WWE TLC: The top-5 Hell in a Cell matches of all-time

Barnaby Read 20:24 06/10/2015
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  • Sport360's top-5 Hell in a Cell matches.

    Billed as the most brutal of the WWE’s many formats, Hell in a Cell is as bloody as it is brilliant.

    Next month, the WWE Universe is treated to the ninth Hell in a Cell pay-per-view since it was given its own annual place on the WWE calendar.

    Ever since the first ever Hell in a Cell, at WWF’s 1997 Badd Blood (no, Taylor Swift did not appear), the matches have been ferocious – serving up some of the most memorable moments in WWE history.

    This year’s offering promises to be no different with the October 25 PPV at the Staples Centre throwing up some mouthwatering prospects.

    Not only will Roman Reigns and Bray Wyatt do battle in the 20ft high, five-tonne structure, The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar will also decide their rivalry in what will surely be a match up not for the faint-hearted.

    The anticipation was ramped up this week thanks to Paul Heyman’s microphone mastery and in order to get in the mood for the encounter, Sport360 brings you our top-5 Hell in a Cell matches from the 30 that have delighted to date.

    5) Kurt Angle, Undertaker, Triple H, Steve Austin, Rikishi, and The Rock (Armageddon – Dec 10, 2000)

    This may not have been the best match in Hell in a Cell history but the sheer brilliance of the six names pitted against each other in the steel battleground is enough to get the blood pumping.

    This was the height of the Attitude era’s dominance and it left you not quite knowing where to look as the action spilled over between some of the WWE’s most iconic wrestlers.

    Rikishi being sent from the top of the Cell into a backed up truck sticks in the memory.

    4)  The Undertaker vs Triple H (WrestleMania XXVII – April 1, 2012)

    One of just two times – and the most recent – that Hell in a Cell has featured at WrestleMania, as the two most experienced combatants in the format served up a treat.

    Shawn Michaels was guest referee and joined his peers in hitting finisher after finisher in one of the most physical Cell matches there has ever been.

    A poignant moment closed out the fight with all three embracing as Michaels and ‘Taker helped a battered Triple H out of the ring.

    3.) Triple H vs Shawn Michaels (Bad Blood – June 13, 2004)

    Any match between the old D-Generation X compatriots is worth a mention.

    But chuck them in Hell in a Cell on the back of months of no-holds barred feuding and you’re definitely on to a winner.

    Michaels’ elbow drop from a ladder that put Triple H through a table, with both men covered in blood, had the crowd on its feet.

    2) The Undertaker vs Mankind (King of the Ring – June 28, 1998)

    Put together the man who created Hell in a Cell and hardcore legend Mick Foley (in his Mankind guise) and what do you get?

    Quite simply blood, brutality and one of the best spots in history as Foley was hurled from the top of the cage and through a table.

    Reckless, dangerous and outright brilliant.

    1) Shawn Michaels vs The Undertaker (Badd Blood – October 5, 1997)

    The match that started it all, this was the culmination of a legendary feud between two of the best wrestlers in WWE history.

    Not only was this notable for the match itself, it also led to the late, great Paul Bearer bringing ‘The Big Red Machine’ Kane to the ring for the first time.

    It ended months of speculation that The Undertaker’s half-brother was coming for him and sparked a historic run for the WWF and its Attitude era.

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