‘WWE Elimination Chamber 2023’ PPV Review

Welcome to this review of WWE’s Elimination Chamber Pay Per View, right here on Nerdly. This year’s PPV features the eagerly awaited match between Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn… Plus we’ve got a huge card filled with matches that will have a direct effect on this year’s Wrestlemania. Let’s get into it!

Match #1: Women’s Elimination Chamber Match – Winner: Asuka

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

An unforgettable performance allowed Asuka to book her ticket to WrestleMania by defeating five other Superstars inside the vaunted Elimination Chamber. Liv Morgan and Natalya kicked off the action and the women immediately began using the hellish structure to batter one another. The Canadian Superstar thrashed the smaller Morgan, sending her into the chamber wall and face-first into the pod housing Nikki Cross, who gave the action a twisted smile. Raquel Rodriguez was the first Superstar to exit a pod and used her brute strength to quickly down her two opponents. Natalya continued her hot start, sending Rodriguez into the chamber wall with a sunset flip and later used a neckbreaker on Morgan as she simultaneously hit a Code Red on Rodriguez. Cross entered the match next, and her chaotic nature was felt almost immediately. As the women battled one another, Cross scaled a pod and hit a crossbody splash onto her three opponents. Every woman was down when Carmella hit the ring and she immediately tried covering Morgan and Natalya but both Superstars managed to kick out. As The Princess of Staten Island tried to hide in a pod to bide her time, Rodriguez smashed Cross through the pod, pulled the Scottish Superstar out of the wreckage and pinned her, eliminating her from the match. A remarkable sunset flip by Morgan onto Rodriguez from the top of the pod led to the unleashing of Asuka, and the Empress of Tomorrow began bludgeoning Carmella much to the delight of the crowd. Morgan was the next to be eliminated as a Superkick from Carmella left her susceptible to a Sharpshooter from Natalya, which led Asuka to join with an armbar, putting out Liv. Natalya locked in a Sharpshooter on Asuka right after, but a Carmella Superkick connected clean and eliminated the Canadian Superstar. Asuka and Carmella teamed up to eliminate Rodriguez, and the two women went back and forth until The Empress of Tomorrow’s unconventional offense allowed her to lock in the Asuka Lock. This forced Carmella to tap out, sending Asuka to WrestleMania where she’ll challenge Bianca Belair for the Raw Women’s Championship.

My Score: 2 out of 5

Match #2: Bobby Lashley def. Brock Lesnar (DQ)

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley kicked off their match with a frenzy, as Lesnar hit a few suplexes early, as Lashley responded in a big way with a pair of spears and a Hurt Lock attempt. Lesnar countered the sensational submission with a thunderous F-5, but Lashley kicked out. The Beast hit a second F-5, but his attempt at a third went awry as Lashley countered it into a spear and followed it with a cinched-in Hurt Lock. As he began to fade, Lesnar became desperate and kicked Lashley’s back, resulting in a low blow, disqualifying The Beast. An enraged Lesnar took out his anger by hitting multiple F-5s not only on Lashley, but also on the helpless WWE Official after the match.

My Score: 2.5 out of 5

Match #3: Edge & Beth Phoenix def. Finn Bálor & Rhea Ripley

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Edge and Beth Phoenix were determined to get their vengeance against The Judgment Day and accomplished it together in Mixed Tag Team action at WWE Elimination Chamber. Phoenix and Rhea Ripley stared down before finally locking up, trying to intimidate each other with displays of power. The two women continued to wage war, but interference from Dominik Mysterio allowed Ripley to take control. Bálor’s heads-up move to slide under the ring and emerge from the other side to knock Edge off the apron forced Phoenix to stay in as the legal competitor, but the plan backfired when The Glamazon found the energy to deliver a spine-rattling Superplex. Edge finally tagged in, unleashing a ferocious attack on Bálor, including locking in an Edgecator. Phoenix speared Ripley as she tried to make the save and locked in a submission of her own. Mysterio interfered once again and slipped brass knuckles to his teammates, but the strike wasn’t enough to end the match. As the action continued, Ripley tried hitting a Conchairto on Phoenix on the steel steps, but The Glamazon countered it into a Glam Slam. Edge proceeded to isolate Bálor in the ring, hit him with a Spear, and The Grit Couple ended the match by hitting a devastating Shatter Machine to earn the victory.

My Score: 3 out of 5

Match #4: United States Championship Eliminator Chamber Match – Winner: Austin Theory

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

The United States Championship means everything to Austin Theory, and the young champion proved that he’s worthy of holding the title after surviving the Elimination Chamber against five other Superstars. Seth Rollins and Johnny Gargano started the match and the competitors had each other perfectly scouted, especially when Gargano launched a spear through the middle rope to take out Rollins. Theory entered next and went right after Rollins before turning his attention to his former mentor. Gargano and Rollins put their differences aside for a moment as they teamed up against Theory. Damian Priest exited his pod next and wreaked havoc on the field, launching an unholy assault on Gargano and Rollins. Theory regained his bearings and was ready to watch Priest unload on someone, but Priest kicked and then crushed the champion on the steel grate on the outside. Bronson Reed entered the fray and as the freshest competitor, he attacked each Superstar and splattered them across the ring. As Reed laid waste to each competitor, Montez Ford went right at the massive Superstar and used his uber-athleticism to knock him and Theory to the mat. Rollins, Gargano, Priest, Reed and Theory battled on the outside, while unbeknownst to them Ford was scaling the wall to deliver an unbelievable splash onto all five Superstars. Reed soon became the first eliminated after a bevy of superkicks from Rollins, Gargano and Theory and a frog splash from Ford. Rollins and Gargano scaled a pod and after a brief encounter, Rollins tried powerbombing him off of the pod, but Gargano countered into a hurricanrana. He would soon be eliminated by Priest after a Razor’s Edge. Ford and Rollins teamed up to hit a brutal electric chair/blockbuster combo on Priest which was good enough to eliminate The Archer of Infamy. Ford began to heat up, hitting multiple moves on Rollins and Theory, but the champion got his knees up during Ford’s frog splash. Rollins immediately followed that with a Stomp, eliminating the incredible Ford. Rollins seemed poised to win the match, but Logan Paul appeared and hit a flipping lariat and a stomp on Rollins as revenge for eliminating him from the Royal Rumble match in January. Theory then hit A-Town Down to win the match and retain his title.

My Score: 3 out of 5

Match #5: Undisputed WWE Universal Championship Match – Roman Reigns def. Sami Zayn

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

In an emotional showdown from start to finish in front of the ultra-passionate Montreal crowd, Roman Reigns proved once again why he is one of the most dominant champions in WWE history as he extinguished the extreme fire of The Master Strategist in front of his hometown to retain the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. The two Superstars started the match with a stare down as the Montreal crowd nearly tore the roof off the arena to show their love for Zayn, viciously booing the champion. Once the action began, Reigns took control and worked the pace that has won him so many bouts. Feeding off the crowd, Zayn battled back, but The Head of the Table leveled him with a crushing uppercut. The titleholder began to add insult to injury by parading Zayn around the ringside area, berating him in front of his friends, family and fans. Out of nowhere, however, Zayn countered Reigns’ Superman Punch into an exploder suplex, but his attempt at the Helluva Kick was countered into a successful Superman Punch follow-up. Somehow, Zayn found enough strength for another exploder suplex, followed it up with a Superman Punch of his own, and added a Helluva Kick, but Reigns still kicked out at the last second. When the action once again moved outside the ring, Reigns was sent through the barricade with maximum velocity, paving the way for Zayn’s Blue Thunder Bomb back inside the ring. Nevertheless, it still wasn’t enough to put away Reigns. In the scuffle that followed, the WWE Official was inadvertently hit by an elbow from the leader of The Bloodline, allowing Jimmy Uso to appear and attack Zayn. Despite his onslaught, it wasn’t enough for Reigns to pin his heartfelt challenger. Reigns managed to hit a Spear on Zayn, but not even that was enough to win the match as Zayn kicked out to a loud ovation from the crowd. A second WWE Official emerged, but soon found himself eating an errant Superman Punch. When Paul Heyman took this opportunity to hand Reigns a steel chair, Jey Uso appeared from nowhere. The conflicted Jey refused to pick between Reigns and Zayn and, as he stood paralyzed, the challenger charged in at Reigns and accidentally hit Jey with a Spear when the titleholder moved out of the way. The champion then unleashed an assault of chair blasts and then a Spear, which finally allowed Reigns to win the match and retain the title. After the emotional match, Reigns and Jimmy Uso began attacking Zayn when Kevin Owens appeared to defend his fellow Canadian with a trio of stunners and a pop-up powerbomb through a table on Jimmy. The night ended with one last Helluva Kick from Zayn to Reigns.

My Score: 4 out of 5

Final Verdict: 3.5/5

What can you say about this year’s Elimination Chamber? Well for starters it was a hell of a lot better than last year’s, that’s for sure! The big issue with this PPV was that main event… I think the WWE made a huge mistake not letting Sami Zayn win the match in his home town. But hey, when have the WWE ever given fans what they want?!