All Elimination Chamber winners from the 2000s: Where are they now?
WWE Elimination Chamber 2021 will feature two high-stakes, namesake matches. On one hand, Drew McIntyre will put his WWE Championship on the line against five former World Champions. On the other, six of the top SmackDown Superstars will battle inside the sinister structure to secure a Universal Championship bout.
The Elimination Chamber isn't a new concept. It has been around since 2002. Over the last 19 years, several elite performers have stepped inside the chamber. And it would be an understatement to say that once a superstar enters the steel structure, they don't leave it the same way.
It can't be denied that some of the best and most brutal Elimination Chamber matches took place in the 2000s. But one may wonder what the winners of the Elimination Chamber matches are doing these days? Are they retired or still performing?
To answer these questions, let's take a look at where every Elimination Chamber winner from the 2000s (2000 - 2009) is right now.
#6 Shawn Michaels (Won the inaugural Elimination Chamber match in 2002)
Shawn Michaels' in-ring return in 2002 was nothing short of miraculous. Instead of taking things slow, The Heartbreak Kid entered the first-ever Elimination Chamber match at Survivor Series 2002, barely three months after his first match in over four years.
Fortunately, The Showstopper got to enter the bout as the sixth entrant and only after Rob Van Dam and Booker T had already been eliminated. This bout was important for Shawn Michaels for more than one reason.
For starters, he won his final World Championship inside the inaugural Elimination Chamber match. Secondly, he got to share the ring with Triple H and Chris Jericho, two superstars Michaels would have stellar feuds against through 2003.
Long story short, Shawn Michaels won the match after pinning his friend-turned-foe, Triple H. Over the next seven and a half years, Michaels would participate in three Chamber matches without any success.
He ended up retiring from in-ring action in 2010. These days, the two-time Royal Rumble winner works for WWE NXT in a backstage capacity. He serves as a coach, contributes as a consultant, and oversees the international expansion of the black-and-yellow brand.
Additionally, Shawn Michaels also pops up on WWE TV from time to time to cut a promo or deliver Sweet Chin Music to a troublemaker.
#5 Triple H (Emerged victorious in Elimination Chamber matches in 2003, 2005, 2008, and 2009)
The Cerebral Assassin is credited as one of the masterminds behind the concept of the Elimination Chamber. Moreso, Triple H holds the record for most chamber wins.
Triple H's first win inside an Elimination Chamber match came at WWE SummerSlam 2003. It's interesting to note that The Game entered the bout in question injured. Therefore, his involvement in the match was kept minimal. In the end, the 14-time World Champion got an assist from Ric Flair and hit the sledgehammer on Goldberg to put him away and claim his first Elimination Chamber win.
Thanks to assistance from his Evolution stablemates Batista and Ric Flair, Triple H also won the third-ever Elimination Chamber match at WWE New Year's Revolution 2005. At WWE No Way Out 2008, The King of Kings toppled JBL, Chris Jericho, Umaga, Shawn Michaels, and Jeff Hardy to secure his third win inside the chamber.
And at WWE No Way Out 2009, Triple H won his last Elimination Chamber match and his second-to-last WWE Championship by pinning The Undertaker.
In 2021, Triple H serves as the EVP of Global Talent Strategy & Development for WWE. Additionally, he helms WWE NXT as an Executive Producer. And while these corporate roles caused The Game to slow things down in the ring, Triple H still performs in a part-time capacity.
His most recent in-ring outing came on the January 11, 2021 edition of Monday Night RAW against Randy Orton.