Last night on Monday Night Raw, WWE Legend Mick Foley made a surprise return to the ring. The wrestler formerly known as Cactus Jack came out and made an unannounced appearance to offer some veteran advice to young rivals Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. Foley reminded the two former Shield members of the lasting physical and psychological impact of the Hell in a Cell match. It was, after all, one of Foley's most memorable matches of all time when, as Mankind, he took on the Undertaker in 1998.
Rollins and Ambrose are in the midst of a blood feud, and for the last 17 years in WWE, the best cure for a blood feud has been a steel cage match called Hell in a Cell. But neither wrestler has ever been in Hell in a Cell before, nor have either of them headlined a Pay-Per-View in singles competition.
Foley came out on Raw last night to "say hello to an old friend". He admonished both Rollins and Ambrose to be prepared for the fallout of Hell in a Cell. The steel cage, if not one of the most dangerous devices in professional wrestling, is certainly one of the most high-profile matches a Superstar can enter. As the saying goes, there are no winners in a steel cage match, only survivors.
Foley made his bones in hardcore-style matches and otherwise putting his body in harm's way. In 1998, he wrestled Undertaker as Mankind and made history when 'Taker threw him off the 16 foot structure and announcer Jim Ross famously proclaimed (via WWE Network):
"Good God almighty! Good God almighty! That killed him! As God as my witness, he is broken in half!"
For Ambrose and Rollins, two hot young stars on the rise, their match this Sunday may define their respective careers, for better or for worse.
Don't miss Hell in a Cell this Sunday on Pay-Per-View or on the WWE Network!
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