| No Way Out | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Promotional poster featuringJeff Hardy and theElimination Chamber structure | |||
| Promotion | World Wrestling Entertainment | ||
| Brand(s) | Raw SmackDown ECW | ||
| Date | February 17, 2008 | ||
| City | Paradise, Nevada | ||
| Venue | Thomas & Mack Center[1] | ||
| Attendance | 15,240[2] | ||
| Buy rate | 329,000[3] | ||
| Pay-per-view chronology | |||
| |||
| No Way Out chronology | |||
| |||
The 2008No Way Out was the 10thNo Way Outprofessional wrestlingpay-per-view (PPV)event produced byWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was held for wrestlers from the promotion'sRaw,SmackDown, andECWbrand divisions. The event took place on February 17, 2008, at theThomas & Mack Center in theLas Vegas suburb ofParadise, Nevada.
The main match on the Raw brand was anElimination Chamber match to determine the number one contender for theWWE Championship atWrestleMania XXIV.Triple H won the match after last eliminatingJeff Hardy. The predominant match on the SmackDown brand wasEdge versusRey Mysterio for theWorld Heavyweight Championship, in which Edge won afterspearing Mysterio in mid-air. The primary match on the ECW brand wasChavo Guerrero Jr. versusCM Punk for theECW Championship. Guerrero won the match and retained the title after pinning Punk following afrog splash. The predominant match on the Raw brand wasRandy Orton versusJohn Cena for theWWE Championship, which Cena won after Ortondisqualified himself. The featured match on theundercard was an Elimination Chamber match to determine the number one contender to the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XXIV, which was won byThe Undertaker. No Way Out marked the WWE return ofThe Big Show who left the company in February 2007 and an appearance by professional boxerFloyd Mayweather, Jr.
Presented byTHQ'sFrontlines: Fuel of War, the event had 329,000 buys, up on theNo Way Out 2007 figure of 218,000 buys.
No Way Out was first held byWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as the20th In Your Housepay-per-view (PPV) in February 1998. Following the discontinuation of theIn Your House series,[4] No Way Out returned inFebruary 2000 as its own PPV event, thus establishing it as the annual February PPV for the promotion. The 2008 event was the 10th No Way Out and was held on February 17 at theThomas & Mack Center in theLas Vegas suburb ofParadise, Nevada. Tickets went on sale on December 15.[1][5] While the previous four years' events featured wrestlers exclusively from theSmackDownbrand, the 2008 event featured wrestlers from theRaw, SmackDown, andECW brands,[1] as followingWrestleMania 23 in April 2007, brand-exclusive pay-per-views were discontinued.[6]
The event featured six professional wrestling matches on thecard. The event starred wrestlers from the Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brands – storyline expansions of the promotion where employees are assigned to wrestling brands under the WWE banner. Wrestlers portrayed either avillainous orfan favorite gimmick, as they followed a series of events which generally built tension, leading to a wrestling match.
The main feud on the Raw brand heading into No Way Out was betweenRandy Orton andJohn Cena, with the two battling over theWWE Championship. At theRoyal Rumble, Cena made a surprise return, entering as the thirtieth participant. Cena went on to win the match after last eliminatingTriple H.[7][8] The following night onRaw, Cena told Orton that he couldn't wait until WrestleMania and decided to cash in his title opportunity at No Way Out, which Orton accepted.[9]
The main feud on the SmackDown brand was betweenRey Mysterio andEdge, with the two battling over theWorld Heavyweight Championship. Mysterio won aBeat the Clock Challenge on the January 4 episode ofSmackDown!, defeating Edge with 90 seconds to go, to earn a title shot at the Royal Rumble.[10] At the Royal Rumble, Edge retained the title after hison-screenlover, SmackDowngeneral managerVickie Guerrero, interfered by receiving an attack for Edge by Mysterio.[11] On the February 1 episode ofSmackDown,Theodore Long, who was acting as the General Manager due to Guerrero's scripted injury, assigned a rematch between the two at No Way Out.[12] Mysterio was injured at a live event overseas on February 13, but still chose to compete in his match.[13]
The main feud on the ECW brand was betweenCM Punk andChavo Guerrero, with the two battling over theECW Championship. On the January 22 episode ofECW, Guerrero defeated Punk to win the title after Edge interfered.[14] The following week onECW, while Guerrero was celebrating his victory, Punk, disguised as amariachi, hit Guerrero with his guitar during Guerrero's championship celebration.[15] On the February 5 episode ofECW, Punk demanded a rematch against Guerrero for the title, which Guerrero accepted the challenge for No Way Out. On the same night, ECWgeneral managerArmando Estrada scheduled the first-everGulf of Mexico match, in which Punk defeated Guerrero by throwing him into theGulf of Mexico.[16]
Other matches on the Raw brand included anElimination Chamber match, where the winner would receive a WWE Championship match at WrestleMania,[17] and a "Career Threatening" match betweenMr. Kennedy andRic Flair, where Flair would be forced to retire from wrestling if he loses.[18] The other match on the SmackDown brand was another Elimination Chamber match, where the winner would receive a World Heavyweight Championship match at WrestleMania.[19]
| Role: | Name: |
|---|---|
| Englishcommentators | Jim Ross(Raw) |
| Jerry Lawler(Raw) | |
| Michael Cole(SmackDown) | |
| Jonathan Coachman(SmackDown) | |
| Joey Styles(ECW) | |
| Tazz(ECW) | |
| Spanish commentators | Carlos Cabrera |
| Hugo Savinovich | |
| Interviewer | Mike Adamle |
| Ring announcers | Lilian Garcia(Raw) |
| Justin Roberts(SmackDown) | |
| Tony Chimel(ECW) | |
| Referees | Charles Robinson |
| Mike Chioda | |
| Mickie Henson | |
| Nick Patrick | |
| Mike Posey | |
| Jim Korderas | |
| Chad Patton | |
| Marty Elias | |
| Jack Doan | |
| Scott Armstrong |
Before the event aired on pay-per-view,Kane defeatedShelton Benjamin by pinfall, after delivering achokeslam.[20] The first match that aired was theECW Championship match betweenCM Punk and the champion,Chavo Guerrero. In the beginning, the two wrestlers exchanged control of the match until late into the match, where Punk kicked Guerrero's head, causing him to fall from the ring apron to the outside. Back in the ring, Punk set Guerrero up for a Hurracarana from the top turnbuckle, but Guerrero countered the attempt by holding the ropes, causing Punk to fall to the ring mat. Guerrero immediately executed aFrog splash, and pinned Punk to retain his title.[21]
The next match was theSmackDown/ECWElimination Chamber match betweenThe Undertaker,Batista,Big Daddy V (withMatt Striker),Finlay,The Great Khali (with Ranjin Singh), andMontel Vontavious Porter (MVP). Batista and The Undertaker were selected to start the match. The Undertaker gained control of the match early after tossing Batista over the top rope onto the chamber's steel surface. In the ring, both men were knocked down by delivering abig boot to each other. The third entrant, Big Daddy V, then entered, and dominated both The Undertaker and Batista for some time, until Batista performed aSpinebuster on Big Daddy V. Shortly after, The Undertaker executed aDDT on the steel floor of the chamber on Big Daddy V and Batista pinned him, thus eliminating him. The fourth entrant was The Great Khali, who also dominated upon entering, but was eliminated when he submitted to theGogoplata submission hold. The fifth entrant was Finlay, who gained the advantage over Batista by tossing him into the steel chains of the chamber, and over Undertaker by delivering aCeltic Cross to him for a near-fall. Finlay also slammed The Undertaker's head into a pod, breaking it. The sixth entrant, MVP, was attacked by The Undertaker when his pod was opened. MVP used a steel chain as a weapon on the other three competitors, causing The Undertaker to start bleeding, until he climbed to the top of a pod. The Undertaker followed and delivered achokeslam to MVP from the top of the pod onto the ring, which cost MVP the match as Finlay pinned MVP and eliminated him. Later,Hornswoggle passed ashillelagh to Finlay from under the ring, which he used on both Batista and The Undertaker, busting Batista's head open. He was soon eliminated by The Undertaker who pinned him after a Chokeslam onto the chamber floor. The final two men were Batista and The Undertaker. Batista gained advantage after delivering aBatista Bomb, but The Undertaker kicked out, which led to Batista tossing Undertaker into the chamber wall. The Undertaker however, retaliated and countered a powerslam attempt on the outside, bringing both men in, and delivered aTombstone piledriver and pinned Batista, winning the match and earning aWorld Heavyweight Championship match atWrestleMania XXIV.[21]
The third match was a"Career threatening" match betweenRic Flair andMr. Kennedy. In this match, had Flair lost, he would have had to retire fromprofessional wrestling. Throughout the match Kennedy worked on Flair's injured leg, but in the end, Flair was able to trip Kennedy into aFigure four leglock, forcing Kennedy to submit. Thus, Flair won the match and avoided retirement.[21]
The next match sawEdge defending the World Heavyweight Championship againstRey Mysterio. The stipulation was thatCurt HawkinsandZack Ryder were banned from ringside. Throughout the match, Edge worked on Mysterio's injured biceps, affecting Mysterio's offense. However, Mysterio retaliated, delivering aTornado DDT on Edge for an unsuccessful pin attempt. Later in the match, Mysterio executed a 619 on Edge, but couldn't capitalize due to his biceps. He then attempted a Springboard Splash, but Edgespeared Mysterio in mid-air, and pinned him, retaining the title. After the match,Big Show made a surprise return to WWE, where he cut a promo on his recent weight loss (over 108 pounds) and future plans of becoming a champion again. After doing so, Big Show began taunting professionalboxerFloyd Mayweather Jr., who was in attendance and Mysterio's close friend. As Big Show threatened to chokeslam Mysterio, Mayweather jumped over the security wall and entered the ring to confront Big Show. Show then got on his knees to allow Mayweather to punch him, which Mayweather did with a combination of punches, bloodying Big Show from the nose and mouth. Mayweather and his crew fled the ring, and then through the crowd, whereShane McMahon stopped Big Show from chasing them.[21]
The next match sawRandy Orton defend theWWE Championship againstJohn Cena. The match started slow, with the men trading dominance. After a submission attempt by Cena, Orton feigned an injury outside the ring and ordered the refereeMike Chioda to count him out. When Cena came to check Orton's "injury", Orton delivered anRKO to Cena outside the ring. Orton got back in the ring and the referee started to count Cena out. Cena got back into the ring on a nine-count, but Orton purposely slapped the referee in the face and got himselfdisqualified. As a result, Orton lost the match but retained the title. After the match, Cena delivered anFU to Orton, and applied theSTFU.[21]
The main event was betweenTriple H,Shawn Michaels,Jeff Hardy,Chris Jericho,John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL), andUmaga in the second Elimination Chamber match of the night. The first two superstars to start the match were Jericho and Michaels. They fought each other until Umaga entered, and dominated. Some of the highlights were Umaga performing a doubleSamoan Drop on Jericho and Michaels, and later, delivering hisSamoan Wrecking Ball to Jericho through a pod. The next superstar to enter the match was JBL, who dominated the other three competitors for some time until he got eliminated by Jericho after aCodebreaker. After his elimination, JBL brought twosteel chairs into the chamber to attack Jericho, Michaels and Umaga before leaving. Triple H entered the match next. Soon, every superstar delivered their finishing moves on Umaga, with Jericho delivering the Codebreaker, Michaels performing theSweet Chin Music, Triple H executing thePedigree, and finally Hardy delivering theSwanton Bomb from the top of a pod. Jericho took advantage and pinned Umaga to eliminate him. Hardy then eliminated Jericho soon after another Sweet Chin Music from Michaels. Later, Triple H eliminated Michaels after executing a Pedigree, following aTwist of Fate from Hardy. The final two men were Triple H and Hardy. They battled for about five minutes until Triple H delivered a Pedigree on Hardy, but failed to score the pinfall. Triple H tried to use asteel chair but Hardy retaliated, and attempted to deliver a Twist of Fate. Triple H countered the attempt by pushing Hardy into the steel chair. Finally, Triple H delivered a second and final Pedigree to Hardy, this time onto the steel chair, and pinned him to win the match, earning a WWE Championship match at WrestleMania.[21]
The following night onRaw, John Cena demanded a rematch for the WWE Championship.General ManagerWilliam Regal made a non-title match for later that night between Orton and Cena, where if Cena won, he would be included in the WWE Championship match at WrestleMania XXIV. Triple H was assigned to be theguest referee. Cena won the match after executing anFU to Orton, thus changing the match at WrestleMania to atriple threat match. After the match, Triple H delivered a Pedigree to both Orton and Cena.[22] At WrestleMania, Orton defeated both Cena and Triple H to retain the WWE Championship.[23]
Also on this episode ofRaw, Big Show challenged Floyd Mayweather Jr. to a match, which Mayweather accepted.[24] The match was announced the following week to be scheduled for WrestleMania. The two met at WrestleMania, in aNo Disqualification match, which Mayweather won.[23]
The feud between Rey Mysterio and Edge ended when, on the February 22 episode ofSmackDown, Mysterio said that he needed surgery, and would be out of action for seven weeks. Edge then entered a feud with The Undertaker, the number one contender for the World Heavyweight Championship. Edge and Undertaker met in a World Heavyweight Championship match at WrestleMania, in which Undertaker defeated Edge to capture the World Heavyweight Championship, and to keep his undefeated streak intact.[23]
On the February 25 episode ofRaw,2008 WWE Hall of Fame Inductee Ric Flair challenged Shawn Michaels to a match at WrestleMania.[25] Michaels accepted with reluctance, knowing that due to a previous announcement from WWE ChairmanMr. McMahon the next match Flair loses would result in a forced retirement for Flair.[25][26] Flair also said that "it would be an honor for him to retire at the hands of Shawn Michaels".[25] At WrestleMania, Michaels defeated Flair, and Flair retired from WWE.[23]
A triple threat match was made on ECW, where the winner would be the number one contender for the ECW Championship betweenCM Punk,Shelton Benjamin andElijah Burke. Punk went on to win the match. One week later, on the March 4 episode ofECW, Punk fought Guerrero for the ECW Championship, but lost the match.[27] Guerrero, however, lost the ECW Championship toKane in just 11 seconds at WrestleMania XXIV.[23][28]
| Eliminated | Wrestler | Entered | Eliminated by | Method | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big Daddy V | 3 | Batista | Pinned after aDDT by The Undertaker | 09:07 |
| 2 | The Great Khali | 4 | The Undertaker | Submitted to theHell's Gate | 12:38 |
| 3 | MVP | 6 | Finlay | Pinned after being thrown off a chamber pod by The Undertaker | 22:31 |
| 4 | Finlay | 5 | The Undertaker | Pinned after aChokeslam | 24:11 |
| 5 | Batista | 1 | Pinned after aTombstone Piledriver | 29:28 | |
| Winner | The Undertaker | 2 | |||
| Eliminated | Wrestler | Entered | Eliminated by | Method | Time[2] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JBL | 4 | Chris Jericho | Pinned after aCodebreaker | 13:44 |
| 2 | Umaga | 3 | Pinned after aPedigree from Triple H and aSwanton Bomb from Hardy | 19:45 | |
| 3 | Chris Jericho | 1 | Jeff Hardy | Pinned after aSweet Chin Music from Michaels | 19:57 |
| 4 | Shawn Michaels | 2 | Triple H | Pinned after aPedigree | 20:25 |
| 5 | Jeff Hardy | 6 | Pinned after aPedigree on a chair | 23:54 | |
| Winner | Triple H | 5 | |||