For years, winning a WWE steel cage match meant escaping over the top or through the door, with both feet touching the floor.
But just before SummerSlam 1993, WWE added a bizarre twist ahead of a feud’s finale.
That summer, Rick and Scott Steiner warred with Ted DiBiase and Irwin R. Schyster (IRS) — Money Inc. — trading the Tag Team Championship three times in five days. To settle the score once and for all, the teams met inside a steel cage on the USA Network’s SummerSlam Spectacular.
But there was
a catch: the cage door would remain locked. The only way to win was for both team members to climb over the cage and touch the floor.
On commentary, Gorilla Monsoon and Jim Ross emphasized the rule change. But their tone suggested that they thought the stipulation was a bad idea, as it risked leaving a partner trapped in a 2-on-1 beatdown.
“I don’t care how many steel cage matches you’ve been in,” Monsoon remarked, “you better have a completely different game plan if you want to win this kind. This is unique.”
Yet despite the rigid stipulation, both teams turned a potential stinker into an underrated classic.
Rage in a Cage
In between the action, fans inside Poughkeepsie’s Mid-Hudson Civic Center got a few laughs when DiBiase’s derriere was exposed twice.
The crowd roared for the big spots, especially when it looked like the Steiners were on the verge of escaping. They fell silent when IRS suplexed Scott from the top of the cage. Later, the heels nearly choked Scott out after catching his head between the cage’s big blue bars.
Eventually, Scott recovered, and he and IRS escaped at the same time. But just as Rick appeared ready to climb out, IRS returned to the cage and stopped him.
“What a clever move by Irwin, knowing that his partner was down and out,” said an impressed Monsoon. “He might have just saved this match.”
Before Money Inc. could capitalize, Scott made a dramatic return, leaping from the top of the cage and leveling IRS with a double ax handle.
IRS escaped again later, leaving DiBiase alone against the Steiners. Once more, the “S” in IRS might as well have stood for savior, as he returned to the cage and prevented both brothers from escaping.
Eventually, Rick made it to the floor and cheered his brother on from the outside. Scott gained the upper hand but couldn’t overcome Money Inc. alone.
Instead of returning to the cage, Rick fought off DiBiase from the floor as IRS tried to escape once more. Leaving DiBiase behind, Rick caught IRS on his shoulders and prevented him from touching ground. DiBiase used that opening to get out, then began raining punches on Rick in an effort to get him to let go of the taxman.
Meanwhile, Scott recovered, climbed up and over the cage, and touched the floor before DiBiase could stop him.
The roughly 3,000 fans erupted as the Steiners were declared the winners, successfully retaining their titles.
Turning Lemons Into Lemonade
Unlike most cage matches, this one relied on drama rather than brutality. Not a drop of blood was shed, reflecting WWE’s push for a family-friendly product in 1993.
In the end, even Ross and Monsoon seemed impressed.
“What courage, what guts. Oh man, what a team,” Ross shouted, as he put over the Steiners’ grit.
IRS was arguably the match MVP. His dramatic re-entries at critical moments turned a flawed stipulation into compelling television.
And of course, there was DiBiase, who showed his ass to the world, though TV viewers only saw a pixelated posterior.
Had this match taken place at SummerSlam instead of its primer show, it might hold a better place in history. It also doesn’t help that Rick and Scott went on to have another classic a week later at the pay-per-view against the Heavenly Bodies.
Still, with the rules against them, both teams turned in a performance worth remembering.
