The 10 best TLC Matches in WWE history

BY Kevin Powers

When a Tables Match, a Ladders Match or a Chairs Match just won’t cut it, the next best option is to combine all three elements and engage in a TLC Match. For more than a decade, the Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match has presented itself as one of the most dangerous — and exciting — contests in WWE history.

Originally designed for tag team competition, the TLC Match has evolved with World Titles at stake and variations to include Triple Threat and Fatal 4-Way contests. WWE Classics ranks the 10 best TLC Matches since its inception at SummerSlam 2000.

http://www.wwe.com/shows/wwetlc/10-best-tlc-matches

10 Edge vs. Kane vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Rey Mysterio – WWE TLC 2010

Edge’s final TLC Match saw him once again as an innovator of the contest. In addition to competing in both the first-ever TLC Match and its first singles variation, he ushered in a new era at WWE TLC 2010 by meeting Rey Mysterio, Alberto Del Rio and World Heavyweight Champion Kane in the first-ever Fatal 4-Way Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match.

The in-ring style, size and experience of the competitors varied greatly, creating a wild and fast-paced free-for-all that highlighted each Superstar’s sheer ingenuity and resilience. Although it was every man for himself, Edge, Del Rio and Mysterio knew that for a new champion to be crowned, the sheer power of The Big Red Monster had to be suppressed. There were moments throughout the contest that seemed as though no one could outmatch the champion. However, Edge — ever the opportunist — capitalized on the bedlam inside the squared circle. After Mysterio knocked Del Rio off the ladder and through a table, Kane Tombstoned The Ultimate Underdog, but left himself open for Edge to spear the champion off the ring apron and through a table. The Rated-R Superstar then ascended the ladder to claim his 10th World Championship.

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7 CM Punk vs. The Miz vs. Alberto Del Rio – WWE TLC 2011

CM Punk’s first TLC Match since he defeated Jeff Hardy at SummerSlam in 2009 came in the midst of his second WWE Title Reign. The stakes for the Second City Saint were a bit different than two years earlier, as he faced The Miz and Alberto Del Rio in the first-ever Triple Threat TLC Match between singles competitors.

The experience factor of all three Superstars definitely heightened the risk of Punk losing the title. Del Rio had been a combatant in the first-ever Fatal 4-Way TLC Match only a year earlier, while The Miz successfully defended his WWE Championship against Jerry “The King” Lawler earlier that year. Further adding to the contest’s allure was the fact that all three competitors were Money in the Bank Ladder Match winners.

The egos of all three Superstars quickly put a halt to any of them joining forces for very long, even though both Del Rio and The Miz knew they had to keep Punk away from the ladder. To succeed, Del Rio had his personal ring announcer, Ricardo Rodriguez, handcuff Punk to a ladder. Punk eventually broke free, only to be handcuffed again by The Miz, this time to the turnbuckle. Yet as The Awesome One and The Mexican Aristocrat climbed toward the WWE Title, The Straight Edge Superstar kept a cool head and resourceful mindset — he unscrewed the turnbuckle to set himself free, then managed to knock both opponents off the ladder and secure the championship.

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