Keep or Delete from History? Triple Threat

[tiger_rick]

So, a Room 101 type discussion. Would you keep this, or completely erase from history. Never happened.

Triple Threat Matches.

Popularised in SMW and ECW in the early 90s, making it to WCW as the "Triangle Match" at Starrcade in 1995 and after some dark match experiments, to WWF TV in 1997. If you lose the Triple Threat, you potentially lose all multi man matches, Fatal 4 Way, Six pack challenge, etc. Originally, a novel idea which, if used sparingly, could have continued to feel special for decades. Instead, now just a crux of weekly wrestling TV and a way to get 150 people on a big PPV. 

Does wrestling history suffer from the loss of these matches? I suspect anyone with a fondness for The Night the Line Was Crossed would say yes but 30-odd years on, that's still one of a rare breed - a multi-man match with a point. You can probably count on one hand the number of well built multi-man matches that felt organic and weren't just stuck together with some by the numbers build that loosely created an issue.

I just can't think of many there have ever been that I'd miss. If I think of my favourite matches, then Rock/Shamrock/Foley in a cage might make it somewhere in the top 500. It's good and is still one of the most memorable for me. But I don't think anything suffers if that match never happens.

So, Triple Threats. Keep or Delete from History?

[Arch Stanton]

I don't see any reason to delete them all. I thought this thread was going to pitch three different things against each other and you had to choose one to erase from the history books!

[tiger_rick]

1 minute ago, Arch Stanton said:

I don't see any reason to delete them all. I thought this thread was going to pitch three different things against each other and you had to choose one to erase from the history books!

Ha, that's what Facebook is for isn't it!

[gmoney]

Iyo Sky vs Bianca Belair vs Rhea Ripley was the best match at the last Wrestlemania so on that basis, I have to say no. I can think of a good few others immediately, AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe vs Christopher Daniels, HHH vs HBK vs Benoit (though you might want to get rid of that for other reasons obviously). 

The builds for them are generally clumsy, the psychology can be weird, but these days they're more often than not pretty good. Keep. 

Edited July 29, 2025 by gmoney
Baldy wanker added

[TheScarlettChad]

Bryan vs Batista vs Orton was great. 

Edge vs Bryan vs Reigns can get in the bin though 

[tiger_rick]

2 minutes ago, gmoney said:

I can can think of a good few others immediately, AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe

You fucking can't!?

[DavidB6937]

HBK/HHH/Cena was a good example of the type of triple threat I like, psychology wise anyway. Two friends who inevitably both have their own agendas too. Usually gives an additional intrigue to how it plays out rather than just 3 randoms. Not to say that random triple threats can't be good obviously but I do like layers.

 

[TheBurningRed]

Brock vs Rollins vs Cena at the Rumble was a great triple threat as well. I’d put that in with the ones gmoney mentioned. 

I get the thought about deleting the Benoit one, but to me it’s still one of the best Wrestlemania matches and one of my favourite ever matches.

The rematches of that one and the AJ/Joe/Daniels were also very good but never lived up to the originals. 

[RedTwoster]

If you bin triple threats, the knock-on effect would surely be enormous - you’d lose Money in the Bank, many tag team TLC matches - perhaps even Elimination Chamber. I’m tempted to say I’m willing to make the sacrifice to wipe underwhelming builds like that towards Rousey/Lynch/Charlotte and Reigns/Rollins/Punk from history, and prevent overuse of the MITB gimmick; but we’d also lose so many special moments from wrestling history. Lose MITB, you potentially lose the version of Daniel Bryan that became a megastar, and also perhaps the best version of Edge. Lose Elimination Chamber, and you lose Kofi Mania.

For that reason, I’d keep them.

[Guest]

Bin the Triple Threat, bring back the Three Way Dance

[wandshogun09]

I read the thread title and thought it was about this lot…

In which case I’d have said nah just delete Shane Douglas.

I’m with Rick, there have been some multi-man matches I’ve really enjoyed like Angle vs Taker vs Lesnar from Vengeance 2002 and Joe vs AJ vs Daniels in TNA. But it got overdone over the years big time for me. I can take or leave them but there’s not many in history that I really loved. Most were just lazily thrown together for the sake of it or as a way to get another guy on the card or in the main event. WrestleMania 16 is a big example of it just ruining things for me. Only one singles match on the entire card and it’s The Kat vs Terri in a ‘Stink Face’ match. The four way main event was a complete clusterfuck and the Angle vs Benoit vs Jericho two fall triple threat with two belts on the line was such an overbooked, convoluted mess I’d have blamed it on Russo if he hadn’t already been gone and doing bullshit on a pole matches in WCW by then. The exception to the rule is the Edge and Christian vs Hardys vs Dudleys match but the rest can get in the bin.

What was actually the first televised triple threat match in the WWF? They’d done the Sid vs Bret vs Shawn stuff in early 97 but it didn’t make air at the time did it? I was thinking it might be the Faarooq vs Crush vs Savio bollocks at Ground Zero but then I remembered this from Raw in June 97…

Is there an earlier one than this? 

Edited July 29, 2025 by wandshogun09

[The King of Old School]

Keep.

Far too.many good matches just to delete from history.

If we could delete all the ones that haven't been for a title then I agree.

[Cannibal Man]

44 minutes ago, wandshogun09 said:

In which case I’d have said nah just delete Shane Douglas.

Delete Shane from history after 1996, get rid of the actual group and it's shite, turgid promos and keep Bam Bam and Candido as two blokes who never ever meet or interact. Swap Beulah retiring via the Dudleys with Francine and job is quite literally a good'n IMO.

Edited July 29, 2025 by Cannibal Man

[air_raid]

2 hours ago, gmoney said:

AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe vs Christopher Daniels

Damn, you just saved the triple threat match. I wouldn’t have missed any of others for the sake of better harnessing 1 vs 1 storylines.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

If you were to delete the Triple Threat match, you'd have to eliminate the main event of WrestleMania XX. And I cant imagine many people tampering with that.

Edited July 29, 2025 by IANdrewDiceClay