All the stats below are taken from Wikipedia
Royal Rumble 1988
Winner: Hacksaw Jim Duggan (#13)
Most Eliminations: One Man Gang (6)
Longest time in match: Bret Hart (25:42)
Last eliminated:One Man Gang (#19)
This wasn't technically the first Royal Rumble, as there was an event a few months beforehand which One Man Gang won. However, WWE have basically wiped it out of the history books as the event was a flop. If you want to read more about it,
CamelClutchBlog has a good summary of what went on.
The 1998 official first rumble had 20 men coming in at two minute intervals. At the start of the match, for probably the first 10-15 minutes, the event was largely split into the heels ganging up on the faces (or vice versa, depending on how you want to look at it).
I only knew who a handful of these competitors were, and the commentators (Vince and Jesse Venture) didn't make it too obvious. I guess they assumed everyone would know already. They weren't thinking about me watching it 26 years later. Very inconsiderate of them, really.
The event was a little chaotic as I guess there wasn't a formula for how it should run. There also wasn't much excitement generated by a big countdown clock in the venue or music played as wrestlers ran down the aisle or anything similar.
I might have been a bit confused about what was going on if I was there. Partly because I would only have been 8 at the time.
The weirdest part of this is when Don Muraco and Nikolai Volkoff both come down at the same time. Volkoff seems to have come out early but just loiters around.
Rating: 3/10
Royal Rumble 1989
Winner: Big John Studd (#27)
Most eliminations: Hulk Hogan (9)
Longest time in match: Mr Perfect (27:58)
Last eliminated: Ted DiBiase (#30)
For this event, the field was increased to 30 men and I knew a lot more of them. Whereas the previous event seemed to split into heels and faces battling each other, for this one there were a large number of promos with pretty much every wrestler pointing out that it was "every man for himself."
The had music for the entrants, but only the first two, who happened to be Ax and Smash of Demolition. As if to prove the point that there are no allies, they went at it as soon as they were both in the ring.
The crowd were getting into it a lot more, counting down to every entrant, who were still coming out every 2 minutes. Managers were banned from ringside, but would run down to the ring with their wrestler and then run back again which seemed to me to be a massive waste of time.
There is a very brave cameraman who keeps getting up on the edge of the ring whilst the action is still going on. I definitely wouldn't do that!
The weirdest bit is when, after being eliminated, Jake the Snake Roberts runs back in and lets his snake loose in the ring, causing Andre the Giant to eliminate himself to get away from the snake.
Rating: 6/10
Royal Rumble 1990
Winner: Hulk Hogan (#25)
Most eliminations: The Ultimate Warrior and Hulk Hogan (6)
Longest time in match: Ted DiBiase (44:47)
Last eliminated: Mr Perfect (#30)
In a good booking move, to counteract the fact he bought the number 30 spot last year, Ted DiBiase was announced in advance as having drawn number 1. He took out number 2 Koko B Ware and number 3 Marty Janetty before the following competitor came in. He set a new record for longevity in the match, partly due to clever manipulation and partly due to Virgil pushing him back in at times.
Fans were getting into it a lot more, seeming to understand what was going on a lot more now. They got into the countdown to the next competitor more, and there was music for the first few competitors, which I always think increases excitement.
Earthquake comes in and just starts jumping around and making the ring shake. This was quite cool and should make the other wrestlers feel a bit intimidated.
There was more variety in the method of eliminations or near eliminations. There was also a lot of competitors getting back in after being eliminated to attack the guy or guys who knocked them out. Sometimes it makes sense, sometimes it's just annoying.
Hogan starts to clear house when he comes in at 25. Every time I see him, I get annoyed at how bad a wrestler he actually was. The big heels in the match - Macho King Randy Savage, Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase and Mr Perfect - were all better wrestlers. Yet Hogan was the top face and would always get the push. This is even though - as a number of sources have claimed - Mr Perfect was originally booked to win until Hogan threw his weight around backstage.
It was obvious it was going to become Hogan v Warrior, as they started clearing house. It was the first time that they had faced off against each other, with Hogan coming out on top. It was probably the most exciting part of the match as it's the moment the fans had hoped would happen but were unsure of. It's Batman v Superman. Your two favourite guys going at it. This is true fantasy warfare. The only downside to this is that it meant that Shawn Michaels went out in just 12 seconds.
Rating: 7/10
Royal Rumble 1991
Winner: Hulk Hogan (#24)
Most eliminations: Hulk Hogan (7)
Longest time in match: The Model Rick Martel (52:17)
Last eliminated: Earthquake (#22)
Bret Hart drew number 1 for the second time in 4 years. Talk about bad luck. Jake the Snake came out without his snake for the first time. Which is probably because he was in the match a bit longer and had no use for the snake.
The referees seemed to be counting out The Model Rick Martel for standing outside the ropes on the edge of the apron. I'm not sure if that is an official rule or something that they made up on the fly.
There was also a no show at number 18 which the commentators work out to be the Macho King Randy Savage.. It doesn't get explained why he no shows. It is later learned that the Ultimate Warrior had scared him out of the building, however with few really big name stars and the Warrior and Sgt Slaughter being in the championship match, they could really have done with him here.
According to Rowdy Roddy Piper on commentary, this participant is still legal until the next participant arrives, apparently. Again, I'm not sure if that is a rule or something made up on the fly, although I do recall something about the fact you've got two minutes to get down to the ring, so that probably is a genuine rule. If it's not, Piper compounds it by saying that Mr Perfect has two minutes to enter the ring.
These additional rules make it seem like the Rumble was a little disorganised and they were just improvising to deal with the situation. This is compounded by the fact that the ring was really crowded for a large part of the match. In my mind, it's really cool when there's a whole bunch of eliminations in a row, especially if it's because of a bad ass who just starts clearing the ring.
There was still a lot of saving other wrestlers from being eliminated. This is just a silly strategy. It's every man for himself, but there is still a bit too much of heels saving heels and faces saving faces for my liking. This made it feel slow, as the eliminations were quite far apart. It also makes it more difficult to follow the action. Although perhaps others prefer it this way.
I'm not sure why, but the Model Rick Martel was one of my favourite wrestlers when I was younger. He starts posing when on top of the ropes as someone is attempting to eliminate him at one point. This made me smile.
The Undertaker's first appearance and he gets rid of Bret Hart in a matter of seconds after entering the ring. In my head he is a viable winner. Maybe this is because I know what he achieves later in his career, but he is taken out by the Legion of Doom.
This is the match when Bushwacker Luke breaks the record for the shortest appearance in the match at 4 seconds, as he does the silly walk into the ring, Earthquake walks him over to the other side of the ring and throws him out for him to march off again.
The ending is another example of why Hogan annoys me. He takes a lot of punishment from Earthquake and just seems to be taking it but then is suddenly okay again. Having him win in twice in two years seems a bit of a waste to me, and an indicator of the fact that at this time, they were almost always letting the faces win to send the fans home happy.
Rating: 4/10
Royal Rumble 1992
Winner: Ric Flair (#3)
Most eliminations: Sid Justice (6)
Longest time in match: Ric Flair (60:02)
Last eliminated: Sid Justice (#29)
I was looking forward to this as my man Munch had told me it was his favourite Rumble. I wasn't disappointed.
The WWF Championship was on the line for the first time in a Royal Rumble. This was due to .Hulk Hogan being stripped of the title by President Jack Tunney. This isn't mentioned at all during the match and I had to do a Google to find out. Apparently it was due to the fact that he won the belt by throwing the ashes from Paul Bearer's urn into the Undertaker's eyes whilst the referee was distracted.
One of the reason why this match is good is because in the later stages of the match, there are 5 or 6 competitors who have a reasonable chance of victory, although there is always the fear that it will be boring and Hogan will win for a third consecutive year. Fortunately this is avoided.
Flair's victory is almost overshadowed by the fact that Hulk Hogan and Sid Justice spend the best part of 5 minutes attempting to get at each other, simply because Justice eliminated Hogan from the match. Hogan taking offence at this seems slightly childish what with it being the point of the match to eliminate your opponents.
The ten count appears no longer to be a TV effect but an inset shot of a counter in the arena. Hi-tech!
The Million Dollar Man is in the first two competitors for the second year running. However he doesn't last anywhere near as long as the British Bulldog clotheslines him over the top rope even before Ric Flair enters at number 3. The Bulldog then gets Flair in a powerpress but decides to throw him down to the canvas rather than outside. I am disappointed in my countryman's intelligence.
This was around the time I started watching wrestling, so I recognised a large number of the competitors, including a few that I had forgotten about completely. El Matador, I remember liking. The Repo Man I was always really confused by. I feel bad for the guy having such a ridiculous gimmick.
There is confusion around Macho Man Randy Savage's self-elimination when he chased out Jake the Snake Roberts, that apparently didn't count because, according to the commentators, someone didn't through him out. This doesn't make sense, because otherwise Andre the Giant is still competing in the 1989 Rumble.
I really liked the fact that The Berzerker came out shouting the Viking war chant "HUS!" which reminded me of the Icelandic fans at the 2016 European Championships.
The match would have been a lot shorter if the competitors didn't turn their back after forcing an opponent over the top rope and onto the canvas. In later years, wrestlers then spend the next few minutes trying to kick them off but here they just turn their back and move onto someone else.
Something that has been annoying me is that Gorilla Monsoon keeps calling it a double noggin knocker when a wrestler smashes the heads of two opponents together. I'm fairly sure it's just a single noggin knocker. Because, what would a single noggin knocker be otherwise?
Rating: 9/10
Royal Rumble 1993
Winner: Yokozuna (#27)
Most eliminations: Yokozuna (7)
Longest time in match: Bob Backlund (61:10)
Last eliminated: Randy Savage (#30)
This is the first time that the Rumble winner gets a title shot at Wrestlemania. This it the second year that Bobby the Brain Heenan is the biggest Ric Flair fanboy in the world. For the third year running, Ted DiBiase is competitor number 4 or lower. Poor guy.
Yokozuna's character has been built well. He hasn't been knocked over prior to this, and the moment that Macho Man Randy Savage manages to get him down to one knee feels like a big moment. He then later manages to get him to the floor but this is mainly because Yokozuna runs straight into the turnbuckle.
At this stage Yokozuna looks completely unstoppable but starting to show a little weakness. I remember when they built guys and storylines up over time like this. It is really good when they can develop ideas fully. Savage and Yokozuna are in the ring together at the end for a good length of time and it gives you an idea of what Bret Hart v Yokozuna at Wrestlemana might look like.
I had forgotten that the Nasty Boys did a pit stop move where you shove your armpit in your opponent's face. A forerunner to Rikishi's stinkface.
Ric Flair runs out of the ring away from Jerry the King Lawler, and he starts to get counted out. Maybe that is a rule after all. It is never explained and I don't recall seeing anyone ever be eliminated by count out.
Flair also squares off against - and is eliminated by - Mr Perfect, the day before they have a loser leaves town match on Monday Night Raw.
Competitors are smartening up to the ways of the Rumble. When someone is thrown over the top ropes and is on the canvas, they start to attempt to push/kick them off the edge and onto the floor. Mr Perfect is the first to have this treatment at the hands of the Million Dollar Man assisted by Jerry Lawler from the outside.
The Undertaker starts clearing house and when he is the only one left in the right, a giant in a costume with muscles drawn on comes in unannounced. It is a guy who is called Giant Gonzalez.
The outfit is really odd. I mean, really odd. Why would you have a suit with muscles drawn on? He eliminates the Undertaker despite not being in the match, which sets up a program which goes towards Wrestlemania 93.
Whilst this is going on, Demento is scared to get in the ring. He doesn't do so before the next competitor, Irwin R Schyster, is called to come in. Despite not getting into the ring within 2 minutes, he is not disqualified from the match, despite Rowdy Roddy Piper's assertion on commentary in 1991. Bob Backland is also not counted out when the Berzerker attacks him and slams him on the concrete floor. So these three competitors continue the match. But this contradicts two things which appeared to have been set up as Rumble rules. Is it too much to ask for the rules to be applied consistently?
The showdown between Earthquake and Yokozuna is pretty neat, although it would have nice for it to go on a little longer.
Rating: 6/10
Royal Rumble 1994
Winners: Lex Luger (#23) & Bret Hart (#27)
Most eliminations: Diesel (7)
Longest time in match: Bam Bam Bigelow (30:12)
Last eliminated: n/a
The rules were changed so that a new entrant would come down to the ring every 90 seconds rather than every two minutes. This seems to have made the match a little shorter overall. The countdown clock is now sponsored/provided by Casio and Vince doesn't forget to mention it on a frequent basis.
Diesel clears house quickly quite early and is this year's menace. He spends quite a bit of time in the ring on his own waiting for the next competitor to come out during the course of the match. This continues until Macho Man Randy Savage comes down and the ring starts to fill up again, until a point where there are twelve men in the ring, which may be the most at any point in the Rumbles to date.
There's a nice moment where Diesel and Crush sit on the ropes to allow Bam Bam Bigelow in to finish off Doink the Clown.
For the second time in Rumble history, there is a no show which the commentators assume to be Bret The Hitman Hart but then he comes out 2 competitors later, hobbling down to the ring after he was attacked by Owen earlier in the night. It was later revealed that it was Bastion Booger who was sick and so did not compete. It seemed to just be a way to make the fans excited when Bret actually did come through the curtain.
The ending involves Bret Hart and Lex Luger both going over the top ropes in a hold and hitting the floor at pretty much the same time - although the camera angle doesn't show you their feet, so they are (eventually) announced as joint winners.
Rating: 5/10
Royal Rumble 1995
Winner; Shawn Michaels (#1)
Most eliminations: Shawn Michaels (8)
Longest time in match: Shawn Michaels & The British Bulldog (38:41)
Last eliminated: The British Bulldog (#2)
For some reason - presumably viewing figures - Pamela Anderson is the special guest who will accompany the winner of the Rumble to Wrestlemania.
They were clearly experimenting with the format, as there was another change to the time between entrants - this year down to 60 seconds. It really feels like it goes far too fast. It is probably so that Michaels doesn't have to wrestler for an hour to win at number 1.
As in 1992, the British Bulldog was one of the first two competitors to start the match. And as in 1992, he had the eventual winner in a gorilla press, above his head and he could have easily thrown them out of the ring but decided to slam them to the ground. Dude, you've really made us Brits look a little stupid here.
Not only was this the first time that the competitor at number 1 won the match, but also the first time that the first two entrants were also the last two competitors. Bulldog thinks he has eliminated Michaels but only one of his feet hit the ground. The Bulldog's music even starts playing before HBK gets back in and pushes the Bulldog out whilst he is celebrating.
Owen Hart draws number 11 but doesn't make it to the ring before the next competitor comes out, as he's attacked by his brother Bret as retribution for interference in Bret's earlier match. Whilst he gets thrown out as soon as he sets foot in the ring, lasting just 3 seconds, this seems to contradict the rule which we had been told that you need to make it to the ring before the next competitor comes out.
Bret Hart also comes out and attacks Bob Backlund before he manages to make it into the ring, again for interference in the championship match. He manages to last slightly longer than Owen does when he eventually makes it into the ring.
One of the problems with this Rumble is that there aren't too many true main event stars in the match - a fact which isn't assisted by Bret taking out Backlund and Owen - and therefore there are only a couple of guys who you think could actually come out as victor.
There isn't really a lot of excitement and build. It is too fast, too little star power, and too few big moments.
Rating: 4/10
Royal Rumble 1996
Winner: Shawn Michaels (#18)
Most eliminations: Shawn Michaels (8)
Longest time in match: Hunter Hearst Helmsley (48:04)
Last eliminated: Diesel (#22)
This was the first time that the Rumble match wasn't the main event. I'm not sure what the logic behind that was. The main event was Bret the Hitman Hart v The Undertaker, so it was a big match. It might be because the star power in the Rumble again seemed to be lacking. They had also jumped from entrances every minute to one every two minutes, which made the match more interesting, in my opinion.
This is the year they started playing every wrestler's theme as they came down to the ring this year. I really like this. I think it helps to build the excitement as more fans will realise who it is at once, rather than those being able to see first.
Shawn Michaels becomes the second man to win two Rumbles, matching Hulk Hogan's achievement of winning two in consecutive years. For some reason he decides to celebrate by showing the crowd his arse.
This is the first Rumble for a couple of future winners - Triple H who enters at number 1 and Stone Cold Steve Austin who is using the Ringmaster gimmick and was the Million Dollar Champion, who enters at number 24.
Three of the first four entrants flee the ring to avoid being "slopped" by the Hogfather who inexplicably brings a bucket of "slop" down to the ring with him. On top of this, when Jake The Snake Roberts comes in, he unleashes a massive snake in the ring which has he effect of again clearing the ring with competitors leaving through the ropes with poor Jerry the King Lawler being the recipient of both a slopping and a snake attack. Lawler then vanishes and isn't officially eliminated. We see him a couple of minutes later hiding underneath the ring and then later Shawn Michaels crawls under the ring and pulls him out before eliminating him shortly after.
It's really odd to hear the fans constantly chanting for a DDT from Jake the Snake as his big move when there is usually at least one in every match these days.
The 1-2-3 Kid is chased down to the ring and through the ring by Razor Ramon for costing him his match earlier in the evening. This seems like an overuse of this as it happened twice with Bret Hart last year.
Shawn Michaels amazingly eliminates both Yokozuna and Vader at the same time. The two big man originally had a temporary alliance which looked like it might have been devastating until they turned on each other. Vader then gets back into the ring and lifting Michaels high above his head, throws him out, before throwing out Triple H and Bob Holly. It is claimed that these eliminations don't count as Vader is not a legal man, however in previous Rumbles, competitors who have been eliminated have legally eliminated competitors who remained in the event.
Rating: 5/10
Royal Rumble 1997
Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin (#5)
Most eliminations: Stone Cold Steve Austin (10)
Longest time in match: Stone Cold Steve Austin (45:07)
Last eliminated: Bret Hart (#21)
Again, the Rumble isn't the main event of the Rumble, which is given to the title match between Shawn Michaels and Psycho Sid. The entrants were coming to the ring every 90 seconds which seems to be the sweet spot.
It seems to be that they were struggling for entrants. This year they had a few of luchadores to fill out numbers. The previous year they had The Squat Team who were so short lived in the WWE that they didn't even have individual names. It is also the first appearance of the man who comes to be known as The Rock, in his rookie year. In a foreshadowing of the future, he goes straight after Steve Austin.
All three luchadores get eliminated in about 30 seconds, including Mil Mascaras who was told to leave the match by the officials even though he deliberately went between and not over the ropes, becoming the second man to eliminate himself this year as Ahmed Johnson eliminated himself to chase after Farooq who comes down to ringside while Ahmed is fighting the other member of Nation of Domination. Ahmed comes back to knock Farooq out with a 2 by 4 when he enters, which is classed as a legal elimination despite the fact that just last year they had ruled out eliminations by Vader when he re-entered the match.
The countdown clock also doesn't work at the start of the event and this seems to dampen the excitement as you don't realise how much that helps increase the anticipation of someone coming into the ring.
Stone Cold Steve Austin comes in at number 5 and has a performance similar to Diesel where he clears house and spends quite a bit of time waiting for more competitors to come down to the ring. He does so in a more amusing way than Diesel did, though, sitting on the turnbuckle, looking at his imaginary watch or laying on the floor beckoning the next entrant in. There was another controversial ending to the match as Bret Hart eliminated Austin however the referees were distracted and didn't see it so Austin snuck back into the ring and eliminated Vader, The Undertaker and Bret Hart to claim the victory.
Jerry the King Lawler is on commentary for this event and is the first man to leave the commentary table to enter the Rumble. He lasts just four seconds after Bret Hart puts him straight back out again.
Rating: 5/10
Royal Rumble 1998
Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin (#24)
Most eliminations: Stone Cold Steve Austin (7)
Longest time in match: (51:32)
Last eliminated: The Rock (#4)
For the third year running, the Rumble doesn't get to headline it's own event. The time is back up to 2 minutes between each competitor again. It seems like it was an era of tinkering.
The match starts with Mick Foley, Terry Funk, a trash can, four chairs and a chainsaw in the ring. You wonder if this will set the tone for the rest of the Rumble. The hardcore nature of it calms down quite quickly though although Foley and Funk give each other a bit of a battering.
For the second time in the Rumble, poor Owen Hart is attacked before making it to the ring. This time it is by Jeff Jarrett and Jim Cornette. Storytelling wise this doesn't really work. Either they didn't know his number, were waiting to hear his music and managed to run out in 2 seconds flat to attack him - or they knew that he was number 9 yet still waited until he had come through the curtains rather than attacking him backstage. I don't like this as a way of getting rid of a competitor. It smells of bad writing to me.
However, Owen comes back in when Jeff Jarrett's number comes up and then seems to be officially in the match, eliminating Jarrett straight away. I'm not sure whether Owen's entry is legal, but he is eliminated shortly after by Triple H and Chyna who come down to ringside and attack him with crutches.
There is another no-show at number 22. This is actually some guy called Skull, however the commentators sell it as Stone Cold Steve Austin who was thought to be unable to compete. Skull was allegedly unable to compete as Los Boricuas beat him up thinking he was Stone Cold.
Austin then enters at number 24, sneaking through the crowd to do so which catches everyone by surprise as everyone in the ring stops and turns to await his entry. This is the second time they've pulled the trick of a competitor appearing to be a no show, having done the same thing with Bret Hart in 1994.
They story here is to make it look like Austin was beaten up already, and they try to make him even more of an underdog when they send in Savio Vega at number 26 who comes down with some cronies who all go straight for Stone Cold. This unlikely winner story is compounded when Austin goes through the second rope and The Rock goes outside to beat him up on the stairs and other foreign objects. It looks even worse for him when he is left in the right with two members of the Nation of Domination who had previously looked like teaming up. He overcomes all of this to be the third man to win two Rumbles, and the third to win two in a row.
Again they are a bit short of star power, with the Rock and Ken Shamrock entering despite having been in the Intercontinental match earlier in the night, and Mick Foley appearing as Cactus Jack, Mankind and Dude Love. The Rock impressively manages to be in the match for longer than any other competitor despite his previous exertions.
Rating: 5/10
Tag Team Royal Rumble
Raw, June 15 1998
Winners: Kane & Mankind (#2)
Last eliminated: Terry Funk & Too Cold Scorpio (#10)
With a new team entering every 30 seconds, this is a much quicker event than a regular Royal Rumble. The ring fills up really quite quickly. However, when one member of your team is eliminated, the other has to leave as well. This results in referees running around the ring telling people to leave whilst they are in the middle of battling someone else.
It's not a very clean event. There's just loads of stuff going on. Too many guys in the ring for anything really cool to happen. All in all there are 10 teams, which means that at one point there is 16 guys in the ring.
None of the teams really stick together to eliminate one member of another team, thus eliminating both of them. This would be the best tactic but the match really just seems to scream of something put together without too much thought.
Kane & Mankind are due to fight Stone Cold Steve Austin and the Undertaker straight after this match in a Hell In a Cell.
Rating: 2/10
Corporate Rumble
Raw, January 11 1999
Winner: Chyna (#10)
Most eliminations: Vince McMahon / Kane (2)
Last eliminated: Vince McMahon (#9)
The winner is due to get the coveted number 30 spot in this year's main Rumble.
Effectively this is a two team Rumble between the Corporation and D-Generation X, with members of each team coming out what should have been alternately, except that Test appears to take Road Dogg's spot. This makes the numbers uneven and the Corporation gain an advantage, until Kane takes offence at being hit by Test and turns on him, throwing him out of the ring.
The commentators are selling that Triple H is the last entrant but when it is down to Helmsley and Big Boss Man, the airhorn sounds and Vince comes walking down the aisle to tip out both men. He is celebrating with Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco that he will no longer be entering number 2 but number 30, when the DX music plays.
Chyna marches down to the ring defiantly but is blocked by Patterson and Brisco. She knocks them out of the way and goes to enter the ring before Stone Cold comes down to distract McMahon, allowing Chyna to get an easy elimination and the victory.
This is a fun little segment, but nothing amazing.
Rating: 5/10
Royal Rumble 1999
Winner: Mr McMahon (#2)
Most eliminations: Stone Cold Steve Austin (8)
Longest time in match: Stone Cold Steve Austin/Mr McMahon (56:38)
Last eliminated; Stone Cold Steve Austin (#1)
This is in the middle of the McMahon/Austin rivalry which is followed by the excellent
cage match at St Valentine's Day Massacre the following month. They enter at numbers 1 and 2 and end up battling outside of the ring with neither having been eliminated, leaving Droz who enters at number 4 to come in to an empty ring.
Austin has a $100,000 bounty on his head for being eliminated from the Rumble and there is an ambush which seems not to come in to play as McMahon leads him into an ambush backstage. The camera keeps cutting away to the situation which detracts from the rumble match itself.
Michael Cole keeps reminding us that only way to be eliminated is over the top rope and that Austin and McMahon are both still technically in the match, even when Stone Cold is taken off on a stretcher in an ambulance.
Whilst the Austin/McMahon rivalry is brilliantly played out by both sides, it steals any chance of this being a classic Rumble, with all of the other competitors playing second fiddle to this story.
The match is actually quite poor. There is very little star power in the match. As well as several guys who had competed earlier, they even had to get Gillberg in the match, although admittedly he is eliminated in a matter of seconds. Road Dogg is an unlikely candidate for the spot of being the one alone in the ring awaiting other competitors, for example.
Another thing that detracts from the match itself is the Undertaker who isn't in the match, sending the Acolytes and Mideon into the ring to go bring him Mabel (who himself wasn't in the match but had attacked Headbanger Mosh and taken his place). He was indoctrinated into the Ministry as Viscera the following night. Everyone seemed to be in a faction at this piont.
A further thing that makes the match worse is Kane coming in and clearing house by eliminating the four men in the ring before eliminating himself to go after "the white coats" who apparently want to commit him. This again leaves the ring empty for the next competitor but at this point Mr McMahon returns to the ring before then leaving again to join the commentary team and leave the ring to Ken Shamrock.
The excitement levels increase again when Stone Cold returns driving an ambulance. The look on McMahon's face is great as Stone Cold marches to the ring. McMahon runs through the ring, leading Austin into a group of Corporation members.
McMahon returns to commentary and keeps shouting at the guys who are in the ring to throw out Austin although he continues to hang on. There is a point when he rolls out of the ring to take a drink of ice water before throwing the rest of it in McMahon's face.
Chyna's entry at number 30 means she is the first ever woman to enter the Rumble. She easily holds her own, managing to eliminate the World's Strongest Man, Mark Henry although is eliminated by Austin shortly after.
When he stuns and eliminates the Boss Man, the final remaining competitor in the ring, it really does look like Stone Cold will overcome the odds again to win what would be an incredible third rumble in a row. He beats up McMahon outside the ring for quite a while before dragging him back inside ready to throw him out. McMahon low blows him before taking a stunner. The Rock comes out to cause a distraction that allows McMahon to bundle Austin out of the ring.
The fact that McMahon won the match despite only spending about 5 minutes in the match in total also helps to detract from the prestige of the event.
After the 1995 Rumble, this was the second time that numbers 1 and 2 were also the last two competitors in the match.
Rating: 4/10
Royal Rumble 2000
Winner: The Rock (#24)
Most eliminations: Rikishi (7)
Longest time in match: Test (26:17)
Last eliminated; The Big Show (#26)
We are back to entrants every 90 seconds and I feel that this is the optimum time between entrants. The countdown clock is fully digitised graphics rather than picture in picture.
The rumble starts with lower level stars, which seems to be the way to build up the excitement, having some main eventers come into the match a little further in. However, they don't have many guys who are main eventers at the time to come in. It's more like midcarders at best. That is until The Rock comes in at number 24 with eight men in the ring and at that point he seems like the obvious winner. The only two other guys who could claim main event status are the Big Show and Kane who come in after him, leaving the first two thirds of the match without any main eventers.
There are a few good moments at the end of the match - The Big Show gorilla pressing X-Pac and unceremoniously throwing him out. Possibly the first time that anyone has been eliminated like that as far as I can recall. The Rock then hits the People's Elbow which is a pretty awesome thing to have the time to do in a match of 30 competitors. Then when it looks like the Big Show is toying with the Rock before throwing him out, Rocky manages to hold on and the Show's momentum takes him out.
Rikishi comes in at number 5 and starts to clean house except for Grandmaster Sexay. Scotty 2 Hotty comes in at number 6 and instead of fighting, the three of them dance which is an awesome moment before Rikishi knocks them both down and eliminates them both at the same time leaving himself alone in the ring to dance whilst he waits for the next competitor, which he does a few times during the course of the match.
These few moments elevate the match to be slightly better than the previous year's event, but only just.
One of these entrants is the Big Boss Man who takes his time getting in the ring and JR points out that there is no rule that says that the Boss Man has to enter the ring straight away. Which contradicts what we've had in previous years.
There seem to be an unusually large number of low blows in this match. I'm not sure what's going on with that.
Chyna is in the match again, the only female to have been in the match and she has entered twice in two years. Her appearance is very similar to that in last year's match, where she eliminates an opponent and then is immediately eliminated herself.
Road Dogg has the tactic of playing possum, cowering in a foetal position in corners for a large portion of the match. It is an interesting tactic although he does get stomped quite a bit whilst in this position.
For some reason Kaientai run-in to the match four times, but are immediately thrown out again, although is isn't explained in the slightest why they might want to do this. The Mean Street Posse also run in to attack Faarooq and Bradshaw as soon as each of them enter the ring. Both of them are eliminated shortly after entering due to this. These sorts of things seem to detract from the match for me.
Rating:5/10
Royal Rumble 2001
Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin (#27)
Most eliminations: Kane (11)
Longest time in match: Kane (53:46)
Last eliminated; Kane (#6)
The build up for the event does two things that the previous year's build up didn't do. The first thing is to make it look like there are a number of genuine contenders to win the match, with Rikishi, Undertaker, Kane, Stone Cold and especially The Rock having video packages in advance. It makes it look like it will be more competitive.
The Rock, especially, getting an interview looks like he will be the fourth man to win a second consecutive Rumble. This seems to be the pattern - the top guy will win two in a row. However, Rocky gets thrown out one before the end, leaving Kane and Stone Cold to battle it out. I am wrong a lot more than I am right about things. Instead, Austin overcomes the odds - and a lot of lost blood - to become the only man to win 3 Rumbles.
They change the entry time back to two minutes from 90 seconds last year. They really just can't stop tinkering. I'm wondering if it is anything to do with the length of time they need the match to fill.
This year Rikishi had earnt the right to come in to the Rumble at number 30 spot. In the last few years, X-Pac and Chyna had also earnt the same right. It's an interesting mechanic to ensure that excitement is built about who is coming.
The Hardy Boyz are number 1 and 3 and they team up to eliminate number 2 Bull Buchanan before amicably fighting one another before then together attacking Faarooq who comes in at number 4. Jeff Hardy actually looks a bit off form, clearly missing a couple of moves, before they eliminate each other, leaving Drew Carey unexpectedly in the ring by himself at number 5 to crap his sweatsuit as Kane comes down to the ring. He does eliminate himself just after Raven comes in.
Raven brings a stick into the ring, which is legal in the match and makes me wonder why more competitors don't do so, aside from the fact that it's clearly not very sporting. The only other time weapons were brought down was when Foley brought down a trash can in 1998. It fits these characters personalities, though, so it kind of works but changes the event subtly. Raven, and then Al Snow who comes in after him (although enters early to attack Raven outside the ring) both get a large number of other weapons from under the ring.
Kane goes on a roll and clears the ring of both competitors and weapons, before the Honky Tonk Man is probably the first legend to return in the Rumble match. The only other returning competitor previously has been Bob Backlund who was also an on/off competitor anyway. The Honky Tonk Man insists on getting in the ring and singing his theme music whilst holding (but not playing his guitar).
The Rock enters at number 13 after Kane unceremoniously eliminates the Honky Tonk Man before the match starts to pick up, mainly focusing on The Rock and Kane as one or other eliminates other competitors to leave it just the two of them in the ring. This pattern continues until a couple more big guys come into the ring - Bradshaw and Albert and the ring starts to fill up again.
There's a nice moment when The Big Show comes in and either eliminates or chokeslams everyone in the ring except for The Rock who manages to get the Show out of the match. The Show clearly takes offence and pulls Rocky out of the ring to chokeslam him through an announce table. This strikes me as setting up the Rock as winning against all odds, in a similar way to how Austin won after looking like he'd been beaten up too much in 1998.
Another cool moment comes when the Undertaker enters the ring and him and Kane quickly clean house before sizing up to one another. Scotty 2 Hotty is the unfortunate man who cautiously makes his way into the ring with the Brothers of Destruction who seem to be on the same page and dispatch with him quickly. It is at this point that Austin enters, although attacked and busted open by Triple H before he makes it to the ring. The Rock stirs and makes it back into the ring.
A blood covered Austin doesn't make it into the ring until Rikishi comes down and starts attacking him outside. They both get in the ring and this leaves us with five guys out of the last seven who realistically stand a chance of being the one standing when all is said and done. This definitely adds to the excitement of the match.
The Rock and Stone Cold take a stunner and a rock bottom and then Kane is thrown out of the second rope. The battle becomes, as JR should have said but didn't, a slobberknocker.
Rating: 6/10
Royal Rumble 2002
Winner: Triple H (#22)
Most eliminations: The Undertaker / Stone Cold Steve Austin (7)
Longest time in match: Stone Cold Steve Austin (26:46)
Last eliminated; Kurt Angle (#26)
This is perhaps the first time we've seen guys fighting on the outside of the ring having both gone over the top rope - with Lance Storm and Al Snow doing so early in the match. This was the high point at the start of the bout which only had a bunch of midcarders in it and didn't seem to be really underway until The Undertaker rides his bike down down to the ring at number 8 and empties his yard of competitors.
Matt Hardy is the next to enter and when it looks like he's going to take a chokeslam, Lita enters and interferes. Jeff is the next to enter and stops Matt being eliminated before the two Hardys and Lita start stomping away at 'Taker. It is at this point that the referees even start to make an effort to get Lita out of the ring. Despite taking two twists of fate and a swanton, the Dead Man manages to clear the ring again.
The three members of Team Xtreme come back in and give him more of a beating, allowing Maven - the first winner of Tough Enough - to drop kick The Phenom out of the ring in the biggest shock in a number of years. This would have left him alone in the ring except for the fact that The Undertaker then got back into the ring to give him a beating before eliminating him from the match. The cameras then follow the two guys as the Deadman fights Maven towards the backstage, including putting him straight through a popcorn machine. These revenge beatings lower the quality of the match for me a bit.
Scotty 2 Hotty manages to get the worm in on Christian. Man, I loved Too Cool back in the day. It makes it the second time in three years that he danced in the Rumble. Just after this, the Godfather comes out and spends pretty much all of the two minutes until the next competitor is due dancing with the ladies from his escort service.
When Stone Cold Steve Austin comes in, he becomes the second man to clear the ring. When he does so, he doesn't seem to have had enough, so he goes outside the ring to bring back both Christian and Chuck to stunner them and throw them over the top rope for the second time.
Austin clears the ring of the next two competitors leaving him alone in the ring when Triple H's music hits and the crowd get noticeably more excited. They knock each other to the floor when Hurricane Helms comes into the ring and starts posing before the two of them collectively throw him out. I really like these little moments - like with Scotty 2 Hotty - where guys stick to their gimmick despite the ridiculous circumstances. It can be a lot of fun.
Mr Perfect was an entrant in this match, continuing the trend of legends returning during the Rumble match, although his entry was announced in advance of the match, unlike what often happens these days with the surprise entrants. He makes it to the final three competitors in the match which is a nice feat for them to allow him to accomplish considering he was in the ring the Austin, Triple H, Kurt Angle, Kane and The Big Show at one point, with RVD and Booker T coming in after this.
RVD enters and straight away hits a massive frogsplash on Kurt Angle. I forgot how awesome RVD was. I need to remember to watch a number of his classic matches at some point.
And then Booker T does a spinaroonie. Which is the most stupid but also the most awesome thing. The last segments of this match really start to make up for my disappointment about all the earlier interference... and the Austin interferes after he is eliminated.
Rating: 7/10
Royal Rumble 2003
Winner: Brock Lesnar (#29)
Most eliminations: Chris Jericho (6)
Longest time in match: Chris Jericho (38:54)
Last eliminated; The Undertaker (#30)
The opening for the show has a lots of clips of viable Rumble winners and it makes you excited for the match. This is the first Rumble after the first brand split, and perhaps as per now, it gave more guys the room to shine and meant that it seemed like more guys were main event status and able to win the match. This plays through with the last four competitors all being potential winners as well.
However this must be about the time I stopped watching as there are a large number of jobbers who I don't recognise.This is odd as I'd have thought after buying WCW and ECW they would easily have 30 high level stars to fill the match with.
Shawn Michaels draws number 1 in the draw for the second time. Some guys don't have much luck, although he did win it when he was number 1 previously. Coming in first also allows him to have all of his fireworks in the ring as he enters. He isn't as successful as previously as he is the first guy to be eliminated from the match. He reappears much later in the match to attack Jericho, which leads to Jericho's elimination. This is the only instance of someone returning to the ring after being eliminated this year, which feels very rare compared to all the re-entries in the last Rumble.
The time between entrants has changed yet again. They really can't make up their mind what they prefer. It is back down to 90 seconds after 2 minutes last year.
Chris Jericho comes in at number 2, although distracts Michaels by having his tag team partner Christian come down the ramp with Jericho coming through the crowd and surprising him before bring a steel chair into the ring. One of the referees is brave enough to get in the ring and argue with Jericho after he uses the chair to bust open the Heartbreak Kid.
Jericho shows off some awesome staying in the ring skills, in the mould of Shawn Michaels. If he is to win it this year, he will need to use some of them again.
Whilst it is no disqualifications, a referee tries to stop Jericho using a weapon here, but when Tommy Dreamer comes down to the ring with a garbage can full of weapons, they have ample time to attempt to stop him but no one tries to. A little bit of consistency would be nice, please, referees.
Jericho is the first man to clear the ring, being alone when Rob Van Dam's number is up. These guys who are two of the best performers in the match and start to up the excitement of it. This is helped by the fact that the guys who follow - Matt Hardy, Eddie Guerrero and Jeff Hardy - are all also top performers.
Matt Hardy's protege Shannon Moore actually lays down on the floor and keeps Hardy in the ring with his feet at one point which is quite amusing. He then lies on Matt's body before he's about to take a Swanton and so Jeff does the swanton to the both of them.
The first thing Christian does when he actually enters the match is to hug his brother Edge and try to form an alliance. The first thing Edge does after this is spear Christian.
This is John Cena's first Rumble. He spends the time between his entrance and the next competitor's rapping. You'd never have through a guy with this gimmick would end up being a 15-time champion.
This is apparently Rikishi's eighth Rumble which at this point is more than anyone else. It really doesn't seem like that many as it takes a lot to eliminate him and I would have thought he might have won one by now.
Again Booker T does a spinaroonie. It's stupid but awesome.
The Undertaker comes in at number 30 and starts to clean house. Maven tries to drop kick him out of the ring in a similar way to last year. He thinks he's done it and starts celebrating before the Phenom throws him out of the match.
When he tombstones Brock Lesnar, this is the first time a tombstone has been used in the Rumble. He then tricks Kane to eliminate him before fending off a chair attack from the already eliminated Batista, only to be tossed out by Lesnar who had beaten The Big Show earlier in the evening to win a spot in the match. The Dead Man gets back in the ring to give Lesnar a show of respect after the match.
Rating: 8/10
Royal Rumble 2004
Winner: Chris Benoit (#1)
Most eliminations: Chris Benoit (6)
Longest time in match: Chris Benoit (61:35)
Last eliminated; Big Show (#24)
This year they add a graphic when every competitor enters telling you their name and entry position. I like this. It allows you to keep centred on where in the match you are.
For the first time since the first Rumble match, there are no former winners in the Rumble, guaranteeing a first-time Rumble winner. However there don't seem to be many viable candidates. Even though it starts off with a couple of big names in Chris Benoit and Randy Orton, the field is fairly weak in real star power. These two actually end up in the ring alone at several points during the match and you get the feeling that one of them might go on to win the whole thing.
A few bigger names enter towards the end of the match so it picks up as time goes on, including Goldberg at number 30. It was interesting that in his only previous Rumble appearance, Goldberg's interview resulted in a confrontation with Brock Lesnar, who despite not being in the match, enters and hits an F5 of Goldberg. It was as if these two were doomed to meet again 13 years later.
Tajiri in his first Rumble uses the green mist on Mark Henry which helps with eliminating the World's Strongest Man. The first time anyone has used mist in the Rumble and probably the only time.
Kane suffers a weak elimination. The clock counts down to the next competitor and the Undertaker's music plays. He looks to the ramp shocked but no-one appears and he gets knocked out of the ring by Booker T. It was all just a ruse as it was actually Spike Dudley who entered after him but who never seems to make it to the ring.
I am disappointed that Booker T doesn't do the spinaroonie. I've come to expect that in Rumbles now. However there is some dancing when Ernest "The Cat" Miller and his announcer friend come in and dance to Somebody Call My Momma before Benoit and Orton get back up and throw one of them out each.
Test at number 21 is a no show. You see him knocked out backstage as Stone Cold Steve Austin (in his position of co-general manager and sheriff of Raw) is clearly upset and shouts at someone that they will be the number 21 to replace him. We cut back to the arena and Mick Foley's music hits. When he reaches the ring, him and Orton go straight for each other and the crowd erupts before Foley eliminates the Viper along with himself. The crowd start chanting his name as he continues the assault on the outside, including hitting an official with the steel steps. Foley had apparently meant to be at ringside for the show but was being called a coward for not doing so.
Foley gets the mandible claw on Nunzio who drew number 22 but doesn't actually enter the ring, instead just handing around outside feigning injury rather than getting in to the match and fighting. That is until John Cena comes down and laughs at him. Nunzio does the You Can't See Me taught so Cena throws him into the ring. He actually lasts longer than I was expecting, until he takes a horrendous looking spear from Goldberg who throws him out.
Billy Gunn at number 27 gets a bit of a mini-push as he hits a fameasser on Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho and The Big Show as soon as he enters the ring. You know he's never going to win it, but it's pretty cool. I've always enjoyed watching him.
The last 10 minutes of this match are great. When it is down to six competitors, five of them team up on the Big Show who resists being thrown over and pushes them all to the floor. Each of them then hits a big move on the Big Show who still fights on. Jericho shows why he would be a good winner, escaping elimination on several occasions to then put the Big Show in the walls of Jericho which makes him tap (he later also taps to the Angle lock and the crossface) , before the Show gives him a one handed chokeslam over the ropes to eliminate him. The action which makes the big guy look good, which he hasn't done in quite some time.
Rating: 6/10
Number 1 Contender Rumble
Smackdown, January 29 2004
Winner: Eddie Guerrero (#13)
Most eliminations: Eddie Guerrero / Kurt Angle (6)
Last eliminated: Kurt Angle (#1)
With Benoit winning the rumble and walking out on Smackdown to go for the Raw title, Smackdown needed a number 1 contender. They decided to do a half-Rumble in order to find one. Thirteen of the competitors had competed in the main Rumble, with Hardcore Holly replacing an injured Matt Morgan and Eddie Guerrero replacing the defecting Benoit.
Ernest The Cat Miller is the first to be eliminated. He actually knocks everyone in the ring down - whilst dancing - but Angle gets up and sizes him up while he's doing his moves before tossing him out.
The Big Show comes out at 9 and all the other wrestlers stop what they're doing and face the entrance way to wait for him. He is completely mobbed as soon as he gets in the ring and this continues as everyone sees him as the biggest threat.
John Cena comes out with an injured knee in a brace and a baseball top that's about seven sizes too big for him. When Cena comes in, the others stop ganging up on the Big Show and actually start fighting each other again. The Big Show is teamed up on to be eliminated, with the already eliminated Cena helping to pull him out. He is made to look good here, even managing a chokeslam to Rikishi.
Eddie Guerrero makes it in at number 13 despite apparently being in the hospital and unable to compete. Paul Heyman had previously told Kurt Angle that Eddie's music would play and he if he was able to come out, he could compete - otherwise there would only be 14 competitors rather than 15. It comes down to Eddie and Kurt and they put on a good contest before Eddie gets the victory. This was pretty enjoyable.
Michael Cole keeps saying this is the first ever Royal Rumble match in televised history - ignoring the two that have already happened. He's great at forgetting stuff.
Rating: 7/10
Royal Rumble 2005
Winner: Batista (#28)
Most eliminations: Batista & Edge (5)
Longest time in match: Chris Benoit (47:26)
Last eliminated; John Cena (#25)
For the second time running, Chris Benoit is one of the first two competitors in the match. For the second year running, he lasts until the 30th competitor has entered the ring and records the longest time in the match.
Tough Enough winner Daniel Puder enters the match at number 3 and does himself no favours by getting on the mic and announcing that he's going to be the first Tough Enough winner to win the Royal Rumble. He put a target on his back with Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit and Hardcore Holly taking turns at giving him a beating. He doesn't manage to get a single offensive move in around 4 minutes.
Despite them both discussing before the match that they appreciate it when there is no outside interference, Raw general manager Eric Bischoff and Smackdown general manager Teddy Long both come down to ringside in the early part of the match. Shortly after they do, the ring divides into Raw competitors and Smackdown competitors who then go after each other. However they don't interfere in the match itself.
Just after this, all of the competitors stop fighting to team up on Muhammad Hassan and eliminate him pretty much straight away. I'm not sure what the storyline reason for this is, but without knowing it the whole action seems quite xenophobic. Hassan assaults Scotty 2 Hotty on his way to the ring and the crowd chant USA which starts to confirm this theory. Scotty 2 Hotty doesn't manage to make it to the ring, poor guy. Suffering the fate of poor Spike Dudley from the previous year.
There is a spinaroonie from Booker T. Everything is back to normal. I am happy. Perhaps he shouldn't have done it though as it allows Eddie Guerrero the opportunity to eliminate him.
Rene Dupree comes down to the ring with a poodle. It's a poor man's Jake the Snake. A poodle isn't going to scare any of your opponents. Unless one of them was me, as I do have a bit of a dog phobia. Again he is eliminated straight after doing the "French tickle" dance.
Kurt Angle is eliminated quite quickly by Shawn Michaels and he later comes back in to throw HBK over the top rope and attack him with the steel steps, busting him open. Apparently this elimination counts, although we've previously had competitors thrown out by people who aren't in the match get back in. The rules continue to be inconsistent year on year.
There is a lot of taunt mockery this year - HBK mocks Simon Dean, Jericho mocks Rene Dupree and Edge mocks Eddie Guerrero.
Kane's MO seems to be coming into the ring and chokeslamming everyone who is in it so that he is the only man standing.
Johnathan Coachman or "Coach" who I'm not sure was ever an actual wrestler was entered into the match and copies his tactics from the Road Dogg by just cowering in the corner constantly and then occasionally attacking someone. However, his attacks are much weaker and basically amount to tapping someone on the back.
Again, the ending to this match makes up for a match with a number of weak competitors. When they get down to the last four, especially, the action is really great, even though we have a carbon copy of the 1994 finish where Bret Hart and Lex Luger were declared joint winners. This time there are two Raw referees holding Batista's hand aloft and two Smackdown ones holding John Cena's hand aloft.
This causes Vince McMahon to run into the ring angrily, however he seems to injure himself as he slides into the ring and almost comically conducts his part of the finale sitting down leaning against the ropes. Batista and Cena throw each other out of the ring and then Vince gives the order that the match be restarted when Batitsta manages to throw Cena out quite quickly.
Rating: 6/10
Royal Rumble 2006
Winner: Rey Mysterio Jr (#2)
Most eliminations: Rey Mysterio Jr (6)
Longest time in match: Rey Mysterio Jr (62:12)
Last eliminated; Randy Orton (#30)
For the first time in a while, the Rumble is not the main event. In fact, there are two matches after it. The Spirit Squad come in and do a chant before Lillian Garcia can finish announcing the match. If it weren't for the recent Miz/Ziggler rivalry then I would have had no idea what was going on.
There seems to be a target on Shawn Michael's head. I'm not sure what he has done but everyone is telling Vince beforehand that they will eliminate the Heartbreak Kid for him. When the guys who said they'd get rid of him (MNM and Shelton Benjamin) are eliminated in quick succession right at the end, Vince himself marches angrily to the ring and distracted HBK whilst Shane O Mac comes through the crowd and enters the ring to throw him out. Michaels gets back in and takes out Triple H before chasing out after the McMahons.
Rey Mysterio Jr dedicates in advance his victory to the late great Eddie Guerrero. When he comes down to the ring number 2, he comes down in a low rider in the same style as Eddie. Whilst there is some sentimentality to the victory, there is no questioning the excitement that the match provides.
Chavo Guerrero also pays homage to Eddie with the three amigos, but is unceremoniously pushed out by The Game as he goes to do a five star frog splash before the next competitor arrives.
There is a short alliance between Mysterio and Triple H to eliminate Simon Dean who comes in number 3 and annoys both of them with his arrogance/cockiness. This is a similar way to the alliance that was formed by Benoit and Guerrero last year. I like it. The guys in at the start of the match sort of sticking up for each other as they've both had a raw deal.
Mysterio also benefits by the fact that The Game is so hated. Ric Flair comes in at number 5 and is focussed entirely on Hunter, and the Big Show at 6 is the same.
At this point, Kane and the Big Show are tag team partners and they give Lashley a great double chokeslam t eliminate him but then look at each other and smile as they agree that they'll start going for each other. All of this gives Rey and Trips a break until they are grappling with each other by the ropes as Hunter then goes and manages to tip them both out.
In the first of his Rumble reappearances, Tatanka comes in at number 15 and puts up a reasonable showing, even when being double teamed by MNM. The crowd really love it and so do I. This dude used to by one of my first favourites when I started watching in the nineties. Animal from Legion of Doom is another legend who enters, although from the sounds of it, he had announced his entry in advance.
The match is probably more crowded when Randy Orton comes in at number 30 than any previous Rumble has been when all the competitors were in. This contributes to Mysterio breaking the record for the longest time in the match because it is probably the longest match up, especially for a 90 second entry match. However, when the Viper enters, the eliminations start to get racked up quite quickly.
You can hear Rey Mysterio call "Rooobbb" to RVD when there are four men left and they form a brief alliance before Mysterio unintentionally eliminates RVD. When this happens, Orton and Triple H form an alliance against Mysterio. The path of the match seems to change a couple of times and Mysterio hits an awesome double 619 and the crowd's excitement audibly increases, especially when Mysterio eliminates Triple H.. This is the third time that entrants 1 and 2 both made it to the last 3 competitors.
Rating: 7/10
Royal Rumble 2007
Winner: The Undertaker (#30)
Most eliminations: The Great Khali (7)
Longest time in match: Edge (44:02)
Last eliminated; Shawn Michaels (#23)
A great build up package before the match shows you the history of the match as well as a large number of viable competitors who have entered the match.
For the first time in a number of years, weapons enter the Rumble. Ric Flair gets chairs from under the ring but they don't get used. Sabu then sets up a table outside the ring before entering the match. There are a lot of teased eliminations through the table before Kane chokeslams Sabu through it. Sandman also brings in a kendo stick but only lasts around 30 seconds in the match.
When Jeff Hardy enters at number 14 to join his brother Matt who had been in the match for a while, they team up with some classic Hardy Boyz moves.
Booker T is eliminated before getting to do a spinaroonie. Things are not right in the world. He gets back into the ring and eliminates Kane. I was thinking he was going back in to do a spinaroonie. He does not. The world hates me.
This is The Miz's first Rumble. He has silly hair. He gets thrown out straight away by The Great Khali who manages to start cleaning house with a number of eliminations in quick succession. The commentators ask "Who can stop The Great Khali?" and moments later the Undertaker's music hits as he comes in at number 30 (the second time he has drawn that number). The two trade punches and the Phenom manages to push him over the top rope.
Taker even manages to find the time go old school as he smashes his way through the opposition to victory, even though MVP hands Orton a chair to attack the Dea Man with which gets 'Taker a crimson mask. Orton and Edge, the current tag team champions, look like they are going to work together to take out Undertaker until Shawn Michaels sneaks back into the ring and knocks them both over the top.
The match isn't too exciting overall. Until the end, there are no really big spots. No awesome eliminations. The two legends at the match, Undertaker and Shawn Michaels provide the best bits of the match but they are mostly confined to the end of the match (largely when it is just down to the two of them), leaving a large portion of the match which doesn't set the world on fire.
Rating: 5/10
Mini Royal Rumble
Raw, January 14 2008
Winner: Hornswoggle (#1)
Most eliminations: Hornswoggle (4)
Last eliminated: The Great Khali (#6)
The match is advertised with Hornswoggle, Mr Kennedy, Mankind and Batista.Hornswoggle comes out first, followed by Mr Kennedy - except it is a midget version of Mr Kennedy. At this point, it becomes clear what is going on and what Vince McMahon meant by a "mini" Royal Rumble.
It turns out that the rules are different and that you can be eliminated without going over the top rope. You just need to be thrown out of the ring. I wondered how they would actually get each other over the top, but Hornswoggle is actually able to gorilla press mini-Mankind and throw him over the top.
All of the wrestlers are midgets until The full size Great Khali enters at number 6. Finlay comes in and assaults Khali to save Hornswoggle.
Unlike in a regular Royal Rumble, there is a referee in the ring, although it is unclear what he is there for.
This is just pretty stupid, really. I'm not sure what they were trying to do here.
Rating: 2/10
Royal Rumble 2008
Winner: John Cena (#30)
Most eliminations: Triple H (6)
Longest time in match: Batista (37:40)
Last eliminated; Triple H (#29)
From Madison Square Garden, they get Michael Buffer - the boxing ring announcer - to introduce the match, which definitely gives it more of a sense of occasion. However, the match itself doesn't live up to it.
There aren't too many guys who look like winners, despite there being a number of previous winners in the match. When Cena comes out at number 30, he turns into an elimination machine as Triple H looks shocked that he is even there. There's a nice moment when Batista, Cena and the Game are left and they square up and just taunt each other.
Just like in 2003, with Brock Lesnar and the Undertaker, the last two men standing are the last two who entered the match. And for the second year running, the winner was the last man in.
Entrant number 1 is number 30 from the previous year. This is the first time that this has happened. Number 2 is Shawn Michaels which means that this is the first time the last two competitors standing, from one year are the first two the next. It takes about half an hour, but Michaels gives his revenge on the Dead Man by eliminating him from this year's Rumble.
The Great Khali comes in at number 4 meaning he faces off and is eliminated by The Phenom for the second year running.
Hornswoggle at 4ft 5in must be the smallest competitor to enter the Rumble. He doesn't actually enter the Rumble but hides underneath the ring, taking after Jerry the King Lawler's 1996 appearance. It's probably a good idea as there are more big men in this Rumble than any other year. He does pop out from under the ring at one point to help pull The Miz over the top rope and eliminate him before heading back under. He then tries to do the same thing to Mark Henry who pulls Hornswoggle into the ring. Finlay runs in to make the save and the two of them leave, presumably eliminating Hornswoggle. Finlay is then apparently disqualified, which doesn't make sense as no-one has ever been disqualified before.
Jimmy Superfly Snuka is the legend who comes back for the Rumble match this year. You can see guys flock to trade blows with hem. It's obviously an honour for them to do so. The next entrant is another legend, Rowdy Roddy Piper, and he sets his sights straight on Snuka. Everyone else in the ring stops for a few moments to watch the two fight. They don't last too long though because Kane comes in next and eliminates the two of them as soon as he reaches the ring.
Rating: 5/10
Royal Rumble 2009
Winner: Randy Orton (#8)
Most eliminations: Triple H / Big Show (6)
Longest time in match: Rey Mysterio (49:24)
Last eliminated; Triple H (#7)
Rey Mysterio starts the match for the second time, having won it the previous time he did so. It's got to the point where the number one competitor now seems to let the number two make their entrance. In the earlier Rumbles, they would attach the second entrant as soon as they got to the ring. Mysterio again manages to last until all competitors have entered the ring but unfortunately for him he is thrown out shortly after number 30. It does mean that he has achieved this feat twice.
Rey has a great moment where he uses John Morrison and The Miz's prone bodies outside the ring to step on and keep himself in the Rumble. A nice moment, in the vein of the sort of thing Kofi Kingston became famous for later. The first awesome moment like this in any of the rumbles. Speaking of Kofi, this is his first rumble but he doesn't have a moment as cool as Mysterio's this year.
This year, The Great Khali is single handedly eliminated by the undefeated Russian Vladimir Kosloff, without eliminating anyone, continuing the trend of WWE misbooking big guys.
The power of the Undertaker is awesome. As soon as his gong hits, everyone in the ring stops, looks shocked and turns to face him as he enters. Undertaker is booked really well. A similar thing happens as RVD, a surprise entrant, makes his way to the ring. And the same for The Big Show. They should probably stop overusing things.
Triple H busts out a noggin knocker. The first time one has been seen in the rumble for over a decade. Classic.
There is a nice stand off between Goldust and Cody Rhodes - real life brothers - as Cody I think is trying to get Goldust to recognise him and perhaps work with him. They don't, they fight and Rhodes and his allies in Legacy eliminate Goldust quickly.
This is the Rumble when Santino breaks the record for the shortest time in the Rumble when Kane clotheslines him out within a second of entering the ring.
The legend who comes in this year is the first ever Rumble winner, Hacksaw Jim Duggan who comes in at 29 and goes toe to toe with Undertaker and Kane showing he's still got it. The Big Show is roundly booed when he throws Duggan out.
The Show has a moment of great athleticism holding on when pushed over the ropes. Him and 'Taker fight it out on the outside with Show falling off when he takes an RKO and then from the outside he pulls the Phenom off, eliminating him as well. They then fight off into the crowd. The leaves Triple H alone with the three members of Legacy, with Orton shouting out instructions as they take Helmsley apart. The game fights back and eliminates Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase before Orton puts him out straight away.
This match is booked really well, as there are a large number of competitors who seem like they have the status to win it, and they keep them all in the ring for a while, which builds up the excitement. When the Big Show enters the ring at number 30, I counted 9 guys who could feasibly win the match.
Rating: 8/10
Royal Rumble 2010
Winner: Edge (#29)
Most eliminations: Shawn Michaels (6)
Longest time in match: John Cena (22:11)
Last eliminated: John Cena (#19)
They claim that this is the most star studded Royal Rumble ever - but I'm fairly sure that they say that every year. This is only a few years before I started watching WWE again regularly, and there are a large number of competitors I don't recognise. Many of these stars clearly burnt out quite quickly.
CM Punk enters at number 3 and manages to find time to do a sermon on the mount before the next competitor comes in. He then eliminates number 4 and grabs the mic again to continue his speech. He tries to talk The Great Khali into an alliance rather than a fight, which obviously doesn't work. Punk is completely in control of the Rumble and has several opportunities to grab the mic whilst alone in the ring, that is until The Game takes care of him.
Beth Phoenix is the second woman to enter the Rumble, and she manages to eliminate The Great Khali who, frankly, gets a bum deal in Rumbles as he almost always seems to go out within a minute or two. Phoenix eliminates him by kissing him and pulling him over the top rope at the same time.
The Miz attacks MVP with the US Championship when MVP is on his way to the ring, which prevents him entering the match. It annoys me when they do this.The speed of which guys get attacked means that their attacker has literally been stalking them until they pop through the curtain. However, MVP comes down later when The Miz enters at number 16 and this results in both men getting eliminated.
When Shawn Michaels enters at number 18, he eliminates 3 men, before teaming up with Triple H to eliminate the last other man in the ring. They look like forming an alliance as John Cena's music hits and he takes both of them out. Triple H manages to get a pedigree before HBK hits him with sweet chin music and eliminates his D-Generation X buddy.
R-Truth, in his greatest Rumble moment, eliminates both Mark Henry and The Big Show at he same time within a few seconds of entering the ring. They were clearly pushing the guy at this stage, rather than making him look stupid by taking a ladder into the ring in a later Rumble.
Kofi Kingston enters his second Rumble and doesn't produce a Kofi Kingston moment.
Edge enters at number 29 and gets the biggest cheer. He was supposed to be out of action for another 6 months and the crowd go wild even though he doesn't actually do too much wrestling, presumably as they are protecting him slightly. The last 5 guys are all possible winners which helps the excitement, but unfortunately earlier in the match wasn't too great so it won't go down as a classic.
HBK is eliminated by Batista and attacks a couple of referees. The story had been that everyone's dream match was him against the Undertaker at Wrestlemania but he can't handle losing that opportunity.
Rating: 6/10
Royal Rumble 2011
Winner: Alberto del Rio (#38)
Most eliminations: CM Punk / John Cena (7)
Longest time in match: CM Punk (35:21)
Last eliminated: Santino Marella (#37)
This is the 40-man Rumble. CM Punk again scores an early number, getting number 1 but is surrounded in the ring by The Corre. The New Nexus then come in to make the save for Punk before Michael Cole takes centre stage to read out and email from the anonymous general manager (later revealed to be Hornswoggle) demanding everyone other than Punk returns to the locker room which they do. I'm not sure why anyone would listen to Michael Cole but they do. This is when Daniel Bryan makes his way out as the actual number 2.
The New Nexus have a goal of protecting Punk and helping him win the Rumble. At points they literally form a barrier in front of Punk allowing him to recover in the corner. Four of them are in the ring and clear the ring before number 16 comes in, eliminating men one by one to allow themselves to be 4 on 1 with each new competitor. The way they set this up is pretty cool. It's the first time one group has been so dominant in a Rumble and it works well to get them over.
The Great Khali at number 19 has a bit of a better showing than the last couple of years as he manages to knock down all of Nexus and eliminate one member.... until another comes out at number 20 and manages to put Khali out.
All this time Jerry The King Lawler is complaining that this is not what the Rumble is about and that it is every man for himself. Booker T is a surprise entry after a 4 year absence from WWE. He manages to knock Nexus down and do a spinaroonie. And I am happy. Even though he is eliminated straight after, leaving us back at 4 members of Nexus again. Punk starts screaming "We're going to Wrestlemania!" until John Cena's music hits and Punk looks a bit worried which he should do as Cena clears the ring of all Nexus except Punk. The crowd go freaking insane with the sort of reception that Cena would probably kill for these days.
John Morrison has a Kofi Kingston moment - still before Kofi has had one himself - where he is knocked off the edge of the ring but launches himself onto the crowd barrier before walking back along in and jumping onto the steel steps before getting back into the ring.
Hornswoggle enters when Punk and Cena are down, with the crowd going wild. He actually spends more time in the match this year, as he was under the ring last time he entered, and Punk ignores him for a while after knocking him down. Cena eliminates Punk and forms an alliance with Hornswoggle who starts tapping his wrist waiting for the next entrant in the style of Stone Cold. He even begs Cena to let him give Tyson Kidd an AA and join in with a five knuckle shuffle on Heath Slater. This actually is really great fun. When Kofi Kingston comes in, Hornswoggle joins in with some of his moves too. Sheamus gets a lot of heat from eliminating him and the little fella has fulfilled his role perfectly.
Diesel is another surprise entry. When his music hits and he comes out, the crowd mark out, and all the guys in the ring turn and look scared as they stop fighting each other. There are a large number of "Let's go Diesel" chants and Rey Mysterio actually gets booed for giving him a 619 and Wade Barrett even more so for eliminating him.
Alberto del Rio enters in a car with Ricardo Rodriguez announcing him. I guess if you're going to win they let you do cool stuff. Santino Marella goes under the bottom rope and everyone forgets about him until Alberto Del Rio is celebrating victory. Santino pops back into the ring and Del Rio eliminates him.
Even though the field is much bigger, aside from the Corre/Nexus stuff at the start of the match, the only outside interference is when The Miz jumps up from commentary to eliminate John Cena, thus ensuring he won't face him at Wrestlemania.
Rating: 8/10
Raw Rumble
Raw, 31 January 2011
Winner: Jerry The King Lawler (#6)
Most eliminations: Jerry The King Lawler (2)
Last eliminated:
There's 7 men in the first ever Raw Royal Rumble to decide who is going into the Elimination Chamber the next month.
When The King comes in, Michael Cole calls it a "wasted entry." Why is Cole so mean to him? The crowd are on his side, with "JERRY! JERRY!" chants.
CM Punk does a Lawler by hiding under the ring when he knows that Orton is going to be on his way to the ring. Orton locates him and starts attacking him, with Punk then running away into the ring.
John Morrison, just one day after his first Kofi Kingston moment, has another when he hangs outside the ring and only stays in the match up because his feet are hooked under the bottom rope. A move that Kofi will steal in 2014. He is later thrown out of the ring but does a handstand and gets back in the ring. Similar to something Kofi will do in the next Royal Rumble.
Rating: 6/10
Royal Rumble 2012
Winner: Sheamus (#22)
Most eliminations: Cody Rhodes (5)
Longest time in match: The Miz (45:39)
Last eliminated: Chris Jericho (#29)
The Miz enters at number 1 and his first two opponents are his former protege Alex Riley and his former friend R-Truth. He eliminates Riley within the 90 seconds and starts gloating but would certainly feel like he is being picked on. Although to be fair, you'd be hard pressed to find any superstar that The Miz hasn't pissed off in some way.
There really aren't many big star names in the match at all. Only Randy Orton, Chris Jericho and The Big Show are truly big stars. The number of novelty entries is the highest it has ever been to attempt to make it more exciting but it really falls quite flat overall.
Ricardo Rodriguez seems to fulfil the Hornswoggle role. A guy you'd expect to be rubbish who teams up with a star (in this case Mick Foley) and lasts a bit longer in the match than he really should. The match descends into a brief moment of silliness when Santino comes in afterwards and gives Ricardo a wedgie as he throws him out. Santino then pulls out The Cobra as Foley pulls out Mr Socko and they dance around each other with socks on their hands before the socks puppets wrestle.
Just as he did in 1997, Jerry the King Lawler again enters the Rumble from the commentary table. He lasts a little longer than '97 but he still doesn't make it until the next entrant comes in. Booker T does the same a little while later in the match. Booker does a little better, lasting around 5 minutes. But no spinaroonie. I am sad.
Michael Cole seems shocked even though Booker is clearly in his wrestling attire when he usually wears regular clothes to do so. Admittedly, Lawler always wears his wrestling attire to commentate so that should have been more of a shock. Cole spends a lot of time criticising Lawler and Booker for entering the match when they should be doing commentary... before entering the match himself at number 20. He spends most of the 90 seconds until the next entrant stripping down and putting on a wrestling hat and then jumping around in the ring whilst everyone else is busy fighting everyone else.
Kharma becomes the third woman to enter the Rumble and she instantly knocks Cole down who effectively eliminates himself by climbing over the rope to get away from her before Lawler and Booker pull him down off the ring apron.
Kofi Kingston finally gets a Kofi Kingston Rumble moment when he is pushed out of the ring onto his hands and he walks on his hands to the steel steps and uses them to get back into the ring.
Hacksaw Jim Duggan makes another legend appearance in the match, as he did in 2009 and the crowd goes crazy for him. The Road Dogg Jesse James also makes a reappearance.
Rating: 4/10
Royal Rumble 2013
Winner: John Cena (#19)
Most eliminations: Sheamus / Ryback (5)
Longest time in match: Dolph Ziggler (49:47)
Last eliminated: Ryback (#30)
For the first time in a long while, the Rumble isn't the main event as The Rock v CM Punk takes that honour. The crowd goes crazy as Y2J enters at number 2, having been on hiatus for 4 months after losing his contract in a match against Dolph Ziggler who was the number 1 entrant. Both of these guys last until Ryback comes in at number 30.
This Rumble is a great relief in terms of quality after the frankly piss poor showing the previous year. There are a lot more high quality wrestlers and guys who could maybe win the event.
Goldust enters and squares off against his brother Cody Rhodes who doesn't look too pleased to see him. They did a similar thing in 2009 which I think worked better then.
Brodus Clay becomes the second man to enter to the song Somebody Call My Momma after Ernest The Cat Miller in 2004. The Funkadactyls also used it as their theme. WWE is clearly keen on recycling.
Kofi Kingston has his second Kofi Kingston moment when he jumps on the back of the eliminated Tensai to save himself from the floor. He then ends up on the Spanish announce table before borrowing JBL's chair to pogo his way back to the ring.
The Godfather is the returning legend for this year, but he lasts mere seconds as Ziggler spoils his party.
Bo Dallas is the first NXT competitor in the Rumble. Before spending the next few years being a massive jobber.
John Cena does a similar thing when he enters to the previous year when he came in to face all of The New Nexus. He counts the number of men in the ring before running in. He is only the fourth man to win 2 or more Rumbles. He is the first to accomplish it without doing so in successive years with Hogan, Michaels and Austin all doing it two years running.
Kane is eliminated by his tag team partner Daniel Bryan, whom he then catches to prevent Bryan from being eliminated. You think that Bryan has convinced Kane to throw him back into the ring but he ends up just dropping him on the floor.
Rating: 6/10
Royal Rumble 2014
Winner: Batista (#28)
Most eliminations: Roman Reigns (12)
Longest time in match: CM Punk (49:11)
Last eliminated: Roman Reigns (#15)
Boo-tista's return was announced a little while before the Rumble. It seemed inevitable that he would become the fifth guy to win a second Rumble which he does, much to the dismay of the crowd. When Ric Flair announced him just before the match started as his pick, there was a negative reaction from the crowd. If I was in WWE creative, I would have picked up on that and made a change on the fly but this is the era when they were just pushing the guys they wanted to push without any consideration for the fans.
As such, this is also the year that Rey Mysterio gets booed coming in at number 30 for the crime of not being Daniel Bryan. The crowd start chanting Bryan's name to show that they were expecting him to be in the match as a possible winner. He had fought Bray Wyatt earlier in the night (who also wasn't in the match) but as it was the first match, and WWE often get guys to pull double duty in the Rumble, it was realistic to expect that he might have been in the match.
CM Punk is eliminated by a previously eliminated Kane when it is down to the final four. Punk is a winner the crowd would have accepted and I can see why he would have been upset by that spot and his chance to headline Wrestlemania being taken by a guy who hadn't been on screen for months.
The crowd then continue to boo, chant for Daniel Bryan or do a "NO!" chant all throughout the rest of the match. When it gets down to Reigns - who at this time is far from a main eventer, or a fan favourite - and Batista, the crowd are so annoyed with the way it has been booked that they start to chant for Reigns rather than the supposed top face, Batista.
As in 2011, CM Punk enters at number 1. At this time he had been feuding with The Shield and Seth Rollins comes through the crowd as entry number 2. This is actually Punk's last match in the WWE as he walked out on the company the following day.
By entry 15, all three members of the Shield are in the match and this is part of the reason that Roman Reigns is able to break Kane's longstanding record for the number of eliminations in one match. They manage to clear the ring of everyone else, (including The Great Khali in minimal time) except for CM Punk.
This is Rusev's debut as this year's NXT call up. He doesn't fair too much better than Bo Dallas did last year although it did take a large number of men to eliminate him.
Kofi Kingston comes in and Michael Cole says that he has made a career out of spectacular Royal Rumble moments. At this stage he only has 2 moments in 6 Rumbles that he has entered. I'm not sure Michael Cole knows what he's saying half the time. This year he is caught by Rusev who throws him onto the crowd barrier and leaves him beaten. Kofi makes it to his feet before running along the barrier and making a massive leap back to the ring. He later hangs out of the ring with his feet, a la John Morrison, on the bottom rope and attacks Jack Swagger with Swagger's own shoe to get back in.
Kevin Nash is this year's legend appearance. The second time he has fulfilled this role. JBL is entry number 24 - the first time he has entered as JBL (previously only entering as Bradshaw). He goes in dress in his suit and hands his jacket down to Michael Cole and as he's doing so, he is eliminated by Reigns. JBL's entry is the fifth time a commentator has gone into the match.
El Torito enters and is the smallest competitor ever in the match as he is shorter than Hornswoggle, the previous holder of this record. He manages to hit a couple of moves on some big names and even eliminates Fandango before Reigns throws him out at Fandango.
It is interesting to see guys who recently haven't been too over with the crowd - such as Sheamus and Fandango - who are completely loved by the crowd. You start to wonder what went wrong for these guys.
Rating: 6/10
Royal Rumble 2015
Winner: Roman Reigns (#19)
Most eliminations: Bray Wyatt / Rusev / Roman Reigns (6)
Longest time in match: Bray Wyatt (47:29)
Last eliminated: Rusev (#15)
As in 2012, The Miz enters the match at number 1. Poor guy getting picked on. I almost feel for him but then I remember, he is The Miz. When Damien Mizdow comes in later in the match, The Miz runs after him, trying to take his spot but Mizdow turns on him.
The surprise return this year is Bubba Ray Dudley. It is the only time he has actually entered the Rumble. He works with R-Truth to do some old Dudley Boyz moves, including the headbutt to the breadbasket and the 3D but they don't manage to get the tables. Bubba is actually alone in the ring when Luke Harper enters at number 4. Unfortunately for him, Bray Wyatt has drawn number 5 and he doesn't last much longer.
Curtis Axel is next to come out but is attacked by Eric Rowan and the three members of the Wyatt Family fight, with Harper and Rowan (who wasn't officially in the match) eliminating each other, leaving Bray alone in the ring. Another shock entry is the Boogeyman who is possibly even more weird than the man he goes to meet in the ring as they spend some time trying to freak each other out before going at it, with the Boogeyman not even lasting until the next entrant appears.
Bray keeps eliminating people and grabs a mic to declare that it is his year - which the crowd love so much more than they love the eventual Reigns victory - and then to sing He's Got The Whole World In His Hands.
A third surprise legend appearance is Diamond Dallas Paige. He hits a Diamond Cutters on Stardust, Fandango (from the top rope) and Bray Wyatt, before looking like he is going to poo his pants when Rusev comes out after him, which he is right to do as Rusev puts him out quickly.
Bray Wyatt puts Daniel Bryan out and the match is largely booed after that, with the crowd chanting Bryan's name or that of CM Punk. When it comes down to Kane, Big Show and Reigns, there are chants of Bullshit.
Even the appearance of The Rock to save Reigns from Kane and The Big Show's post match attack doesn't stop the crowd booing at the result. They were even chanting "We want Rusev" as they realised he hadn't been eliminated and the crowd knew it. Rusev comes back in and does a Santino by being out of the match for ages, getting back in and then being instantly eliminated. The Rock raising Reigns hand as The Authority comes out continues to attack boos.
This year's Kofi Kingston moment comes when he is thrown over but caught by a number of Rosebuds (Adam Rose's party entourage) who then put Kofi back into the ring. It is a bit of a cop out as far as Kofi Kingston moments go.
Rating: 3/10
Royal Rumble 2016
Winner: Triple H (#30)
Most eliminations: Roman Reigns / Braun Strowman (5)
Longest time in match: Roman Reigns (59:48)
Last eliminated: Dean Ambrose (#19)
This match was ruined for me by the WWE app which sent a push notification the morning after (before I'd had chance to watch the event) telling me that Triple H had won. This is a bad use of an app.
This is only the second time that the title was on the line in the Rumble match an the first time that the champion had to defend it. The Authority put champion Roman Reigns against the biggest odds imaginable, making him enter the match at number 1. And obviously, Triple H is a surprise entrant at number 30. This is designed to make the crowd feel sorry for Reigns but actually because of the way that the crowd feel about him, Triple H is actually cheered.
Trips becomes the sixth man to win a second Rumble, but with the longest time between his two victories, of 14 years. I get why they did it, to further the Reigns/Helmsley storyline but there are a lot of talented guys on the roster who really deserved a Rumble victory and the Wrestlemania spotlight.
As in 1995, the last two competitors from the previous year's Rumble are the first two in this one, with Rusev coming in at number 2 to face reigns. This is the sort of coincidence for which the odds of it happening twice could really only be scripted and that you might not notice had you not watched all the Rumbles consecutively.
Reigns eliminates Rusev within the first 90 seconds and is waiting around in the ring, looking confused when AJ Styles' music hits. There were rumours of his entry in advance, and the sections of the crowd who know who he is give him a warm reception. They also get excited when it looks like he is going to hit a Styles Clash on Reigns, and they chant his name throughout. Styles never manages to hit a Styles Clash despite a few attempts and Kevin Owens gets a lot of heat for finally being the guy to eliminate him.
Owens is booked well in this match. Straight after him, Dean Ambrose comes out who he had fought and lost to earlier in the evening. After this Sami Zayn comes out, as part of his full call up from NXT. Him and Owens immediately go at it to great cheers from the crowd, as their great rivalry is reignited in the big leagues. Zayn puts Owens out quite quickly which immediately gets him over with the fans.
Reigns suffers an attack by The League of Nations who pull him outside the ring and mercilessly attack him before Rusev splashes him through a table. He is then taken away by medical staff, although refuses to go on a stretcher. The way the match continues to go, and the way that they have been pushing Reigns previously, it looks like it might be a similar tactic to the way that the story went in 1998 when Stone Cold was attacked just to make it look like he had more odds to overcome to win the match. It almost seems inevitable. Fortunately it wasn't. Reigns makes it back in, attacking Sheamus at 29, just in time for Triple H to come out afterwards.
There is a nice moment when the two of them are just facing off. The other competitors try to launch an attack on one or the other of them, and they just hit their bigs moves on them to swat them off like flies. This spot makes the two of them look like badasses. The two of them get knocked down and then it is just big move after big move from all of the competitors in the match.
Poor R-Truth, they make him look ridiculously stupid. When he enters, he gets a ladder from under the ring, sets it up right in the centre, climbs it and looks above him for a title. The match is for the title, but why anyone would jump to that assumption is unknown. I'm not sure what he would have done to have to get this part of the Rumble before being eliminated shortly after by Kane.
This year's Kofi Kingston moment involves him getting knocked over the ropes and landing on Big E's shoulders. The New Day dance around the ring celebrating for a while before Kofi has a Coke and getting back into the ring.
The Wyatts look like cleaning house completely, with only Jericho and Ambrose let in the ring with Strowman, Harper and Rowan until Brock Lesnar comes out and destroys them completely, taking them all out by the time that Bray Wyatt comes in at number 27. He raises his arms and the four Wyatts surround the ring teaming up on Lesnar to eliminate him.
The Miz comes down at 25 and is too scared to get into the ring with Lesnar, so goes straight onto commentary until it looks safe enough for him to enter, which he judges as when The Wyatts have taken Lesnar out.
Rating: 7/10
