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Hell in a Cell 2021 will take place on June 20th, one week from Sunday. While we're sure to get an incredible hoss fight between Drew McIntyre and Bobby Lashley for the WWE Championship, a lot of the card is yet to be revealed.
Still, there's a lot to be excited about when this pay-per-view comes up on WWE's schedule. Though the concept of a Hell in a Cell match was always best used to end feuds, instead of an actual yearly event, we've still seen some exciting matchups in recent years.
The Usos vs New Day, Sasha Banks vs Charlotte, and Roman Reigns vs Bray Wyatt have all proven that there's always something to look forward to when Hell in a Cell arrives.
Today, we'll be looking at some of the greatest Hell in a Cell moments to ever take place. Be sure to let us know your favorite Hell in a Cell moments in the comments below. With that said, let's get started with one of the greatest main events of the attitude era.
#5. Rikishi's epic fall from Hell in a Cell: Armageddon 2000
This six-man Hell in a Cell match was loaded with living legends. Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Kurt Angle, The Undertaker, Triple H, and Rikishi all battled to walk away with the WWE (Then WWF) Championship.
The match stemmed from Rikishi running Stone Cold Steve Austin over in a car. But did Rikishi ever face any serious punishment for that? Absolutely! The Undertaker went and tried to commit a murder live on pay-per-view by tossing the big man off the top of the cage.
Commissioner Mick Foley initially booked the match, much to the dismay of Vince McMahon. Consequently, McMahon tried to ruin the match by backing a truck up to the cage while the action was going on, with the intention of dismantling the cage. After all, he had to protect his bottom dollar.
Now...tearing down the Hell in a Cell structure while those competitors were in, on, and around it, probably would've done more harm than good, but his wallet heart was in the right place. At that point, The Undertaker was brawling with Rikishi atop the cage, and took it upon himself to take him out of the matchup for good.
#4. The Undertaker sends Edge to Hell inside Hell in a Cell: SummerSlam 2008
Hell in a Cell is considered the devil's playground, so if you're wondering just how much of The Undertaker you'll see on this list, that should give you an answer.
A lot of people tend to think of Edge as one of John Cena's greatest rivals. However, The Rated-R Superstar also had a stellar feud with the legendary Deadman. Throughout 2008, Edge and The Undertaker carried the SmackDown brand.
It started with their fantastic WrestleMania XXIV main event match, where Edge nearly broke The Undertaker's undefeated streak. Though he failed, losing the World Heavyweight Championship to The Phenom, Edge would ultimately get his title back thanks to the help of La Familia, forcing The Undertaker to leave WWE as well.
The Undertaker returned that summer, leading to their feud culminating at SummerSlam 2008 in one of the more sadistic Hell in a Cell matches.
The Undertaker and Edge brutalized one another, but it was The Deadman who ended up with the victory. A chokeslam off the top rope through tables, a con-chair-to, and even a spear before putting away his rival with a Tombstone Piledriver.
That wasn't it for Edge, though. No, unfortunately Hell in a Cell was just the beginning. The Undertaker wasn't finished with him, and decided to take Edge up for one final chokeslam. Standing on top of a ladder, The Undertaker launched Edge down to the mat, driving him through it. Edge went from Hell in a Cell straight to Hell as flames erupted from the hole that he'd created.
Edge learned an important lesson that night. No matter how many times you get one over on The Deadman, in the end The Undertaker always gets his pound of flesh.
#3. The Deadman defies destruction inside Hell in a Cell: Wrestlemania 28
This Hell in a Cell match was probably the first real time any member of the WWE Universe thought The Undertaker was going to lose his undefeated streak. In a match of Triple H's choosing, with his best friend as the special guest referee, how could The Game lose?
It was one of the best Hell in a Cell matches that WWE ever produced. Dubbed "The End of an Era," it featured three WWE legends from a bygone era in the company. This was booked as the last ride, no pun intended, for all three men. Triple H and The Undertaker always had great chemistry, and were in the final stages of their last feud after The Deadman retired Shawn Michaels a few years prior.
There was one point, specifically, that had WWE fans on the edge of their seats holding their breath. Shawn Michaels did what we all knew he would, helped out his best buddy and stunned Taker with the Sweet Chin Music. Triple H followed with the Pedigree, and what followed after was one of the closest two-count that fans had seen in years.
Everyone knew that was it. When The Undertaker's shoulder went up, it left them on their feet, while Shawn Michaels shrank into the corner, torturing himself over what he'd nearly done.
Not only was this one of the greatest Hell in a Cell moments of all time. This was one of the greatest WrestleMania matches and moments of all time.
#2 The Big Red Machine ruins the first Hell in a Cell: Badd Blood 1997
The first Hell in a Cell match took place at Badd Blood: In Your House in 1997. And at that event, we heard those iconic words. "That's gotta be...that's gotta be Kane!"
The Undertaker was battling Shawn Michaels for a shot at then WWF Champion Bret Hart, which of course led to the Montreal Screwjob.
But I digress. This Hell in a Cell match is wildly forgotten by most because of the moment that we're about to discuss, but it's important to note that this was a 5-star match if you're talking to Dave Meltzer.
It's worth your time to watch, as both of these men had two different peaks in their careers. This was around their first, when The Undertaker was really hitting his stride and just after Shawn Michaels formed D-Generation X with Triple H.
The Heartbreak Kid spent the majority of the match running from a seemingly unstoppable Undertaker. By the end of the bout, he's a bloody mess, beaten within an inch of his life. After delivering one of the, if not the greatest, Hell in a Cell matches of all time, the two men were upstaged by Kane's debut.
Jim Ross and Vince McMahon's commentary was incredibly important to this moment. As JR is seemingly silently stunned, McMahon utters "That's gotta be Kane" over and over again.
Once JR finds his voice again, he describes what he's seeing in front of him. A walking force of destruction, hellfire and brimstone embodied in the shape of a giant man. They did their best to sell to the WWE fans that Kane is no ordinary superstar, and they did it well.
Kane tore the door off of Hell in a Cell structure before spiking The Undertaker with a Tombstone, allowing Michaels to pick up the win. The way he manhandled The Undertaker and the way the commentary team sold him as the next big thing, it led to one of the greatest debuts in WWE history, and it all took place during a Hell in a Cell match.
#1. Mankind's iconic sacrifice during Hell in a Cell match: King of the Ring 1998
When you think of Hell in a Cell, does anything else come to mind before Mankind's legendary falls from the top of the cage?
Of course this was number one. Mick Foley was known for taking punishment and dishing it out just as badly, but nobody could ever match the man when it came to his performance at King of the Ring in 1998.
Mankind and The Undertaker were in the middle of a heated feud that led to the third installment of this match. Two weeks prior, The Deadman and Stone Cold Steve Austin defeated Mankind and Kane in the sinister structure on an episode of RAW is War.
While the first two installments of this stipulation aren't remembered too well aside from Kane's hellacious debut, this match will go down as the most memorable Hell in a Cell match of all time.
This one started out fast, with both competitors climbing to the top of the cell and squaring off while teasing the WWE Universe of a possible fall. However, fans got far more than they bargained for when Taker launched Mankind off Hell in a Cell's structure and onto the announcer's desk below.
At that point, they probably could've ended it right there. It was a terrible sight, with Foley's body crashing through the table at high speeds and sliding halfway under the steel barricade separating the fans from the action.
Of course, as we all know, that wasn't the end. Foley was taken halfway up the ramp on a gurney but got off and stormed the cage, again climbing it to meet his opponent. After a few more minutes on top, The Deadman chokeslammed Mankind on top of a chair and through the cage roof, sending him careening to the mat below and, even worse, dropping that chair on his face.
There's that iconic picture of Foley with a tooth lodged in one of his nostrils that will live on in WWE fans' minds forever, especially when they hear "Hell in a Cell" mentioned on TV.
As the match went on, Mankind and The Undertaker continued to add more bloodshed to this match with the inclusion of thumbtacks. Eventually, Mankind was vanquished with a Tombstone onto those tacks. It was a brutal contest that peaked with two of the most dangerous moments we'd ever seen inside Hell in a Cell, and moments like those are why fans around the world will always chant "Thank you Foley."
What are your favorite Hell in a Cell moments? Leave your comments below
