The Most Unusual Wrestling Locations In WWE History Ahead Of 'Clash At The Castle'

One of the key ways WWE has been able to remain so relevant over the past six decades is because of the places the performers have taken fans for all these years — literally and figuratively. WWE matches are meant to take fans on emotional journeys. Every once in a while, though, WWE holds a match in an unusual or surprising location that turns that figurative journey into a much more literal one. Whether it’s an aircraft carrier floating in the sea, or a fight on Wall Street in New York City, WWE has had no shortage of unique match locations.

That's why the upcoming "WWE Clash at the Castle" on Sept. 3 is so exciting — because we're getting creative with the location yet again. The event will take place at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, marking WWE's first major stadium event to take place in the United Kingdom since SummerSlam 1992. Liv Morgan will take on Shayna Baszler for the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship and Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre will compete for the title of Undisputed WWE Universal Champion. And that's not to mention the six-woman tag-team match between Bianca Belair, Alexa Bliss, and Asuka vs. Bayley, Dakota Kai, and IYO SKY. It's sure to be one for the history books, so before we journey to the U.K. early next month, we wanted to look back at what came before.

Without further ado, here are the wildest places WWE ever held a match. 

U.S.S. Intrepid 

Although no actual matches took place on the U.S.S. Intrepid, it still remains on our list for being one of the most memorable places a wrestling-related event took place. In 1982, a World War II aircraft carrier called The U.S.S. Intrepid was permanently docked and turned into a sea, air, and space museum. In 1993, however, it doubled as the venue for Yokozuna’s Bodyslam Challenge. 

Billed at almost 600 pounds, Yokozuna swore that no American was able to pick him up for a bodyslam. It was a steep challenge, and a handful of Superstars including both the Steiner Brothers and Randy Savage failed to pick up Yokozuna for the slam. Just when it seemed like Yokozuna was correct in his assumption that nobody could lift him up, Lex Luger dropped out of the sky via helicopter and body-slammed the true giant. Picking up Yokozuna is one thing, but turning him upside down for a body slam is another and Luger became the first man to do it. Luger claimed the brand new truck offered as a prize for slamming the giant and left victorious that night.

Penn Station

When the WWF debuted its new show “Shotgun Saturday Night” in 1997, they held a few episodes in some very unorthodox places. One of the craziest locations they decided to hold an episode, though, was Penn Station in Manhattan. Penn Station is one of the busiest stations in the country with more than 500,000 passengers passing through the building every single day, per a 2019 report. So when WWF set up a ring in the concourse area of the station, commuters were understandably shocked and confused. 

The show opened up with The Undertaker driving a train into the station before he challenged Triple H for the Intercontinental title. Triple H and The Undertaker fought all over the station before The Undertaker proceeded to Tombstone Piledrive Triple H on the top of an escalator. This was surely one of the most unusual locations for a wrestling show to ever take place and the fact that it was a busy public station makes it all the more surprising. 

Camp Victory, Baghdad, Iraq

WWE’s “Tribute to the Troops” show is one of the coolest and classiest things it does as a company. It’s a show specifically designated for military personnel and their families, all of whom get to attend the show for free. It is usually a fun time, with big stars like John Cena and Steve Austin making appearances. But one of the coolest parts of the show that nobody talks about is the fact that WWE traveled to the capital city of Iraq at an undisclosed location called “Camp Victory.”

WWE really set up a stage, entrance way, seats, and of course a ring in the middle of the desert for the thousands of troops to watch. Although the show has taken place in the U.S. in recent years, fans will never forget the original installments of the show that took place on the other side of the world.

Wall Street, New York

As a crowd of shocked and probably very confused spectators looked into the ring that was built in the middle of Wall Street in Manhattan, WWE’s stock opened to the public for the first time. In 1999 when WWE’s product first hit the NASDAQ stock market, the company thought it would only be fitting for a few matches to take place outside the famous New York Stock Exchange. 

Although WWE’s biggest stars such as Steve Austin, Chyna, and The Rock were there to break the news, fans were attracted to the public matches in the street that featured legendary tag teams such as The Dudley Boyz and the Hardys as well as a battle royale. This was one of WWE’s only shows that they simply did not charge admission to as passersby were encouraged to stop by and watch a match or two! 

WWE Headquarters

Trying to hold wrestling matches in a large corporate headquarters is risky business, but WWE has done it on multiple occasions. For most fans, Money in the Bank 2020 comes to mind. Both the men’s and women’s ladder matches were held inside the headquarters with Superstars beginning on the bottom floor of the building, eventually ascending to the ring and briefcase on the roof. 

For other fans who have been watching for much longer, they may remember in 1995 when Shawn Michaels and Owen Hart fought on the roof of the headquarters. Although WWE just held a few matches on the roof of the headquarters for some cool video footage it could use on RAW, this still went in the record books as an official match. The four matches that have taken place at WWE headquarters have all been a sight to see. 

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