Iron man match
An Iron Man match is a professional wrestling match type that is set to go a specific amount of time, usually 30 or 60 minutes, with the competitor with the most decisions at the end of that time named the victor.[1] On the rare occasions of a draw, a sudden death "final fall" may be requested by either side, with the other able to accept or decline, [2] or a legal authority can order the match to go into overtime in the case of any championship match if there is a draw.
Rules
Iron Man matches generally operate under the same rules as any other professional wrestling bout, but instead of the match having to be over before a time limit is up, the Iron Man match goes the full length of the allotted time, with each wrestler attempting to score as many decisions in that time as possible. The wrestler who has the most decisions at the end of the match is then the winner. A Decision is a Pin Fall, Submission, Count Out or a Disqualification.
Should the match result in a tie, sudden death overtime may be requested by either wrestler as a plot device, and it is accepted or rejected by either an opponent or an authority figure. One note of rejection of the sudden death overtime was when Kurt Angle and Shawn Michaels tied 2-2 in a 30-minute iron-man match. Shawn Michaels begged Angle to go sudden death, but Angle walked off, to the heavy boos of the audience who wanted to see how it would end[citation needed].
Iron man matches are almost always two-sided (that is, no more than two sides, such as 1v1 or tag team, as opposed to triple-threat or fatal-four-way). However, it is possible for there to be a triple threat iron man, with the wrestler scoring the plurality of decisions being the winner.
Reception
Because of the fixed time limit, Iron Man matches have a tendency to lose their audience in the middle of a match, with a quick flurry of action near the end. Often, an Iron Man match will have the wrestlers tied or holding a one-point advantage going into the final minutes, with one wrestler attempting to make a tying or winning pin.
Match examples
WrestleMania XII, Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels for the WWF Championship; 60 minutes. Neither man scored a fall in the first 60 minutes. Gorilla Monsoon ordered the match into overtime and Michaels scored a fall 2 minutes in to win the WWF title.
Judgement Day 2000, The Rock vs. Triple H for the WWF Championship; 60 minutes. Shawn Michaels is the Special Guest Referee. With the scores tied at 5-5 with only a minute or so remaining, The Undertaker makes his in ring return after an eight month absence. He went on to attack Triple H, X-Pac and Road Dogg but was spotted by Michaels who disqualified The Rock, making the score 6-5 in Triple H's favor. Thus making Triple H the new WWF Champion.
WWE SmackDown!, September 18, 2003, Brock Lesnar vs Kurt Angle for the WWE Championship; 60 minutes. First of three 60 minute Iron Man Matches on broadcast TV (in the other Chris Benoit defended his World Heavyweight Championship against Triple H). Lesnar had a huge lead 5-2 with 15 minutes remaining but Angle fights back with 2 more falls. Angle slapped on the Ankle Lock with 20 seconds remaining, but Lesnar didn't tap. Brock Lesnar won the WWE title.
Raw, July 26, 2004, World Champion Chris Benoit beat Triple H 4-3 in the first and only 60-minute Iron man match on RAW. Benoit got some help from his friend Eugene Dinsmore in the final minute of the match.
Against All Odds (2005), A.J. Styles vs. Christopher Daniels; 30 minutes. The time limit expired with each wrestler having one fall. Daniels, who knew that a draw would result in A.J. keeping the TNA X Division Championship, demanded sudden death from Dusty Rhodes. A.J. won the sudden death fall to retain the X-division title.
Final Resolution (2007), Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle; 30 minutes. Kurt Angle was up 3-2 near the end. Samoa Joe locked in Kurt's Ankle lock, but could not get Kurt Angle to tap out before the time ran out. As a result, Kurt Angle won the match and became the number one contender for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
Ironman Match history
| No | Match (Length) | Score | Event, Date and Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Ricky Steamboat defeated Rick Rude (30:00) | 4-3 | Beach Blast 1992 June 20, 1992 Mobile, AL | ||
| II | Dustin Rhodes and Rick Rude fought to a draw for the vacant WCW United States Championship (30:00) | 1-1 | Beach Blast 1993 July 18, 1993 Biloxi, MS | ||
| No. | Match (Length) | Title | Score | Event, Date and Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Shawn Michaels defeated Bret Hart(c) (61:52) | WWF Championship | 1-0 | WrestleMania XII March 31, 1996, Anaheim, CA |
| II | Triple H defeated The Rock(c) (60:08) | WWF Championship | 6-5 | Judgment Day May 21, 2000, Louisville, KY |
| III | Brock Lesnar defeated Kurt Angle(c) (60:00) | WWE Championship | 5-4 | SmackDown September 18, 2003, Raleigh, NC |
| IV | Chris Benoit(c) defeated Triple H (60:00) | World Heavyweight Championship | 4-3 | Raw July 26, 2004, Pittsburgh, PA |
| V | Shawn Michaels and Kurt Angle fought to a draw (30:00) | none | 2-2 | Raw Homecoming October 3, 2005, Dallas, TX |
| VI | Randy Orton(c) Vs. John Cena (60:00) | WWE Championship | 5-7 | Bragging Rights October 25, 2009, Pittsburgh, PA |
§ No countout, No Disqualification, Falls Count Anywhere match
| No | Match (Length) | Score | Event, Date and Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | A.J. Styles tied with Jerry Lynn in a ten minute iron man match (no sudden death) (10:00) | 3-3 | NWA-TNA Pay Per View | ||
| II | A.J. Styles defeated Daniels to retain the TNA X Division Championship (31:37) | 2-1 | Against All Odds 2005 February 13, 2005 Orlando, FL | ||
| III | A.J. Styles defeated Daniels to retain the TNA X Division Championship (30:00) | 1-0 | Bound for Glory (2005) October 23, 2005 Orlando, FL | ||
| IV | Kurt Angle defeated Samoa Joe to be #1 Contender for NWA World Heavyweight Championship (30:00) | 3-2 | Final Resolution 2007 January 14, 2007 Orlando, FL | ||
References
- ^ "Inside WWE > Specialty Matches > Iron Man Match". WWE.com. Retrieved 2007-06-21.
- ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated presents: 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts". "Wrestling’s historical cards". Kappa Publishing. 2007. p. 95.