WWE
Top 5 WWE Royal Rumble PPV’s of all time
On the 27th of January 2024, World Wrestling Entertainment will see its first Premium Live Event of the year. Royal Rumble 2024 will have 30 combatants strive to throw other wrestlers out of the ring. The last man surviving will get to stake his claim to headline WrestleMania 40 this year.
It is said that the likes of Brock Lesnar, The Rock, and a few other surprises are in store for the fans. There is also the much-spoken-about anticipation regarding the return of CM Punk. This is the first WWE Premium Live Event that the Chicago native will be part of in a decade.
In this story, we cast a closer look at the top five WWE Royal Rumble PPVs of all time.
WWE Royal Rumble 2001 –
WWE Royal Rumble 2001 (Source-Twitter)
This was the last Royal Rumble PPV before the end of the Attitude Era. This was also the final WWE PPV before Vince McMahon announced his purchase of WCW. The event began with the Dudley Boyz taking on Edge and Christian. This was followed by Chris Jericho defeating Chris Benoit in a ladder match for the Intercontinental title.
Kurt Angle successfully defended his title by beating Triple H in a brutal bout that lasted nearly 25 minutes. Stone Cold Steve Austin won his third Royal Rumble by eliminating Kane to headline that year’s WrestleMania.
WWE Royal Rumble 2005 –
WWE Royal Rumble 2005 (Source-Twitter)
The 2005 edition of WWE Royal Rumble PPV saw the two biggest stars of the Ruthless Aggression era emerge. John Cena and Batista were part of a historic and unplanned moment in the history of the event.
The day began with Shawn Michael getting pinned by Edge, while the Undertaker beat Heidenreich. John Layfield beat the Big Show and Kurt Angle to retain his WWE Title. Triple H on the other hand beat Randy Orton to retain his World Heavyweight Title.
The main event was the Royal Rumble match which saw Cena and Batista as the final two members. Both went to the ground at the same time as Vince McMahon came to the ring. In a funny moment, the WWE Chairman tore both his Quad muscles. Batista then won the match once it re-started and faced Triple H at WrestleMania.
WWE Royal Rumble 2006 –
WWE Royal Rumble 2006 (Source-Twitter)
This was considered one of the biggest shocking WWE Royal Rumble PPV of all time. David Finlay kicked off the show by beating Brian Kendrick. Shane Helms then beat five other wrestlers to win the WWE Cruiserweight title.
For the first time, the WWE Royal Rumble wasn’t the main event of the day. Rey Mysterio shocked the world to win the bout. John Cena and Edge then fought for the WWE Championship which saw Cena win the title. Kurt Angle then beat Mark Henry in the main event to retain the World Heavyweight title.
WWE Royal Rumble 2010-
WWE Royal Rumble 2010 (Source-Twitter)
Shawn Michaels was part of his final ever WWE Royal Rumble PPV in 2010 before his retirement. Christian defended his ECW Championship by beating Ezekiel Jackson in a 12-minute bout. The MIZ then beat MVP to retain his WWE US Title, while Sheamus beat Randy Orton to retain his WWE title.
Mickie James overcame Michelle McCool to win the WWE Women’s Championship in 20 seconds. Meanwhile, the Undertaker beat Rey Mysterio in just over 11 minutes to retain his World Heavyweight title.
The main event saw Edge throw John Cena over the top rope to win the event. This was the first event Edge was part of after missing the majority of 2009 due to injury. Edge then went on to face Chris Jericho in the WrestleMania 26 event and won the World Heavyweight title.
WWE Royal Rumble 2020 –
WWE Royal Rumble 2020 (Source-Twitter)
The first WWE Royal Rumble PPV of the new decade saw a host of amazing matches. The event also marked the return of Edge coming back to wrestling after nearly a decade. Sheamus and Chad Gable fought in the first match and Sheamus won in 12 minutes.
Andrade then beat Humberto Carillo to retain his WWE US Title. Roman Reigns beat Baron Corbin in a falls count match while Charlotte Flair won the first-ever Women’s Royal Rumble. Bayley and Bray Wyatt won their matches to retain their titles. Becky Lynch and Asuka fought a brutal match for 16 minutes as the man retained her title.
Drew McIntyre then won the Royal Rumble by eliminating Roman Reigns in the end. Sadly WrestleMania that year took place in empty studios as the COVID-19 Pandemic had struck.
