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WWE will produce the 12th edition of the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view on October 25. While the Hell in a Cell match was once considered to be the most high-profile match in the company, it has certainly lost its prestige over the years through overexposure.
There were only 16 Hell in a Cell matches from 1997 to 2008, but since the addition of the eponymous pay-per-view in 2009, there have been 26 more such matches in the next 11 years.
The final pay-per-view ended on a particularly sour note with the Seth Rollins vs. Fiend match ending via match stoppage, a stipulation that was unheard of in Cell matches.
Not many Cell matches will be remembered like the 1997 classic between Shawn Michaels and the Undertaker, or the 1998 epic where Mick Foley nearly killed himself. However, there are a few matches that have completely disappeared from the imagination of the casual wrestling fan. This list takes a look at five of them.
#5 Alberto Del Rio vs. John Cena vs. CM Punk - Hell in a Cell 2011
The Hell in a Cell match at the eponymous 2011 pay-per-view featured John Cena defending his WWE Championship against Alberto Del Rio and CM Punk. While the match was solid, the storyline and aftermath relegated the Hell in a Cell stipulation to the background.
2011 was supposed to be CM Punk's year. Punk winning the WWE Championship from John Cena at that year's Money in the Bank after the famous pipebomb promo captivated wrestling fans and reignited interest in the sport. The story of an outsider toppling the corporate endorsed champion was captivating, but WWE ruined it by adding too many characters to the feud.
Triple H, Kevin Nash, Alberto Del Rio, The Miz and R-Truth all became embroiled in the story and by the time Hell in a Cell came about, Cena was the champion once again. The match saw Del Rio capture the gold while Truth and Miz attacked all the wrestlers after the match. Then, Triple H attacked the duo to close out the show.
Fans just wanted to see Punk regain the championship, but the never ending saga involving Triple H continued into the next pay-per-view when Punk had to team with the Game against Truth and Miz.
Punk would eventually win the title from Del Rio at Survivor Series and most fans consider whatever happened between losing and regaining the title to be a blur.
#4 Triple H vs. Chris Jericho - Hell in a Cell at Judgement Day 2002
The eighth match to take place inside the dreaded Hell in a Cell structure occurred at Judgement Day 2002, with Triple H facing Chris Jericho. The match was supposed to be the culmination of a feud that saw Jericho lose the Undisputed Championship to Triple H in the main event of Wrestlemania 18.
However, by the time Judgement Day came about, Hollywood Hogan had become the leading babyface in WWE. Vince McMahon made the call to end Triple H's world title run and switch the championship to Hogan. The Jericho vs. Triple H feud then lost a ton of prestige without the Undisputed title attached to it.
To make matters worse, the Hell in a Cell match was slotted as the third to last on the show. Hogan vs. The Undertaker for the Undisputed title headlined the pay-per-view. Meanwhile, the Hair vs. Hair match between Edge and Kurt Angle was widely considered to be the best match of the night.
It wasn't a good night for the Hell in a Cell match.
#3 Triple H vs. Kevin Nash - Hell in a Cell at Bad Blood 2003
A year removed from his Hell in a Cell match with Chris Jericho, Triple H was well into his infamous 'Reign of Terror' run on RAW, monopolising the World Championship scene to diminishing returns.
After defeating Booker T at WrestleMania 19, Triple H entered into a three-pay-per-view feud for the world title with backstage friend Kevin Nash.
By the time their feud climaxed with a Hell in a Cell match at Bad Blood 2003, Nash had worn out his welcome. WWE fans were desperate to have the fresh Bill Goldberg ascend to the WWE World Heavyweight title picture.
To add to the issues, Bad Blood was a RAW exclusive event, which robbed the viewers from seeing the SmackDown half of the roster in action.
In the end, Triple H pedigreed Nash to retain his title and close out an underwhelming pay-per-view that ended 25 minutes before the stipulated time. Nash would leave the WWE soon after and move on to TNA.
#2 Kane vs. The Undertaker - Hell in a Cell 2010
The Kane character made his WWE debut during the very first Hell in a Cell match in 1997, ripping the cell door to get to The Undertaker. So, when the kayfabe brothers faced each other 13 years later for Kane's WWE World Heavyweight Championship inside the same structure, their feud came full circle.
However, that is not how the match panned out. WWE had severely diminished the aura of Hell in a Cell by adding a namesake PPV the previous year and having three such matches on the same night. So when the PPV returned in 2010 with two Hell in a Cell matches, the audience was pretty saturated.
Additionally, the Undertaker vs. Kane feud was severely underwhelming. It was purely designed to get Kane over as a strong champion, but even the return of Paul Bearer didn't help raise fan interest.
Kane had already beaten The Undertaker at the previous pay-per-view and would do so again at the next Bragging Rights show as well. It left the Hell in a Cell match as neither the start nor the culmination of their feud.
#1 The Undertaker and Stone Cold vs. Kane and Mankind - Hell in a Cell at RAW 1998
On the 15 June 1998 episode of RAW, The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin took on Kane and Mankind in a Tornado tag team match inside Hell in a Cell. The match is rarely talked about nowadays, but it is a significant bout in many aspects.
The match was the second-ever Hell in a Cell match and the first of only two such matches to be given away on free television. It was also the first time that a tag team match would happen inside the structure, with the next at a pay-per-view happening 11 years later.
Surprisingly, WWE went off the air before the match ended so The Undertaker and Austin picked up the victory without viewers at home knowing about it.
Even more bizzarre is the fact that The Undertaker and Mankind were scheduled to face each other at King of the Ring in two weeks time. That also happened inside the Hell in a Cell structure and resulted in one of the most memorable matches of all time.
