The 2022 Hell in a Cell was a professional wrestling premium live event (PLE) produced by WWE, held for wrestlers from the promotion's main roster brands, Raw and SmackDown. It was the 14th annual and final Hell in a Cell event and took place on June 5, 2022, at the Allstate Arena in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois. The event centered on the Hell in a Cell match, a 20-foot-high roofed steel cage that surrounds the ring and ringside area with no countouts or disqualifications and the only way to win is by pinfall or submission in the ring.
Seven matches were contested at the event. There was only one Hell in a Cell match which was the main event and was Raw's main match that saw Cody Rhodes defeat Seth "Freakin" Rollins. In other prominent matches, The Judgment Day (Edge, Damian Priest, and Rhea Ripley) defeated AJ Styles, Finn Bálor, and Liv Morgan in a six-person mixed tag team match, Bobby Lashley defeated Omos and MVP in a 2-on-1 handicap match, and in the opening bout, Bianca Belair defeated Asuka and Becky Lynch in a triple threat match to retain the Raw Women's Championship.
Hell in a Cell was discontinued in an effort to reduce some of the gimmick events so that the namesake matches could return to being the culmination of big feuds instead of something that has to be done each year because of the event. Its 2023 slot was replaced by Night of Champions. This was also WWE's last non-WrestleMania main roster PLE to solely take place on a Sunday until Clash in Paris in August 2025. This was subsequently the only Hell in a Cell event to livestream on Disney+ Hotstar in Indonesia following the shutdown of its version of the WWE Network in late January, as well as the only Hell in a Cell event to be branded as a "premium live event", a term the company introduced at the start of the year to refer to its events airing on traditional pay-per-view and via WWE's livestreaming platforms.
Production Background
Hell in a Cell was an annual professional wrestling premium live event (PLE) produced by WWE since 2009, generally held in October. It was originally broadcast exclusively via pay-per-view (PPV) before it began simulcasting on WWE's livestreaming platforms in 2014. The concept of the event came from WWE's established Hell in a Cell match, in which competitors fought inside a 20-foot-high roofed cell structure surrounding the ring and ringside area. The main event match of the card was contested under the Hell in a Cell stipulation.
On October 25, 2021, WWE revealed its 2022 PLE calendar for the Raw and SmackDown brand divisions with an event slotted for Sunday, June 5, 2022, at the Allstate Arena in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois. On March 4, 2022, that event was revealed to be the 14th Hell in a Cell event, marking the third Hell in a Cell to not be held in October, after the 2018 event in September and the 2021 event, which was the first to be held in June. This was also the first Hell in a Cell event to be branded as a "premium live event", a term the company introduced on January 1 to refer to its events that are available on PPV and via livestreaming.
Broadcast outlets The PLE was broadcast on traditional PPV outlets worldwide. It was also available to livestream on Peacock in the United States, Disney+ Hotstar in Indonesia, and the WWE Network everywhere else. This was the first Hell in a Cell to livestream on Disney+ Hotstar in Indonesia, following the shutdown of its version of the WWE Network in late January.
Storylines The card included matches 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.
After defeating Seth "Freakin" Rollins at both WrestleMania 38 and WrestleMania Backlash, Cody Rhodes was granted a United States Championship match against Theory on the May 9 episode of Raw. However, during the match, Rollins attacked Rhodes, costing Rhodes the title. The following week, Rhodes challenged Rollins to another match, this time inside Hell in a Cell, which Rollins accepted.
At Night 1 of WrestleMania 38, Bianca Belair defeated Becky Lynch to win the Raw Women's Championship. On the April 25 episode of Raw, Lynch wanted a rematch, but Asuka interrupted, making a surprise return after nine months of inactivity due to injury. WWE official Adam Pearce gave Asuka a chance to face Belair in a championship contender's match on the May 9 episode; however, the match ended in a no contest after Lynch attacked both competitors. The following week, Asuka defeated Lynch to earn the right to face Belair for the Raw Women's Championship at Hell in a Cell. (This was originally supposed to be a six-pack challenge also involving Doudrop, Nikki A.S.H., and WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Sasha Banks and Naomi, but got changed when Banks and Naomi legitimately walked out of WWE before Raw due to legitimate creative frustrations.) On the May 23 episode, Lynch was given another chance to face Asuka with the added stipulation that if Lynch won, she would be added to the championship match at Hell in a Cell. Lynch defeated Asuka, turning the bout into a triple threat match.
At Night 2 of WrestleMania 38, Bobby Lashley defeated Omos. The following night on Raw, Lashley's manager, MVP, turned on Lashley and aligned with Omos, who then defeated Lashley at WrestleMania Backlash with the help of MVP. On the May 16 episode of Raw, Lashley defeated Omos again, this time in a Steel Cage match when Omos threw Lashley through the cage, allowing him to win by walking out of the cage. The following week, with Lashley wanting to put an end to their rivalry, he challenged MVP to a match where the winner would choose the stipulation of his match against Omos at Hell in a Cell. With the help of Omos, MVP defeated Lashley by countout. Omos and MVP decided that the stipulation at Hell in a Cell would be a 2-on-1 handicap match with Omos and MVP facing Lashley.
At Night 2 of WrestleMania 38, Edge defeated AJ Styles after interference from Damian Priest. Edge and Priest would later form a faction named The Judgment Day. At WrestleMania Backlash, despite Priest being banned from ringside, Edge again defeated Styles after interference from Rhea Ripley. On the following Raw, Ripley said that she joined Judgment Day to become better, and defeated Liv Morgan. Later that night, Finn Bálor defeated Priest via disqualification after interference from Edge. Styles then attacked Edge, but Judgment Day gained the upper hand. On the May 16 episode, Morgan joined Bálor and Styles's alliance. The following week, Ripley and Priest defeated Styles and Morgan after interference from Edge. Afterwards, a brawl between the two teams broke out, with Judgment Day standing tall again. On the May 30 episode, a six-person mixed tag team match pitting Morgan, Styles, and Bálor against The Judgment Day was made official for Hell in a Cell.
On the May 30 episode of Raw, in the middle of Mustafa Ali's match, United States Champion Theory attacked Ali, causing Ali to win via disqualification and earn himself a United States Title match, where Theory easily retained. Later that night, Theory's protégé, Vince McMahon, wanted Theory to defend the title against Ali in a "fair match" at Hell in a Cell.
At Night 1 of WrestleMania 38, Madcap Moss distracted Happy Corbin, causing him to lose his match. On the following SmackDown, Corbin attacked Moss, beginning a rivalry between the two which led to a match between the two being scheduled for WrestleMania Backlash, which Moss won. On the following SmackDown, while Moss was talking about his win over Corbin at Backlash, Corbin attacked Moss, ending the attack by placing a chair on Moss's throat and slamming Moss's André the Giant Memorial Trophy on the chair. The next day on Talking Smack, it was reported that Moss suffered a (kayfabe) cervical contusion. Moss returned on the June 3 episode of SmackDown, where he lost to Corbin via disqualification after using a steel chair. Later that night, a No Holds Barred match between the two was made official for Hell in a Cell.
On the April 4 episode of Raw, while Kevin Owens was talking about his loss at Night 1 of WrestleMania 38 two days earlier, he was interrupted by Ezekiel. Over the coming weeks, Owens claimed that Ezekiel was not Elias's younger brother, but Elias himself. On the May 23 episode, after Ezekiel's match, Owens challenged Ezekiel to a match at Hell in a Cell, which was made official.
Event + Other on-screen personnelRole:Name:English commentatorsMichael Cole Jimmy Smith Corey Graves Byron Saxton Spanish commentatorsMarcelo RodriguezJerry SotoRing announcersMike Rome Samantha Irvin RefereesDanilo AnfibioJason AyersJessika CarrDaphanie LaShaunnEddie OrengoRyan TranRod ZapataPre-show panelKayla BraxtonKevin PatrickPeter RosenbergBooker TJerry Lawler
Preliminary matches The event opened with Bianca Belair defending the Raw Women's Championship against Asuka and Becky Lynch in a triple threat match. Asuka caught Belair in an Armbar, but Belair countered and slammed her onto the top turnbuckle. Lynch performed a Natural Selection on Belair. Lynch performed a Top Rope Leg Drop on Belair, but Asuka broke up the pin. Belair slammed Asuka onto Lynch and performed a handspring into a Standing Moonsault onto both for a nearfall. Asuka performed a Codebreaker on Belair and then caught Lynch off the ropes into another Codebreaker for a nearfall on both. Asuka placed both in a Double Ankle Lock, but both made it to the ropes. Lynch performed a Manhandle Slam on Belair, but Asuka broke up the pin. In the end, Lynch threw Belair out of the ring and performed a second Manhandle Slam on Asuka. Belair returned to throw Lynch out of the ring and pinned Asuka to retain the title.
Next, Bobby Lashley took on Omos and MVP in a 2-on-1 handicap match. In the climax, MVP drove Lashley out of the ring with the Player's Boot. Omos tackled Lashley through the barricade, but Lashley made it back into the ring at nine. Cedric Alexander came out and entered the ring, but was thrown out by Omos. That distraction from Alexander allowed Lashley to perform a Spear on Omos and force MVP to submit to the Hurt Lock to win the match.
Then, Ezekiel took on Kevin Owens. Owens performed a Tornado DDT for a nearfall. Owens went for a Swanton, but Ezekiel got his knees up. Owens performed a Pop-Up Powerbomb for a nearfall. Ezekiel went up top, but Owens crotched him on the ropes. Owens knocked Ezekiel off the ropes and then performed a Cannonball in the corner. Owens performed a Stunner on Ezekiel to win the match.
In the fourth match, AJ Styles, Finn Bálor, and Liv Morgan took on The Judgment Day (Edge, Damian Priest, and Rhea Ripley) in a six-person mixed tag team match. The two teams brawled in the ring to start. Judgment Day spent most of the match neutralizing Bálor from his teammates. Styles eventually tagged in and performed a Phenomenal Forearm on Edge, but Priest pulled Styles out of the ring on the pin. Ripley attempted the Riptide, but Morgan reversed and performed a DDT. Bálor attempted the Coup de Grâce on Priest, but Ripley crotched Bálor on the top rope. Priest performed a South of Heaven Chokeslam on Bálor, but was caught with a Phenomenal Forearm from Styles. Edge threw Styles into the ring post as Bálor again attempted the Coup de Grâce, but Ripley stepped in to stop it. After Morgan took out Ripley, Bálor missed the Coup de Grâce as Edge moved and then performed a Spear on Bálor to win the match for The Judgment Day.