10 Greatest Cage Matches In WWE History
What happens when you place stars like Kurt Angle, Bret Hart, and Steve Austin in a cage? Pure gold.
When it comes to settling a score in the squared circle, there aren't many bouts more fitting than a steel cage match. With nowhere to run and no where to hide, nothing says finality quite like the confines of the imposing mesh prison.
While the cage has long been used as a blow off match for bitter rivalries - from Magnum TA and Tully Blanchard to Samoa Joe and Finn Bálor - WWE has also expanded on this concept introducing other cage formats, such as Hell in a Cell and Punjabi Prison. There's something about a cage match that, when done right, can tell a story like no other.
Whether it's the sight of one man ruthlessly raking another man's face across the mesh or watching a fearless risk-taker dive off the top, the danger and excitement of a cage match is something that's hard to top and the memories that have been created inside the four walls of steel are almost endless.
From Jimmy Snuka diving off onto Don Muraco in Madison Square Garden to Ric Flair's reclamation of the NWA Championship at the first Starrcade, there's an intangible aura about the cage that just screams "history". These ten bouts are no different.
10. The Usos Vs. Daniel Bryan & Bray Wyatt - Raw (13 January 2014)
Prior to their one-on-one altercation at Royal Rumble 2014, Daniel Bryan was a fully fledged albeit reluctant member of The Wyatt Family. The hugely popular superstar was still cheered overwhelmingly at the time and the crowd couldn't wait for Bryan to inevitably turn on his evil master.
Losing to The Usos by DQ in the opening match of the 13 January edition of Raw, Wyatt and Bryan would seek their revenge later that same night, closing the show in a steel cage tornado tag bout. While the bout itself was enjoyable, with several high spots off the cage, the post-match events were the stuff of legend.
With Bryan and Bray once again losing to the Samoans, the two men were left locked inside when the smoke cleared. In typical Wyatt fashion, Bray wanted DB to offer himself up for punishment; when he rebelled, the crowd went ballistic.
Pro-Bryan chants rang out thunderously as 'The American Dragon' stood mulling over his options. When they did eventually collide, the audience erupted. This was Daniel Bryan's coming out party and showed, beyond any shadow of doubt, that Bryan was the new people's champion and the man to headline WrestleMania.
The sight of thousands of fans throwing up their hands, all shouting "Yes" in unison, is still one of the most memorable Raw endings in history.