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Lethal Lockdown
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lethal Lockdown is the name of a gimmick match utilized by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling at their annual TNA Lockdown pay per view event every April.
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Lethal Lockdown consists of two teams of combatants competing in a staggered-entry steel cage match. Two men, one from each team, enter the ring and fight for five minutes. After the time period is over, a member from one of the teams (determined by coin toss prior to the match) enters to give his team the handicap advantage. Two minutes after that, a member from the opposing team enters the match to even the odds. Every subsequent two minutes an alternating member from the teams enters the match. Once all of the men are in the ring, the roof is lowered and a team is eligible to win via pinfall or submission.
Lethal Lockdown is notably similar in format to the WCW match called WarGames. Both matches feature two teams competing in a closed cage format, but there are notable differences. For example, WCW utilizes two rings (while TNA utilizes only one), only allowed victory by submission/surrender (TNA permits pinfall), and WCW never sanctioned weapons for the match, while TNA always did.
The first Lethal Lockdown match was held on September 3, 2003 at the TNA Asylum in Nashville, TN. It was billed as WarGames to draw in former WCW fans, but it is unmistakably what is now called a Lethal Lockdown match. The match consisted of Jeff Jarrett, Chris Harris, James Storm, Raven and D'Lo Brown defeating Simon Diamond, Johnny Swinger, A.J. Styles, Shane Douglas and Christopher Daniels when Jarrett pinned Daniels.
In 2005, with the advent of the revolutionary TNA Lockdown Pay Per View and its all-cage match concept, the headline match was supposed to be a three on three tag match. As the storyline developed, it became a gimmick match that was eventually coined Lethal Lockdown and given a rule set that set the standard for previous and future matches of the sort.
The match consisted of Diamond Dallas Page, Sean Waltman, and B.G. James defeating Jeff Jarrett, Kip James, and Monty Brown in Lethal Lockdown when Waltman pinned Brown with a roll-up. B.G. James was substituting for the injured Kevin Nash, who was originally booked for the match but unable to compete due to a staph infection.
Lethal Lockdown 2006 featured an army headed by Sting defeating an army headed up by Jeff Jarrett. Jarrett's team included Scott Steiner, Chris Harris, and James Storm. Sting's army consisted of A.J. Styles, Rhino, and Ron Killings.
The storyline began back in March when Jarrett sent Alex Shelley to videotape Steve Borden (Sting) and his family after he retired. Borden confronted Shelley and ended up returning to TNA at Destination X to exact revenge on Jarrett. Jarrett responded by bringing in Scott Steiner to "one up" Sting. Sting responded by requesting to be reinstated in TNA and also requesting the Lethal Lockdown match (the first to feature a roof). Jarrett recruited Steiner and America's Most Wanted to be his team, while Sting delayed a few weeks before announcing Styles, Rhino, and Killings as his after they came to his rescue on an episode of TNA iMPACT!.
Chris Harris and A.J. Styles started the match. The next man out was James Storm, giving Team Jarrett the advantage. Rhino came out to even the odds, followed by Jeff Jarrett emerging for his own team. Ron Killings came out third for Team Sting to even the odds again. Scott Steiner and Sting were the last men out for their respective teams. After all 8 men were in the cage, the roof was lowered.
Towards the end of the match, Storm climbed out a hole in the roof. A.J. Styles followed him out, leading to a highspot involving Styles scoring a splash from the rafters that has been discussed since as one of the most dangerous spots in TNA history. Sting's team ultimately defeated Jarrett's team when Sting forced Harris to submit to the Scorpion Deathlock.
On the first episode of TNA iMPACT! following Destination X 2007, management director Jim Cornette announced the team captains for Lethal Lockdown 2007: Christian Cage & Kurt Angle.
Christian formed his team over three weeks, recruiting AJ Styles, Scott Steiner, and Abyss with promises of title shots. Angle took longer, initially recruiting Rhino and Samoa Joe, but holding off on announcing his final two picks, claiming that Abyss and Sting were his initial choices, but neither were working out.
On the March 29, 2007 episode of iMPACT!, Kurt Angle defeated Abyss to secure the rights to Tomko for his team. Tomko turned on Angle, joining up with Team Cage as the final member instead. On the April 5, 2007 episode of iMPACT!, Sting finally revealed his participation in the match, joining Team Angle to end the show. Team Angle's final member remains to be revealed.
As it stands, the 2007 Lethal Lockdown match will feature Team Angle (Kurt Angle, Samoa Joe, Rhino, Sting and TBA) against Team Cage (Christian Cage, A.J. Styles, Scott Steiner, Abyss and Tomko) at the Family Arena in Saint Charles, Missouri.