I hit the chain wall, I collapsed on the floor, like “Oh, my God”.
Triple H
The pods weren’t tall enough to really stand on, but they were tall enough to try to stand on. It was a disaster.
Chris Jericho
Triple H writhed in pain, kicking his legs over and over on the canvas. It didn’t take long for him to realize that he wasn’t just selling the move.I jumped a little too far and curled up into a ball, and my instincts told me to stretch my legs, and somehow, I think my shin crossed his throat with the weight.
Rob Van Dam
Van Dam lands on my throat, a completely crazy and random moment in time. I was at an awkward angle and couldn’t stand up straight.
Triple H
He had to alter my five-star frog splash due to the structure. When I looked at it, I thought everything was going to be okay. I mean, I knew it was a little close, but I thought I could fall directly on him.
Rob Van Dam
Hebner bent down to check on Triple H and seemed to subtly point to the back that something had gone very wrong while a replay of the moment was being broadcast on a split screen. After the replay ended, Hebner stood over Triple H and raised his arms in a deliberate X to again indicate the injury.It seemed good when we put it together. It landed in my throat, and I couldn’t breathe and I couldn’t speak.
Triple H
There was still a match in progress, and Van Dam was also selling a leg injury. Booker T connected with a missile dropkick on Van Dam and got a shocking three count for the first elimination. Booker T then turns around to try to cover Triple H, who can barely put his leg on the bottom rope to break the count. Jericho and Booker T fought a bit, but then things got even crazier. The countdown began, the lights flickered, and another pod opened. Jericho thinks it’s going to be Michaels, but then, before he realizes what’s happening, he’s attacked from behind by Kane.They sent a doctor to the ring, who was talking to me through the ropes, and I was like “Don’t stop this, I’ve got this.” But I couldn’t speak.
Triple H
They open the wrong door. They open the door for Kane to come out instead of Shawn Michaels, so everything we had devised in the backstage, and all this effort and time that we had basically wasted… we threw it out the window. We had to improvise everything on the fly.
Chris Jericho
Instead of Michaels coming in and cleaning the house, as planned, Kane does the work. Kane threw Jericho against the steel chains and then, in another iconic moment, Jericho was sent headfirst through a plexiglass that wasn’t meant to break that way, opening Jericho in the process. Triple H slowly got up in the corner, only to receive three punches and a clothesline from Kane, followed by a Flair-style face bump.Jericho and I laugh about this all the time. I had just gotten hurt, Jericho didn’t know, and then they opened the wrong pod. Jericho came up to me and said “Oh, my God, they opened the wrong pod!”. I was like “I’m hurt!”. He’s looking like “Oh, my God!”. He just freaked out, the worst possible scenario is happening at that moment.
Triple H
Jericho hit Booker T with a low blow, followed by a chokeslam from Kane and a lionsault from Jericho, who climbed up and eliminated Booker by pinfall. While Michaels continued to prowl inside his chamber, Triple H continued to have labored and audible breathing as he, Kane, and Jericho continued. Finally, the countdown clock rang again, and Michaels finally emerged from his pod.I tried to get up and help [Jericho] and then Kane hit me and I said “Oh, I’m down. I’m going to go over here and stay in the corner for a minute”.
Triple H
Things briefly turned in Kane’s favor when he connected a two-handed chokebomb on Jericho, a chokeslam on Michaels and, in a particularly difficult moment for Triple H, another chokeslam. After a final chokeslam for Jericho, Kane tried to lift Triple H for a tombstone, only for Michaels to recover and connect a superkick.
Kane sat down, but quickly received a pedigree, and then a lionsault, and in the blink of an eye Jericho had eliminated Kane.
The boys were constantly falling on that grate, and not only were they falling on it, but they were also taking horrible bumps on it.
Chris Jericho
I don’t think people at home appreciate how tough the cage was outside the ring, or how relentless the chains that surrounded the ring were.
Kane
Michaels and Triple H fought in the ring, both fell, and Michaels got up, only to receive a running bulldog and a lionsault. After the move had eliminated Booker T and Kane from the match, Jericho and the crowd seemed stunned after Michaels kicked out at the last moment.
After countering in the corner, Michaels caught Jericho with a moonsault and then locked in the Walls of Jericho. Triple H interrupted with a DDT. Triple H pulled Jericho off Michaels as he went for the pin, however, because he wanted to be the one to eliminate his rivals, and then they fought. Jericho went for a maneuver from the top rope, was almost caught in a pedigree, and then Jericho locked in the Walls of Jericho on Triple H. Triple H went up for a rope break, although Jericho wouldn’t have had to release in this no-disqualification match, but Jericho dragged him back to the middle. They took enough time for Michaels to get up, and he connected a superkick on Jericho to win the pinfall. It came down to the two bitter rivals, Triple H and Shawn Michaels.
They had reached the climax of the combat, only there was a big problem.Thank God he was able to get out of the ring and continue the match. Once I was eliminated, it was just him and Shawn and they were out there for another five or six minutes.
Chris Jericho
They fought for what seemed like centuries, in and out of the ring, on the canvas and on the steel. Triple H finally catapulted Michaels face-first through another of the plexiglass. Michaels finally regained control, climbed to the top of the pod, and successfully connected a flying elbow from there, with much less disastrous results. Slowly he went for the cover, but then he thought better of it. He went to the corner, and the crowd, in its emotionally exhausted state, fell almost completely silent, save for some applause to the rhythm of Michaels tuning the band for Sweet Chin Music. It turned to boos when Triple H countered the attempt and connected with a pedigree. After almost 30 seconds, Triple H reached Michaels, covered him with an arm and only got a two count. Triple H argued with Hebner, went for another pedigree and received a back-body drop.We got to the end and it’s me and Shawn. Shawn hasn’t fought, it’s the second time in five years. He’s waiting for me to call him, only I say “I really can’t” and I’m trying to talk to the referee. It was a complete and utter disaster.
Triple H
I didn’t really have time to take in that it was Madison Square Garden, or that it was for the title or anything like that.
Shawn Michaels
It was a disaster, but it’s one of those things, in the end. For Shawn to have that moment… for us, in our generation, in the damn Garden, in this new match, in the Chamber, and now he’s the world champion. It simply couldn’t have been bigger, it couldn’t have been anything else.
Triple H
As Michaels put the title on his shoulder, a quick replay was broadcast as he finally took in the moment. “Shawn Michaels is back in the record books. Shawn Michaels is back on top. Shawn Michaels is the man. Shawn Michaels is the World Heavyweight Champion,” Ross shouted. Hebner briefly raised Michaels’ hand, and Survivor Series 2002 faded to black.It was this whole comedy of errors that you look back on and it’s like, “God, I can’t believe it turned into what it turned into”, because the first one, technically, was a disaster.
Chris Jericho
We had to watch it again, I think the second year, to remember what we did. I thought, “Hey, this actually turned out pretty well.” And it usually does. Inside the cage, whatever mistakes happen, nobody knows, except the guys, and that’s how it goesWe had to watch it again, I think the second year, to remember what we did. I thought, “Hey, this actually turned out pretty well.” And it usually does. Inside the cage, whatever mistakes happen, nobody knows, except the guys, and that’s how it goes
