WWE TLC: How Edge, CM Punk and Hornswoggle have starred

2015 marks the 15th anniversary of the Tables, Ladders and Chairs Match, a bout in which Sheamus and Roman Reigns will compete on Sunday for the WWE World Heavyweight Title.

There have been 17 TLC tussles since the inaugural bout in 2000 so before Reigns and Sheamus make that 18 in Boston, we have looked back at the contest's memorable moments.

Read on to learn how TLC has been a happy hunting ground for Edge and CM Punk and how two little fellows wowed the crowd in New Jersey…

Grab your weapons!

The TLC match came into being as a way to get The Dudley Boyz, The Hardy Boyz and Edge and Christian's trademark weapons into one, high-octane bout, with the duos famous for using tables, ladders and chairs respectively. Bubba Ray Dudley's call for his brother D-Von to "get the tables" is one of the most iconic phrases in WWE history, after all. Anyway, the maiden TLC duel took place at Summerslam, as Edge and Christian successfully defended the Tag Team Titles against the Dudley and Hardy siblings. A similar scenario played out at WrestleMania 17 the following April with Edge and Christian - who totally reek of awesomeness - defeating the same opponents to regain the twin straps following an assist from Rhyno, who thundered Matt Hardy and Bubba Ray Dudley through FOUR tables. Ouch!

A cutting Edge

Throughout the 2000s Edge moved from the tag-team scene to the singles ranks - with great success, I hasten to add - but he never forgot his TLC roots. The Rated-R Superstar won three of the four TLC clashes he fought solo, defeating Ric Flair to retain the WWE Championship in 2006 and The Undertaker for the vacant World Heavyweight Championship in 2008, before outfoxing Kane, Alberto Del Rio and Rey Mysterio to pocket another world crown at the TLC pay-per-view in 2010. The only grappler to best Edge in a TLC encounter was John Cena, who claimed the WWE Title in the Canadian's home city of Toronto at Unforgiven in 2006. Still, five victories in seven TLC scuffles for The Ultimate Opportunist is a statistic to be proud of. Oh what Matt and Jeff Hardy would give for that record, having failed to garner a victory in a combined eight TLC matches between them.

Perfect Punk

However, the only man with a 100 per cent record in TLC bouts having wrestled in more than one match is CM Punk, who triumphed in each of his three encounters. That stellar run began at SummerSlam in 2009 when he conquered Jeff Hardy to secure the World Heavyweight Championship and continued when he retained the WWE Title against Del Rio and The Miz at TLC in 2011, a contest memorable for Del Rio's personal ring announcer, Ricardo Rodriguez, tumbling off a ladder and through a table at ringside. Punk's third victory was acquired via nefarious means when The Shield (more on them shortly) helped him overcome the powerful Ryback but, hey, a win is a win. It seems unlikely the Chicagoan will compete in another TLC match, having retired from wrestling last year and now embarking on a UFC career, but a slew of grappling fans will be hoping he does.

A dream debut

The Shield (Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns) burst on the scene at Survivor Series 2012, hitting Ryback with what would become their trademark triple powerbomb onto the announce desk and allowing Punk to pin Cena to retain the world title. Yet, Rollins, Ambrose and Reigns, who have now gone their separate ways, proved they could be just as dynamic in the ring by defeating Ryback, Daniel Bryan and Kane at TLC a month later. With no championships on the line, the match was to be decided by pinfall or submission and The Hounds of Justice won via the former after hurling Bryan through a table. Rollins, currently nursing a knee injury, will be the only member of the Shield not to have wrestled in a singles TLC match come December 14, with Ambrose tackling - and losing - to Bray Wyatt in 2014 and Reigns combating Sheamus for WWE's richest prize on Sunday evening.

A small brawl

Hornswoggle and El Torito showed that TLC is not just for big boys when the diminutive Superstars met in the inaugural WeeLC clash at the Extreme Rules pay-per-view in May 2014. In a bout replete with tiny tables, ladders and chairs - and commentated on by Micro Cole, JB-Elf and Jerry "The King" Smaller - Hornswoggle performed an elbow drop through a miniature announce booth and overcame his fear of heights to leap off a ladder. It just wasn't enough. When El Torito saw his rival within inches of table, the bull jumped from the turnbuckle and cannoned Hornswoggle into the timber before pinning him. The wrestlers involved may have been small - as were the referee and ring announcer - but they received a huge round of applause from the fans inside a packed-out Izod Center in New Jersey, with shouts of "WeeLC" heard before, during and after the match.

TLC BOOKING DETAILS

WWE TLC (Tables, Ladders and Chairs) will be shown on Sky Sports Box Office (channel 491) and Sky Sports HD Box Office (channel 492) at 1am on Sunday, December 13 (Monday morning).

WWE TLC will be repeated on Sky Sports Box Office (channel 491) but NOT Sky Sports HD Box Office (channel 492) between 9am, Monday, December 14 and 9pm, Thursday, December 17.

Repeat showings will last for three hours, with the final showing STARTING at 9pm on Thursday, December 17.

The event is priced at £14.95 for UK customers, €21.95 for viewers in the Republic of Ireland.

Viewers can call 03442 410 888 to book WWE TLC. (There may be an additional charge for telephone bookings).

You can also book WWE TLC online by visiting this link: https://my.sky.com/orderboxoffice/

Only bookings via Sky TV remote are recordable using Sky Plus.

Sky TV residential customers only. Commercial customers contact Sky for price and to order. Sky Box Office terms apply. 

Cable customers should contact their local cable operator.