Iron Man match
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An Iron Man match (originally known as a "WWF Ironman Match") is a professional wrestling match that originated in the World Wrestling Federation in 1996 when acting WWF president "Rowdy" Roddy Piper made the WWF championship match at WrestleMania XII between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels into such a match. The man with the most pinfalls, submissions, count out and disqualification victories at the end of a given time limit is declared the winner. Should the match result in a tie, sudden death overtime may be requested by either wrestler, often accepted (or rejected) by either an opponent or a higher (on-screen) wrestling authority.
Because of the fixed time limit, Iron Man matches have a tendency of losing 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.
Recently, Iron Man Matches have been known to be 30 minutes long, rather than the usual 60 minutes.
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World Wrestling Entertainment
In WWE, there have been five different Iron Man matches. WWE Iron Man matches typically run for 60 minutes, with a sudden death overtime if the two participants are tied when the time expires.
March 31, 1996
Shawn Michaels vs Bret Hart, 1-0 (Sudden Death overtime), WWF Championship, WrestleMania XII, Michaels wins the Championship
May 2000
Triple H vs The Rock, 6-5, WWF Championship, Judgment Day, Triple H wins the Championship, special referee Shawn Michaels
April 2001
Chris Benoit vs Kurt Angle fought in a special 30-minute Iron Man match where only submissions were permitted for counted falls. This match was billed as an 'Ultimate Submision Match'. After a 3-3 outcome at the thirty-minute mark, the two wrestled again under Sudden-Death rules, in which Benoit won after making Angle tap with the Crippler Crossface.
September 2003
Brock Lesnar vs Kurt Angle, WWE Championship, SmackDown!, Lesnar wins the Championship 5-4
July 26, 2004
Chris Benoit vs Triple H, 4-3, World Heavyweight Championship, RAW, Benoit retains the Championship
October 3, 2005
A 30-minute Iron Man Match between Kurt Angle & Shawn Michaels during the "WWE Homecoming" episode of WWE RAW to determine the #1 Contender for the WWE Championship. Ended in a 2-2 tie, with Angle declining Michaels' challenge to sudden death overtime.
World Championship Wrestling
At WCW's Beach Blast pay-per-view in 1992 then United States champion, Rick Rude had a non-title 'Iron Man Challenge' match with Ricky Steamboat. This match is exactly the same as the modern WWE Iron Man matches but with a 30 minute time limit instead of 1 hour. Steamboat went on to win with a pin-fall in the last minute. (JW)
WCW Beach Blast 1993 (see Wrestling Information Archive)
Date: July 18, 1993 Location: Biloxi, Mississippi Arena: Gulf Coast Coliseum Attendance: 8,600
United States Heavyweight Title Match (Ironman Challenge Match): Dustin Rhodes drew with Rick Rude (30:00) scoring one fall each in an "ironman challenge" match. The United States title continues to be held-up. Rude pinned Rhodes (13:19). Rhodes pinned Rude (26:56) (EN)
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
TNA Against All Odds 2005
At the Against All Odds pay-per-view on February 13, 2005, A.J. Styles defended his TNA X Division Championship against "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels in an Iron Man match. TNA uses the 30-minute time limit for Iron Man matches. It ended in a 1-1 draw (with Styles scoring a win with a roll-up and Daniels scoring a win following his Angel's Wings Finisher). Christopher Daniels demanded of then-TNA Director of Authority Dusty Rhodes that Sudden Death be granted. Only about 90 seconds later, Styles won with the Styles Clash to retain the title.
TNA Bound For Glory 2005
Christopher Daniels and AJ Styles met once again in a rematch of their classic match from Against All Odds at Bound For Glory that same year. Both competitors scored multiple near-falls that left the crowd on the edge of their seats. In an unbelievable finish, AJ Styles once again successfully defended the X Division title, scoring the only pinfall of the match with only 2 seconds left on the clock.