6 WWE TLC Statistics You Need To Know
Who has the most wins/losses? How many other Hall-of-Famers have competed? Longest match?
Rarely has a WWE PPV’s hype turned on a dime like
Tables, Ladders and Chairs has this week.
TLC was careening down a path to being known as an uninspired one-trick pony, with the reunion of The Shield as the only major selling point (with Asuka’s main roster debut as a secondary draw). Beyond that, it wasn’t looking like anything memorable.
But a rash of meningitis through the locker room threw the card into disarray, leading to the return of Kurt Angle and a first-ever one-on-one match between Finn Balor and AJ Styles. That has turned TLC into a can’t-miss PPV on Sunday night.
While this is the ninth installment of this PPV, those with a decent sense of history know that TLC matches go back several years further than the PPV does. The first several tables, ladders & chairs matches defined several wrestlers’ careers and raised the bar in terms of performance, risk-taking and overall workmanship.
The TLC match itself has become one of WWE’s signature gimmick matches, right up there with Royal Rumble, Survivor Series, Hell in a Cell, Elimination Chamber and Money in the Bank. However, unlike many of these other specialty matches, TLC matches are not limited to PPV, even with a specific event named after and dedicated to the gimmick.
So as TLC 2017 rapidly approaches, let’s look back at the previous events and earlier TLC matches and break them down. Some of the stats might surprise even longtime WWE fans.
6. The Basics
The genesis of Tables, Ladders and Chairs matches
came from the Attitude Era tag team division, where Edge & Christian and
the Hardy Boyz tore down the house in 1999 with a ladder match for Terri
Runnels’ managerial services. When the Dudley Boyz got added to the mix, they
brought along their signature table spots. At WrestleMania 2000, the three
teams competed in a ladder match that also involved some tables.
The first official TLC match came at SummerSlam 2000, with the three teams battling it out. They would have a rematch the following year at WrestleMania X-7 and then add the team of Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho two months later. In fact, the first eight TLC matches involved at least one of those six original participants. Also, every match, save for the 10th (Miz versus Jerry Lawler) has involved at least one participant who previous competed in a TLC match.
To date, there have been 18 TLC matches, (We’re not counting the 2014 WeeLC match, although you could make an argument that it should be included.) Thirty-one wrestlers have competed in TLC matches through the years. Edge has competed in the most (seven), followed by Jeff Hardy (five). Sixteen men have competed in just one TLC bout.
The largest TLC match was the Fatal 4-Way between Edge & Christian, the Hardys, Dudleys and Jericho & Benoit. The largest head-to-head TLC contest came in 2012 when the Shield defeated Team Hell No and Ryback. That will be eclipsed by Sunday’s 3-on-5 TLC match.