The 15 Best Triple Threat Matches

While the match quality attached to WCW’s World Heavyweight Championship scene in the late 90s was usually a letdown, the United States title scene regularly produced memorable bouts. Diamond Dallas Page, Chris Benoit, and Raven were integral figures within that timespan and dominated the title scene with ease. When all three men engaged in this hardcore war, greatness ensued. All three men took their fight to the ring and outside of it - while Raven was a master at utilizing weapons, DDP and Benoit rose to the occasion in order to beat him at his own game. This match was the right type of car crash that’s hard to divert your eyes from. The finish that saw DDP plant Raven through a table with a top-rope Diamond Cutter was the perfect barbed wire cherry on top for this three-man war.

Watching this match back then gave many fans hope that these three WWE Superstars were destined for main-event pushes later down the road. Watching it now can be a bit saddening considering the fact that that prediction never came to fruition. Even still, this Triple Threat Match for the Intercontinental Championship remains a certified gem. The high-flying expertise put on display during this match is simply poetry in motion. At this point in time, Carlito, Johnny Nitro, and Shelton Benjamin garnered plenty of acclaim due to the fast pace that was set during this match and the impressive maneuvers that were dished out by them all. If you want to see these three midcard GOATs compete in their prime, look this match up.

As soon as Cesaro planted Dolph Ziggler with a big boot at the start of this match, you just knew you were in for something extra special. Just like the last selection on this list, the Intercontinental Championship was on the line. Cesaro, Ziggler, and Tyson Kidd got all the time they needed (and deserved!) to deliver an incredible multi-man affair. Cesaro was a furious powerhouse that went wild on his foes, while Ziggler and Kidd put their agility & high-flying arsenal to good use. The action on display here is so smooth even though it moves at a frenetic pace. That Sunset Flip Powerbomb into the Tower of Doom spot is the stuff of legend!

Two former members of The Shield coming to blows with the man that popularized the term “Suplex City?” HELL YEAH! And it was and still is a fun watch. Brock Lesnar was in full beast mode as always here and treated Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose like playthings for most of the opening to mid-moments of this match. Once Reigns plants Brock with a Spear and joins forces with Ambrose, this match definitely gets kicked up a notch. From the double Powerbomb through the announce table to Brock all the way up until Reigns’ final Spear to Ambrose, this Triple Threat Match truly excels and can easily capture the imagination of anyone watching it for the very first time.

Wrestling fans were on the lookout for a brand-new wrestling alternative back in 2002. Total Nonstop Action arrived on PPV, while Ring of Honor was birthed on the independent wrestling scene. The company’s debut show was christened The Era of Honor Begins and solidified its mission statement with an amazing main event. For 20 minutes, “The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels, the “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson, and Low Ki competed in a history-making encounter. Some of this match’s most memorable spots include the top-rope superplex/backdrop suplex combo and Low-Ki’s Phoenix Splash onto Danielson that broke up his Cattle Mutilation submission. The foundation for ROH was officially set by the amazing in-ring work featured in this classic indy wrestling bout.

This Triple Threat Match easily captured MOTN honors on a very lackluster WrestleMania 32 card. This match also marked the arrival of the WWE Women’s Championship, which marked the fortunate end to the Divas Championship's horrid butterfly belt. That new arrival was brought in the best way possible thanks to the superb effort put in place here by three of NXT’s legendary “Four Horsewomen.” You knew this one was going to be special based on the special attire each woman wore. Once the bell rang, all three ladies brought their NXT excellence to the big stage at ‘Mania. The graceful Moonsault Charlotte delivered from the top rope to the outside onto Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch is still a thing of beauty.

The stage was set for Daniel Bryan’s eventual win on the biggest stage of them all for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The leader of the YES! Movement managed to get past Triple H in order to become a part of the WrestleMania 30 main event, but a post-match assault cut his chances at victory in half. When the time came for him to clash with Randy Orton and Batista, the live crowd perked up and awaited the happy ending they so desperately wanted. This Triple Threat Match played on everyone's emotions as Bryan took a beating and looked as if he wouldn’t fulfill his dream. Watching him take a Batista Bomb/RKO combo through an announce table still sends shivers up fans’ spines. In the end, Bryan overcame a wealth of adversity to claim his prize. This ‘Mania produced in-ring excellence and told a great story throughout.

The tag team wars that went on between these Attitude Era legends are the stuff of...well, legend. Edge & Christian, Matt & Jeff Hardy, and Bubba Ray & D’Von Dudley regularly destroyed each other in hopes of being recognized as the very best in their division. SummerSlam 2000 saw all three teams engage in the very first TLC match. And boy was it a doozy! We got everything here - a 3D through a table, a ladder-assisted flying leg drop, a huge table bump on the outside, and a whole bunch of other reckless maneuvers. TLC 1 exceeded everyone's expectations and convinced everyone that it just couldn't be topped. Thank God they were proven wrong...

On the strongest WrestleMania card of all time, the three best teams at the time went ahead and topped everything they did at SummerSlam 2000. Madness ensued as Edge & Christian, The Hardy Boyz, and The Dudley Boyz blew the roof off the Reliant Astrodome. Not only did we get a repeat of the craziest moments from their last match, but we also got introduced to some even crazier car crash occurrences. Edge’s highlight video-worthy Spear from the top of a ladder to Jeff Hardy, while he hung from the title belts, is unforgettable. Plus the added element of Lita, Rhyno, and Spike Dudley getting involved took this match over the top even more. You could make a good case for TLC 2 being even better than its predecessor.

There’s a common consensus among many wrestling fans that believe this pick on our list is the greatest Triple Threat Match of all time. And after watching it a few times, you’ll most likely join that camp. The opening moments were hilarious as Kurt Angle got rocked by both The Undertaker and The Rock due to his annoying jaw-jacking. Afterward, we got some intense one-on-one exchanges among the three that erupted inside and outside the ring. The best moments from this match occurred when each man copied the other’s finishing move, which got the loudest of reactions. These three Hall of Fame talents put on a masterclass in how a Triple Threat Match should unfold.

TNA in 2005 was simply on fire! And that’s mostly due in part to the excellence of the X-Division. Chris Sabin, Alex Shelley, Petey Williams, and a host of other high-flying/technical wizards made that division highly regarded at the time. “The Fallen Angel” reigned as the X-Division Champion at the time and had to defend it against two other GOATs - the “Phenomenal” AJ Styles and the “Samoan Submission Machine” Samoa Joe. At Unbreakable 2005, all three men had everyone jumping out of their seats for everything they did. The “STOP KICKING ME!” exchange, AJ’s Springboard Shooting Star Press to the outside onto his two rivals, and the myriad three-man exchanges solidified this match as a must-see.

When Brock Lesnar is on his A-Game, no one can even come close. When he defended the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at the 2015 Royal Rumble, his challenges came in the form of two main caliber wrestlers that could match his high level of superiority. Brock dished out a dizzying number of Release German Suplexes to start things off, plus the crowd erupted when he landed a Double Back Suplex on James Noble and Joey Mercury. Soon enough, Brock’s suplex flurry came to an end after a flying knee from Seth Rollins incapacitated him. Brock found himself getting clipped by some tandem offense, which took him out of the match for a while as Rollins and John Cena clashed. The structure of this match crescendoed to a fever pitch as multiple finishers were dished out, Brock got put through an announce table, and crowd popping near falls came into play. Brock eventually emerged victorious after competing in one of the greatest Royal Rumble PPV matches of all time.

The main event of WrestleMania 20 featured three of Raw’s best at the time as they fought over the classic “Big Gold Belt.” Triple H came in as the defending champion, Shawn Michaels arrived as the champion’s fiercest rival, and Chris Benoit was featured as the Royal Rumble winner who earned a championship opportunity. This match hit all the right notes as it delivered emotional highs, crowd-popping moves delivered by each competitor, and close calls that took everyone’s breath away. The added presence of blood took this barnburner of a match to another level, plus the announce table suplex spot made it reach an even higher fever pitch. This Triple Threat Match is considered an all-time classic by many. Unfortunately, it’s depressing to see how its happy ending got sullied by unfortunate real-world events.