En la lucha libre profesional se realizan muchos tipos de combates de lucha libre , a veces llamados "combates conceptuales" o " combates con trucos " en la jerga del negocio . Algunos combates con trucos son más comunes que otros y se utilizan a menudo para avanzar o concluir una historia . A lo largo de las décadas de historia de la lucha libre profesional , algunos combates con trucos han generado muchas variaciones del concepto central.
El combate individual es el más común de todos los combates de lucha libre profesional, en el que participan solo dos competidores que compiten por una caída . La victoria se obtiene por pinfall , sumisión , nocaut , conteo fuera o descalificación . Una de las variaciones más comunes del combate individual es restringir los posibles medios para la victoria.
En un combate a ciegas, los dos participantes deben llevar una venda sobre los ojos durante toda la duración del combate. Un ejemplo conocido de este combate es el de WrestleMania VII entre Jake "The Snake" Roberts y Rick Martel .
Un combate sin conteo es un combate individual en el que ambos competidores pueden permanecer fuera del ring sin que se les aplique el conteo. Un ejemplo conocido es Vengeance (2003) entre Stephanie McMahon y Sable , que ganó Sable. [1]
Un combate de reglas de lucha libre pura apareció originalmente en Ring of Honor (ROH), y todavía existe como las "reglas oficiales" para el Campeonato Puro de ROH . Según las reglas, a cada luchador se le permiten solo tres roturas de cuerdas; una vez que se hayan usado todas, el luchador no puede usar las cuerdas para escapar de inmovilizaciones o sumisiones. Los puños cerrados son ilegales y la primera infracción (si es vista por el oficial) resulta en una advertencia. Una segunda infracción resulta en descalificación. Los luchadores deben darse la mano antes y después del combate.
Un combate de desafío especial se usaba a menudo en World Championship Wrestling (WCW) para referirse a un combate individual en el que el campeón no defendía el título, por lo que el título no cambiaba de manos si el campeón perdía el combate. Se podía anunciar por nombre, como un combate sin título o como un combate individual. También se usaba en formato de equipos. El campeón mundial de televisión Arn Anderson contra Paul Orndorff en Clash of the Champions XI fue un ejemplo. Aunque Orndorff ganó el combate, Anderson siguió siendo campeón.
En el combate en camilla, un luchador debe incapacitar a su oponente hasta el punto de poder subirlo a una camilla y llevarlo rodando hasta la línea de meta para obtener la victoria; generalmente, pasando una línea en la parte superior de la rampa de entrada. El primer combate de este tipo era diferente, ya que un luchador perdía si, después de ser empujado fuera del ring, cuatro médicos podían cargarlo en una camilla, levantarlo por completo y comenzar a caminar con él.
Un combate de campeón contra campeón también puede hacer referencia a un combate Winner Takes All, pero en algunos casos el título de cada superestrella no se disputa en el combate o solo hay un título en juego. Durante la segunda extensión de marca de la WWE , este tipo de combate se usó con frecuencia en Survivor Series , sin defender ninguno de los títulos, hasta 2021, cuando los combates de campeón contra campeón fueron reemplazados por WarGames .
Este evento consta de un conjunto de reglas único en comparación con un evento de lucha libre profesional tradicional, ya que cada combate debe terminar en nocaut o sumisión. El ring de lucha tradicional se reemplaza por una lona sin cuerdas ni tensores.
Este evento presenta combates de shoot trabajados en un estilo que imita los primeros días de MMA y catch wrestling . Es común que los competidores de Bloodsport tengan algún conocimiento en otros deportes de combate y/o MMA, así como en lucha libre profesional, ya que estos combates uno contra uno a menudo parecen duros y tienen una sensación de lucha libre clásica al estilo Shoot . [2]
Como resultado de la pandemia de COVID-19, las promociones de lucha libre se vieron obligadas a realizar eventos a puerta cerrada a partir de marzo de 2020. WWE presentó Raw Underground en agosto de ese año. Fue presentado y comentado por Shane McMahon en la tercera hora de Raw y no se llevó a cabo en la arena, sino en un entorno de almacén, con solo luchadores y bailarines presentes. Los combates fueron de estilo work shoot breves y podían terminar por nocaut, sumisión o por decisión de McMahon. Los segmentos de Raw Underground se emitieron del 3 de agosto al 21 de septiembre de 2020 en 8 episodios de Raw. [3] [4]
El primer combate de NXT Underground tuvo lugar en el episodio del 4 de julio de 2023 de NXT entre Eddy Thorpe y Damon Kemp , para el cual Thorpe buscó la ayuda de Gable Steveson (el hermano de Kemp en la vida real) para entrenarlo. Thorpe ganó el combate. [5] En el episodio del 26 de diciembre de 2023 de NXT, Thorpe derrotó a Dijak en el segundo combate de NXT Underground. [6] El primer combate femenino de NXT Underground tuvo lugar en la semana 2 de NXT Spring Breakin' (2024) , donde Lola Vice derrotó a Natalya . [7]
El Battle Royale es un tipo de combate con varios competidores en el que los luchadores son eliminados hasta que solo queda uno. Los Battle Royale típicos comienzan con 20 o más participantes en el ring al mismo tiempo, quienes luego son eliminados al ser lanzados por encima de la cuerda superior y hacer que ambos pies toquen el suelo del lugar.
El Battlebowl es una variante de dos anillos de un Battle Royale. En estos combates, los luchadores comienzan en un anillo e intentan lanzar a los luchadores al segundo anillo, después de lo cual pueden ser eliminados al ser arrojados fuera de ese anillo. El último luchador restante en el primer anillo puede descansar hasta que solo quede un luchador en el segundo anillo, después de lo cual luchan en ambos anillos hasta que uno es eliminado y se declara un ganador, de manera similar a un torneo de doble eliminación . Esto fue realizado por World Championship Wrestling en el evento Starrcade de 1991 , pero los futuros combates de Battlebowl se disputaron bajo las reglas normales de Battle Royale.
La zona de batalla presenta una cantidad indefinida de hombres en una eliminatoria de un solo ring sobre la cuerda superior. Una batalla campal típica, excepto que esta presenta mesas cubiertas con alambre de púas, chinchetas y bombillas en el exterior del ring, que pueden atrapar a los luchadores cuando son arrojados fuera del ring.
El Bunkhouse Stampede de la National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) involucraba a luchadores que usaban lo que se describía como "equipamiento de bunkhouse" (botas de vaquero, jeans , camisetas) en lugar de sus mallas de lucha normales y no solo permitía sino que alentaba el uso de armas . En 1988, la NWA nombró un PPV en honor al Bunkhouse Stampede , encabezado por un combate de Bunkhouse Stampede celebrado dentro de una jaula. [8] Recientemente, el combate ha sido revitalizado por Ricky Morton de Rock n' Roll Express en su academia de lucha libre en Chuckey, Tennessee.
Una batalla real con reglas hardcore (sin descalificaciones ni conteos fuera) en la que participan varios competidores en el ring al mismo tiempo. La lucha puede durar entre 15 y 20 minutos. No se elimina a todos los participantes al ser arrojados fuera del ring con ambos pies tocando el suelo. Si se inmoviliza o se obliga a rendir al actual campeón Hardcore, el participante victorioso se convierte en el campeón interino. Quienquiera que sea la persona que tenga el título al final del límite de tiempo será declarado ganador de la lucha y campeón oficial. El ejemplo más famoso es la Hardcore Title Battle Royal de WrestleMania 2000 de la WWF .
Una batalla real de última sangre es esencialmente una lucha de primera sangre con varios competidores. Todos los competidores comienzan al mismo tiempo y los luchadores son eliminados cuando comienzan a sangrar. El ganador es el último luchador en la lucha que no sangra. Esta lucha se llevó a cabo en la Tri-State Wrestling Association, predecesora de Extreme Championship Wrestling . [9]
Generalmente se usa en TNA / Impact Wrestling y comienza con los luchadores rodeando el ring en lugar de dentro de él. Al comienzo del combate, luchan para que la mitad de ellos ingresen al ring, momento en el que la última persona en pie gana la batalla real.
El Cage Reverse Battle Royale es otra variante de TNA de este tipo de combate. En realidad, tiene tres etapas: comienza la primera etapa como un battle royale de adentro hacia afuera con 15 o más luchadores involucrados. Los primeros siete en ingresar al ring por encima de la jaula superior avanzarán a la segunda etapa, que es un combate de guanteletes. Cuando llega la etapa final, solo dos luchadores lucharán en un combate individual que se decide por pinfall o sumisión. [10]
Una batalla real de semifinales consiste en una batalla real en la que, cuando queda un número específico de luchadoras, el combate termina y las que quedan se colocan en un combate de lucha libre estándar por el premio en juego. Un ejemplo de esto ocurrió en un episodio de enero de 2024 de NXT , donde 20 mujeres compitieron en una batalla real que se convirtió en un Fatal 4-Way una vez que quedaron cuatro competidoras.
En All Elite Wrestling (AEW), se le conoce como Dynamite Dozen Battle Royale , ya que doce competidores compiten hasta que se reduce a dos, y hay un episodio posterior donde compiten los dos finales, en este caso, "AEW Dynamite Diamond Ring". [11] [12]
En New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), el New Japan Rumble 2021 en Wrestle Kingdom 15 se llevó a cabo como una batalla real de semifinales. Chase Owens , Bad Luck Fale , Tetsuya Bushi y Toru Yano fueron los cuatro finalistas que compitieron en un combate por el campeonato al día siguiente.
El combate en equipo Battle Royale consiste en equipos de luchadores designados con dos miembros en el equipo. Este combate utiliza las reglas normales de Battle Royale, los equipos pueden ser eliminados cuando uno o ambos compañeros son lanzados por encima de la cuerda superior con ambos pies tocando el suelo. Este combate se lleva a cabo de manera similar a un Battle Royale, pero en estos casos, ambos luchadores se consideran activos al mismo tiempo y no hay equipos utilizando la estipulación de equipos de tornado.
Esta variación del combate en parejas se utilizó durante el Draft de la WWE de 2011 el 25 de abril de 2011; en el que el equipo del luchador tiene que eliminar a todos los miembros del equipo contrario, de forma muy similar a un combate en parejas de eliminación en el que el luchador perdedor de un equipo, que acaba de ser arrojado por encima de las cuerdas del ring con ambos pies tocando el suelo, debe regresar a su vestuario. El equipo ganador recibe una selección número 1 del draft para su respectiva marca. Otra versión notable de este combate también se utilizó en WrestleMania XV .
Creado por la WCW en 1995, el Battle Royale de la Tercera Guerra Mundial involucraba una configuración de tres cuadriláteros y 60 competidores; 20 luchadores comenzaban en cada uno de los tres cuadriláteros, en los que luchaban bajo las reglas regulares del Battle Royale. Una vez que quedaban 30 competidores (excepto en 1997, donde el número era 20), todos los competidores ingresaban al cuadrilátero central y continuaban bajo las reglas regulares hasta que solo quedaba un luchador en pie.
Un combate cinematográfico no es técnicamente un tipo de combate en sí, sino más bien, es un término utilizado para referirse a combates que se producen con varias técnicas cinematográficas . Las reglas varían de un combate a otro, pero generalmente tienen una base en la lucha libre hardcore. A diferencia de un combate de lucha libre normal, que se realiza en una sola toma y normalmente frente a una audiencia en vivo, los combates cinematográficos se graban durante varias horas con varias escenas filmadas, similar a la realización cinematográfica, con una producción de mayor presupuesto involucrada. El producto final (el combate completo) generalmente dura entre 20 y 40 minutos y se transmite en un momento posterior, generalmente para un evento de pago por visión. También suelen filmarse en el lugar o en un set hecho a medida. [13] [14] [15]
Aunque no se consideró una lucha cinematográfica en ese momento, la Hollywood Backlot Brawl entre Roddy Piper y Goldust en WrestleMania XII en 1996 se considera una de las primeras luchas cinematográficas de la World Wrestling Federation (ahora WWE ), ya que utilizó técnicas que ahora aparecen en las luchas cinematográficas. A diferencia de las luchas cinematográficas futuras (que normalmente se emiten durante un segmento), la lucha se emitió durante varios segmentos entre luchas dentro del ring, y presentó segmentos pregrabados fuera del Arrowhead Pond de los dos peleando, así como Piper "persiguiendo" el Cadillac de oro macizo de Goldust en un Ford Bronco blanco en una obvia referencia al caso de asesinato de OJ Simpson que estaba en curso en ese momento . ( Vince McMahon mencionó en los comentarios sin romper completamente el kayfabe que "las imágenes parecían terriblemente familiares"; en realidad, imágenes reutilizadas de la infame persecución de Bronco de Simpson se usaron como parte del combate). El combate finalmente terminó en el ring en vivo, cuando Piper desnudó a Goldust hasta quedar con lencería de mujer y lo besó como parte de "convertirlo en un hombre". [16] WrestleMania XII presentó un segundo combate cinematográfico entre " The Huckster " y " Nacho Man ".
En SummerSlam 1996 , The Undertaker se enfrentó a Mankind en una " Boiler Room Brawl " que fue en gran parte pregrabada, incorporando accesorios y ángulos de cámara poco ortodoxos.
En 2016, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA, ahora Impact Wrestling) celebró un combate titulado "Final Deletion" entre los hermanos Matt Hardy y Jeff Hardy para el episodio del 5 de julio de Impact Wrestling , que se filmó en el complejo de Matt Hardy. Fue un combate de lucha libre hardcore con caídas contando en cualquier lugar. [17] La secuela fue una pelea entre The Broken Hardys y Decay titulada "Delete or Decay". [18] The Broken Hardys y Decay continuaron su feudo en Bound for Glory , donde Decay perdió su Campeonato Mundial en Parejas de TNA ante The Hardys en "The Great War". The Hardys emitieron una invitación abierta en equipo en su complejo en el episodio del 15 de diciembre de Impact Wrestling , titulado Total Nonstop Deletion . El evento principal fue "Tag Team Apocalypto", donde The Hardys derrotaron por última vez a Decay. [19]
Aunque no se disputó como un combate, WWE siguió esto poco después y filmó una pelea de estilo cinematográfico entre The New Day ( Big E , Kofi Kingston y Xavier Woods ) y The Wyatt Family ( Bray Wyatt , Erick Rowan y Braun Strowman ) que se llevó a cabo en The Wyatt Family Compound y se mostró en el episodio del 11 de julio de 2016 de WWE Raw . [20] Luego, la WWE grabó su propio combate cinematográfico para su PPV Payback de 2017 , llamado House of Horrors match entre Randy Orton y Bray Wyatt. Similar al combate "Final Deletion" en TNA, este se llevó a cabo en una casa abandonada, pero en lugar de que las caídas contaran en cualquier lugar, este combate tuvo que terminar en el ring en la arena en la que se llevó a cabo el evento (las escenas de House of Horrors fueron pregrabadas, mientras que la parte dentro del ring fue en vivo). [21] La próxima lucha cinematográfica ocurriría en el episodio del 19 de marzo de 2018 de Raw , que contó con Matt Hardy, quien había regresado a la WWE y se convirtió en "Woken" Matt Hardy, contra Bray Wyatt y se llamó "Ultimate Deletion"; esto fue como el "Final Deletion", incluido el hecho de que se llevó a cabo en el complejo de Matt. [22]
Los combates cinematográficos se volvieron más frecuentes en 2020 como resultado de la pandemia de COVID-19 ; la pandemia comenzó a afectar a la industria de la lucha libre profesional en marzo de ese año, obligando a las promociones a realizar eventos a puerta cerrada . WWE realizaría varios combates cinematográficos en sus PPV entre marzo y agosto, siendo muy elogiado por los dos que ocurrieron en WrestleMania 36 ; un combate Boneyard entre The Undertaker y AJ Styles , que fue un combate Buried Alive celebrado en un cementerio construido a medida en el área de Orlando , [23] [13] y un combate Firefly Fun House entre John Cena y "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt. (Aunque el combate terminó con The Fiend inmovilizando a Cena en un ring, el combate en sí fue una secuencia onírica de la carrera de Cena, mostrando sus defectos de carácter percibidos; los diversos segmentos se filmaron en la sede de Titan Towers de la WWE en Stamford, Connecticut ). [24] [25] Después de esto, ocurrieron combates cinematográficos en Money in the Bank en mayo, que fueron los combates de escaleras homónimos del evento que ocurrieron en la sede de la WWE, [26] un Backlot Brawl entre Adam Cole y Velveteen Dream en el estacionamiento de Full Sail University en NXT TakeOver: In Your House en junio, [27] un combate individual producido cinematográficamente entre Edge y Randy Orton en Backlash (anunciado como "El mejor combate de lucha libre de la historia") también en junio, [28] y un Wyatt Swamp Fight entre Bray Wyatt y Braun Strowman en The Horror Show en Extreme Rules en julio. [29] Después de la introducción de los escenarios WWE ThunderDome y Capitol Wrestling Center (CWC) en agosto y octubre, respectivamente, el uso de combates cinematográficos se redujo en gran medida, ya que estos nuevos escenarios permitieron a los fanáticos asistir a los eventos virtualmente. Para ir con la temática de Halloween en NXT : Halloween Havoc en octubre, se llevó a cabo una lucha Haunted House of Terrors entre Dexter Lumis y Cameron Grimes , que fue similar a la lucha House of Horrors de Payback 2017. [30] Las luchas que involucran a Randy Orton, "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt y Alexa Bliss también han usado técnicas cinematográficas, como la lucha Firefly Inferno entre Orton y The Fiend enTLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs en diciembre, donde Orton prendió fuego a todo el cuerpo de The Fiend, [31] y una lucha intergénero entre Orton y Bliss en Fastlane en marzo de 2021, donde Bliss usó poderes sobrenaturales. [32] Desde la reanudación de las giras en vivo en julio de 2021, la WWE dejó de producir luchas cinematográficas.
AEW también incorporó combates cinematográficos durante las restricciones pandémicas en 2020 y 2021, en particular el combate Stadium Stampede en Double or Nothing 2020 , que fue un combate de arena vacía de 5 contra 5 en el estadio TIAA Bank Field . [33] [14] Durante ese período, AEW presentó al menos un combate cinematográfico en cada uno de sus PPV: un "Tooth and Nail match" en All Out 2020 entre Dr. Britt Baker, DMD y Big Swole en el consultorio dental de la vida real de Baker, [34] un combate titulado "The Elite Deletion" en Full Gear 2020 , con Matt Hardy contra Sammy Guevara y similar a los otros combates "Deletion" que involucran a Hardy, [15] y una pelea callejera en equipos que enfrentó a Darby Allin y Sting contra Team Taz ( Brian Cage y Ricky Starks ) en Revolution 2021 , que se llevó a cabo en un almacén abandonado en algún lugar de Atlanta , Georgia. [35] En Double or Nothing 2021, el combate Stadium Stampede fue un combate cinematográfico híbrido con la primera mitad grabada en el TIAA Bank Field y luego concluyendo en vivo en el Daily's Place adyacente . El público presente vio la primera mitad del combate en pantallas de video antes de que la acción se extendiera al anfiteatro. Este sería el último combate cinematográfico de AEW producido antes de que la compañía reanudara la gira en vivo en julio de ese año.
Impact Wrestling también volvería a producir combates cinematográficos en 2021 cuando Ethan Page luchó contra su alter ego "The Karate Man" en Hard to Kill en un combate cinematográfico al estilo Mortal Kombat que vio a The Karate Man "matar" a Page en lo que sería la última aparición de Page con Impact antes de irse a AEW.
Algunas luchas tienen un contenedor estacionado dentro o cerca del ring, con el objetivo de atrapar al luchador oponente en él. Todas estas luchas se realizan bajo reglas hardcore, y muchas de ellas toman el nombre del contenedor, como Ambulance match y Casket match. Un tipo similar de lucha tiene como objetivo contener a los luchadores oponentes de alguna manera, y la lucha a menudo toma el nombre del dispositivo de contención, por ejemplo, la Camilla. Ninguna de estas luchas puede terminar en pinfall, sumisión, conteo fuera o descalificación.
Los contenedores comunes utilizados para estos combates son ataúdes (conectados al personaje de Deadman de The Undertaker , ya sea usando un ataúd típico o un ataúd de doble profundidad y doble ancho, a veces especialmente diseñado para oponentes específicos a los que se enfrenta The Undertaker), ambulancias , contenedores de basura , coches fúnebres (conocidos como "Last Ride match", también conectado al truco de The Undertaker) y camillas .
Un Ambulance Match se pelea bajo reglas hardcore, sin pinfalls, sin sumisiones, sin descalificaciones, sin conteos fuera y la única forma de ganar es que un luchador fuerce a su oponente a entrar en la parte trasera de una ambulancia y cierre la puerta. El primer Ambulance Match tuvo lugar en Survivor Series 2003, donde Kane derrotó a Shane McMahon . El segundo tuvo lugar en Elimination Chamber (2012) , que también involucró a Kane como uno de los competidores. Su oponente fue John Cena, quien ganó el combate, donde se agregó una regla adicional en la que la ambulancia tiene que irse para ganar. El tercer Ambulance Match fue parte del Three Stages of Hell Match en WWE Payback el 16 de junio de 2013, en Rosemont, Illinois, entre John Cena y Ryback por el Campeonato de la WWE . El más reciente fue en NXT Halloween Havoc en octubre de 2022, entre Julius Creed y Damon Kemp . La famosa pelea "Hell of War" de Lucha Underground de 2017 entre Dante Fox ( AR Fox ) y Killshot ( Swerve Strickland ) fue la única lucha de ambulancia de esa promoción.
Un combate Buried Alive es uno en el que el objetivo es que un luchador lance a su oponente a una tumba excavada en un gran montículo de tierra colocado fuera del ring. Una vez en la tumba, el luchador debe enterrar a su oponente en tierra y tierra a discreción del árbitro. [36] A menudo se ponen a disposición equipos que van desde palas y carretillas hasta excavadoras para enterrar completamente al oponente. El combate Buried Alive es uno de los tres combates característicos de The Undertaker (los combates Casket y Last Ride son los otros).
En WrestleMania 36 se llevó a cabo un combate cinematográfico Buried Alive entre The Undertaker y AJ Styles , conocido como "Boneyard match". El combate se llevó a cabo al aire libre en un entorno parecido a un cementerio cerca de un almacén abandonado en lugar de en un ring tradicional. [37] [38]
El Casket Match (también conocido como Coffin Match ) tiene un ataúd cerca del ring, con el objetivo del combate de atrapar al luchador oponente dentro. [39] El Casket Match comenzó su vida como un combate de ataúd único en la década de 1970 entre Dusty Rhodes e Ivan Koloff . [40] [41] [42] El Coffin Match fue revivido como uno de los combates característicos de The Undertaker y apareció por primera vez en televisión en Survivor Series como el combate de ataúd contra Kamala . Antes de eso, en un house show el 14 de julio de 1991, Ultimate Warrior derrotó a Undertaker en un Casket Match en St. Louis, Missouri en el Busch Stadium. Ha habido 17 combates de ataúd, 11 de los cuales han sido ganados por The Undertaker. La vigésima edición se llevó a cabo en Halloween Havoc y la primera después del retiro de The Undertaker involucró a Grayson Waller contra Apollo Crews en el que Crews ganó.
Además de la WWE, el Casket Match ha sido adoptado para su uso en Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , All Elite Wrestling y Lucha Underground , con Lucha Underground denominándolo como el combate Grave Consequences (posteriormente Graver Consequences). Otra versión atenuada del Casket Match es cuando una victoria no se obtiene colocando al oponente en el ataúd sino por pinfall o sumisión. Sin embargo, el luchador derrotado luego es colocado en el ataúd.
El combate Last Rites es una variación de Total Nonstop Action Wrestling en la que se baja un ataúd al centro del ring y el objetivo es hacer que tu oponente entre en el ataúd, que se eleva hasta el techo después del combate. El primer combate Last Rites se llevó a cabo entre Sting y Abyss . Vince Russo ideó este combate; se percibió como un desastre porque ninguno de los luchadores podía trabajar correctamente debido a la ubicación del ataúd en el centro del ring, lo que limitaba y obstruía su espacio de trabajo. El combate fue un fracaso tal que durante el combate, la multitud enfurecida gritó "¡Despidan a Russo!" tan fuerte que los comentaristas tuvieron que gritar en sus micrófonos para ser escuchados.
En 2023, TNA Wrestling recuperó el combate Last Rites, pero lo modificó para que fuera más un combate de ataúd básico. [43]
Un dumpster match es un combate hardcore sin descalificación, sin sumisión, sin conteo y sin caída en el que el único objetivo para ganar es obligar a tu oponente a meterse en un contenedor de basura y cerrar la tapa. El primer combate que se llevó a cabo fue en WrestleMania XIV , en el que se enfrentaron The New Age Outlaws contra Cactus Jack y Chainsaw Charlie .
Un Last Ride match es un combate hardcore similar a un Ambulance match, en el que la condición de victoria es que un luchador fuerce a su oponente a entrar en la parte trasera de un coche fúnebre, cierre la puerta y lo saque de la arena. El primer combate de este tipo ocurrió en No Mercy cuando Undertaker desafió a John "Bradshaw" Layfield por el Campeonato de la WWE , aunque anteriormente se celebró un combate con estipulaciones similares. El segundo combate de este tipo ocurrió en Armageddon cuando The Undertaker desafió a Mr. Kennedy y lo derrotó. Una variación de este combate se utilizó en NXT Spring Breakin' , llamado Trunk match disputado entre Tony D'Angelo y Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo, quienes fueron los vencedores; y Pretty Deadly ( Kit Wilson y Elton Prince ).
Algunas luchas se llevan a cabo en entornos cerrados específicos. Aunque la mayoría de estos recintos se instalan dentro o alrededor del ring , algunos de ellos se ubican fuera de él. En todos los casos, la estructura en sí se considera "en juego" y la mayoría de las luchas en recintos cerrados se deciden por pinfall o sumisión a menos que se establezcan otras estipulaciones específicas de antemano.
Las jaulas de acero son una de las formas más antiguas de recintos utilizados en la lucha libre profesional. Los primeros "combates de jaula de acero" conocidos de cualquier tipo tuvieron lugar el 9 de enero de 1936, en Caruthersville , Missouri, en una cartelera que incluía dos combates de "cerca de alambre de gallinero" entre Jez y Otto Ludwig, y Joe Dillman contra Charles Sinkey. [44] Estos combates se llevaban a cabo en un ring rodeado de alambre de gallinero , para mantener a los atletas dentro y evitar cualquier posible interferencia. [45] Han evolucionado mucho con el tiempo, cambiando de alambre de gallinero [46] a barras de acero a cercas de alambre de cadena (esta última es ahora la estándar, debido a que es más barata de fabricar, más ligera de transportar y más flexible y, por lo tanto, más segura para los luchadores).
Un combate en jaula de acero es un combate que se lleva a cabo dentro de una jaula formada por láminas de malla metálica que se colocan alrededor, dentro o contra los bordes del ring . La forma más común de ganar es simplemente escapando de la jaula, ya sea por encima de la pared de la jaula y con ambos pies tocando el suelo de la arena, o escapando por la puerta de la jaula con ambos pies tocando el suelo de la arena. Las otras formas ocasionales de ganar un combate en jaula de acero son por pinfall o por sumisión.
También es posible que un luchador intente escapar por encima de la pared de la jaula mientras otro intenta escapar por la puerta de la jaula. [47] En México, los combates en jaula de acero se ganan simplemente trepando a la parte superior de la pared de la jaula. En Impact Wrestling , los combates se denominaban anteriormente Six Sides of Steel , ya que la jaula rodeaba su ring de seis lados.
El Asylum Match es el nombre que se le da a tres tipos diferentes de combates, que involucran una jaula de eslabones de cadena en forma de círculo colocada en el medio del ring.
El primer tipo fue un combate creado por Scott Steiner en la WCW, que se celebraba en una pequeña jaula de malla de alambre con forma de círculo situada en el centro del ring. La victoria sólo se producía por sumisión.
El 16 de mayo de 2016, se introdujo y programó un segundo tipo entre Dean Ambrose y Chris Jericho en Extreme Rules , una variación de la lucha en jaula de acero donde las armas están suspendidas sobre la jaula y escapar de la jaula no es un medio de victoria, dejando solo el pinfall o la sumisión.
El 10 de agosto de 2019, se introdujo un tercer tipo, que también incluía una estipulación de jaula de acero con alambre de púas (un tipo de combate en el que la puerta de la jaula de acero está cerrada con cadenas y un candado), después de que Adam Cole y Johnny Gargano empataran uno a uno después de un combate normal y un combate sin restricciones en NXT TakeOver: Toronto (2019) donde las armas están conectadas a la jaula de acero y al alambre de púas en la parte superior.
Un combate en jaula de acero con alambre de púas es un combate en el que se utilizan hebras de alambre de púas en una jaula de acero de alguna manera, generalmente alrededor de la parte superior de la jaula. El simple uso de alambre de púas en un combate en jaula de acero normal no hace que el combate sea un combate en jaula de acero con alambre de púas; el alambre de púas debe ser parte del diseño de la jaula. Este tipo de combate es uno en el que escapar de la jaula es casi imposible, porque además de que el alambre de púas impide escapar por la parte superior de la jaula, la puerta de la jaula también está cerrada con cadenas y un candado, como un combate Hell in a Cell . Un ejemplo particular fue John "Bradshaw" Layfield vs. Big Show en No Way Out 2005 , donde además del alambre de púas también había alambre de púas envuelto alrededor de la parte superior de la jaula de forma circular; y otro ejemplo fue Adam Cole vs Johnny Gargano en NXT TakeOver: Toronto 2019 , donde además del alambre de púas y la puerta cerrada con cadena, se pusieron a disposición varias armas en la parte superior de la jaula; Sin embargo, esta jaula no tenía alambre de púas. [48]
Otras variantes son la jaula de acero con alambre de púas, un concepto similar al de la jaula de alambre de púas, sin embargo, el alambre de púas se reemplaza por un alambre de púas más grande y grueso y se envuelve alrededor de la parte superior, las esquinas y las paredes de la jaula, y la jaula de acero con alambre de púas es la misma que la jaula de alambre de púas, sin embargo, la parte superior, las esquinas y las paredes de la jaula están cubiertas con alambre de púas, luego también se cubren con alambre de púas. También hay tablas en el ring que están cubiertas con alambre de púas.
El combate Cage of Death es un tipo de combate en jaula de acero con varias armas esparcidas en la jaula, como paredes electrificadas, cactus, mesas, tubos de luz, vidrio, chinchetas, bates de béisbol, alambre de púas y muchas otras armas y objetos. Este combate siempre es el evento principal del mayor espectáculo de CZW , Cage of Death. Algunos de estos combates se han realizado bajo reglas de estilo WarGames con dos anillos.
En TNA , un combate de cámara comienza entre dos luchadores (o hasta seis) que luchan dentro de una cámara. Los luchadores que no participaron en el combate rodearon la cámara. Aproximadamente a los cinco minutos de iniciado el combate, los luchadores que estaban afuera arrojaron armas a la cámara. Este combate solo termina cuando un luchador noquea a su oponente.
En un combate Chamber of Extreme, creado por Extreme Canadian Championship Wrestling (ECCW), una jaula de acero de 2,5 metros de alto rodea el área del ringside con la parte superior envuelta en alambre de púas y armas "extremas" esparcidas por el ring y el área del ringside. No se aplican descalificaciones, conteos fuera ni roturas de cuerdas. El ganador se decide por pinfall, sumisión o por no poder ponerse de pie después de contar hasta diez.
El combate de la Cámara de los Horrores era un combate en una jaula de acero cerrada entre dos equipos de cuatro hombres. En el medio de la jaula había una jaula más pequeña con una silla eléctrica conectada a una palanca. La forma de ganar este combate era poner al oponente en la silla y encender la palanca (que estaba unida a la jaula exterior y a seis pies del suelo), de modo que, en kayfabe, la persona se electrocutara. Este combate se utilizó en la WCW solo una vez, cuando Abdullah the Butcher fue electrocutado accidentalmente por su compañero de equipo Cactus Jack después de que Rick Steiner lo colocara en la silla en el último segundo .
Un combate Dixieland (llamado así por el presidente de TNA Dixie Carter , quien "inventó" el combate) es un combate híbrido de jaula de acero/escalera. Los luchadores comienzan el combate en el ring encerrados en una jaula de acero. Para ganar el combate, un luchador primero debe salir de la jaula, luego subir por la rampa de entrada donde hay un cinturón de campeonato colgado del techo y finalmente subir una escalera para recuperar el cinturón. El primer combate de este tipo ocurrió durante la grabación de Impact Wrestling : Final Resolution el 3 de diciembre de 2013, cuando Magnus derrotó a Jeff Hardy para convertirse en el Campeón Mundial Peso Pesado de TNA . [49]
También llamada Tower of Doom, la Doomsday Cage es una jaula de tres pisos (la del medio está dividida en dos habitaciones), todas las cuales albergan a los luchadores. El objetivo del combate es que un equipo de luchadores luche desde la jaula superior hasta la inferior, donde entran en juego los pinfalls y las sumisiones. [50] [51] En los últimos días de la WCW, se lo conocía como Triple Decker Cage match, una referencia al tipo de combate que se utilizó en el final de la película Ready to Rumble . El combate más notable de este tipo ocurrió en el evento Uncensored de la WCW en 1996, cuando Hulk Hogan y Randy Savage lucharon contra Ric Flair , Arn Anderson , Meng , The Barbarian , Lex Luger , Kevin Sullivan , Z-Gangsta y The Ultimate Solution .
El combate Doomsday Chamber of Blood fue creado por Abyss , a pesar de que sus habilidades creativas no son muy conocidas. Este combate es una combinación de los tipos de combate Barbed Wire Cage, Six Sides of Steel y Sadistic Madness, con la jaula con un techo de alambre de púas en la parte superior. Este combate se gana haciendo sangrar a tu oponente primero y luego inmovilizándolo para obtener la victoria. Matt Morgan y Abyss compitieron en uno de estos combates en el PPV Lockdown (2009) de TNA.
El combate en jaula electrificada es un combate en el que el ring está rodeado por una jaula de acero electrificada. La jaula también se puede utilizar como arma. La única forma de ganar es por pinfall o sumisión. La Lucha en Jaula Electrificada es otra variación del combate en jaula electrificada en el que la única forma de ganar es escapando. La jaula se apaga en un intervalo de tiempo, lo que permite a los participantes una oportunidad de escapar antes de que se vuelva a encender. Este tipo de combate es utilizado por la promoción AAA en México.
La Elimination Chamber (conocida como No Escape en Alemania para evitar un posible error de marca por las referencias a las cámaras de gas en El Holocausto ), que fue el resultado de una idea de Triple H e introducida por Eric Bischoff para la WWE en 2002, es una jaula de acero con un recinto cerrado con rejilla y cadenas con barras de soporte que rodea el ring por completo, incluida la creación de un área de piso enrejado de acero (más tarde acolchado) en el delantal. Dentro de la jaula, en cada tensor , hay una cápsula transparente en la que los competidores del combate esperan para unirse al combate. Como su nombre lo indica, este es un combate de estilo eliminación, por lo que los luchadores son eliminados uno por uno mediante pinfall o sumisión hasta que solo quede uno. [52]
La cámara original, utilizada entre 2002 y 2016, era cilíndrica , y una cámara rediseñada introducida en 2017 era cúbica , pero aún utilizaba los mismos materiales con los mismos 4 recintos.
En el PPV December to Dismember de 2006 se llevó a cabo una Extreme Elimination Chamber , en la que a cada luchador que esperaba se le dio un arma . Desde 2010, la WWE ha celebrado un PPV Elimination Chamber homónimo cada febrero, con este tipo de combate como uno de sus combates más destacados. En su edición de 2018 , se celebró el primer combate Elimination Chamber femenino, así como el primer combate Elimination Chamber de siete hombres.
El combate Fight Pit es una variación de un combate en jaula donde el ring está rodeado por una jaula de acero en lugar de cuerdas y tensores, con una pasarela que rodea la parte superior. La pasarela también tiene una valla de cadena que rodea el borde exterior (originalmente barandillas), a la que los luchadores pueden trepar y saltar. El combate también tiene una estipulación de no-pinfall, lo que significa que solo se puede ganar por sumisión o nocaut, ya sea haciendo que el oponente no pueda ponerse de pie en un conteo de 10 o por nocaut técnico, lo que hace que el combate sea una especie de híbrido entre un combate de lucha libre profesional y una pelea de artes marciales mixtas: las peleas de MMA solo se pueden ganar de esas formas. El combate inaugural de Fight Pit se llevó a cabo durante el episodio del 27 de mayo de 2020 de NXT , entre Matt Riddle y Timothy Thatcher (con Kurt Angle como árbitro invitado). [53] Una versión modificada del Pit con una cerca de cadena fue utilizada en el evento premium en vivo Extreme Rules donde Matt Riddle y Seth Rollins continuaron su rivalidad (con el miembro del Salón de la Fama de UFC Daniel Cormier como árbitro invitado). El combate entre Riddle y Rollins fue el primer combate Fight Pit en un PPV de la WWE.
El Hell in a Cell es un tipo específico de combate en recinto organizado por la WWE dentro de una jaula de acero cuboide agrandada de 4 lados hecha de una cerca de malla de acero de tejido abierto , que se extiende más allá del delantal del ring, dejando un espacio entre el borde del ring y la cerca de la celda. A diferencia de una jaula de acero convencional , la cerca de la celda continúa en la parte superior como un techo, de ahí el nombre 'Cell'. A diferencia de un combate de jaula estándar, no hay cláusula de escape porque después de que los combatientes ingresan a la celda, los árbitros cierran la puerta de la celda con cadenas y un candado desde afuera para evitar que los combatientes escapen (aunque ha sido bastante común que los combates Hell in a Cell se derramen fuera de la celda e incluso sobre el techo de la jaula). El combate tiene una estipulación de "todo vale" sin descalificación, y solo se puede ganar por pinfall o sumisión dentro del ring. Una excepción que se podría hacer es Hell in a Cell 2018 y 2019, donde el combate por el Campeonato Universal de la WWE terminó por detención.
Debido a la regla del "todo vale", este combate desarrolló una reputación infame en sus primeros años. Este combate suele tener lugar en programas de pago por visión (solo ha habido cuatro excepciones: tres combates Cell ocurrieron en Raw en 1998, 2011 (como un combate oscuro) y 2021, mientras que el primer combate Cell en Smackdown ocurrió el 18 de junio de 2021). Muchos luchadores resultaron legítimamente heridos durante estos combates ( sobre todo Mick Foley ) gracias a los peligrosos golpes involucrados y la cerca de alambre de la celda. En kayfabe , se considera el combate más peligroso de toda la promoción. Jim Ross se ha referido a la propia celda como "una estructura demoníaca" que está "construida a medida para las lesiones". Ha habido 51 combates Hell in a Cell hasta la fecha, con The Undertaker compitiendo en 14 (con su último en WrestleMania 32 ), más que cualquier otro luchador de la WWE. El primer combate Hell in a Cell fue entre The Undertaker y Shawn Michaels en Badd Blood: In Your House en St. Louis en octubre de 1997.
En 1999 se celebró un Kennel from Hell match en el PPV Unforgiven de la WWF, entre Al Snow y The Big Boss Man por el Campeonato Hardcore de la WWF . El combate se llevó a cabo dentro de una jaula de acero, pero con la jaula Hell in a Cell también colocada sobre la jaula de acero y el ring. El objetivo del combate era escapar primero por la puerta de la jaula Hell in a Cell exterior, con el obstáculo adicional de los perros de ataque hostiles que deambularían por el delantal entre las dos jaulas. Este combate fue concebido por Vince Russo como parte de la breve disputa de Snow con The Big Boss Man, en la que había secuestrado y asesinado a su mascota chihuahua Pepper. [54] [55] [56]
Después de no poder conseguir perros de ataque entrenados, Russo buscó perros de propietarios locales con poca antelación. Los perros eran juguetones y amigables con Russo, y durante el combate, se los vio orinando, defecando e intentando aparearse entre sí en lugar de hacer cualquier intento de atacar a los luchadores cuando salían de la jaula de acero. Los críticos consideraron que el combate fue uno de los peores combates con trucos, si no uno de los peores combates en la historia de la WWE. [54] [55] [56]
En un combate Inferno (un tipo de combate sin descalificación, sin caída, sin sumisión y sin conteo), el ring está completamente rodeado de llamas una vez que ambos contendientes han ingresado al ring. La única forma de ganar es prenderle fuego a tu oponente. Los combates Inferno generalmente terminan en el exterior del ring; de esta manera, los paramédicos pueden ayudar al perdedor del combate. Debido a la naturaleza potencialmente gráfica o peligrosa de este tipo de combate, rara vez se ve en América del Norte. A diciembre de 2020 [update], solo ha habido seis combates Inferno en la WWE, y casi todos han involucrado a Kane , siendo este su combate característico. [57]
El primer Inferno Match tuvo lugar en 1987 en el coliseo Juan Pachin Vicens en Ponce, Puerto Rico, donde las cuerdas simplemente fueron empapadas con gasolina y prendidas fuego. Este tipo de combate también se volvió a realizar en 1992 en FMW en Japón, y se llamó Hellfire Deathmatch, que presentaba alambre de púas como las cuerdas del ring que se prendían fuego. El combate fue un desastre total ya que luchadores como Sabu , su tío The Original Sheik y Atsushi Onita , debido a las condiciones insoportablemente calientes, salieron corriendo del ring después de solo un minuto. El Sheik sufrió quemaduras graves como resultado y entró en coma. [58] El primer Inferno Match de la WWF fue entre Kane y The Undertaker en el PPV Unforgiven (1998) en Greensboro, Carolina del Norte, y fue un evento más seguro y mucho más profesional donde se trajeron expertos en efectos especiales y pirotecnia de Hollywood para configurar y controlar el fuego alrededor del ring. Kane había sido expulsado del ring y Undertaker no tenía forma de atacarlo a menos que él también saliera del ring. El combate terminó con la victoria de Undertaker. WCW también intentó un combate Inferno, conocido como el combate Human Torch, en The Great American Bash en 2000 entre Sting y Vampiro .
Otra versión del combate conocido como Firefly Inferno se llevó a cabo en TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs en 2020, entre "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt y Randy Orton ; su título hacía referencia al truco " Firefly Fun House " de Wyatt. Además de que el ring está rodeado de fuego, otros objetos que se colocan alrededor del ring también se prenden fuego. [59]
Otra variante del Inferno match, llamada Ring of Fire match , tuvo lugar en SummerSlam en 2013, cuando Kane se enfrentó a Bray Wyatt . Si bien el ring está rodeado de llamas al igual que en un Inferno match estándar, el combate se decide por pinfall o sumisión y no por quemar al oponente. Además, las llamas evitan que otros puedan interferir en el combate, como fue el caso de Luke Harper y Erick Rowan de The Wyatt Family.
Similar al combate WarGames que se usa en WCW, Lethal Lockdown de TNA/Impact Wrestling consiste en un solo ring encerrado en una jaula de acero donde se enfrentan dos equipos. El sistema de entrada escalonada es idéntico, pero se permiten armas e incluso se proporcionan. Cuando todos los competidores han ingresado al ring, se baja un techo sobre la parte superior de la jaula, con varias armas colgando de él. La victoria se puede lograr por pinfall o sumisión. Este combate se ha convertido en un elemento básico del evento de pago por visión Lockdown de TNA , pero también ha aparecido en otros eventos de pago por visión de TNA.
El combate Lion's Den es un combate en el que un luchador debe dejar inconsciente a su oponente o hacerlo rendir dentro de una jaula octagonal. Las reglas están hechas para imitar los combates de artes marciales mixtas, y la jaula octagonal está destinada a imitar la jaula utilizada por el Ultimate Fighting Championship . Este fue el combate especial de Ken Shamrock; dos ejemplos fueron en las ediciones de 1998 y 1999 de SummerSlam, donde Shamrock luchó respectivamente contra Owen Hart y Steve Blackman .
El torneo Punjabi Prison, que lleva el nombre del estado de Punjab desde donde se celebra el Gran Khali (el fundador del torneo), consta de dos grandes jaulas de bambú reforzadas con acero . La primera tiene cuatro lados y mide 4,8 m de alto, mientras que la segunda tiene ocho lados y mide 6 m y rodea a la primera. [60]
La jaula interior tiene una puerta de cuatro pies (1,2 m) por cuatro pies en cada uno de sus lados, con un árbitro de pie para abrirlas a pedido de un luchador. Cada puerta solo se puede abrir una vez y solo se le permite permanecer abierta durante sesenta segundos, después de lo cual se cierra con candado . Si las cuatro puertas terminan cerradas antes de que los luchadores escapen, se ven obligados a trepar por la parte superior, donde el bambú se convierte en púas. Entre las dos jaulas a veces se colocan dos mesas, sobre las que hay armas (variaciones "medievales" y "de bambú" de las armas de lucha estándar). También hay correas extendidas en las esquinas de la jaula que se pueden usar para estrangular al oponente. Una vez que un luchador ha escapado de la primera jaula, debe trepar y salir de la segunda jaula, y el primer luchador que tenga ambos pies tocando el piso de la arena se convierte en el ganador del combate. [61] [62]
La lucha fue revivida con modificaciones en 2017 como el evento principal de Battleground , que contó con el indio-canadiense Jinder Mahal enfrentándose a Randy Orton por el Campeonato de la WWE; The Great Khali hizo un encuentro sorpresa para ayudar a Mahal. [63]
El combate Rage in a Cage se lleva a cabo en una jaula de acero de forma ovalada. Por lo general, se usa como arena para el combate de eliminación de una rivalidad y se puede usar para un combate en equipo o individual. En este combate, las victorias suelen ser por pinfall o sumisión. Alternativamente, Rage in a Cage puede referirse al combate que se lleva a cabo en una organización independiente de Florida, como NWA Florida, en el que 20 o más luchadores participan en una batalla real dentro de la jaula de acero de forma ovalada. Se anima a cada luchador a traer diferentes armas al combate, y un luchador es eliminado al ser arrojado a través de la puerta de la jaula. El último hombre en pie gana.
El Scramble Cage Match se disputó exclusivamente en Ring of Honor (ROH), en el que el ring está rodeado por una jaula de acero con cuatro plataformas de madera en las esquinas de la jaula para realizar los movimientos de lucha de "alto riesgo". Todos los participantes pueden estar dentro y fuera de la jaula en cualquier momento. El Scramble Cage Melee Match es un combate de eliminación en jaula celebrado en una jaula similar a la utilizada en el Scramble Cage Match, con plataformas de madera en las esquinas superiores. No hay pinfalls ni sumisiones; los luchadores son eliminados solo por movimientos aéreos realizados desde las plataformas. El primer y único combate tuvo lugar en Ring of Honor (ROH) el 24 de agosto de 2004. Los competidores en este combate fueron Jack Evans , Trent Acid , HC Loc , Tony Devito , Dan Maff , BJ Whitmer , Oman Turtuga, Diablo Santiago, Fast Eddie, Altar Boy Luke , Kevin Dunn y Kirby Marcos.
El Thundercage de WCW, basado en la película Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome , es una gran estructura abovedada de barras de acero que envuelve el ring. Aunque no tiene parte superior, los lados se curvan hacia adentro para evitar que se escape.
La promoción AAA de México modificó el concepto con el Domo de la Muerte ("Dome of Death"), que utiliza una jaula similar pero solo permite la victoria al escapar a través de un agujero en el centro superior. Esta variación también se usa en TNA , donde se llamó TerrorDome, o más recientemente Steel Asylum. En AAA se usa típicamente para "luchas de apuestas" de varios hombres, y el último hombre en pie en la jaula pierde su máscara o cabello.
El Thunderdome es una variación del Thundercage, con el área cerca de la parte superior de la jaula electrificada. La única forma de que un luchador gane el combate Thunderdome es que el "terminador" de sus oponentes (generalmente un mánager que se encuentra fuera del ring) tire la toalla para detener el combate. En otra variación de este combate, cada competidor inmovilizado en el combate es esposado a la jaula. [64] El último hombre que queda recibe una llave para desbloquear a sus compañeros de equipo para atacar al otro equipo, que todavía están esposados. [64] Irónicamente, el nombre ThunderDome se usó para la burbuja de bioseguridad de la WWE durante la pandemia entre 2020 y 2021.
La WCW y su predecesora, Jim Crockett Promotions, han organizado combates de triple jaula en los que se apilan dos jaulas más pequeñas sobre la jaula que encierra el ring.
En The Great American Bash de 1988 se celebró un combate de tipo "Tower of Doom", en el que dos equipos intentaron abrirse paso desde la jaula superior hasta la inferior, y la victoria se consiguió cuando los cinco miembros de un equipo lograron escapar por una puerta que había allí. Las jaulas estaban separadas entre sí y las puertas eran controladas desde fuera por árbitros que solo las abrían en intervalos de dos minutos.
En Uncensored en 1996, se llevó a cabo un "Doomsday Cage Match" donde Hulk Hogan y Randy Savage se enfrentaron contra la Alliance to End Hulkamania, que estaba formada por Ric Flair , Arn Anderson , Lex Luger , The Taskmaster , Meng , The Barbarian , The Ultimate Solution y Z-Gangsta . Hogan y Savage tuvieron que comenzar en la parte superior de la estructura de tres niveles, y en cada nivel había miembros de la Alliance esperándolos. La estructura presentaba andamios con escalones para permitir que los luchadores la atravesaran, con el objetivo de llegar a la jaula inferior donde estaba el ring y anotar una caída para ganar.
En 2000, en Slamboree se celebró una triple jaula entre David Arquette , Diamond Dallas Page y Jeff Jarrett ; se llevó a cabo de manera similar a una lucha de escaleras, con el objetivo de que los competidores llegaran al techo de la tercera jaula y recuperaran el cinturón del campeonato. El techo de la primera jaula, que se extendía más allá del delantal, tenía una trampilla que conducía a la segunda jaula, que contenía armas. Luego, los competidores tenían que salir por una puerta lateral en la segunda jaula y trepar la estructura para alcanzar el cinturón sobre la tercera jaula. La tercera jaula contenía guitarras, utilizadas para el movimiento característico de Jarrett.
El mismo año, WCW llevó a cabo otro combate utilizando la misma estructura, "WarGames 2000: Russo 's Revenge", en un episodio de WCW Monday Nitro. A pesar de compartir su nombre con el conocido combate WarGames de WCW, su única similitud era el uso de equipos. Se colocaba un cinturón dentro de la jaula superior, y el primer equipo en el que un miembro escapara de la jaula inferior con el cinturón era declarado ganador.
El combate de WarGames, que a veces lleva como sufijo "The Match Beyond", presenta dos anillos rodeados por una jaula de acero cerrada (generalmente con techo), con dos equipos (o a veces tres) de cuatro o cinco luchadores enfrentándose. Después de una parte del combate uno contra uno, los miembros de los dos equipos comienzan a alternarse para ingresar al otro anillo a intervalos escalonados (el orden se decide mediante un lanzamiento de moneda); una vez que los miembros de ambos equipos han ingresado al anillo, el primer equipo que logre una sumisión o rendición sobre un miembro del equipo contrario es declarado ganador. Dependiendo de las reglas utilizadas, un equipo también puede ganar al anotar un nocaut o un pinfall.
Esta lucha se hizo famosa gracias al Great American Bash anual de Jim Crockett Promotions y, más tarde, al Wrestle War de WCW , antes de convertirse en una tradición en su evento anual de pago por visión Fall Brawl de 1993 a 1998. En Fall Brawl 1998 , se celebró una lucha de tres equipos de WarGames, en la que contaban los pinfalls. Una versión renovada de WarGames, "WarGames 2000", solo de nombre, se celebró en un episodio de WCW Monday Nitro .
ECW celebró su propia versión de WarGames conocida como "Ultimate Jeopardy steel cage match" (normalmente como parte de un evento homónimo ), con armas disponibles, pinfalls contando y el equipo perdedor recibiendo una estipulación como penalización. En 2017, la marca NXT de WWE comenzó a realizar un evento en vivo conocido como NXT TakeOver: WarGames , que presenta una versión del combate WarGames como su evento exclusivo. La versión NXT de WarGames no usa una jaula techada y los pinfalls cuentan. [65] [66] En 2021, AEW celebró un combate WarGames entre The Pinnacle y The Inner Circle como un "Blood and Guts match", durante un episodio especial homónimo de su serie semanal Dynamite . AEW adoptó las reglas de WarGames que usaba WCW, con una jaula techada y sin pinfalls. [65] [66]
El combate Xscape ha sido organizado por TNA/Impact Wrestling como uno de los combates insignia de su PPV Lockdown , que presenta exclusivamente combates en jaula. El combate comienza con cuatro a ocho competidores, que son eliminados por pinfall o sumisión; los luchadores eliminados abandonan la jaula a través de una puerta. Cuando solo quedan dos competidores, el primero en escapar de la jaula trepando y llegando al suelo es declarado ganador.
El combate de banderas es esencialmente la versión de lucha libre profesional de capturar la bandera . Para el combate se colocan dos banderas en tensores opuestos, cada una representando a un luchador o equipo de luchadores específico y el objetivo del combate es recuperar la bandera del oponente y levantarla mientras se defiende la bandera en la esquina del luchador. [67] Si el árbitro es derribado y no puede reconocer la victoria, el defensor puede volver a colocar la bandera en su lugar, reiniciando así el combate. [68]
Un combate de himnos es una variación de un combate de banderas con la estipulación adicional de que el himno nacional del país de origen del luchador o equipo ganador se reproducirá en la arena después del combate, de manera similar a una ceremonia de medallas. Esto se puede utilizar para promover el patriotismo para el luchador face o el calor para el luchador heel. Otra variación del combate de banderas puede ser un combate de interpromoción regular entre dos luchadores, cada uno generalmente representando una promoción de lucha libre diferente, luchando por el derecho a izar la bandera de su respectiva promoción. Esta variación solo se usó en November to Remember de ECW de 1997 en un combate entre Rob Van Dam (representando a WWE ) contra Tommy Dreamer (representando a ECW ) que terminó sin resultado.
Un combate en desventaja es cualquier combate que enfrenta a un luchador o equipo de luchadores contra un equipo de luchadores con superioridad numérica, como dos contra uno o tres contra dos. Normalmente, los babyfaces son superados en número y los heels tienen más miembros en su equipo para proporcionar una ventaja injusta. [69] En algunos combates en desventaja de dos contra uno, el equipo con mayor número actúa bajo las reglas de equipos, con una persona en el ring a la vez. En otros, como los combates en desventaja de equipos tornado, todos los competidores están en el ring al mismo tiempo. [70] En las décadas de 1980 y 1990, los combates en desventaja se utilizaron en combates preliminares que involucraban a grandes luchadores estrella (generalmente heels), como King Kong Bundy , Big Van Vader o Yokozuna , quienes, como una forma de obtener una personalidad/truco de heel monstruoso con la multitud, dominarían por completo a sus oponentes a pesar de la superioridad numérica de estos últimos.
La lucha hardcore, el tipo de lucha profesional más violento y sangriento, es un subconjunto en el que algunas o todas las reglas tradicionales no se aplican. La mayoría de las veces, esto simplemente significa que no hay descalificaciones, lo que elimina los conteos fuera, lo que a veces permite que las decisiones se tomen en cualquier lugar. La mayoría de los combates hardcore o deathmatches suelen tener una combinación de tipos de combates dentro de uno, y a menudo se utilizan títulos elaborados, particularmente en las promociones de lucha japonesas (ejemplo: "Combate a muerte con cuerda de alambre de púas, tableros de alambre de púas explosivos y bomba de tiempo en el ring explosivo").
Algunas promociones, como Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling , la International Wrestling Association of Japan , International Wrestling Syndicate , Extreme Championship Wrestling , Big Japan Pro Wrestling y Combat Zone Wrestling , se han especializado en combates hardcore, siendo los combates "estándar" no hardcore la excepción.
Un combate hardcore estándar, también conocido como combate Devil's Playground , combate Belfast Brawl o combate Guerrilla Warfare, es un combate sin descalificación, sin conteo, las caídas cuentan en cualquier lugar, combate de una caída donde la única regla (a menos que se indique específicamente) es lograr una caída inmovilizando al oponente por un conteo de 3 o obligándolo a rendirse. De lo contrario, todo vale: se puede usar cualquier arma, se puede involucrar cualquier cantidad de luchadores que no estén programados para el combate, se puede inmovilizar a cualquier luchador programado para el combate en cualquier lugar y se puede usar cualquier movimiento (excepto los movimientos prohibidos por la promoción que programó el combate de antemano). Los combates hardcore cobraron importancia en Japón en la década de 1970, y luego en los Estados Unidos en la década de 1990 en promociones como ECW y más tarde WWE. Objetos contundentes como sillas de acero, mesas de madera para eventos, escaleras, escaleras de ring de lucha libre, palos de kendo, bates de béisbol, harina, botes de basura cilíndricos de metal, tapas de botes de basura y señales de tráfico suelen aparecer en combates hardcore.
Otros eufemismos comunes para los combates hardcore son el combate No Holds Barred (que sugiere que los luchadores pueden usar cualquier movimiento ilegal), Street Fight (que sugiere que los luchadores deben vestir ropa de calle normal) y World Championship Wrestling utilizó el término Raven's rules match para los combates hardcore que involucraban al luchador Raven . También crearon su propia marca específica de combate hardcore, para el cual los combates debían comenzar detrás del escenario en lugar de en el ring. [71]
Una variante de un combate hardcore es un combate no sancionado , un combate no sancionado o un combate Lights Out . Además de que el combate no tiene reglas y el objetivo es lograr un pinfall o una sumisión en cualquier lugar, el combate no está oficialmente reconocido por la promoción (como en All Elite Wrestling , donde el combate no cuenta para el récord de victorias y derrotas de un luchador). En kayfabe, el combate a veces se usa cuando un luchador está "lesionado" (a manos de otro luchador) y quiere venganza pero no puede ser "autorizado médicamente", por lo que acepta un combate no sancionado donde "la promoción no se hace responsable" de cualquier lesión sufrida durante el combate.
Una versión más extrema de un combate hardcore, un combate a muerte es efectivamente lo mismo que un combate hardcore solo que más violento y sangriento, de ahí que el combate se llame "combate a muerte". Además de objetos contundentes, los combates a muerte a menudo incluyen objetos afilados e incluso objetos y elementos más peligrosos, como ladrillos, clavos, grapadoras, explosivos, chinchetas, alambre de púas, tubos de luz, vidrio estándar, plantas de cactus, herramientas de jardinería (como desmalezadoras) e incluso fuego mezclado con líquido para encendedores o gasolina. Aunque los combates hardcore a veces incluyen objetos afilados, en particular los combates hardcore con Mick Foley, no se usan de una manera tan gratuita como en los combates a muerte. Otros eufemismos comunes para los combates a muerte son combate de reglas extremas , combate de reglas ultraviolentas (combates de reglas hardcore exclusivamente en CZW ) y combate HardKore X-Treme .
Un combate de cuerdas con alambre de púas o un combate de cuerdas con alambre de púas sin cuerda es un combate hardcore en el que las cuerdas del ring se reemplazan con alambre de púas. Hay cuatro formas conocidas de apuntalar el alambre de púas en lugar de las cuerdas del ring: con tres hebras de alambre de púas que van de tensor a tensor; con cinco hebras de alambre atadas para formar una "X"; "red de araña", donde las cuerdas del ring no se reemplazan y el alambre de púas se enrolla hacia arriba y hacia abajo de las cuerdas para crear una pared de alambre de púas, y finalmente alambre de púas envuelto en forma de "X", que ha sido electrificado o equipado con explosivos. Este tipo de combates se hicieron populares a fines de la década de 1970 y principios de la de 1980 por las promociones de lucha libre territorial estadounidense, así como por las promociones japonesas durante la década de 1990. Este tipo de combates a menudo incluían otras estipulaciones y armas. [72]
Una Masacre de Alambre de Púas es un tipo de combate con cuerdas de alambre de púas en el que las cuerdas de alambre de púas se colocan en forma de "X" y se pueden usar elementos adicionales que tienen alambre de púas adherido o envuelto a su alrededor, como madera contrachapada, bates de béisbol, sillas plegables de acero y otras armas. Este combate se originó en TNA en 2005. Desde entonces, ha habido cinco combates de este tipo, el más reciente en 2022. Sin embargo, a diferencia de los primeros tres combates de Masacre de Alambre de Púas, el cuarto no reemplazó las cuerdas del ring. La Masacre de Alambre de Púas japonesa es una variación en la que hay tablas de madera cubiertas con alambre de púas y se activa una pequeña carga cuando alguien cae sobre una.
Se cree que el combate a muerte en baños públicos fue iniciado por la IWA Japón en 1995. Los luchadores compiten en la piscina de un baño público, incluso con mujeres desnudas o con toallas en el baño durante el combate. Además de las reglas habituales de lucha, si abandonan la piscina, quedan descalificados. La piscina se calienta con un fuego que se alimenta periódicamente con más leña, lo que hace que permanecer en ella sea cada vez más difícil.
El Caribbean Barbed Wire Deathmatch es un combate hardcore en el que se envuelven alambres de púas alrededor de las cuerdas del ring en forma de "red de araña" en dos lados, y en los otros dos lados hay trampas con barricadas a nivel del suelo situadas justo al lado del ring. Estas elaboradas trampas son estructuras de madera que presentan múltiples hebras de alambre de púas colgadas de postes de madera adyacentes cortos cubiertos por paneles de vidrio, con una tabla de madera gruesa debajo como base para toda la trampa. Los postes de madera miden 18 pulgadas de alto en un lado y 2 pies en el otro lado. Este combate se presentó en la promoción de lucha libre hardcore W*ING en Japón y se realizó por primera vez en 1993.
Un combate a muerte en un circo es un tipo de combate en un andamio en el que en el ring hay un andamio y debajo de ese andamio hay una especie de red de araña hecha de alambre de púas a seis pies por debajo. El primer luchador que se cae del andamio a la red de alambre de púas pierde. El primer combate fue entre Mad Man Pondo y Ryuji Ito en Japón. [72]
El combate Clockwork House of Fun, conocido como "Raven's House of Fun" o simplemente "House of Fun", fue creado por el luchador profesional Raven ( legítimamente , ya que Raven presentó la idea él mismo al equipo creativo de TNA). Es un combate individual para el cual los postes unidos a los postes del ring medían aproximadamente cinco a seis pies por encima de los tensores, con cadenas individuales envueltas y colgando de los postes en varios puntos del ring mismo con muchas armas colgando y unidas a cadenas de acero sobre el ring, a veces con lados de una jaula de acero unidos y erigidos en el ring. [73] En el primer combate, el uso de armas es legal, y la única forma de ganar era hacer atravesar a un oponente a través de dos mesas después de arrojarlo desde la "percha de Raven" (un pequeño andamio ), [73] pero luego se cambió a reglas de que las caídas cuentan en cualquier lugar. [74]
En un Electric Pool Match, el ring se coloca en una gran piscina de agua, sin cuerdas en dos lados del ring y con alambre de púas explosivo en los otros dos lados del ring. Los luchadores eran transportados al ring en un bote , y el ring se colocaba en un dispositivo flotante, luego estaba rodeado por cuatro barricadas de metal. Había una corriente que corría a través de estas cuatro barricadas (que eran esencialmente pequeñas secciones de la piscina separadas del resto de la piscina), lo que permitía que el agua "explotara" cuando un luchador era arrojado a una de estas áreas barricadas. Teniendo en cuenta el peligro que implica permitir que una corriente corra a través del agua, este combate solo se usó una vez en FMW en 1994, que era conocido por sus combates hardcore extremos.
El Explosion o Bomb Deathmatch suele ir acompañado de cuerdas de alambre de púas, una gran tabla de explosión envuelta en alambre de púas se coloca en el ring y se le aplica una pequeña cantidad de C-4. El combate se puede ganar por pinfall o por sumisión, o en otras versiones del combate, haciendo estallar al perdedor. En algunas versiones del combate C-4 se trata de terminar el combate antes de que se acabe el tiempo y detone el ring (aunque esto no necesariamente termina el combate) mientras que en otras los explosivos se concentran en un área específica, con los luchadores luchando por no ser empujados hacia ella. Casi todos estos combates hasta ahora se han realizado en Japón en promociones con presupuestos más grandes.
Un Anus Explosion Deathmatch es un combate hardcore en el que la única forma de ganar es introducir un petardo en las nalgas del oponente y encenderlo. Una vez que el petardo explota mientras está alojado en las nalgas de un luchador incapacitado, el combate termina. Este combate solo se realizó una vez, por la promoción japonesa de lucha hardcore Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling en octubre de 1999, donde Mr. Gannosuke se enfrentó a Hayabusa . [75]
Un combate a muerte Double Hell es un combate hardcore en el que se colocan alambres de púas explosivos (o no explosivos) en dos lados del ring en lugar de cuerdas, y los otros dos se quedan sin nada. Sin embargo, en los lados vacíos del ring hay enormes tablones llenos de alambres de púas y minas terrestres /explosivos (y, a veces, vidrio). Esto hace que sea mucho más fácil que un participante se caiga del ring.
La variación de AEW es un Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch que es una combinación de un Explosion Deathmatch, Barbed Wire Ring Rope match, Double Hell Deathmatch y Time Bomb Deathmatch. Había tres lados de cuerdas de alambre de púas con explosivos que se activaban al contacto, tres zonas alrededor del piso del ring conectadas con explosivos (Triple Hell) y un temporizador de cuenta regresiva de 30 minutos hasta que todos los explosivos dentro y alrededor del ring detonaran. [76] El combate fue disputado entre Kenny Omega y Jon Moxley por el Campeonato Mundial de AEW en Revolution , que Omega ganó.
El concepto estaba previsto para ser utilizado en la WWE , pero según Court Bauer en noviembre de 2022, Vince McMahon había aceptado una vez una idea para un Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch. Esta estipulación no apareció en absoluto, pero luego aparecería en forma de Punjabi Prison Match que debutó en The Great American Bash en 2006. [77]
Un combate a muerte con minas terrestres es un combate extremo en el que se colocan explosivos en el ringside, generalmente rodeados de alambre de púas. Este combate se realizó por primera vez con FMW en Japón a mediados de los años 90.
Un combate a muerte con bomba de tiempo es un tipo de combate a muerte en el que se activan explosivos o fuegos artificiales colocados alrededor del ring después de un tiempo determinado. Este combate se originó en Japón y se realizó varias veces en la década de 1990. Mick Foley y Terry Funk participaron en un "combate a muerte con bomba de tiempo con cuerda de alambre de púas, tableros de alambre de púas explosivos y un anillo explosivo" como el combate final del torneo Kawasaki Dream King of the Deathmatch de 1995, donde había múltiples tableros de madera contrachapada con alambre de púas y explosivos adheridos a ellos esparcidos por el ring. [72]
Un combate a muerte con bomba de tiempo en jaula es una mezcla de un combate en jaula de acero y un combate a muerte con bomba de tiempo, en el que cada metro cuadrado de una jaula de acero está envuelto en alambre de púas y los explosivos colocados alrededor del ring explotan después de un tiempo determinado, y cinco minutos antes de la explosión se activa una sirena fuerte. El combate, a diferencia de un combate en jaula de acero tradicional, es un combate a una sola caída y la victoria no se puede lograr escapando de la jaula, lo que, si se intenta, sería muy doloroso y difícil. Este combate también se originó en Japón a principios de la década de 1990. [72]
An Eye for an Eye match is a hardcore match that could only be won when one competitor "extracts" an eyeball out of the socket of their opponent. This match only occurred once, between Rey Mysterio and Seth Rollins at The Horror Show at Extreme Rules. In it, Rollins shoved Mysterio's eye into the corner of the steel steps, causing the eyeball to pop out and giving Rollins the victory.
A falls count anywhere match allows pinfalls to take place in any location, negating the standard rule that they must take place inside the ring and between the ropes, and these matches largely take place outside of the ring. Submissions may or may not also be covered by this rule. This also eliminates the usual "countout" rule. A variation of the rules states that once a pinfall takes place, the pinned wrestler loses the match if they are unable to return to the ring within a specific amount of time – usually a referee's count of 10 or 30. If the pinned wrestler makes it to the ring in this time, the match continues.[78] Occasionally, this stipulation is listed as having a specific territory in which falls count (e.g. the state, county, or general location the match is in).[79] As the match may take place in various parts of the arena,[80] the "falls count anywhere" provision is almost always accompanied with a "no-disqualification" stipulation to make the match a hardcore match, so as to allow wrestlers the convenience to use any objects they may find wherever they wrestle.[81]
A First Blood match is a no-disqualification, no-submission, no-fall, no-countout match in which the first wrestler to bleed anywhere loses the match. Depending on the nuance of the stipulation, this might include bleeding noses. Although there are no-disqualifications, outside interference cannot be seen causing the participant to bleed. The first televised First Blood match was Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Kane at King of the Ring 1998. This type of match became rare in the WWE since 2008 in which blood is rarely shown in its programming to adhere with the TV-PG standards. The most recent first blood match was John Cena vs. JBL at One Night Stand in 2008.
A Doomsday Chamber of Blood match, created by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, is a First Blood match that takes place inside of a barbed wire topped cage.[82]
A Sadistic Madness match, created by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, is another variation of the First Blood match, the main difference being that the opponent must be bleeding before a wrestler can legally pin them.[83]
A Four Corners of Pain match is a hardcore match where in each corner of the ring, there is a container that has a weapon or another type of harmful item. This match originated at the 2003 Combat Zone Wrestling Tournament of Death II, and at the 2006 IWA-MS Queen of the Deathmatch, Amy Lee took on Sexxxy Eddy in this match.[72]
A Pools of Fuckery Deathmatch is similar to a Four Corners of Pain match, only the harmful items in each corner are in small plastic pools. This match originated in March 2021 in the independent wrestling promotion Asylum Wrestling Revolution (AMR), where Mickie Knuckles faced Akira.[84]
A Good Old Fashioned Donnybrook match is a no disqualification hardcore match where large wood barrels of Irish brandy and canes are made available at ringside. The first match of its kind was on the July 29, 2022 episode of WWE SmackDown between Sheamus and Drew McIntyre, which McIntyre won. A tag team version later took place during WWE's 2022 edition of its Extreme Rules pay-per-view between The Brawling Brutes and Imperium, which was won by The Brawling Brutes. This is Sheamus' signature match.
The Hard Ten match is a hardcore match that was created by TNA/Impact Wrestling. It is contested on a points system, in which the points are earned for the use of weapons. The first wrestler to earn ten points and be at least two points ahead is the winner. Regular strikes with a weapon are worth one point, while putting an opponent through a table is worth five points. This match type happened only once in TNA history.
A last man standing match (or last woman standing) is a hardcore-style match in which the only way to win is by count out via standing, and a wrestler can be counted out anywhere. A wrestler will lose the match if they are unable to answer a ten-count after being downed, similar to the knockout rules of a boxing match. To avoid losing, the downed wrestler must be on their feet by the count of 10, but they can not lose by leaving the ring for 10-count (ring out) if they are still on his feet while recovering.[85] Because of the hardcore nature of the match restraining a downed opponent is a permissible way to ensure that they do not respond to the ten-count, even if they would otherwise be able to.
A Baseball Brawl match or Brawl Game match is variant of a Last Man Standing match where baseball bats are initially banned, but if a wrestler is counted out by 10, then baseball bats for the wrestler or team that got the count-out automatically become legal, and the match converts over to a standard hardcore match where victory is achieved by either pinfalls, submissions or count outs. This match was first done at ECW's Hardcore Heaven in August 1994, and was known as the signature match of The Public Enemy tag team.
A variant of the Last Man Standing match is the Texas Deathmatch (a.k.a. Mexican Deathmatch, or Armageddon Rules match), in which a wrestler must be pinned to a 3-count or made to submit/rendered unconscious before the referee will begin the ten-count. Some of these matches have been known to last for hours, including one that Dory Funk Jr. participated in that went on for more than four hours.[86] This match was often done by Dory and his brother Terry Funk in the 1960s in their father Dory Sr.'s promotion Western States Sports.[87][88]
A light tube match is a hardcore match where hundreds (usually 200) of long, cylindrical, glass fluorescent light tubes are attached to the ring ropes (usually via tape), and mock shaped weapons and mock large objects made of light tubes are made available. These matches often end with most or all of the light tubes broken or shattered; these matches are some of the bloodiest, most gruesome and most dangerous types of wrestling matches because the glass in a light tube contains poisonous and carcinogenic chemicals, and when broken, the poisonous and carcinogenic dust from the shattered glass gets into the air and allows audience members, the referee and the wrestlers to breathe it in. Another hazard of this match is shards of broken glass still rife with dangerous chemicals laying around the ring mat and sticking in the wrestlers' bodies (when they are slammed onto the wrestling mat); in more organized wrestling promotions, attendants briefly enter the ring and quickly sweep the broken glass off the mat. This type of match originated in Japan in the late 1990s and early 2000s in Big Japan Pro Wrestling, and some independent promotions in the United States feature this type of match.
A 2/3 Light Tube Log Cabins Deathmatch is a hardcore match where the only way to win is to break two shaped light tube weapons over and/or on an opponent. Combat Zone Wrestling has used this match in their Tournament of Death series.[72]
A Monster's Ball match is a match invented and staged by TNA Wrestling. The key premise of the match was that all contenders are sequestered alone in a locked room without light, food or water for 24 hours before the match. This stipulation is intended to induce extreme feelings of aggression in the competitors. Once released, the wrestlers fight one another in a hardcore match, with the usage of weapons encouraged. Victory can be achieved by pinfall or submission, with the match ending as soon as one wrestler is pinned or submits.
The Monster's Ball match typically features numerous high spots. There have been 54 matches taking place under TNA, as well as several unaffiliated independent promotions hosting the match. The match has almost always featured Abyss in some capacity, wrestling in 48 and managing in one, as it is his signature match. There are various weapons frequently used in the match, including thumbtacks, "Janice" (a board filled with nails, Abyss's signature weapon), and a bed of barbed wire.[89]
A No Disqualification match, also known as a No Holds Barred match,[90] or sometimes as an Anything Goes match, a Raven's Rules match, (in WWE before 2006), an Extreme Rules match (in WWE 2006 and after) or a No Ropes Catch Wrestling match (in MLW), is a match in which neither wrestler can be disqualified, allowing for weapons and outside interference. However, unlike a hardcore match pinfalls and submissions must be made inside the ring.[91]
No-disqualification matches may be used in feuds in which a challenger may have won matches against the champion, but did not claim the championship because the champion was disqualified (championships usually only change hands via pinfall or submission). Unless stipulated, a no-disqualification match can end in a countout. Those that cannot are no-disqualification, no-countout matches, therefore they're called no holds barred matches.
A Piranha Deathmatch or Amazon River Piranha Deathmatch, similar to a Desert Deathmatch is a type of highly dangerous match where a fish tank containing dangerous and flesh-eating Piranha fish is placed in the center of the ring, and the first wrestler who gets put into the tank for 10 seconds loses. There was only one match ever done, and it was at Big Japan Pro Wrestling's Summer Night Dream event in Yokohama, Japan in September 1996, where in the main event Kendo Nagasaki put Mitsuhiro Matsunaga in the tank, defeating him.[72]
A Pitch Black match is a hardcore-based match during which the arena lights are turned off or extremely dimmed, with most of the action visible due to the competitors wearing clothes or body paint that glows in the dark. The only known Pitch Black match, sponsored by Mountain Dew, happened at the 2023 Royal Rumble, with Bray Wyatt defeating LA Knight.[92]
A Razor Deathmatch is an often extremely bloody match where boards full of razor blades are made available as weapons. This match is a trademark of Japanese hardcore wrestler Jun Kasai who has participated in five such contests.[93]
A Spike Nail Deathmatch is a hardcore match where a large bed of six-inch spiked nails sticking out of a rectangular piece of plywood is made available. The most famous example of this kind of match was at the IWA Kawasaki Dream King of the Deathmatch, where Cactus Jack faced Shoji Nakamaki in August 1995. Another type of Spike Nail match was rather than achieving a fall to win, the first wrestler to take a bump on the huge planks of wood infested with six-inch nails at ringside loses.[72]
A Nail Hell Deathmatch is a hardcore match where some boards with nails were hung on the ring ropes all the way across, and onto opposing sides of the ring there was a board, on one side there was nails and on the other side was barbed wire. Only one match like this was done, in December 1994 by IWA Japan.[72]
A street fight is a type of hardcore match with no disqualifications, in which falls count anywhere, and weapons are legal. The main difference between a hardcore match and a street fight is that while wrestlers wear their normal wrestling gear in hardcore matches, wrestlers (particularly in modern times) almost always wear their own street clothes in street fights, and weapons typically used in street fights are items typically found on or are often used on city streets, such as trash cans, road signs, broomsticks, dumpsters and sometimes vehicles and shopping carts filled with those items, among other things. Sometimes street fights have the name of the host arena's city in the name, such as "Chicago Street Fight" or "New York Street Fight".
A Miracle on 34th Street Fight is a Christmas-themed variant of a Street Fight, named after the movie Miracle on 34th Street, involving Christmas-themed weapons including fire extinguishers, pumpkin pies, presents, Christmas trees, Christmas wreaths, candy cane themed kendo sticks, bowling balls, and teddy bears, plus common wrestling weapons such as tables and chairs.
A Trick or Street Fight is a Halloween-themed variant of a Street Fight, named after the Halloween tradition "trick or treating", involving Halloween-themed weapons including pumpkins, buckets of candy, bowls full of water and apples, skeletons, witches' brooms, gravestones, candy corn themed kendo sticks, plus common wrestling weapons such as tables and chairs.
A Taipei Deathmatch, (also known as an Ancient Way Deathmatch) is a hardcore match where the wrestlers' fists are taped and dipped into glue or honey, and then into broken and crushed glass, allowing shards to stick to their fists. Win by pinfall, submission or escape. It is unknown why this match is named after the capital city of Taiwan; the first time this match was ever held was at ECW's Hardcore Heaven in July 1995 where the Rotten brothers, Axl and Ian, faced off in this match, and it was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, not in Taipei.[48][94]
A Thumbtack Deathmatch is a hardcore match where one or more trays containing thousands (usually 10,000) of thumbtacks is/are made available and usually placed in either the center or apron of the ring. The most well-known version of this match was at the IWA Kawasaki Dream King of the Deathmatch, where Terry Gordy faced Cactus Jack in August 1995.[72] Variants of the thumbtack deathmatch staged by TNA/Impact Wrestling have been done where the objective is modified to simply slam an opponent into the pile of thumbtacks on the mat. A variation of this match is a cross between a Ladder Match and 10,000 Thumbtacks Match called a Thumbtacks Ladder match in which a ladder is placed in the ring with a reward at the top. Thumbtacks are also spread out across the ring. A variant of the 10,000 thumbtacks deathmatch is the East Coast Thumbtack match, this match has 177,000 thumbtacks placed in the ring. The first match was introduced between Ian Rotten and The Messiah.[95]
A Barefoot Thumbtack match is a hardcore match where both wrestlers have bare feet, and there is a large container containing thousands of thumbtacks in the middle of the ring that are legal to use it. Originated in Big Japan Pro Wrestling.
Big Japan Pro Wrestling staged a 'Thumbtacks In Balloons' match on 5/22/96. The match, which saw Axl Rotten and Shoji Nakamaki lock up with Kendo Nagasaki and Seiji Yamakawa, had six black balloons suspended above the ring. At a certain point in the match, the balloons exploded and released 30,000 thumbtacks onto the ring.
An Unlucky 13 Deathmatch is a hardcore match invented by Ian Rotten. In order to win the match, a wrestler must staple seven out of thirteen one dollar bills to their opponent's mouth.
Though most matches take place in and around the ring, some are designed specifically for more exotic locales. The majority of these matches take on the name of their setting, often appending "brawl" to the end, and all of them are hardcore by definition. The following is a list of locale-based variations that supplant or replace the standard rules.
A Bar Room Brawl is a multi-competitor no disqualification match held in a bar. During the match wrestlers are encouraged to drink while fighting, and the "last man standing" is declared winner. Wrestlers can be eliminated from the match both by the standard pinfall, submission, or by simply becoming too (kayfabe) drunk to continue the match. A known example of this match is the APA Invitational Bar Room Brawl at Vengeance 2003 which Bradshaw won after knocking down Brother Love. Another example, a Bar Fight was done in 2020, with Jeff Hardy facing off against Sheamus.[96]
A Boiler Room Brawl or Boiler Room match starts in a boiler room, with the winner being the first wrestler to successfully get out. This match is a no-disqualification, no-falls, no-countout match, so anything goes, so long as someone escapes first. The rather hazardous environment of this match featured some of the arena's internal infrastructure, such as all sorts of large, exposed metal piping with large bolts, concrete flooring and solid electrical equipment everywhere, among other features. Mick Foley participated in all of the WWF-run Boiler Room Brawls under his persona Mankind, because this persona dwelled in boiler rooms, hence this being Mankind's signature match. The first Boiler Room Brawl happened at SummerSlam 1996 with Mankind vs. The Undertaker, where in addition to escaping the boiler room the combatant had to make his way to the ring and grab Paul Bearer's urn; but when the next Boiler Room Brawl was contested at Backlash 1999 with Mankind against The Big Show, the objective was simplified to just escaping the boiler room first.[97] World Championship Wrestling used a match with similar rules, naming their match and its location the Block.[98]
A Body of Water match is a hardcore match where the sole objective is to get your opponent into a large body of water. This match was only done once, where CM Punk faced Chavo Guerrero during an ECW show in Corpus Christi, Texas (which is located right on the Gulf of Mexico, the body of water used) in February 2008.[99]
A Dungeon match is a hardcore match that took place in the legendary Hart Family Dungeon in Calgary, where Owen Hart challenged Ken Shamrock to come to the Dungeon (referred to as Hart's "basement") for a fight. The match can only be won by submission.
An empty arena match is a hardcore (no disqualification, falls count anywhere) "anything goes" match between two or more wrestlers that takes place in an arena or stadium that although is fully set up for a wrestling event, is devoid of fans. The only people present are the competitors, referee, commentators, and cameramen. The match is broadcast, or videotaped and played later. An example of this is the WWF championship match between The Rock and Mankind that took place in Tucson, Arizona, at the Tucson Convention Center, which aired as part of a special Halftime Heat edition of Sunday Night Heat aired against the Super Bowl halftime show of Super Bowl XXXIII in 1999. One of the earliest and best known empty arena matches occurred in 1981 in Memphis, Tennessee, at the Mid-South Coliseum between Jerry Lawler and Terry Funk.[100]
A lack of audience that is a legitimate aspect of the production and not a kayfabe stipulation of the match (i.e. the match is conducted normally, except a live audience is not present) is not necessarily considered an empty arena match. For example, audiences were barred from attending televised AEW, and later WWE, shows in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.[101]
A Parking Lot Brawl is a Falls Count Anywhere match that is usually fought in an interior location or in an outside parking lot around a tightly parked circle of cars. The first wrestler to score a pinfall, submission, or knockout in a Parking Lot Brawl is the winner. Both wrestlers are allowed to use everything around them as weapons, including the cars. The first Parking Lot Brawl was between Jerry Lawler and Eddie Gilbert in Memphis, Tennessee in 1988, which was fought all over the arena and its outside parking lot. More well-known examples of a Parking Lot Brawl both involved John Cena, where he faced Eddie Guerrero in 2003 and JBL in 2008.[102]
A Hollywood Backlot Brawl was a no-disqualification match that started in a Hollywood studio backlot, and it was fought between Goldust and Roddy Piper. This match also involved the two performers actually driving cars for a long period of time, and then ended with the two arriving in the Honda Center in Anaheim 30 miles away to finish their match in the ring.[103]
An Iron Circle match is a type of Parking Lot Brawl that is fought specifically in a parking garage around a rowdy live audience sitting on the cars encircling the competitors. An Iron Circle match was a match where Ken Shamrock fought Steve Blackman at WWF Fully Loaded 1999.
A Train match is a Falls Count Anywhere match fought in a moving train. All weapons are legal, and there is no disqualification (except for damage to the train). This happened in 2023 by CyberFight's DDT Pro Wrestling promotion, where Sanshiro Takagi competed against Minoru Suzuki on the Shinkansen TGV from Tokyo to Nagoya, with speeds exceeding 170 MPH on the train.
A Tooth and Nail match is a Falls Count Anywhere-stipulation match that is fought in and around a dental office, and any weapon is legal. This is Britt Baker's speciality match, based on her role as a dentist in both kayfabe and off-screen reality, and the objective of this match is to achieve a pinfall, submission or countout.[104]
A lumberjack match is a standard match with the exception that the ring is surrounded by a group of wrestlers not directly involved in it.[105] These wrestlers, known collectively as lumberjacks (female wrestlers serving in this manner are sometimes called lumberjills; lumberjack matches between female wrestlers are called lumberjill matches, a play on the famous Nursery Rhyme, "Jack and Jill"), are there to prevent the wrestlers in the match from getting out of the ring.[105] The groups of lumberjacks are typically split up into groups of faces and heels who occupy opposing sides around the ring. Usually, the "opposing" lumberjacks (that is, face lumberjacks if the wrestler is a heel, and vice versa) swarm the wrestlers if they leave the ring and force them back in it. Occasional interference from the lumberjacks is common, as is an all-out brawl on the outside involving most of the lumberjacks. Early lumberjack matches even featured the lumberjacks wearing stereotypical lumberjack clothing in keeping with the lumberjack theme, though this is generally no longer done. A common theme is for the lumberjacks to consist entirely of heel wrestlers to stack the odds against the face competitor. The Lumberjill Snowbunny match is another variation of the Lumberjill match with female lumberjacks, held in a pit of snow.
In a "Canadian" lumberjack match, the lumberjacks are equipped with leather straps. TNA's "fan's revenge" match was their own version of a Canadian lumberjack match, where fans equipped with straps act as lumberjacks and were encouraged to whip wrestlers. [106] A similar "fans' revenge" variation was used in Lucha Underground where it was called a Believers' Backlash match ("Believers" was the nickname for fans of the series).
The Extreme Lumberjack match is a lumberjack match competed under hardcore rules, where there are no disqualifications, no countouts, and falls count anywhere.[107]
On some occasions, a match may be held between more than two individual wrestlers or teams. Multi-competitor matches are often broken down to eliminations and non-eliminations.
The most common example of a non-elimination match is the Three-Way match (also known as a Triple Threat match in WWE, Triangle match in WCW and Three-Way Dance in ECW), in which three wrestlers compete under standard rules with the first competitor to achieve a pinfall or submission being declared the winner. Triple Threat matches are fought under no-disqualification and no-countout stipulations. Triangle matches are often contested like a tag match where only two can be in the match at one time while the third waits on the ring apron and the only elimination factor is if a competitor is disqualified.
In many promotions, there are typically no distinctions between the two terms. Non-elimination variations are the Four-Way match (known as a Fatal Four-Way in WWE, Four Corners match in WCW and Four-Way Dance in ECW), the Five-Way match (known as a Fatal Five-Way in WWE) or the Six-Way match (known as the Six-Pack Challenge in WWE), involving four, five, or six wrestlers, respectively.[108] American independent promotion USA Xtreme Wrestling hosted a match involving 8–12 competitors known as the 8 Ball Challenge. These types of matches can be used in certain situations to take a title off a wrestler without weakening him in the process.
On some occasions, multi-competitor matches are contested under similar rules as a tag team match. Two competitors start the match in the ring while the other wrestler(s) wait outside the ring for a tag from another wrestler, often achieved by touching an unsuspecting competitor in the ring. Variations of this include a Four Corners Survival match or Six-Man Mayhem match in Ring of Honor. Competitors are permitted to leave their position and attack wrestlers outside of the ring, such as when one or both wrestlers have been thrown over the top rope.
Matches involving a larger number of competitors are typically elimination matches. These matches may begin with all of the competitors in the ring at the same time. The standard match rules apply as wrestlers may leave the position and attack other wrestlers outside the ring with a twist that the wrestler be pinned or forced to submit is eliminated from the match.
The most common example of an elimination match is the Three-Way Dance, where the first fall would eliminate one wrestler, reducing the match to a standard one-fall singles match. The Three-Way Dance was a specialty of Extreme Championship Wrestling.
A Four-Way Dance is similar except it involves four wrestlers in Extreme Championship Wrestling and some promotions use a tag format for the match instead of having all the wrestlers in the ring at the same time. Elimination variations are the Four-Way match (known as a Fatal Four-Way in WWE), the Five-Way match (known as a Fatal Five-Way in WWE) or the Six-Way match (known as the Six-Pack Challenge in WWE), involving four, five, or six wrestlers inside the ring, respectively.
The Deadly Draw match is a TNA variation where four competitors wrestle. The match begins with two competitors in the ring. After five minutes pass, the third competitor enters the ring, then after another five minutes pass, the fourth competitor enters the ring. Any wrestler who gets pinned or force to submit is eliminated, and any wrestler in the ring not involved in the fall is also eliminated. The last man standing wins.
A Beat the Clock challenge is a multi-competitor match in which wrestlers must defeat their opponent in a singles match before the clock runs out. Additionally, the next wrestler must beat the winner's set time by defeating their opponent to advance, otherwise that wrestler is eliminated. In doing so, the victorious wrestler usually gets some type of reward in return, such as inclusion in a title match, for instance. In a variation on the November 20, 2013 episode of NXT, two wrestlers completed a match, with the match duration being used as the marker for two other wrestlers to complete their match. The first ever Divas Beat the Clock challenge occurred in the August 2015 episode of Raw when Paige, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair faced a different competitor to earn a WWE Divas Championship match against Nikki Bella at Night of Champions.
WWE features a match called the Championship Scramble in which none of the wrestlers are eliminated. Two wrestlers start the match and every five minutes another wrestler enters until all five participants are present. After the last wrestler enters, there is a predetermined time limit. Each time a wrestler scores a pinfall or submission, he becomes the interim champion. Such reigns are not recorded as title reigns. The winner is the wrestler who scores the last pinfall or submission before the time limit expires. The Unforgiven pay-per view of 2008 is arguably the most prominent showcase of this match type, as all three world titles were contested under a Championship Scramble match.
The Elimination Chase, first used in WWE's version of ECW brand in 2007, is a series of multi-competitor, one fall matches, with the loser of the fall being eliminated from future matches until one competitor remains.[109]
WWE's NXT brand features a match called the Iron Survivor Challenge at its annual December event Deadline, in which none of the wrestlers are eliminated. There is one each for the men and women. The rules are as follows:
The Iron Survivor Challenge combines elements of the Championship Scramble, Iron Man, and TNA Wrestling's King of the Mountain matches. It was used for the first time at Deadline in 2022.
The Special Guest Referee is any match in which the usual referee is replaced with a "guest" filling in as the official. Celebrities (such as Muhammad Ali in the main event of WrestleMania I), managers and other wrestlers can "guest" as the special referee. In some cases, a special referee is put into a match which is already a different match type or stipulation. The special referee will often be biased towards or against one of the competitors or will be assigned as the Special Referee to ensure the match is called down the line. Special Outside Referee also known as Special Enforcer or Special Guest Enforcer is same as the Special Referee but the guest referee stays on the outside enforcing what the normal referee doesn't see. These guests are sometimes known as "enforcers", the most famous of which was Mike Tyson, who served as the Special Guest Enforcer for the WWF title match between Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XIV, and Chuck Norris who served as Special Guest Enforcer at Survivor Series 1994 in a match between The Undertaker and Yokozuna. Another example of this is Triple H vs. The Undertaker in a Hell in a Cell match at WrestleMania 28 with Shawn Michaels being the Special Guest Referee.
Occasionally, a match would take place under the rules of a different type of contest. Like professional wrestling matches, the matches would be worked, with the participants not being in the perceived danger and the winner being predetermined.
An arm wrestling match, in the context of professional wrestling, is a basic arm wrestling contest. It can be contested between two females, two males or between one male and one female. Often the male in the latter will be a manager going against the wrestler of a competitor.[111]
The professional wrestling version of a boxing match has standard boxing rules applied to it. Wrestlers wear boxing gloves and the match is contested in rounds with fouls given out, though the matches are generally worked and end with one wrestler cheating and using wrestling maneuvers.[112]
The professional wrestling version of a mixed martial arts (MMA) match under standard MMA. As in MMA, pinfalls are not a valid method of victory. Matches can typically only be won by knockout, submission, disqualification, forfeit or by going to a referee's decision.
For a sumo match, the ropes are removed from the ring and standard sumo rules apply. The first person to step outside of the ring or touch the mat with any part of the body except the soles of the feet is the loser. The most infamous match of this kind in WWE happened at WrestleMania 21 between The Big Show and Sumo legend, Akebono.[113]
A Sumo Monster Truck match is a regular tug-o-war contest where two wrestlers are driving monster trucks, pushing and shoving each other. An example of this match type is at the Halloween Havoc (1995) pay-per-view between Hulk Hogan and The Giant.
In this version – unlike traditional battle royales where all the wrestlers begin the match in the ring – the competitors (after numbers 1 and 2 begin the match) enter at timed intervals in accordance with the number that they have drawn until the entire field has entered.
Aztec Warfare is the Lucha Underground version of the "Rumble Rules" battle royale. Upwards to 20 participants enter every 90 seconds and elimination occurs by either pinfall or submission and has to take place inside the ring. There are no count-outs and no disqualifications. As of April 2019[update], four Aztec Warfare matches have occurred—one in each season of Lucha Underground.
The Battle Riot is Major League Wrestling's "Rumble" style battle royale. This match isn't that much different from other Pin, Submission & Over the top rope elimination rumble rules, however is different from the WWE Royal Rumble, of which you can only get eliminated via going over the top rope with both feet hitting the floor.[114]
The Casino Battle Royale is used by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It is a modified rumble rules battle royale that features 21 entrants. It begins with a group of five wrestlers, and every three minutes, another group of five wrestlers enter, while the 21st and final entrant enters alone. The wrestlers are grouped based on the suit they drew from a deck of cards – spades, diamonds, clubs, or hearts – and the order of when each group enters is based on a random draw of the cards. The 21st and final entrant is the wrestler who drew the joker. The winner receives a world championship match of their respective gender's division—either the AEW World Championship or the AEW Women's World Championship.
The first Casino Battle Royale occurred during the pre-show of AEW's inaugural event, Double or Nothing in 2019, and was a men's match. The winner of the inaugural match was entered into the match to determine the inaugural AEW World Champion at All Out that year.[115] The second Casino Battle Royale was an all-female version and was held during the pre-show of the aforementioned All Out event. Like the first, the winner of this second iteration was entered into the match to determine the inaugural AEW Women's World Champion on the debut episode of AEW's weekly television show, Dynamite.[116] The third Casino Battle Royale—a men's match—took place at All Out in 2020 and the winner received a future AEW World Championship match.
Ring of Honor (ROH) also periodically features the "Rumble" style of battle royale on their shows, billing it as the Honor Rumble. This battle royal differs from a standard version of the match in that the contestants do not all begin in the ring at the same time, but instead enter the match at timed intervals in order of their assigned entry numbers (comparable in style to WWE's Royal Rumble match). Numbers are usually drawn through a lottery that is typically staged right before the event begins, although participants can also win desirable spots via a number of other means, the most common being winning a match.
New Japan Pro-Wrestling's annual "Rumble" battle royale, takes place on the pre-show of Wrestle Kingdom on January 4. Participants enter at one minute intervals and are eliminated via pinfall, submission or by being thrown over the top rope.[117] Typically leaning towards light comedy, the match includes past stars as surprise entrants.[118]
Used by All Elite Wrestling (AEW) on its program Rampage. The Royal Rampage is a two ring rumble rules battle royale. It features 20 wrestlers between the two rings (10 in each). It begins with two wrestlers in each ring, with two new wrestlers entering at timed intervals - one in the red ring and one in the blue ring (as differentiated by the color of the ropes). After all 20 wrestlers have entered, and once the field narrows to the last four participants, they will then consolidate into a single ring and fight until there is a winner, who then receives a championship match at a later date.
WWE's Royal Rumble is the original battle royale to use this format. It begins with two wrestlers in the ring, with the remaining participants introduced one by one at a set time period, usually 90 seconds or two minutes. Elimination occurs in the normal way with the last person standing as the winner, after all participants (traditionally 30 or 40 in Royal Rumble 2011 and 20 in Royal Rumble 1988) have entered the ring eliminated by being thrown over the top rope and having both feet touch the venue floor. (referred to as the "Shawn Michaels rule" in Royal Rumble 1995 in which he was thrown over the top rope, hung on to the top rope and only had one foot land on the floor). There is both a men's and women's Royal Rumble match, although WWE's first official women's Royal Rumble match debuted in 2018 used the same rules as the men's version, with the winners getting a world championship match (in their respective divisions) at that year's WrestleMania, which is WWE's biggest annual show. At the Greatest Royal Rumble in 2018, 50 participants entered the match. Stone Cold Steve Austin is the only 3-time Royal Rumble winner.
Dragon Gate's version takes place exclusively at touring shows at the Kobe Sambo Hall venue, as the promotion's home location is Kobe, Japan. Royal Sambo matches typically consist of 10-16 participants entering two at a time at 60 second intervals, with both wrestlers' entrance themes crossfading back and forth over the speakers. If an odd number of wrestlers are booked in the match, the final participant enters solo. Participants can be eliminated via over-the-top rope elimination, pinfall, or submission, and multiple wrestlers may pin or submit someone simultaneously. Typically booked as a comedy match, or with one high-profile wrestler as the obvious winner among others with much lower status on the roster.
Square Go! is Insane Championship Wrestling's (ICW) very own hybrid of WWE's Royal Rumble and Money in the Bank matches, and named for the Glaswegian term for a street fight. The competitors will compete in a 30-man over-the-top-rope "rumble rules" battle royale, the Square Go!, with the winner earning the Square Go Briefcase. It has mostly the same rules apply as Royal Rumble, two competitors who draw the numbers 1 and 2. The remaining participants which will enter the ring one-by-one at every two-minute intervals.
Five people have drawn entry numbers that allow them to carry a weapon of their choice into the ring. Participants were eliminated when thrown over the top ropes with both feet landing on the floor. The winner will win a briefcase that will entitle him to a match for the ICW World Championship at any time and anywhere of their choosing for one year (similar to Money in the Bank).
Series matches may involve the same match throughout, or may use different matches for some or all of the series. The most common form of a series match is extending the one-fall concept to a series of falls.
A "Best of Series" match is similar to a two out of three falls match but an extended series to five or seven; Even though it takes place over several nights to continue a feud rather than settle it in one night. One variation is a Best of Five Series where a wrestler must win three matches to win the series. John Cena defeated Booker T 3–2 to win the WWE United States Championship at No Mercy (2004).
The Best of Seven Series is another variation, where a wrestler must win four matches to win the series. Chris Benoit and Booker T fought in such a series to determine the #1 contender for the WCW World Television Championship in 1998. The two resumed their Best of Seven series in 2006 for the WWE United States Championship. Sheamus and Cesaro ended in a 3–3 draw when their seventh match at Clash of Champions (2016) ended in a no-contest. Death Triangle (Pac, Penta El Zero Miedo, and Rey Fénix) wrestled The Elite (Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson)) in a series for the AEW World Trios Championship in 2022.
A Gauntlet match, also referred to as a Turmoil match, is a quick series of one-fall one-on-one matches. Two wrestlers begin the match and are replaced whenever one is eliminated (by pinfall or submission). After a predetermined number of wrestlers have competed in the match, the last person standing is named the winner. A Gauntlet match may also be played out in multiple "parts" as part of a storyline (in which a face wrestler must face a series of a heel wrestler's underlings before facing the heel himself, for instance) this was common in World Championship Wrestling in the early 1990s. A participant involved in a Gauntlet match may be said to be "running the gauntlet" but in most cases this designation being reserved for those who are involved for most of the match. Sometimes, it could also be (one-on-three) or (one-on-four) handicap match. Unlike tag matches, the three/four-man team will challenge the person handicapped individually until he is knocked out, at which time the match is over. One example of this was on September 23, 1999, edition of WWE SmackDown where Triple H, being punished by Vince McMahon for his actions against him and his family, was booked in five gimmick matches in one night: a Chokeslam Challenge match (a match where the first to Chokeslam their opponent wins) against The Big Show, a Handicap Casket match against Viscera and Mideon, an Inferno match against Kane, a Boiler Room Brawl against Mankind, and a Brahma Bullrope match against The Rock.
The Gauntlet Eliminator is a modified gauntlet match in which two wrestlers start in the ring and every four minutes, another wrestler enters until all the entire field has entered. Eliminations can occur only by pinfall or submission. The last wrestler remaining wins. An example of this match was on the first night of 2021's NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver between Leon Ruff, Isaiah "Swerve" Scott, Bronson Reed, Dexter Lumis and L. A. Knight.
The Casino Gauntlet match is a modified version of the Gauntlet Eliminator promoted by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Two wrestlers begin the match, with new entrants coming in at randomly timed intervals, with a maximum number of 21 entrants. It is a one fall match that can end at any time via pinfall or submission inside the ring, even before the entire field has entered. The prize for winning the Casino Gauntlet is a championship match at a later date.
TNA Wrestling uses the "Gauntlet for the Gold" format, which is named similarly to the Gauntlet match but is actually very different. The wrestlers enter at regular intervals, and elimination occurs when thrown over the top rope with both feet hitting the floor (as in a Royal Rumble match). This continues until only two wrestlers remain, after which the final winner is decided by pinfall or submission. This match type was first featured on the first ever NWA-TNA PPV, with Ken Shamrock defeating Malice in the final two.[119]
An Iron Man (or Iron Woman for female matches) match is a multiple-fall match with a set time limit (usually 30 or 60 minutes). The match is won by the wrestler who wins the most falls within the time limit by either pinfall, submission, disqualification, or countout. If there is ever a tie, the match goes to sudden death overtime in which the wrestler who scores one fall on their opponent will immediately be declared the winner. An example of an Iron Man Match is Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins at 2018 Extreme Rules for the Intercontinental Championship. Other examples are MJF vs. Bryan Danielson at AEW Revolution in 2023 for the AEW World Championship, and Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XII for the WWE Championship. The first Iron Woman match was between Bayley and Sasha Banks at NXT TakeOver: Respect in 2015.
An Anything Goes Iron Man match is the hardcore variation of an Iron Man match: there are no disqualifications, no countouts and falls count anywhere. John Cena faced Randy Orton in an Anything Goes Iron Man match at Bragging Rights 2009 for 60 minutes.
The Thunder Queen battle is a hybrid match, a variation of Tag Team and Iron Woman match types. This stipulation was used in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling. The match starts off with two teams of four members wrestle each other for 60-minutes. Individual members will have a 5-minute Singles Iron Woman match (20 minutes total each), followed by a 40-minute Tag Team Iron Woman match. The team with the highest total number of points within the time limit wins.
An Ultimate Submission match is a variation of an Iron Man match where the only way to score a fall within the allotted time limit is to make your opponent submit. Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle had an Ultimate Submission match at Backlash 2001 for 30 minutes plus one minute and 33 seconds of tie-breaking overtime.
The Three Strikes match (often shortened to Three Strikes' You're Out) is a multiple-fall match where wrestlers must achieve three victories of a specific nature in a specific order before the other. The name of the match is taken from baseball, referring to the notion that having three strikes would entail losing the match. The most common arrangement for the three strikes are pinfall, submission and knockout with the entire match being fought under no disqualification and no countout rules. Diamante faced Big Swole in a Three Strikes match on AEW Dark on September 7, 2021.
A Two out of Three falls match is a multiple-fall match where a wrestler or tag team must beat the other opponent(s) not once but twice for the victory. (by pinfall, submission, disqualification or count-out). For such examples of this match type are the Extreme Rules (2012) between Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus and Chris Benoit vs. Chris Jericho at the SummerSlam (2000) pay-per-view. Also, a tag team version of this match type is at the Payback (2015) pay-per-view between The New Day vs. Cesaro & Tyson Kidd for the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship.
A Gate of Heaven match is a multiple-fall match that is applied to tag team matches. Started in Dragon Gate, with the first match being a strict tag team match with two referees to make sure tags actually happen. The second match being the Dragon Gate rules. The third match, if necessary; tables, ladders and chairs are now legal. The first team to gain two victories before the other is the winner.
A Three Stages of Hell match is a multiple-fall match in which two wrestlers must wrestle three special types of matches. A wrestler must achieve two victories before the other. There have only been five occasions in which this match has been contested in WWE history. The first Three Stages of Hell match occurred in 2001 between Triple H and Steve Austin at 2001 No Way Out, which Triple H won 2–1. Another match of this type took place at 2002 Armageddon between Shawn Michaels and Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship. The most recent example of this was at NXT TakeOver 36, when Adam Cole faced Kyle O'Reilly.
The Three Degrees of Pain match is a hybrid match, a variation of Two out of Three Falls and Steel Cage match types where a wrestler must achieve a victory in the specific order before the other. The first victory is a pinfall, the second victory is a submission and if necessary, the third victory is to escape from the steel cage. There have only been two of these matches occurred in TNA history and both were feud-enders.
As professional wrestling seeks to also tell a story, some matches are made solely for the purposes of advancing the plot. This typically involves the loser of a match being penalized in some way.
The Clock Strikes Midnight match is a singles match where a match is contested under different stipulations, and stipulations of the match keep changing after random intervals. This match was contested between Alexxis Falcon and Nina Samuels at the 2023 Super Strong Style 16. The stipulations changed from time to time from a singles match to different stipulations such as Tables match, First Blood match, Submission match, Last Man Standing match, and Deathmatch.
A Crybaby match is a singles match with the exception that the loser would have to dress as a baby by wearing a nappy and sucking from a bottle. This match only occurred once between 1-2-3 Kid and Razor Ramon at the In Your House 6 pay-per-view.
A Jailhouse match is a singles match with the exception that the loser would have to spend the night in a New York City jail cell. This match featured heavy brawling by both competitors The Mountie and Big Bossman at SummerSlam 1991. At one point the Mountie tried to use his cattle prod, but missed. Bossman got the pin following a double leg slam and NYC police officers came down to handcuff the Mountie and take him to jail.
A variant of this match, entitled "Jailhouse Street Fight" is a hardcore match where the winner throws an opponent into a cage. This concept was introduced at NXT Roadblock 2023 where Tony D'Angelo defeated Dijak.
A Kiss My Foot match is a singles match with the exception that the loser must kiss the winner's bare foot. Such matches included Bret Hart vs. Jerry Lawler during the 1995 King of the Ring, Jerry Lawler vs. Michael Cole during the 2011 Over the Limit pay-per-view. A version of this match was used as a No Holds Barred kiss my foot match at Major League Wrestling's 2023 Fury Road event between Matt Cardona and Mance Warner.
A Kiss My Ass match is a singles match in which the loser has to kiss the winner's bare buttocks, in front of the crowd; it became prominent during WWE's Attitude Era. A notable example is The Rock vs. Billy Gunn at SummerSlam 1999, which The Rock won. The match type made a reappearance for Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler at Extreme Rules 2015, where it was branded a Kiss Me Arse match in reference to Sheamus' Irish accent. Ziggler won, but Sheamus attacked him and forced Ziggler's unconscious self to kiss Sheamus' behind.
A last chance match, also called a do or die match, is a championship match where, if the challenger does not win the title, they are banned from challenging for it again as long as the winner of the same match holds it.[120] Rarely, the loser may even be barred from challenging for that title for as long as he remains employed at the company. For example, at Slammiversary XI's main event, Sting was defeated by defending champion Bully Ray in a No Holds Barred variant of this match; as per the pre-match stipulation, he was barred from challenging for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship ever again no matter who holds it. A similar situation occurred at All Elite Wrestling's 2019 Full Gear event, in which Cody Rhodes lost to AEW World Champion Chris Jericho and could never challenge for the title again as long as he was employed by AEW. Tyson Kidd lost a last chance match against Adrian Neville for the NXT Championship in 2014. As a result, Tyson Kidd would never get another chance at the NXT Championship as long as he remained employed with WWE.
These matches are usually a way to finish a feud between the champion and a certain challenger. It can also be used as a way of keeping the same challenger a title feud with a multiple champions; someone who had previously lost a last chance match may issue a challenge to a new champion as soon as the previous champion - who won a last chance match - loses their title. An example of this would be Drew McIntyre, who lost a last chance match for Bobby Lashley's WWE Championship but immediately challenged new champion Big E when the latter won the belt from Lashley. A ban may also be lifted in some other way, such as when Sting was able to challenge Magnus for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship in a No Disqualification Title vs. Career match at Genesis (2014), though Sting lost.
"Loser leaves town" is a generic term for any match in which the loser has to leave the current promotion or sub-division.[121] These matches were most often held during the "territorial days", when wrestlers frequently jumped from company to company. It has been held with greater frequency in WWE during the brand split; the losing wrestler typically leaves the brand (usually either Raw or SmackDown), only to go to the other brand. It is also used as a way to write a wrestler off TV to give them some time off.
Loser Wears a Chicken Suit match is a singles match where the loser must wear a chicken suit either following the match or at another event soon after. Col. Robert Parker had to wear a chicken suit on the January 29, 1994 episode of WCW Saturday Night following his loss to Flyin' Brian Pillman at Clash of the Champions XXVI.
Loser Wears Dress match is a singles match where the loser must wear a woman's dress temporarily after the match occurred. The match is won by pinfall or submission. An example of this type of match is at Souled Out (1999) between Chris Jericho and Perry Saturn which Jericho won.
Luchas de apuestas (in English meaning "gambling fights") are matches in which both wrestlers wager something specific (the mask or hair) on the outcome. The loser of the match then loses the item, being forced to take off their mask or be shaved bald. It is also possible for a wrestler to put someone else's item on the line, with the same stipulation applying in the event of a loss.[122] These matches have a storied history in Mexico.[123] Upon unmasking, it is not unheard of for a wrestler's real name and information to be published. As a form of further humiliation, the loser can be forced to physically hand the mask they just lost to the winner.[123]
The most popular types of wager are the mask of a masked wrestler or the hair of a non-masked wrestler, most commonly put against each other in mask vs. mask (in Spanish: máscara contra máscara), mask vs. hair (máscara contra cabellera), or hair vs. hair (cabellera contra cabellera) matches. Throughout Mexico, when masked wrestlers lose their masks, they are not allowed to compete under a mask with that same gimmick.[123] In addition to masks and hair, championships,[124] or careers[125] — as a form of retirement match — can be put up as the wager in any combination.
Similarly the mask can be used in a bounty match, which can be a single match or series of matches where a third party will reward whoever can unmask the targeted competitor. The match can also be used to defeat a targeted individual or take them out of action with a reward. Sometimes the reward is disclosed and sometimes not. An example of the mask bounty match was Flyin' Brian Pillman having a bounty by Barry Windham after making appearances as The Yellow Dog in order to continue wrestling after losing a loser leaves match.
A Move match has the objective of performing a specific move first. Usually a signature move or finisher of the wrestlers is selected, although on occasion it will be a generic move that is notoriously hard to perform on both wrestlers. The match usually takes the name of the target move if both wrestlers are trying to perform their finisher for the win. The best known of these was Yokozuna's Bodyslam Challenge, which Lex Luger won. Another famous move match was the $15,000 Body Slam Challenge between Andre The Giant and Big John Studd at the first WrestleMania. Another move match was the Masterlock Challenge which was created by Chris Masters. A Chokeslam Challenge match was also done between The Big Show and Triple H on WWE Smackdown in September 1999. A Stink Face Challenge match is another move match where whoever delivers the Stink Face to their opponent first wins.[126]
A Banned Move match is a singles match when one or both of the competitors is not allowed to use their finishing move or else they will be disqualified. One of the competitors cannot be disqualified if that wrestler uses the move to give an unfair disadvantage. Sometimes this stipulation is used in a feud with wrestlers whose finishers are the same or similar, in these cases it is common to see the stipulation added that the losing wrestler is no longer allowed to use that move anymore. This type of match often forces the banned wrestler to get more creative and use moves they don't normally use in an attempt to win. An example of this match took place at Extreme Rules in 2015 between Seth Rollins and Randy Orton, where, in addition to the match taking place in a Steel Cage, Orton's finisher, the RKO, was banned. Another example was at the 2020 edition of AEW's All Out event, where AEW Champion Jon Moxley defended his title successfully against MJF. In that match, Moxley's finisher, the Paradigm Shift (a variation of a DDT) was banned, although he did use it when the referee had his back turned.
The retirement stipulation can be applied to just one wrestler[127] or both wrestlers in a match can be wrestling for their careers. (Though in practice some wrestlers career may resume their career later either inside or outside the promotion the match occurs in despite being "retired" per the stipulation of the match.)[128] Some examples of this stipulation of match are Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair at WrestleMania XXIV and Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXVI.[129] More loosely, the term can refer to the last match of a (usually "legendary") wrestler's career. Such a match is designed to be a last hurrah, showcasing the wrestler's talent one last time for their fans. An example of this type includes Sting's retirement match at Revolution 2024.
The Spin the Wheel, Make the Deal concept was introduced in WCW at the 1992 Halloween Havoc to determine the stipulation for the match pitting Sting versus Jake Roberts. While not a match type in and of itself, Spin the Wheel, Make the deal involves a wheel of fortune featuring a number of match types. When the wheel is spun, the stipulation it lands on is the one used for the match. The concept was later used in TNA as the "Wheel of Dixie" and in WWE as "Raw Roulette". Since 2020, WWE has revived Spin the Wheel, Make the Deal for Halloween Havoc, which was itself revived as an event for the NXT brand.[130][131]
In two kinds of matches, a wrestler does not win by pinfall or submission, but only by stripping their opponent of their clothing.[132] Historically, these types of matches were contested between managers or valets, due to their supposed lack of wrestling ability. In the Attitude Era, however, full-time female wrestlers (known formerly as Divas in WWE) began engaging in strip matches for the purpose of titillation.
A bra and panties match is a match consisting of two or more female wrestlers where the only objective to win this match is to strip her opponent down to her bra and panties.
An evening gown match is usually contested by two female competitors in evening gowns. The only objective to win this match is the wrestler must remove the evening gown off of her opponent.[133][134][135]
A tuxedo match is usually contested by two male competitors in tuxedos. The only objective to win this match is the wrestler must remove his opponent's tuxedo.[136]
A submission match is typically a variation of a singles match in which pinfalls, count-outs, and disqualifications are not legal and the match could only end by making an opponent tap out to a submission hold.
A Throw in the Towel match, also known as a No Surrender Rules match in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, is a singles match where there are one or more cornermen for each participant, and victory is obtained when an opponent's cornerman throws a towel into the ring to signal surrender on behalf of their wrestler. An example of this type of match is between Bob Backlund with Owen Hart as his cornermen and Bret Hart with The British Bulldog as his cornermen at the 1994 Survivor Series.
A Catch-as-Catch Can match is a singles match where any submission hold are allowed that is not intended to inflict injury, which contained mostly submission amateur-style wrestling. This match is altered to stipulate that a wrestler may lose by going to or being forced to the arena floor, like in a battle royale. An example of this type of match is the infamous match between Dean Malenko and Billy Kidman during WCW's Souled Out (2000), where Malenko lost in two minutes by forgetting the rules and escaping to the floor after a barrage of attacks from Kidman.
An "I quit" match is a singles match where a wrestler must force the other wrestler to submit in the form of saying the words "I quit" into a microphone to win. This match is run under hardcore rules - no disqualifications, no countouts and the submission can happen anywhere. The referee follows the action with a microphone in hand during the event.
An "I respect you" match is a singles match also similar to an "I quit" match, that means: anything goes. In order to win, a wrestler must hurt his opponent brutally that it leaves the other wrestler no other choice but force to say, "I respect you" into the microphone. This match type took place at WCW's SuperBrawl VI in 1996 which marked Brian Pillman's final match in WCW in his "I respect you" Strap Match against The Taskmaster, before Pillman shouted "I respect you, booker man!", breaking kayfabe, before leaving the ring.
The Submission Count Anywhere match is a variation of a Submission and Falls Count Anywhere match, and was debuted at Breaking Point 2009 between D-Generation X and The Legacy. This is a tag-team stipulation where a wrestler can be submitted anywhere to win, and there are no pinfalls, no disqualifications and no countouts. This match occurred only once in WWE history.
The match is contested in a large container filled with various substances, typically between two female individuals who may or may not have experience with wrestling. Substances can include anything from mud to chocolate milk. Sometimes, specialty substances are used for certain occasions like gravy for Thanksgiving and eggnog for Christmas.
A notable example of this match type was the Mimosa Mayhem match, which was contested between Chris Jericho and Orange Cassidy at All Elite Wrestling's All Out pay-per-view in September 2020, where the only ways to gain victory were by pinfall, submission or by knocking the opponent into a large vat of mimosa. Unlike the traditional reasoning, the theme fit with both parties' gimmicks: Jericho was promoting his own line of champagne, and Cassidy is billed as "Freshly Squeezed" as part of his gimmick (in the independent circuit Cassidy would often spit orange juice into his opponent's eyes).
Another example of this match was the Chocolate Pudding match when Candice Michelle defeated Melina in one of these matches.
A Blood Bath match is a no-disqualification match where the first to be covered in a vat of blood dispensed from a bucket loses. The Brood members Edge and Gangrel had a Blood Bath match on WWE Raw in August 1999.
Perhaps the most notable substance match was a mud match, where wrestlers would wrestle in an area or container full of mud, usually away from the ring. Usually women would participate in these matches with some occasional male involvement.
A variation of a Mud Match is the Hog Pen match, which is a Mud Match held in a pig pen on a farm, often filled with mud and pig excrement. Triple H and Henry O. Godwinn participated in a Hog Pen match at WWE's In Your House 5 in December 1995. The only objective to win is to be the first wrestler to throw his opponent into a pig pen.
Matches are often contested between two or more teams, most often consisting of two members each. Tag team matches can range from two teams of two fighting, to multiple man teams challenging each other.
On most occasions, one member of the team competes in the ring with one or more of his or her teammates standing behind the ropes. Wrestlers switch positions by "tagging" one another, usually similar to a high five and, as a result, these teams are referred to as tag teams. This can create tension during the match as an injured wrestler in the middle of the ring attempts to reach his or her teammates, often with the heel team preventing them from doing so. In typical tag team matches, standard wrestling rules apply with a match ending by pinfall, submission, countout, or disqualification. Tag team matches have also been seen in mixed martial arts and boxing.
Promotions usually have a tag team championship for a team of two wrestlers, and on rare occasion allies of the reigning tag team will be allowed to defend the title in the place of one of the reigning wrestlers under the Freebird rule. Though common in Mexican lucha libre, at one point, World Championship Wrestling (WCW) had a championship for teams of three. WWE also can have three (triple threat) or four (fatal four-way) tag teams going against each other as well. The Tag Team Triple Threat match (known as Tag Team Triangle match in WCW) involves three teams where a member of two teams are in the ring and can tag their partner or a member of the third team. The first team with an active competitor to win by pinfall or submission wins the match for the team.[137]
The Tag Team Four Corners match (also known as Tag Team Fatal Four-Way match) is another variation that starts off with four teams positioned as in a tag team match and two wrestlers active in the ring. The two wrestlers in the ring can tag their partner or members of a team not already represented in the match. It is an advantage to have a team member tagged into the match as you can only win by being a legal competitor in the match and the one who scores the fall wins the match for the team. One example was a four team match for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship at Starrcade (2019).
Another variation of the four-way tag team match is to have a member of each of the four teams in competition while their partners are on the apron and the active member who scores a pinfall or submission wins the match for the team. One example of this variation was contested for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship at Clash of Champions (2017).
Sometimes a team will have members of three, four or five in non-elimination tag matches. They are often named based on the number of participants and gender involved. Six-Man (Six-Woman) Tag Team match (known as Trios match in AEW) is one variation. The Wyatt Family defeated The Shield at Elimination Chamber (2014) in a six-man tag team match.
The tornado tag team match (Originally known as the Texas Tornado) is a hardcore-rules match where all wrestlers involved are allowed to be in and wrestle in the ring and elsewhere at the same time, and thus all wrestlers are vulnerable to having a fall scored against them. Whether or not it is truly a tag team match is debatable, as it involves no tagging, but it is contested between tag teams. The first match of this kind was held on October 2, 1937, in Houston between Milo Steinborn and Whiskers Savage against Tiger Daula and Fazul Mohammed. It was the brainchild of promoter Morris Sigel. Another well-known example of this match is when The Shield (Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins) challenged Team Hell No (Daniel Bryan & Kane) for the WWE Tag Team Championship at Extreme Rules (2013).
Another example of this match is All Elite Wrestling's renamed Anarchy in the Arena match. The match has been held three times at the annual Double or Nothing pay-per-view event:
Tag team matches are occasionally held under elimination rules; that is, the losing wrestler is eliminated from the match, but their team is allowed to continue with their remaining members until all members of one team are eliminated. WWE and other promotions also has three or four tag teams going against each other as well. Anyone can be tagged in by anyone else and can be subject to immediate disqualification for failure to accept a tag. When a wrestler is pinned or force to submit, the entire team is eliminated and the last team remaining wins.
In WWE, these matches are primarily featured during its Survivor Series pay-per-views, where they are billed as a "Survivor Series match". Teams of four or five, though on some occasions as many as seven, compete under elimination rules. All other standard rules apply, and team members may tag in and out in any order. While some teams are already established stables, others may need to recruit members for their team. In lucha libre promotions, a torneo cibernetico is a similar type of match between teams of up to eight wrestlers who enter in a predetermined order.
A captain's fall match is a tag team elimination match where the two teams of four competitors to compete and captains are assigned to both teams. The purpose of the match is to score a fall over the captain to get the win. Eliminations may occur until the captain is pinned or force to submit, the team loses if the captain is eliminated. This match type only occurred at WWE 205 Live on August 20, 2019 between Team Drew Gulak vs. Team Lorcan.
A tag team turmoil is another version of an elimination tag team match. The match has a team in each of the four corners to start the match, but as each team is eliminated another team takes its place, similar to a gauntlet match. There are five pay-per-view matches of the tag team turmoil took place at SummerSlam in 1999, Armageddon in 2003, Night of Champions in 2010, Night of Champions Kickoff Show in 2013 and Elimination Chamber in 2017. Two teams start, when one is eliminated a new team comes to the ring until all teams have competed, the remaining team is the winner. This was used on the May 31, 2011 episode of NXT, with a team consisting of a WWE pro and an NXT rookie. The winning team earned three redemption points for the rookie in this version. This was also used on the May 8, 2017 episode of Raw, where the winning team earned a number one contender's spot for Matt and Jeff Hardy's WWE Raw Tag Team Championship.
Primarily associated with Ring of Honor (ROH), An Ultimate Endurance match is a tag team elimination match that typically includes three to four tag teams with the members of two. The match starts off with a particular set of special stipulations, with the stipulation changing every time a team is eliminated. These stipulations are predetermined and are not limited to any specific type.
A mixed tag team match features mixed-gender teams that only wrestlers of the same gender may be in the ring at the same time will wrestle each other under the standard rules. For example, if a female wrestler tags her male partner, both women leave the ring and both men enter the ring, the roles is also reversed as well. The Mixed Match Challenge tournament was debuted on January 16, 2018, which both team winners The Miz and Asuka won season one while R-Truth and Carmella won season two, earning themselves the #30 spots in the 2019 Royal Rumble matches and an all-expenses-paid vacation, respectively.
A intergender tag team match features mixed-gender teams but it differs from the "Mixed Tag Team match" in which that both men and women can be in the ring at the same time to wrestle each other under the tornado tag team rules. This concept was used and popularized in the early 2000s by Team Xtreme during the Attitude Era.
A Stadium Stampede match is a type of hybrid tag team, location and cinematic match that originated in All Elite Wrestling. It has been run twice at their Double or Nothing pay-per-view event under this name and three times under the Anarchy in the Arena name, as well as once at their AEW All In London pay-per-view event for a total of six times (when conducted indoors, it is called an Anarchy in the Arena match.) This match typically involves 10 wrestlers in a 5 vs 5 match, and all five wrestlers of the two teams are each part of an established faction in AEW. This often violent and brutal match is contested under hardcore rules, and it starts in a ring in the middle of the stadium or arena and progresses through various environments, such as bars, cargo loading areas and offices. The 2020 edition of this match stayed within the empty TIAA Bank Field and featured the teams brawling around the stadium, while the 2021 edition of this match had the combatants exit the empty stadium and then finally end up in the audience-present central event space at the adjacent Daily's Place outdoor amphitheatre, where the match was finished in the Daily's Place ring. The first indoor edition took place under the name Anarchy in the Arena at Double or Nothing 2022. The third match under the Stadium Stampede name was held at All In inside London's Wembley Stadium in 2023. However, unlike the previous stadium editions, the entire match took place live in front of a crowd, instead of it being a cinematic match.[138][139]
A Strange Bedfellows match is a standard tag team match where a member of one tag team has to team up with a member of another tag team they are feuding with. One example of this was when Matt Hardy had to team up with Christian against his brother/tag team partner Jeff Hardy and Christian's tag team partner Edge.
Through the use of foreign objects, the matches generally take the name of the weapon being used ("Singapore cane match", "Chairs match"). In the following list of weapon-based matches additional rules have supplanted or replaced the standard rules.
An Arcade Anarchy match is a tag-team hardcore match that originated in AEW where various items found in arcades like air hockey tables, mallet hammers (for Mogura Taiji (Whac-a-Mole)), various video game stalls, a claw crane and even Teddy bears filled with Lego bricks are made available and placed around the ring. There is also a "prize wall" made available with traditional hardcore professional wrestling weapons hanging on this wall. This match was first done on AEW Dynamite on March 31, 2021.[140]
A Bricks match is a hardcore match where concrete bricks are made available as weapons. Bricks were often integrated into no-rope barbed wire deathmatches, and bricks first made their appearance in Japanese deathmatches in 1993.
A Chairs match is a standard weapons match with any number of steel chairs being the only legal weapon to be used. This match can be won by pinfall or submission. The first Chairs match was introduced at TLC 2009 between Batista vs. The Undertaker, which Undertaker won by pinfall.
A Country Whipping match is a hardcore match where all competitors are armed with leather belts, which is the only legal weapon in the match. This was known to be The Godwinns speciality match.
The Crazy 8 match, used mostly in the defunct Pro Wrestling Unplugged promotion, involves placing a championship belt at the top of a scaffold with the first wrestler to retrieve it being declared the winner. Placed in and around the ring for the wrestlers to use during the match are one side of a steel cage, two trampolines, and four rope swings.[141]
A Fans Bring the Weapons match is a type of dangerous hardcore match where the competing wrestlers take random blunt objects from audience members and use them in the match. This match was first pioneered in Extreme Championship Wrestling in the mid-1990s.
A Good Housekeeping match is a hardcore match where various items usually found in private homes such as trashcans, kitchen sinks, ironing boards, pans, tables, brooms, utensils and various raw food ingredients are made available as weapons and these are the only legal weapons. This match is fought under no-disqualification and no-countout rules. Jeff Jarrett fought Chyna in a Good Housekeeping match at WWF's No Mercy 1999.
A Handcuff match is a hardcore match when the only way to win is a wrestler must retrieve a pair of handcuffs then handcuff the opposing wrestler to a ring fixture but sometimes so that the opposing wrestler is unable to make use of their hands.
The Hangman's Horror match was created by Raven to end his feud with Vampiro w/James Mitchell at TNA's IMPACT Wrestling on October 29, 2003. The objective in this match is to wrap your opponent's neck with a steel chain and then proceed in hanging him over the ring ropes. Once he is declared unconscious by the referee, the person in charge of the horrific hanging will gain the victory.
A kendo stick match (also known as a Singapore cane match or Dueling canes match) is a standard weapons match with a kendo stick being the only legal weapon. Often, the ring will be lined with many kendo sticks for the wrestlers to use. Hardcore wrestling promotion Combat Zone Wrestling has used this match with fluorescent light tubes instead of kendo sticks.
A ladder match is a no-disqualification style match in which a specific object (usually a title belt, a contract or a briefcase) is placed above the ring—out of the reach of the competitors—with the winner being the first person to climb a ladder and retrieve it. This is often used in WWE with their Money in the Bank matches.[142] The ladder may be used as a weapon.
The Casino Ladder match was created by All Elite Wrestling as a variation of its Casino Battle Royale. A poker chip is hung above the ring beneath a ladder, which can be used as a weapon. The match starts with two wrestlers, with a new participant entering every 2 minutes. The first wrestler to grab the poker chip wins the match, and with it a future AEW World Championship match at a time and place of the wrestler's choosing. Notably, the match can be won before all of the intended participants have entered.
A Full Metal Mayhem match is a variation on a TLC match (see below), where in addition to tables and chairs being present, steel chains are made available, and any other weapon that is metallic (trashcans, thumbtacks) often make appearances. This match originated in TNA Impact Wrestling and this promotion has had at least one of these matches every year since 2005.
The King of the Mountain match is described as a "reverse ladder match". Instead of retrieving an object hanging above the ring, the winner is the first person to use a ladder to hang a championship belt above the ring—after having scored a pinfall or submission (pinfalls count anywhere) to earn the right to try. A wrestler who has been pinned or forced to submit must spend two minutes in a penalty box. At Slammiversary (2022), the first-ever Queen of the Mountain match took place, with Jordynne Grace defeating champion Tasha Steelz, along with Chelsea Green, Deonna Purrazzo and Mia Yim to win the Impact Knockouts Championship. Four-time Knockouts World Champion Mickie James was the match's enforcer. [143]
Used in ECW, a Stairway to Hell match is a ladder match with a weapon hanging over the ring. Rather than winning the match by retrieving it, the first wrestler to climb a ladder and retrieve the weapon is allowed to use it in the match. The match is won by standard pinfall or submission.
A tables, ladders and chairs match, often abbreviated as TLC match, is an extension of a ladder match with chairs and tables also being present as legal weapons.[144] This match was introduced because each of the three teams specialized in one of these weapons: Edge and Christian were known for their frequent use of steel folding chairs and the tandem "con-chair-to" move; the Dudley Boyz were known for their pioneering, hard-hitting use of slamming their opponents through wooden event tables; and the Hardy Boyz were known for their high-flying acrobatics off of twin-step ladders. There had been a similar type of match at WrestleMania 2000 called the "Triangle Ladder Match" which also involved tables and chairs. But the first ever official TLC match took place between Edge and Christian, The Dudley Boyz and the Hardy Boyz at the WWF event Summerslam 2000; and another at Wrestlemania X-Seven. Due to the destructive, dangerous, violent, frenetic and physically demanding nature of these matches, every subsequent TLC match was toned down to reduce the physical demands and risks this type of match poses. From 2009 to 2020, WWE has held a pay-per-view in December named TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, which features this stipulation in its main event. The match has two variations: one is competed as a ladder match, which the person/people must retrieve an object suspended above the ring, and the other is a traditional style match won by pinfall or submission. In WWE, Edge has competed in the most TLC matches (7) including the first three, and has often used this match to gain an advantage in a storyline, with some referring to it as his specialty match.
The Ultimate X match is a "ladder match without the ladders" where two cables are strung metal structures rising from the four corners of the ring, crossing above the middle of the ring, forming an "X" pattern. The objective to win this match is to climb the turnbuckles and then climb hand-over-hand across the cables to claim the prize of the match, usually a championship belt. A signature match of Impact Wrestling's X Division, the match is contested by three or more wrestlers.
A Nigerian Drum Fight is a no-disqualification stipulation weapons match where various musical percussion instruments used in traditional Nigerian music, such as bongos and a gong are made available at ringside, as are tables and kendo sticks. Big E faced Apollo Crews at WrestleMania 37 in a Nigerian Drum Fight.
The Object on a Pole match, whose name is usually derived from the object being hung, i.e. "Brass knuckles on a Pole", "Steel chair on a Pole", "Singapore cane on a Pole", "Paddle on a Pole", "Viagra on a Pole", "Contract on a pole", "Mistletoe on a Pole" or "Judy Bagwell on a Forklift", is the spiritual forebear of the ladder match. In this case, an object is placed on a pole that extends from one of the four turnbuckles on the ring with the wrestlers battling to reach it first.[145] Unlike the ladder match, however, reaching the object doesn't usually end the match; it simply allows that wrestler to use it as a weapon.[146] This is not a no-disqualification match; the weapon on the pole is merely an exception to the disqualification rule. However, this is sometimes a no-disqualification match in which any weapon, plus the one on the pole, can be used. This match is referred to by many wrestling critics as a "Russo Special", due to the propensity of WCW booker Vince Russo's use of Pole Matches during his tenure at the company. Another World Championship Wrestling specialty is the San Francisco 49ers match, where four boxes are placed in the four corners of the ring, one with the championship belt and the other three with weapons. You must find box with the belt to win the match and the championship. To date, this match is only known to have happened in a major wrestling federation once, with Booker T. defeating Jeff Jarrett to become the WCW World Heavyweight champion on October 2, 2000.
Multiple variations of the "Pole match" exist. In some cases the match is closer to the ladder match, in that reaching the object does end the match.[147] In others there will be objects above all of the turnbuckles.[148] Further still, there can be a mixture of the two, with an object placed at (though not above) each turnbuckle, one to end the match, the rest to be used as weapons.[149] Total Nonstop Action Wrestling used a "Pole match" as a setup to another match, placing objects at four of their six turnbuckles with the promise that the first wrestler to reach each object would be allowed to use them weeks later at an already scheduled cage match.[150] In a Feast or Fired match each case contains a contract to fight for a TNA World Heavyweight Championship, TNA Tag Team Championship or TNA X-Division Championship, with the final case contains a pink slip, mean the holder of that case would be fired immediately, but if the person holding the X-Division title shot briefcase went on to win that title, it cannot be cashed in right away for the World Heavyweight Championship (Option C). The Coal Miner's Glove match is a variation of the typical "Object on a Pole match" in which the object in question is a coal miner's glove, which can be used on one's opponent upon retrieval.
A Biker Chain match is a hardcore match where a chain is attached to a pole and is the only legal weapon, but the objective of this match is to pin your opponent. Brock Lesnar and The Undertaker did a Biker Chain match at WWE's No Mercy 2003.
A pillow fight is a weapons match with only pillows and a bed are placed in the ring.[134] The pillows may be used as weapons, but other than that, standard wrestling rules apply. Notably, Torrie Wilson once picked up the bed with Candice Michelle on it and threw it. Another variation, the Lingerie Pillow Fight, requires the participants to wear lingerie. Another variation, the Pajama Pillow Fight, requires the participants to wear pajamas.[134][151]
In a straitjacket match, a wrestler must put their opponent into a straitjacket, usually after knocking the opponent out or by rendering them unconscious by submission holds. It made its televised debut on TNA when Samuel Shaw beat Mr. Anderson by first rendering him unconscious with a chokehold and then putting him into the straitjacket.[152] On WWF Raw in June 1999, Ken Shamrock, who was the only participant confined to the straitjacket, still won his match with Jeff Jarrett after forcing him to submit to a headscissors submission hold.
A strap match, known by many names and done with many slight variations, is any match in which the competitors are placed on the opposite ends of a restraint to keep them in close physical proximity. By definition, the strap and anything tied to it are considered legal and in play weapons. The most common rule for victory is to achieve a pinfall, but there is a common variation where one wrestler must circle the ring and touch all four corners in quick order, without interruption.[153] Because of the strap's legality, and subsequent use as a choking device, submissions are generally not allowed.[154][155]
The traditional strap match involves two wrestlers tied together via a leather strap, with the strap match being one of the most varied forms of professional wrestling match type, both in name and implements used. The name used for the match generally comes from the implement used and one or both of the participants. Common restraints include a belt, bullrope (length of rope with a cowbell the center), steel chains, one to two-foot "leash", or leather strap, where the wrestlers are tied together at one wrist. This match type is often named Caribbean Strap match when a wrestler from Puerto Rico (such as Savio Vega) is participating on the match or the match is being held on a Puerto Rican promotion like the International Wrestling Association.
A Dog Collar match is a type of strap match where instead of a leather strap at a wrist, the competing wrestlers are bound together by the neck via dog collars and chains. Made famous by the match between Roddy Piper and Greg Valentine at Starrcade '83: A Flare for the Gold, AEW has brought the match back in recent times, with Brodie Lee vs. Cody following the stipulation in 2020 (the last match of the former's career before his death later that year), and CM Punk vs. MJF at Revolution being highly regarded for their violence. Punk himself competed in another famously violent dog collar match against Raven at ROH Death Before Dishonour 2003.
The Four Corners Strap match is when the first wrestler to touch all four turnbuckle pads in succession without any form of interruption from his opponent or anyone else wins. If at any point a wrestler starts touching pads but is taken down before the wrestler can finish touching them all, they must start over again. There are no pinfalls, no submissions, no countouts, or no disqualifications in this match. At WCW's Uncensored 1995, Hulk Hogan actually dragged non-participant (Ric Flair) to all four corners to win his strap match against Big Van Vader. This match was renamed a Samoan Strap match for WWE's Extreme Rules 2009 pay-per-view with Umaga facing off against CM Punk. WCW has their own variation strap match as well named the Yapapi Indian Strap match between Hulk Hogan vs. Ric Flair at the 2000 Uncensored pay-per-view. A No Surrender Dog Collar Strap match is a match with the "No Surrender" stipulation added, meaning that neither competitor would be permitted to submit in the match. TNA had a main event at the TNA No Surrender 2005 pay-per-view for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship between Raven and Abyss, which Raven won. All Elite Wrestling (AEW) also has its own variation of the Four Corners Strap match, dubbed the South Beach Strap match, which has been used once in a match between Cody Rhodes and Q. T. Marshall at the Road Rager event in July 2021. It was named as such due to the event taking place in Downtown Miami, close to the neighbourhood of South Beach.
A Russian Chain match is a type of strap match where instead of an elastic strap, a thick, 15-foot steel chain is used to bound the wrestlers, and this chain is often used as a weapon. This match has come under many names, including a Texas Chain match. A Biker Chain match is a variation of an Object on a Pole match. The Russian Chain match was the speciality of Ivan Koloff and Boris Malenko.
A Texas Bullrope match is a type of strap match where the wrestlers are bound together by a thick cattle rope with a cowbell attached; the objective of this match is to achieve a single pinfall, or in another variation, victory is achieved by touching all four turnbuckles successively similar to a standard Strap Match (as in the case of JBL vs. Eddie Guerrero in The Great American Bash (2004)). The Rock had his own signature match, the Brahma Bullrope match which was a renamed Texas Bullrope match.
In the stretcher match, one wrestler must incapacitate their opponent to such an extent that they are able to get them onto a stretcher and roll them to the finish line for the victory; usually past a line at the top of the entrance ramp. The first match of this type was different as a wrestler lost if after being pushed out of the ring, four medics were able to load him on a "carry" stretcher, pick him up all the way, and start walking out with him.
A Steel Stairs match is a hardcore match where the only legal weapon are any number of steel stairs typically situated the on opposite sides of the ring that can be used to enter the ring. The Big Show faced Erick Rowan in a Steel Stairs match at the TLC 2014 WWE pay-per view.[156]
A Symphony of Destruction match is a hardcore match where various musical instruments are available at ringside as weapons. This is Elias's speciality match and debuted in 2018 when Elias faced Braun Strowman.[157]
A Tables match is a hardcore match in which, to win, one's opponent must be driven through a table. It can only be won with an offensive maneuver.[158]
Tables matches can be contested with tag teams, under both elimination[159] and one fall rules. The first tables match was contested at ECW's 1995 Double Tables event between The Public Enemy and The Tazmaniac & Sabu for the ECW World Tag Team Championship, whilst the first in the WWE was a tag-team Tables match with The Hardy Boyz versus The Dudley Boyz at the 2000 Royal Rumble. The objective of both of these matches was to drive all opposing team members through tables with offensive moves, but subsequent WWE Tables matches have only required one member to be driven through a table. It is common for tables matches to also include a "no-disqualification" clause, turning them into hardcore matches (although this variation may also be known as a Hardcore Tables match). In some tag matches, a person can save his teammate by breaking the table with his own body. Apparently this does not count against the team.[160]
A Flaming Tables match is an Extreme Championship Wrestling specialty match, where the tables are set on fire, and the only way to win is to put opponents through the flaming tables.[161]
The Thanksgiving Leftovers Throwdown is a specialty match based on the Thanksgiving holiday. It debuted on the November 26, 2021 Black Friday edition of SmackDown between Rick Boogs and Angel Garza. It is a standard wrestling match with a table by ringside covered with leftover foods. No competitor was thrown into the table although Humberto Carrillo, who distracted Boogs, was thrown into the table by Shinsuke Nakamura.[162]
A Two out of Three Tables match is a hardcore match where it can only be won when a wrestler or tag team puts their opponent or opponent's team through two tables, but it does not have to be at the same time. Performing a move on double tables does not count as a victory. It is also a variation of a two out of three falls match.
For a taped fist match, the wrestlers are allowed to tape and/or wrap their hands to allow them to punch harder without damaging their hands. The wrestlers must compete with their fists taped, the idea being that this would make it harder to grab each other while at the same time protecting their hands while punching, encouraging the athletes to "fight" instead of wrestle.[163] In one variation, the Taipei Deathmatch, the taped fists are dipped in super glue, then broken glass.[164]
The Viking Rules match is a viking-themed hardcore match with the ring decorated in a style of a viking ship. This match was introduced by The Viking Raiders on the September 2, 2022 edition of SmackDown (taped on August 26, 2022) against The New Day.[165]
A water fight is a weapons match which the ring is surrounded with buckets of water, water guns and water balloons to use as weapons. Other than that, standard wrestling rules apply. Notably, Jillian Hall once smacked Mickie James over the head with a water gun during this match.
The Weapon Rumble match is a hardcore match invented in DDT Pro-Wrestling in which, similarly to a Rumble rules match, with every time interval a new weapon is introduced in the match. The weapons are chosen by the participants beforehand and can widely vary due to the loose interpretation of the definition of a "weapon" that's used by the company in a comedic manner.[166]
A Weapons Wild match is a hardcore match where various blunt weapons are made available along the padded barriers at ringside, and are all legal. Wrestlers are armed with at least one weapon when they start the match. This match originated in WWE's NXT promotion.
Two scenarios constitute a Winner Takes All match; a title-versus-title match is a match in which both wrestlers (or teams if a tag team match) are champions going into the match, and the winner receives the championship of the loser, thus "taking all".[167][168] This differs from a championship unification match, where one championship is absorbed into the other and retired/deactivated. In a Winner Take All scenario, both titles are still active and defended as separate entities. Winner Takes All matches may also take the form of tag team matches, in which two separate titles are fought for in the same match; such as when Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch defended the Universal Championship and Raw Women's Championship respectively against Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans at 2019's Extreme Rules event.
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)The bout will be held inside the Six Sides Of Steel cage with barbed wire lining the top – and in order to qualify to pin your opponent you have to make someone bleed!
SADISTIC MADNESS[...]The rules are that a guy had to bleed before he could be pinned..
April 29, 1996
Jim Cornette said he would pick out 10, 12 or 18 TNA fans to act as Lumbjacks with a leather strap. ... Jim Cornette announced that Jeff Jarrett would face Samoa Joe in a "Fans Revenge Lumberjack Match".
Ultimately, the [...] ECW General Manager mandated a three-week competition between all four Superstars that would [...] determine who would face champion CM Punk [...]. The loser of each week's Elimination Chase match would be cut from the running until there was only one man left standing.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)Chris Jericho defeats Juventud Guerrera with the Liontamer in a mask vs. title match.
TITLE VS. CAREER
NWA WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
MATCH: Eugene Dinsmore w/William Regal vs Johnny Nitro (If he loses he is FIRED!)..
Match 5: Loser retires – Curt Hennig vs. Buff Bagwell
Match #5
MANKIND [...] v. LA ROCA in a "pink slip on a pole" match
HOCKEY STICK STREET FIGHT: 3-Live Krew defeated Team Canada with Kip James as referee..
Match #8: Jeff Jarrett vs. Booker T. in a San Francisco 49'ers Match for the vacant WCW World Heavyweight Title
Match 5: Strap match — Shane Douglas (w/Torrie Wilson) vs. Kidman[...]Kidman pins Douglas.
MESAS EN LLAMAS EN BLAZE OF GLORY [...] Para ganar, tienes que hacer pasar a tu oponente por una mesa que ha sido incendiada.
Ian Rotten vs. Axl Rotten (Taipei Death Match, Broken Glass estaba pegado a sus puños)
El texto fue copiado de Tipos de combates de lucha libre en la wiki de Pro Wrestling, que se publica bajo una licencia Creative Commons Atribución-CompartirIgual 3.0 (Unported) (CC BY-SA 3.0).