5 WWE Ladder matches that didn't involve a Championship

The Ladder match is one of the greatest gimmick bouts that professional wrestling has ever seen. The match has been a staple in wrestling for decades and has been used numerous times to finish off major feuds.

The first-ever Ladder match in WWE was contested between Hall of Famers Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels, on an episode of WWE Wrestling Challenge on July 21, 1992. Ever since then, the company has presented tons of Ladder matches on its programming, including major PPVs like WrestleMania. The majority of WWE's Ladder matches used to be contested for Championship gold, but it all changed when WWE introduced the Money In The Bank concept.

In this slideshow, we will take a look at 5 WWE Ladder matches that weren't contested for a Championship, or a Money In The Bank contract.

#5 A guitar

In late 2018, Elias turned babyface for the first time in his WWE stint and attacked King Corbin with his guitar. For the next few weeks, Elias got into a feud with Bobby Lashley, who had turned heel a while ago and had joined forces with Lio Rush. Lashley went on to put Elias down on several occasions, with the matches ending in DQ, count-outs, or distraction by Rush.

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The duo finally met at the 2018 TLC PPV, but there wasn't a title on the line here. Instead, a guitar was hanging above the ring, and the stipulation of the match stated that the winner would be the Superstar who managed to retrieve the guitar from the top by ascending the ladder. In the end, Elias grabbed the guitar and took it off to register a win over Lashley. He didn't get to celebrate for long though, as Lashley attacked him soon after the match was over.

#4 100% WWE ownership

By the time 1999 came around, the rivalry between Vince McMahon and Stone Cold Steve Austin had reached a boiling point. The two had been feuding for around a year, with McMahon doing his best to finish Austin off, once and for all. At King of the Ring 1999, the main event was a Handicap Ladder match between Stone Cold Steve Austin and the McMahons (Vince and Shane). The stipulation to the high-stakes match stated that the winner would get 100% ownership of WWE. Austin had been making Vince's life a living hell ever since Linda McMahon appointed him as WWE CEO.

Here's the full match:

At the PPV, the McMahons and Austin engaged in a fierce battle. In the end, Austin and Vince were both on top of the ladder, struggling to grab hold of the briefcase. Shane appeared out of nowhere and dropped the ladder. He proceeded to set it up again and unhook the briefcase to win the match. The father-son duo celebrated on the ramp while Austin helplessly stared at them with blood in his eyes.

#3 Triple H's sledgehammer

The Summer of Punk kicked off with CM Punk delivering one of the greatest promos of all time on RAW. Weeks later, he lost the WWE title at SummerSlam, due to interference by Kevin Nash. Nash was featured heavily on WWE TV for the next few months. At Vengeance 2011, Nash interfered in a Tag Team match pitting CM Punk and Triple H with R-Truth and The Miz, leading to the villains getting the victory.

At TLC 2011, Triple H and Kevin Nash competed in a Ladder match, with a sledgehammer hanging above the ring. The brutal contest saw both Triple H and Nash going to great lengths to retrieve the sledgehammer in order to use it on the other. In the end, Triple H knocked his former best friend off the ladder, and through a table, and went on to unhook the sledgehammer. Nash pleaded and reminded Triple H that the duo was a part of the Kliq once, but to no avail. Triple H hit Nash with the weapon and won the match.

#2 Kurt Angle's Olympic gold medals

Back in 2001, Kurt Angle got into a rivalry with his arch-rival, Chris Benoit. The duo fought at WrestleMania 17, with Angle coming out victorious when all was said and done. Benoit got back at Angle at the next two PPVs, Backlash and Insurrextion, and registered back-to-back wins over the Olympic gold medalist. Both Superstars weren't done with each other yet and settled their score in one final match weeks later.

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At Judgment Day 2001, Angle and Benoit faced again, this time in a Two-out-of-three falls match, with Angle's gold medal on the line. Benoit won the first match, which was a traditional singles bout. Angle won the second match, which was a submission contest. He managed to submit Benoit by applying the Ankle Lock. The third match involved a ladder, with the gold medal suspended above the ring. The closing moments of the match saw Edge and Christian coming out and attacking Benoit, giving Angle a chance to grab the gold medal and pick up the win.

#1 Custody of Dominick

At WrestleMania 21, WWE Tag Team Champions Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero faced each other in the opening contest. The duo went on to lose the titles to M.N.M. and kicked off a feud soon after. Guerrero threatened to reveal a personal secret about Rey's son, Dominick. Eddie later revealed that he was the biological father of Dominick.

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Guerrero continued playing mind games with Mysterio and threatened to take custody of Dominick with the help of his lawyer. He stated that he had left Dominick with Rey years ago, as the latter was having problems starting his own family. At SummerSlam 2005. Eddie and Rey met in a Ladder match with Dominick's custody on the line. In the end, Mysterio managed to grab the briefcase and picked up the win, as well as the custody of Dominick. Eddie went on to win a Steel Cage match against Mysterio to finish off the feud. He tragically passed away in November, due to heart failure.