8 Ways ECW Shaped Modern Wrestling

While Jim Cornette claims to have promoted the first triple threat match in North America, the concept of three participants competing at once was a staple of ECW. In February 1994 at ECW’s The Night The Line Was Crossed, ECW World Heavyweight Champion Terry Funk went to a 60-minute draw with Shane Douglas and Sabu in the first three-way dance. Groundbreaking at the time, fans raved about the innovative concept, prompting Heyman to make tag team three-way dances and even market ECW’s first PPV around a three-way dance.

In the 23 years since, WWE, WCW and every other promotion has incorporated the match, albeit tinkering with the original concept to end in one fall, therefore protecting the third participant. In ECW, two participants would have to be eliminated for the match to end.