One that the American landscape of wrestling thrives on is creating match concepts. This relates to World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling in particular, with both companies leading the way when it came to coming up with trailblazing ideas. Some ideas succeeded and some didn’t, but at least they had the guts to try things out.
You’ll be familiar with the majority of match types on this list, but what you may not know is who came up with the original idea for them – and some of the ideas may surprise you. From legendary superstars to current performers, everyone that’s ever walked into the business of pro wrestling has had an interesting idea at some point.
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That’s not to say there haven’t been a few misfires, but given that four of the five entries in this article have pay-per-views named after them, which means that they’re doing pretty well. We, as fans, are fine-tuned to the idea of complaining when things don’t always go our way – but in this instance, all we can do is sit back and appreciate the iconic minds of both past and present.
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So with that being said, here are five-match concepts are the creators behind them.
#1 Royal Rumble – Pat Patterson
The Royal Rumble is a constant fixture on the WWE calendar, and for many fans, it’s the most exciting night of the year. Whilst WrestleMania is the showcase attraction, the Rumble has that aura of unpredictability that provides us with that extra anticipation, and it’s no surprise that the man behind the magic is a legend of our business.
Pat Patterson, also known as one of Vince’s right-hand men for the last few decades, came up with the idea of having a battle royal type match with a big reward for the winner.
Starting with its initial run, fans were initially sceptical as to whether or not it would succeed, and yet here we are in 2017 with the Rumble still going strong.
#2 Elimination Chamber – Triple H
The Elimination Chamber, created more than 15 years ago, is perhaps the most intimidating structure in the history of the business. With several tonnes of steel to go alongside the pods that would play host to four superstars, it was an idea that had to be seen to be believed.
For a long time now, WWE have led us to believe that Eric Bischoff came up with the idea for the match, but in truth that was only done for storyline purposes. It turns out that Triple H, who was involved in the first ever EC match, had the original idea for the death-defying match type.
Bischoff himself has confirmed the story on a number of occasions.
#3 Hell in a Cell – Jim Cornette
It’s no secret that Hell in a Cell is The Undertaker’s domain, and we can understand why a lot of fans would think The Phenom himself came up with the idea. It turns out that wasn’t true, and the name responsible may shock quite a few people: because it actually came from the twisted and intricate mind of none other than Jim Cornette.
Cornette came up with the concept art in addition to the actual ideology on the match, with several sources sighting Jim as the man who brought HIAC to light.
Unsurprisingly, Vince Russo has managed to get in on the action in this department, revealing on his podcast that he apparently came up with the ‘Hell in a Cell’ name.
#4 Money in the Bank – Chris Jericho
In kayfabe terms, Chris Jericho first came up with the idea for the Money in the Bank ladder match in 2005. In reality, funnily enough, that story is also true with Y2J genuinely thinking up the concept of a multi-man #1 contender’s ladder match. Of course, there’s more to it than that as we all know, but Jericho certainly got the ball rolling.
It’s quite amusing to consider that despite being the brains behind the big spots Jericho has never actually captured the briefcase. It’s quite odd too, considering that he is not only one of the best high flyers to this day but that he’s also one of the most conniving heels.
The briefcase would suit him down to a tee, which is why we think he should get a run with it before calling a day on his illustrious career.
#5 WarGames – Dusty Rhodes
For our one and only WCW entry, we head over to the bizarre yet genius mind of The American Dream, Dusty Rhodes. Rhodes, who probably knew more about the business than anyone else, first had the idea for a WarGames type match when watching the film Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. No, we aren’t lying.
Rhodes recalled how vital Steel Cage matches were in his career, and wanted to expand on that for the future generations to come. The match first came to fruition in the late 80s, with it originally being intended as a speciality match for The Four Horsemen.
Will it ever see the light of day again? Only time will tell.
