Elimination Chamber: Perth

Elimination Chamber: Perth (known as No Escape in Germany) was a 2024 professional wrestling event produced by the American company WWE. It was the 14th Elimination Chamber event and took place on Saturday, February 24, 2024, at Perth Stadium in Perth, Western Australia. The event aired on pay-per-view (PPV) and via livestreaming and was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. This was WWE's first event to be held in Australia since Super Show-Down in October 2018, and the company's only event in the Asia–Pacific region in 2024. This was also the third consecutive Elimination Chamber to be held outside of the United States as well as the first to take place in an outdoor venue.

The event is based around the Elimination Chamber match, a type of multi-person elimination-based Steel Cage match in which championships or future opportunities at championships are at stake. The 2024 event featured two such matches, one each for the men and women with wrestlers from both brands in each, and the respective winners earned matches for the Raw brand's men's and women's world championships—the World Heavyweight Championship and Women's World Championship—at WrestleMania XL. The men's eponymous match was won by Raw's Drew McIntyre, while the women's, which was the opening bout, was won by Raw's Becky Lynch. Three other matches, including one on the pre-show, were also contested at the event. The main event was between two Australian natives where Rhea Ripley defeated Nia Jax to retain the Women's World Championship, which was the first time women main evented a WWE main roster PPV and livestreaming event since WrestleMania 37 Night 1 in April 2021.

Background
Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling event first produced by the American promotion WWE in 2010. It has been held every year since, except in 2016, generally in February. The concept of the event is that one or two main event matches are contested inside the Elimination Chamber, either with championships or future opportunities at championships at stake.

Announced on September 21, 2023, the 14th Elimination Chamber event, titled as Elimination Chamber: Perth, was scheduled to take place on Saturday, February 24, 2024, at Perth Stadium in Perth, Western Australia, Australia, and featured wrestlers from the Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. This marked the first Elimination Chamber event to be held in Australia, and the third to be held outside of the United States, after the 2022 and 2023 events, which were held in Saudi Arabia and Canada, respectively. This also marked WWE's first event to be held in Australia since Super Show-Down in October 2018, and the only WWE event in the Asia–Pacific region in 2024. This was also the first Elimination Chamber event to have a subtitle named after its host city and to take place in an outdoor venue. The event aired on pay-per-view worldwide and was available to livestream on Peacock in the United States, Binge in Australia, and the WWE Network in most other international markets. Tickets went on sale on November 10, 2023.

In 2011 and since 2013, the event has been promoted as "No Escape" in Germany as it was feared that the name "Elimination Chamber" may remind people of the gas chambers used during the Holocaust.

Storylines
The event comprised five matches, including one on the pre-show, that resulted from scripted storylines. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw and SmackDown brands, while storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television shows, Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown.

On the February 2 episode of SmackDown, the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Contender Series began, featuring two fatal four-way tag team matches, one for SmackDown and one for Raw, with the winning teams then facing off to determine who would challenge reigning champions The Judgment Day (Finn Bálor and Damian Priest) for the title at Elimination Chamber. Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate won the SmackDown bracket that night, while on the following episode of Raw, #DIY (Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa) won the Raw bracket. On that week's SmackDown, Dunne and Bate defeated #DIY to face Bálor and Priest for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship at Elimination Chamber. Dunne and Bate subsequently took on the team name of New Catch Republic.

On February 5, Raw General Manager Adam Pearce announced that due to the women's Royal Rumble match winner choosing to challenge for SmackDown's WWE Women's Championship at WrestleMania XL, Rhea Ripley's challenger for Raw's Women's World Championship at WrestleMania would be determined by an Elimination Chamber match. The first qualifying match took place on that night's Raw, where Becky Lynch defeated Shayna Baszler. Bianca Belair then defeated Michin on the February 9 episode of SmackDown. The next qualifier took place on the February 12 episode of Raw, where Liv Morgan defeated Zoey Stark. The fourth and fifth qualifying matches took place on the February 16 episode of SmackDown where Tiffany Stratton and Naomi defeated Zelina Vega and Alba Fyre, respectively. The last spot was determined by a Last Chance battle royal on the February 19 episode of Raw, which was won by a returning Raquel Rodriguez by last eliminating Chelsea Green.

On the September 11, 2023, episode of Raw, Nia Jax made a surprise return to WWE and helped Rhea Ripley retain the Women's World Championship, only to attack Ripley after the match. At Crown Jewel on November 4, Ripley retained the title in a fatal five-way match, also involving Jax. Since then, Jax continued to target Ripley, vowing to win the 2024 Royal Rumble match to face Ripley at WrestleMania XL, but failed. On the next episode of Raw, Jax viciously attacked Ripley and said she would not make it to WrestleMania. On the February 5 episode, Ripley called out Jax, however, Raw General Manager Adam Pearce appeared, trying to prevent a brawl between the two, and announced that Ripley would defend the Women's World Championship against Jax at Elimination Chamber. Despite this, a brawl still occurred.

On the February 9 episode of SmackDown, SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis and Raw General Manager Adam Pearce announced that due to the men's Royal Rumble match winner choosing to challenge for SmackDown's Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania XL, Seth "Freakin" Rollins's challenger for Raw's World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania would be determined by an Elimination Chamber match. The first qualifying matches took place on that same episode, with Drew McIntyre and Randy Orton defeating AJ Styles and Sami Zayn, respectively. The next qualifiers took place on the February 12 episode of Raw, with Bobby Lashley and LA Knight defeating Bronson Reed and Ivar, respectively. The last two qualifiers took place on the February 16 episode of SmackDown, where Kevin Owens and Logan Paul defeated "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio and The Miz, respectively.

During the February 14 episode of The Bump, SmackDown and Australian wrestler Grayson Waller announced that he would be hosting a special edition of his talk show, "The Grayson Waller Effect", at Elimination Chamber, with special guests from Raw, 2024 Royal Rumble winner Cody Rhodes and World Heavyweight Champion Seth "Freakin" Rollins.

During the Elimination Chamber press conference on February 22, it was announced that the The Kabuki Warriors (Asuka and Kairi Sane) would defend the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship against Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell on the Kickoff pre-show.

Cancelled matches
Brock Lesnar, who last appeared at SummerSlam in August 2023, was planned to have made his return at the Royal Rumble in the men's Royal Rumble match. It was also planned that he would have been eliminated by "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio to set up a match between the two at Elimination Chamber. However, due to Lesnar being referenced in a sex trafficking lawsuit against Vince McMahon, Lesnar was pulled from the Royal Rumble and all planned storylines for him leading into WrestleMania XL were scrapped.

Australia native Bronson Reed was also originally planned to be involved at Elimination Chamber. It was reported that Reed was originally supposed to challenge Seth "Freakin" Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship, however, due to Rollins's injury, plans were changed. Reed ultimately would not participate at all as his wife gave birth to their son early.

Event
Early storms in Perth, which caused the Rottnest Channel Swim to be abandoned, created some concerns about its potential impact on the Elimination Chamber event going ahead. The weather cleared as day progressed with 52,590 fans attending the event in person.

Pre-show
There was one match that occurred on the Elimination Chamber: Perth Kickoff pre-show in which The Kabuki Warriors (Asuka and Kairi Sane) defended the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship against Candice LeRae and Australia native Indi Hartwell. The Kabuki Warriors retained after Sane performed an Insane Elbow on LeRae for the pin.

Preliminary matches
The actual event opened with the Women's Elimination Chamber match for a Women's World Championship match at WrestleMania XL. Becky Lynch and Naomi started the match. Tiffany Stratton exited the pod first, followed by Liv Morgan, Raquel Rodriguez, and Bianca Belair. Naomi hit a Sunset Flip Powerbomb on Morgan, but Stratton rolled up Naomi in a pin for the elimination. Stratton hit a Swanton Bomb off the top of a pod onto everyone. Stratton was then eliminated by Morgan after Morgan performed the Oblivion and pinned Stratton. Lynch locked Rodriguez in the Dis-Arm-Her and then Armbar submission holds, but Belair eliminated Rodriguez after performing the KOD and pinning her. Morgan delivered a Superplex on Lynch, who got her knees up on Belair's 450 Splash. Belair attempted a KOD on Lynch, who landed on her feet. Morgan eliminated Belair with a rollup pin and then Lynch hit the Manhandle Slam on Morgan and pinned her to win and earn a match for the Women's World Championship at WrestleMania.

Next, The Judgment Day (Finn Bálor and Damian Priest, accompanied by "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio) defended the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship against New Catch Republic (Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate). Bate hit a Tope Con Hilo through the ropes on Priest, but Mysterio pulled Priest's foot under the rope, which resulted in the referee ejecting Mysterio from ringside. Dunne and Bate hit a Double Tyler Driver '97 and a Double Birminghammer on Bálor for a nearfall. In the end, Priest hit a Double South of Heaven Chokeslam on both and then Bálor performed the Coup de Grâce on Dunne to retain.

After that, in his home country, Grayson Waller (along with Austin Theory) hosted "The Grayson Waller Effect" with guests, 2024 men's Royal Rumble winner Cody Rhodes and World Heavyweight Champion Seth "Freakin" Rollins. Before the segment began, Waller shared a shoey with Australian mixed martial artist, Tai Tuivasa of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, who was in the front row. During the segment, Rollins announced that he was almost medically cleared to return to in-ring action. In a further build to WrestleMania XL, Rhodes issued a challenge to The Rock, in which Rollins affirmed that Rhodes would not be alone in facing The Bloodline (Rock, Roman Reigns, Jimmy Uso, and Solo Sikoa). Theory then taunted both with Rock's catchphrases, which resulted in Rhodes attacking Theory with the Cody Cutter followed by Rollins performing The Stomp.

The penultimate match was the Men's Elimination Chamber match for a World Heavyweight Championship match at WrestleMania XL. Drew McIntyre and LA Knight started the match. Kevin Owens exited the pod first, followed by Bobby Lashley, Randy Orton, and Logan Paul. Lashley put Paul through a chamber pod with a spear. McIntyre hit Lashley twice with the Claymore Kick and pinned him for the elimination. Knight delivered Blunt Force Trauma on Orton and McIntyre. AJ Styles, who entered the open chamber door when Lashley was exiting, attacked Knight with a steel chair, allowing McIntyre to pin Knight for the elimination. McIntyre attempted a Claymore on Owens, who countered it with the Pop-Up Powerbomb. Owens missed the Pop-Up and the Stunner on Orton, who eliminated Owens with a pin after performing an RKO. Paul put on brass knuckles, but spent too much time gloating and Orton hit an RKO on Paul and pinned him for the elimination. McIntyre attempted a Claymore on Orton, but Orton collapsed from his injured back. Orton suckered McIntyre in and performed the RKO, but Paul, who had not yet exited the chamber after his elimination, hit Orton with One Lucky Punch while wearing the brass knuckles, allowing McIntyre to pin Orton and win to earn a match for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania.

Main event
In the main event, Australia native Rhea Ripley defended the Women's World Championship against Nia Jax, who was also born in Australia. Jax dominated most of the match. Jax hit a Samoan Drop to Ripley off the middle rope for a nearfall. Jax hit another Samoan Drop to Ripley on the announce table and drove her through the table with an Elbow Drop. Jax hit The Annihilator on Ripley for a nearfall. In the climax, Ripley hit a Superplex and the Riptide on Jax to retain the title. Afterwards, Ripley celebrated with her family, who were seated front row.

Raw
The following episode of Raw opened with Women's World Champion, Rhea Ripley (accompanied by Judgment Day stablemate, "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio), talking about her victory against Nia Jax and that no matter who she faced for the title, she will always come on top. Becky Lynch, who won the women's Elimination Chamber match, came out and congratulated her for her victory against Jax and warned her she would beat her for the title at WrestleMania XL. Ripley responded by saying she is the backbone of the women's division and suggest that Lynch should win something to get to her level. The two superstars briefly entered into a heated argument before Lynch was attacked by Jax. In retaliation, Lynch attacked Jax during her match with Liv Morgan, which resulted in a match between them on the following Raw, but ended in a no-contest as Morgan interfered in their match.

Following their retention of the Undisputed Tag Team Championships against New Catch Republic (Tyler Bate and Pete Dunne), The Judgment Day (Damian Priest, Finn Bálor, Mysterio, and JD McDonagh) confronted Imperium (Gunther, Ludwig Kaiser, and Giovanni Vinci) about Gunther's Intercontinental Championship, stating that they want to add more gold in their faction. When Gunther asked which member of The Judgment Day would challenge him for the title, Mysterio instinctively stepped up, prompting Gunther to laugh and push him away. A match between Mysterio and Gunther was scheduled for the following week, which was won by Gunther. The following week, McDonagh would compete in a gauntlet match for an Intercontinental Championship match at WrestleMania XL in a losing effort.

Drew McIntyre, who won the men's Elimination Chamber match, came out and thanked all the fans for believing in him and talked about how it wasn't easy to come out victorious. He proceeded to taunt CM Punk on not being able to compete in the Road to WrestleMania following his injury during the Royal Rumble match. When he finished taunting CM Punk, he called out World Heavyweight Champion, Seth "Freakin" Rollins, to confront him about his involvement in The Bloodline story. He question Rollins' on why he would want to help Cody Rhodes against The Bloodline and pleaded with him to back off so that he could face Rollins at WrestleMania XL in full condition. Rollins responded by telling him there are bigger things to worry about than just the two of them. He further highlighted that some risks are worth taking and that taking out The Bloodline was important for they would secure the future of the industry before leaving the ring.

During the final segment, following his victory against Grayson Waller, Cody Rhodes was approached by Paul Heyman (who was flanked with three security guards). Heyman pleaded with him to withdraw his challenge against The Rock for there would be dire consequences if he didn't co-operate. However, Rhodes wasn't fazed, forcing Heyman and his guards to enter the ring. Rhodes, however, fended off the guards and exclaimed that he's going after The Bloodline if that's what it takes to finish his story.

SmackDown
On the following episode of SmackDown, The Rock rejected Cody Rhodes's challenge and instead challenged Rhodes and Seth "Freakin" Rollins to a tag team match against himself and Roman Reigns in the main event of WrestleMania XL Night 1. Additionally, the stipulation would be that if Rhodes and Rollins won, then The Bloodline would be barred from ringside during Rhodes's match against Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship on Night 2; however, if Rock and Reigns won, then the championship match would be contested under The Bloodline's rules in which anything goes. The challenge was accepted the following week.

Following more weeks of feuding, AJ Styles and LA Knight were scheduled for a match at WrestleMania XL.