10 Best WWE Triple Threat Matches

Triple threat matches, as with almost everything in WWE, are hit and miss.

We could probably all do without watching Brock Lesnar defend the Universal Championship against both Braun Strowman and Kane at the Royal Rumble, for example.

It's plainly obvious to anyone who has been paying attention that this match has been thrown together at the last-minute because of the company's sudden loss of faith in Finn Bálor. Not only is it easy to predict who will walk out with the belt, it's pretty easy to call who will take the decisive pin as well.

When triple threats have the right component parts, however, they tend to go really well. Once you get past that awkward bit in the beginning where, typically, one wrestler is suddenly knocked unconscious for a period of up to two or three minutes while the other two try and establish some in-ring rhythm, anyway.

There's just something about seeing three guys do battle that is generally more exciting than two: the action is quicker, the rest-holds fewer, and finishers and near-falls more plentiful. That'll be why they're so easy to re-watch years later.

Some argue that 2006 wasn't a vintage WWE year (largely because we spent much of it watching Vince McMahon war with the newly-reformed D-Generation X) - but matches like this one prove that there were a few moments to celebrate.

It's hardly a shock that Backlash 2006's main event ended up being a classic either. The three men involved, though not exactly loved at the time, are all wily ring veterans who were good at nothing if not putting together a nail-biting, drama-filled 20 minutes of wrestling.

The only thing this match perhaps didn't have going for it was unpredictability. There were one or two moments when it looked like Cena's title reign of doom might be in jeopardy, but - with the shadow of Money in the Bank holder RVD looming large - it was never really likely.

Still, it's a terrific encounter with some genuinely great individual spots - including Triple H delivering a mean-looking spine-buster to a steel chair-wielding Lita, which was part of what led to his long-awaited face turn right around the same time.