...it's like TV Tropes, but LINKED DATA!
Royal Rumble (Wrestling)
- 526 statements
- 75 feature instances
- 47 referencing feature instances
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Royal Rumble is WWE's annual January pay-per-view event; it started as a television special for the USA Network in 1988 as a way to screw with the buyrate of the NWA's second PPV Bunkhouse Stampede, and has been a PPV since 1989.The show is built around the titular Royal Rumble match, the brainchild of wrestling legend Pat Patterson, a massive 30-person battle royal featuring competitors from WWE's full roster that usually serves as the show's main event (due to the match's length and its importance to the build towards WrestleMania).Put simply, the Royal Rumble is the Gimmick Match.So, in the immortal words of Howard Finkel..."Here are the rules!" Prior to the match, each wrestler draws a number from a lottery that determines when he or she enters the Rumble, or in some cases, spots are assigned by other means, the most common being winning a match to secure a desirable position. The competitors who draw or are assigned the #1 and #2 slots start the match in the ring. Once the match has begun, the next wrestler in the match will enter the ring after a specified time period has passed. Traditionally 90 seconds, though two minutes hasn't been unheard of, and it was as low as one minute in 1995. This continues until all participants have entered the Rumble. There are no pinfalls, no submissions, no countouts, and no disqualifications.note The only grounds for disqualification is entering the match before your number is called. Eliminations occur after a wrestler is thrown over the top rope, with both feet touching the floor. A wrestler who exits or is removed from the ring without going over the top rope is not eliminated from the contest. An injured wrestler removed from the match can also return to the ring as long as the match is still ongoing (such as Roman Reigns in 2016), but not if the match has already ended (such as Curtis Axel in 2015). Furthermore, a wrestler who only touches the floor with one foot is not eliminated from the match, a rule which greatly affected the 1995 match, allowing Shawn Michaels to re-enter the ring and win the match. Also, touching the floor with anything other than your feet or your feet touching anything other than the floor means you are not eliminated as long as you can keep your feet off the floor. Eliminations caused by other means are ruled legitimate, including self-eliminations (such as Mil Mascaras diving out of the ring in 1997), elimination by previously-eliminated participants (such as The Undertaker eliminating Maven in 2002), or non-participants (such as The Miz eliminating John Cena in 2011). The last wrestler remaining after all others have been eliminated is declared the winner. | |
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2024-05-07T21:18:06Z | |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | isPartOf |
DBTropes | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_16f15b4 | type |
Still Got It | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_16f15b4 | comment |
Still Got It: "YOU STILL GOT IT" chants usually accompany a Ring Oldie's performance in the Rumble. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_16f15b4 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_16f15b4 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_16f15b4 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1777688d | type |
Genre Savvy | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1777688d | comment |
Because you're only eliminated if you go over the top rope, some of the more Genre Savvy wrestlers will use this clause to stay out of the ring (or, like Jerry Lawler, hide under it) until later in the match if knocked out through the middle or bottom rope, only to jump back in when everyone else involved is fatigued - or as seen in 2001, in the the midst of the Hardcore title's 24/7 era, come back armed with weapons. Subverted in 2000 when, after weeks of arguing his case, Big Show proved that the Rock, the official victor of the match, did not deserve the win, as at the end he was thrown over the top rope and - though he held on and came back in to win - his feet still touched the mat and he would have been eliminated if a ref saw it, the loophole being that such decisions can't be reversed so long after a bout. This resulted in a match at No Way Out over who got to challenge Triple H at WrestleMania, and the Rock lost. Double Subverted when Vince McMahon teamed up with Rocky to make it a Triple Threat Matchnote which later became a Fatal Four Way with Mick Foley, backed by Linda McMahon, joining so Rock main evented anyway. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1777688d | featureApplicability |
-0.3 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1777688d | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1777688d | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1a8dc238 | type |
Underestimating Badassery | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1a8dc238 | comment |
Underestimating Badassery: When Beth Phoenix entered the 2010 Rumble, she faced off against the Great Khali. He gestured to the back, clearly saying she shouldn't be in the ring. When she refused to leave, he picked her up and placed her on the apron, telling her to jump down and head to the back so she wouldn't be hurt. Instead, Beth gave him a long kiss...distracting him long enough for her to flip him over the ropes and eliminate him before scrambling back into the ring. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1a8dc238 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1a8dc238 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1a8dc238 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1b65dfad | type |
The Cameo | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1b65dfad | comment |
The Cameo: It's almost tradition now for one of the surprise participants in the Rumble to be a legend from a bygone era. Of course, they never actually win the event, but they almost always get a huge pop and often notch an elimination or two before going over the top rope themselves. The only subversions were the 2016 (unless you were to count Sami Zayn's entry into the match), most likely because it was for the World Title itself rather than the usual shot at it) and the 2024 Royal Rumble (unless Andrade's and Naomi's returns are counted). | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1b65dfad | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1b65dfad | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1b65dfad | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1e1aa82a | type |
Diabolus ex Machina | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1e1aa82a | comment |
Diabolus ex Machina: In 1994, The Undertaker is defeated by Yokozuna in a Casket Match when he is attacked by the entire heel roster. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1e1aa82a | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1e1aa82a | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_1e1aa82a | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_23754e26 | type |
ThereCanOnlyBeOne | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_23754e26 | comment |
There Can Only Be One: Averted in 1994, but played straight since. The most notable instance of this is when John Cena and Batista had been eliminated at the same time at the end of the 2005 Rumble. Since this was during the Brand Extension and Batista was on Raw and Cena was on SmackDown at the time, the referees from both brands were arguing their case — eventually, Vince ordered a redo in order to avoid a repeat of '94, and Batista went on to win. note Notably, this was due to the 2005 version not being planned - it was a complete accident that both men toppled over at the same time, but the referees improvised beautifully until they could get official word on how to resolve it. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_23754e26 | featureApplicability |
-1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_23754e26 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_23754e26 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_26b2747 | type |
Alliterative Title | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_26b2747 | comment |
Alliterative Title: The Royal Rumble. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_26b2747 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_26b2747 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_26b2747 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2c385759 | type |
Massive Multiplayer Crossover | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2c385759 | comment |
Massive Multiplayer Crossover: Particularly during the brand extension years when it was rare to see wrestlers from Raw and SmackDown in the ring together, though it always brought together wrestlers who would otherwise not be likely to fight one another, being higher or lower on the card. With the introduction of WWE NXT, it also had the added benefit of introducing the audience to potential future stars that were currently still in developmental. Of particular note is the 2018 PPV, which has four such stars across both Rumbles.note for the men's, then-NXT Champion Andrade "Cien" Almas and Adam Cole, and for the women's, then NXT Women's Champion Ember Moon and Kairi Sane WWE went even further in 2022, with Mickie James entering as Impact Wrestling's Knockouts Champion (followed two years later by Jordynne Grace with the same title under a different name after Impact revived their old TNA name). | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2c385759 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2c385759 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2c385759 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2e8441c9 | type |
The Bad Guy Wins | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2e8441c9 | comment |
The Bad Guy Wins: Sgt. Slaughter, in a non-Rumble match, winning the WWF Championship from the Ultimate Warrior at the 1991 event, thanks to interference from Randy Savage and the Sensational Sherri. Yokozuna in 1993, Vince McMahon in 1999, Randy Orton in 2009, Alberto Del Rio in 2011, Rhea Ripley in 2023 and Bayley in 2024 are straight examples though in Vince's case it became a Meaningless Villain Victory after he forfeited his right to face the champion and it was given to Stone Cold due to being the runner up and in Bayley's case she would turn face soon after her victory, unlike the others mentioned here. Ric Flair's win in 1992, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin's win in 1997, Batista's win in 2005, Edge's win in 2010, Triple H's win in 2016, Randy Orton's win in 2017, and Charlotte Flair's win in 2020 are possible examples depending on how you viewed their characters at the time. All were officially heels, and while Flair and Triple H stayed heel, the rest (most famously Batista) turned face shortly afterwards. Both Daniel Bryan and Brock Lesnar, who retained their titles vs. AJ Styles and Finn Balor in non-Rumble matches in the 2019 event. Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Rusev in a non-Rumble match (during which Lana, acting as Rusev's valet at the time, suffers the injury that lets Becky Lynch win the women's Rumble as her emergency replacement) and wins the United States Championship for the second time. Bayley, Andrade and "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt, who retained their titles vs. Lacey Evans, Humberto Carrillo and Daniel Bryan in non-Rumble matches in the 2020 event. Likewise, Sheamus defeated Shorty G in a non-title non-Rumble match on the pre-show. Roman Reigns retained his title vs Kevin Owens in non-Rumble match in the 2021 and 2023 events. In 2024 Reigns retained his title in a Fatal 4 Way against Randy Orton, AJ Styles and LA Knight. Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler defeated Charlotte Flair and Asuka and win the Women's Tag Team Championships in a non-Rumble match on the pre-show. Logan Paul defeated Kevin Owens in a non-Rumble match for the United States Championship by disqualification after Owens accidentally wear a brass knuckles and referee saw it. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2e8441c9 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2e8441c9 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_2e8441c9 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_36249acd | type |
Lethal Joke Character | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_36249acd | comment |
Santino Marella in the majority of his appearances. Almost became a Lethal Joke Character in the 2011 Royal Rumble match, when he and Alberto Del Rio ended up being the last two and almost eliminated Del Rio, but Del Rio reversed it and eliminated him to become the winner. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_36249acd | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_36249acd | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_36249acd | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_3d699462 | type |
Curb-Stomp Battle | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_3d699462 | comment |
Curb-Stomp Battle: Jobbers tend to get eliminated very quickly. Most humiliating of all was Santino Marella getting eliminated after only one second. Some years earlier, one of The Bushwhackers managed to last a few seconds longer but didn't have time to throw a punch, getting dumped out before he could stop doing his comical "swinging-arms" march (and not even breaking stride when his feet hit the floor, continuing to vogue-march as if nothing had happened). | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_3d699462 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_3d699462 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_3d699462 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_47e1b13e | type |
Wrestling Monster | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_47e1b13e | comment |
This can also happen whenever a Wrestling Monster (like The Great Khali or the Big Show) enters the Royal Rumble match. They may eliminate a lot of people when they first get in, although as the past has shown, giants have a lesser chance of winning due to being ganged up on by everyone else. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_47e1b13e | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_47e1b13e | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_47e1b13e | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4a8c4e5f | type |
Big "WHAT?!" | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4a8c4e5f | comment |
Big "WHAT?!": Commentator Vince McMahon lets out one in 1995 when it was revealed that only one foot from Shawn Michaels touched the ground. Jerry Lawler got a couple in when the winner of Tough Enough season 1, Maven, eliminated The Undertaker from behind. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4a8c4e5f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4a8c4e5f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4a8c4e5f | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4372e9 | type |
Early-Installment Weirdness | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4372e9 | comment |
Early-Installment Weirdness: The first Royal Rumble match in 1988 only had 20 entrants. The prize of a WrestleMania world title shot that now signifies the event wasn't added until 1993. Hulk Hogan, who won in 1991, did get a world title shot that year but not through the Rumble itself. Also, when Hogan won the Rumble the previous year, he was already the reigning champion. The first Royal Rumble event didn't take place on PPV like all the others, but was a television special on the USA Network. The early Royal Rumble matches also did not play entrance music for its entrants until 1997. This deprives those first number of Rumbles of the famous pops for major names and surprise entrants. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4372e9 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4372e9 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4372e9 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4e43cc | type |
Always Second Best | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4e43cc | comment |
Always Second Best: Both Big Show and Liv Morgan have yet to win the Rumble and came up short twice (in Morgan's case, in a row). Kane has appeared in more Royal Rumbles than any other wrestler in history (regardless of whether or not you count Glenn Jacobs' previous gimmicks towards his total) and the most combined eliminations from his Royal Rumble appearances (again, regardless of whether or not you count Glenn Jacobs' previous gimmicks towards his total), yet he has never won. Subverted by Shawn Michaels, Triple H, John Cena, Roman Reigns, Randy Orton, Charlotte Flair, and Drew McIntyre. HHH already won the Rumble before he became a two time runner-up (both runner-up finishes happened consecutively, and both to the entry immediately after his), while Orton already won twice when he finished 2nd again. The rest have already won a single Rumble during the second time they finished in the spot (in Reigns' case, he would finish second three more times, which gives him a record which will be detailed below). In fact Cena and HHH won the Rumble again after their second stints as second placers. In 2018, Roman Reigns broke Big Show's record of most times finishing as runner-up after coming short for the third time. He would break his own record two years later. Of course, having already won a Rumble match (2015) prior to the second time he finished second downplays this, but a record is a record. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4e43cc | featureApplicability |
-0.3 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4e43cc | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_4f4e43cc | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_51ac2a10 | type |
Double Knockout | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_51ac2a10 | comment |
Double Knockout: First happened in 1994 when Bret Hart and Lex Luger eliminated each other. The event has only been repeated itself since in 2005, when the match was simply restarted when John Cena and Batista eliminated each other. While the former was done on purpose, the latter was an accident (and a legitimate one at that). It is one of the few times that instant replay can be used to decide a match in WWE. There are three contingencies for this event according to an episode of WWE's YouTube series, 5 Things... - declare both of the last two men the winner, as seen in 1994; order Sudden Death Overtime, and have the last two men fight until one is thrown over the top rope again, as in 2005; or restart the match in its entirety, which hasn't happened (yet). Triple H and Shawn Michaels competed in a Last Man Standing match for the former's World Heavyweight title in 2004. The match ended in a draw, as neither men were unable to stand for the ten count. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_51ac2a10 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_51ac2a10 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_51ac2a10 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5300b1de | type |
Invincible Hero | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5300b1de | comment |
Invincible Hero: Not that there's never been a heel winner of course, but it's kind of suspicious how the person who wins the Rumble is always a main eventer in the middle of getting a big push. It's pretty rare for an actual underdog to win, and a lower card wrestler never wins, despite the fact that if the winner wasn't predetermined, you'd think almost everyone would have a pretty equal chance of winning. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5300b1de | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5300b1de | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5300b1de | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_53224e46 | type |
Bookends | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_53224e46 | comment |
Bookends: The 1995, 1999, and 2021 events saw the first two entrants being the last two standing. 2023 would join them with the women's side. (In a variant, the 2006 event saw the first two entrants being among the last three standing, alongside the last entrant.) If you want to take things further, the 1995, 2004, 2021 men's, and 2023 women's events had the very first win the whole thing. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_53224e46 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_53224e46 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_53224e46 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5989e3b6 | type |
Enemy Mine | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5989e3b6 | comment |
Enemy Mine: Feuding wrestlers may put aside their differences momentarily to work together and defeat a bigger and more powerful foe. This went up to eleven with the biggest wrestlers like André the Giant and The Big Show, who often needed all of the other wrestlers in the ring teaming up to throw them over. Nia Jax in the 2023 Women's Rumble took the eleven part literally, as it took a record eleven other wrestlers to eliminate her. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin invoked this reaction once, as he'd attacked everyone in the match in the weeks leading up to the event. Austin's music hit, and everyone stopped so they could get some payback... At which point Austin came from the crowd and started eliminating people. Muhammad Hassan provoked this, too, though not because he was a major threat, or he'd attacked everyone, but simply because everyone was sick of his "Everyone is prejudiced against me, the Muslim" shtick. He slid into the ring, and everyone, including heels Edge and Luther Reigns, promptly beat the crap out of him before dumping him out of the ring. He then took out his frustration by jumping Scotty 2 Hotty and choking him out with a Camel Clutch before Scotty could even get in the ring. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5989e3b6 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5989e3b6 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5989e3b6 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5c15399f | type |
Player Elimination | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5c15399f | comment |
Player Elimination: In-universe. It's a variation on the Battle Royale match from WWE that adds staggered entrances, starting with two wrestlers in the ring, and others join at regular intervals. In this case, while elimination can occur at any time, victory cannot be claimed until all 20-50 included wrestlers have made their entry. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5c15399f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5c15399f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5c15399f | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5d753b19 | type |
The Smurfette Principle | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5d753b19 | comment |
The Smurfette Principle: Before the Women's Rumble was created, a few Rumbles had at least one female participant. She was usually a particularly buff woman like Chyna or Beth Phoenix who could credibly mix it up with the men. The second year of the Women's Rumble had Nia Jax (one of those particularly buff women who could credibly mix it up with the men) replace #30 entrant R-Truth after ambushing him during his entrance. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5d753b19 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5d753b19 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_5d753b19 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_608b26d | type |
Uniqueness Decay | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_608b26d | comment |
Uniqueness Decay: 2018 had three Royal Rumble matches; the first ever Women's Royal Rumble match and the Greatest Royal Rumble match, along with the usual Men's Royal Rumble match. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_608b26d | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_608b26d | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_608b26d | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_617f0563 | type |
Heel–Face Turn | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_617f0563 | comment |
Heel–Face Turn: The 2023 edition has Sami Zayn hitting Roman Reigns from behind with the steel chair, tired of his abuse of him and his brutal beatdown of Kevin Owens, resulting in him being kicked out of the Bloodline. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_617f0563 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_617f0563 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_617f0563 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_6cd95d76 | type |
Best for Last | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_6cd95d76 | comment |
Best for Last: Theoretically, the last entrant has the most advantage in the Rumble match due to still being fresh while the other participants are already worn out. Indeed, the #30 spot produced the most winners with five LISTThe Undertaker in 2007, John Cena in 2008, Triple H in 2016, Brock Lesnar in 2022; Lesnar himself has previously won the Rumble as #29 further proving this, Cody Rhodes in 2023, while similarly late entries #27LISTBig John Studd in 1989, Yokozuna in 1993, Bret Hart in 1994; shared his Rumble victory with Lex Luger who entered fairly late himself at 23, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin in 2001 and #28LISTBatista in 2005 and 2014, Becky Lynch in 2019 (as an emergency substitution for an injured Lana), Ronda Rousey in 2022 are tied with second by producing four winners. Neither #40 in 2011 nor #50 in the Greatest Rumble won those respective matches, although both were won by a number never before drawn in a Rumble (2011 winner Del Rio drew #38, while Greatest Rumble winner Strowman entered at #41). In the second Rumble from 1989, Ted DiBiase tried to take advantage of this by "buying" the No. 30 position; that, or he learned who drew No. 30 and paid off that wrestler to enter with his number. DiBiase saw his scheme blow up in his face when he was beaten down by a newly-turned-face Big John Studd and was the last elimination. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_6cd95d76 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_6cd95d76 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_6cd95d76 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7286e96d | type |
Idiot Ball | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7286e96d | comment |
Idiot Ball: As noted by Cageside Seats in its "Dumbest Ass" awards, there's at least one moment or elimination per Royal Rumble match that can be attributed to someone picking up, if not outright juggling, the Ball. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7286e96d | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7286e96d | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7286e96d | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_72e0023f | type |
Invoked Trope | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_72e0023f | comment |
Rather invoked in the 2019 Men's Rumble Match towards Nia Jax of all people: After ambushing R-Truth at the entrance walkway, then later eliminating Mustafa Ali, she immediately gets a Superkick, a 619, and an RKO (in that order) for her troubles. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_72e0023f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_72e0023f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_72e0023f | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_766ab9d0 | type |
Dark Horse Victory | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_766ab9d0 | comment |
Darkhorse Victory: Steve Austin's 1997 victory, in which he caught everyone by surprise and eliminated Vader, Undertaker and Bret Hart despite having gone over the top rope. The refs didn't see him go over, as they were busy trying to break up a brawl between Terry Funk and Mankind. Gorilla Monsoon rectified the situation by later organizing a four-way match between the four wrestlers for the right to challenge the WWF champion at WrestleMania. Due to Shawn Michaels vacating the title in February '97, the four-way became a title challenge, which Bret Hart won. The Undertaker eventually wound up challenging Sycho Sid at WrestleMania for the title that year and won it. Alberto Del Rio in 2011 was one as well, though he had been bragging for weeks that it was his "destiny" to win the Rumble. Sheamus in 2012 is a particularly glaring one, as he was kind of floating in midcard hell when he won. Even more shocking is that he eliminated Chris Jericho to win, seeing as Jericho was a returning superstar who was undoubtedly there for WrestleMania, and amid rumors that he was here to work a program with CM Punk, who was WWE Champion at the time. When that turned out to be true, and considering the match that occurred between Sheamus and Daniel Bryan at 'Mania was the infamous "18 seconds" squash match, many felt Jericho should have won. Especially in hindsight, with Jericho establishing himself as an all-time legend whereas Sheamus' career would largely flounder in the midcard since then, many feel it was wrong that Jericho never won a Rumble in his life. Randy Orton in 2017, as popular rumors/predictions at the time were the likes of The Undertaker, Samoa Joe, Finn Balor, Shinsuke Nakamura, Chris Jericho, The Miz, Dolph Ziggler, or Bray Wyatt winning it. Shinsuke Nakamura himself was this in 2018, as popular rumors/predictions at the time pointed towards Roman Reigns and, to a lesser degree, John Cena. Ironically, Nakamura had to eliminate both of them at the end to win the match. Though people generally expected him to do well on account of a well-received face turn and a few major victories leading up to the event itself, nobody expected Drew McIntyre to not only win the 2020 Rumble, but to eliminate overwhelming odds-on favorite Roman Reigns and reigning WWE Champion Brock Lesnar (a low blow from Ricochet helped in the latter elimination) and have literally the best match of his entire career in the process. While Edge was included in the 2021 Rumble as the first entrant, nobody actually expected him to keep fighting for just under an hour and actually win the whole thing. Most people expected Daniel Bryan or Seth Rollins to score the last elimination, not the returning veteran who has been out of action for over eight months. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_766ab9d0 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_766ab9d0 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_766ab9d0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7cc8d769 | type |
Sore Loser | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7cc8d769 | comment |
Sore Loser: Some wrestlers have responded to getting eliminated very badly: In the second ever Rumble in 1989, when Jake Roberts entered he immediately charged André the Giant (they were feuding at the time) and André proceeded to pummel the life out of Jake until a barely-conscious Jake was tossed. A few minutes later Jake ran back with Damien in tow, causing André to eliminate himself and get the hell away from Damien. One of the earliest examples (and a rare non-heel one) of this is Hulk Hogan of all people; both times he was eliminated in a Royal Rumble match, he immediately screwed the person who eliminated him out of winning too. note In 1989, Hogan was eliminated by the Twin Towers (Big Boss Man and The One Man Gang), and he managed to get back to the ring and pull out Boss Man. Then in 1992, when Sid Justice tossed Hogan, Hogan grabbed Sid's arm from the outside, allowing Ric Flair (who had entered at number 3) to toss Sid and win the Rumble. The Undertaker was in an extremely foul mood after Maven took him out from behind in 2002. Cue No-Holds-Barred Beatdown to the point that Maven would be unable to continue, despite not having gone over the top rope. Kurt Angle was eliminated by Shawn Michaels in 2005. Angle came back in later to eliminate Michaels and continued to attack him afterwards. Booker T was eliminated by Kane in 2007, and came back in later and eliminated Kane. Wade Barrett was also not too happy he got eliminated by NXT newcomer Bo Dallas, considering Wade's the first winner of NXT. Bo might have lasted a bit longer if Wade hadn't rushed back to eliminate him. Shawn Michaels became almost catatonic on the outside of the ring after Batista eliminated him in 2010. Then, after a Heroic BSoD, he started manhandling and superkicking referees out of frustration despite being a face (Michaels had become obsessed with redeeming his WrestleMania XXV loss to The Undertaker, and winning the Royal Rumble match was his only guaranteed chance as Taker was champion at the time). He would eventually get that rematch with 'Taker... after costing him the title in the Elimination Chamber match at its own titular PPV inbetween the Rumble and Mania. Baron Corbin flipped after he was eliminated during the beginning of the 2018 Men's Rumble, and beat the hell out of the only remaining entrants at the time, Finn Bálor and Rusev, then knocking down incoming entrant Heath Slater as he was being forcibly escorted to the back by officials. In the 2018 Women's Royal Rumble, Vickie Guerrero attacked incoming entrant Carmella with the latter's Money in the Bank briefcase after she was eliminated from the Women's Rumble by every other entrant in the ring at the time (including former accomplice Michelle McCool). In the 2019 Women's Royal Rumble, Mandy Rose, after being eliminated by Naomi, attacked her and eliminated her. In the 2019 Men's Royal Rumble, Bobby Lashley, after been eliminated by Seth Rollins, attacked him with help of his manager Lio Rush and threw him to the announce table. In the 2020 Women's Royal Rumble, Lana, after being eliminated by Liv Morgan, attacked her and eliminated her. In the 2022 Women's Royal Rumble, Sonya Deville, after being eliminated by Naomi, interfered and eliminated her. In the 2024 Men's Royal Rumble, Karrion Kross, after being eliminated by Bobby Lashley, attacked Lashley and later eliminated him from the Rumble match. Their subsequent brawl (involving the Authors of Pain on Kross' side and the Street Profits on Lashley's) would reach the entrance just as Ludwig Kaiser, the next entrant, came out. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7cc8d769 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7cc8d769 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7cc8d769 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7da34d45 | type |
Ring Oldies | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7da34d45 | comment |
Ring Oldies: It's almost tradition now for one of the surprise participants in the Rumble to be a legend from a bygone era. Of course, they never actually win, but they almost always get a huge pop and often notch an elimination or two before going over the top rope themselves... except until 2021, where Edge managed to win the match from the No.1 position, no less! | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7da34d45 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7da34d45 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_7da34d45 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_81bdc398 | type |
He's Back! | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_81bdc398 | comment |
He's Back!: The Rumble match has been used as a re-launching pad for various wrestlers for a while now. The 2002 event had a number of returns advertised beforehand, but they have occasionally thrown in some surprises since. Special mention must go to John Cena, whose entry as #30 in the 2008 Royal Rumble match was genuinely surprising as he was injured and was supposed to be out until after WrestleMania, and Edge, who was injured during the summer of 2009 and was supposed to be out for up to a year, only to return as #29 in the 2010 Royal Rumble match. Both would go on to win the match. Edge managed to do this again in 2020 entering #21, coming back from retirement. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_81bdc398 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_81bdc398 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_81bdc398 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_823c6e3e | type |
Large Ham | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_823c6e3e | comment |
Large Ham: Long-time announcer Howard Finkel counts in general anyway, but some of his Royal Rumble match introductions cranked the hamminess up to eleven, and his year-after-year summaries of the rules have sometimes seeped into the territory of Overly Long Gag. If a wrestler (usually a heel) manages to eliminate everyone else in the ring and there's still about a minute left until the next entrant is scheduled to appear, he will often grab a mike (the match is otherwise almost totally nonverbal) and talk to the audience, either bragging about how well he is doing or spewing some political or ideological screed. CM Punk in 2010 and Bray Wyatt in 2015 dragged this out for a ridiculously long period of time, stopping only to eliminate several competitors in succession as they entered the ring before going right back to the mike, with Wyatt even leading the crowd in an impromptu performance of "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands." Subverted - hilariously - by Stone Cold Steve Austin in 2002 when he simply waited quietly for each new Superstar to appear, effortlessly threw each out, and then waited some more, occasionally looking bored and miming glancing at a wristwatch. He had attempted something similar in 1997, except that then his attempt at being nonchalant was ruined when Bret Hart entered. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_823c6e3e | featureApplicability |
-0.3 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_823c6e3e | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_823c6e3e | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_835cd59b | type |
No Theme Tune | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_835cd59b | comment |
No Theme Tune: Prior to the 1996 Royal Rumble, only the two first entrants had entrance music as they walked to the ring. Even eventual winners like Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair and Yokozuna lacked their entrance music, which is especially jarring for those used to the loud pops that these main-eventers' theme songs bring. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_835cd59b | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_835cd59b | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_835cd59b | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_863fa679 | type |
What Happened to the Mouse? | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_863fa679 | comment |
What Happened to the Mouse?: The championship belt which was awarded to the winner of the first Greatest Royal Rumble (Braun Strowman), disappeared afterwards and is never mentioned again. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_863fa679 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_863fa679 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_863fa679 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_867c3744 | type |
New Rules as the Plot Demands | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_867c3744 | comment |
New Rules as the Plot Demands: In early years, whether or not an elimination counted if the person doing the elimination has already gone over the top rope himself depended on how convenient it was that year, until it was set that yes, it counts. This was most notable when Randy Savage accidentally eliminated himself in the 1992 Royal Rumble match and then re-entered the ring, at which point the announcers had to ad-lib a reason for him still being there. In 2008, Finlay was eliminated by disqualification for entering the match before his number was called to help Hornswoggle. In 2023, Rey Mysterio was unable to enter the match before the next number was called out (due to being beaten up by his son Dominick who ironically came out next), so he was disqualified. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_867c3744 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_867c3744 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_867c3744 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_87d8ecf5 | type |
Literal Cliffhanger | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_87d8ecf5 | comment |
Literal Cliffhanger: Expect to see a lot of wrestlers hanging to the ropes for dear life. Especially if they're the more athletic ones. The particularly tall guys (usually also on the heavier side) can't do this as well since the extra height works against them. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_87d8ecf5 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_87d8ecf5 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_87d8ecf5 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_884e513b | type |
Medium Awareness | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_884e513b | comment |
Medium Awareness: In 2002, the match actually stopped dead for several minutes (the ring was temporarily empty) so that the cameras could show the Undertaker chasing Maven all the way up to the convention center's hallway ringing the arena and smashing him into a popcorn vendor's stall. None of the other participants were at all confused by this (especially those who were still competing when the chase started), and conveniently waited for the camera crew to return to the ring before entering the arena. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_884e513b | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_884e513b | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_884e513b | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_8f1ec2c5 | type |
Joke Character | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_8f1ec2c5 | comment |
Joke Character: One of the popular ways of structuring the Rumble is to have one or two of these to show up partway through: Bob Backlund in 2000. Drew Carey and Honky Tonk Man in 2001. Ernest Miller in 2004. Santino Marella in the majority of his appearances. Almost became a Lethal Joke Character in the 2011 Royal Rumble match, when he and Alberto Del Rio ended up being the last two and almost eliminated Del Rio, but Del Rio reversed it and eliminated him to become the winner. Tough Enough rookie Maven ended up becoming a Lethal Joke Character in 2002 by eliminating The Undertaker. He would pay for it immediately afterward. Curt Hawkins, Titus O'Neil and No Way Jose in 2019. The Hurricane in 2021. R-Truth in 2024. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_8f1ec2c5 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_8f1ec2c5 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_8f1ec2c5 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_916c72b3 | type |
Rule of Symbolism | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_916c72b3 | comment |
Rule of Symbolism: The final six of the 2018 Men's Rumble had Roman Reigns, Finn Bálor, and Shinsuke Nakamura on one side of the ring staring down John Cena, Randy Orton, and Rey Mysterio in a new vs. old moment. Of course, Nakamura started wrestling around the same time as Cena and Orton, with only Mysterio having more experience, but it looked cool. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_916c72b3 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_916c72b3 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_916c72b3 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_9dab0a6e | type |
Continuity Nod | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_9dab0a6e | comment |
Continuity Nod: The Three Month Rule often gets put on the backburner during the Rumble match; because of the sheer number of superstars involved (and the fact that the bookers probably do this on purpose), two wrestlers who had feuded some months back are bound to run into each other at some point during the Rumble. This can often result in some Oh, Crap! moments for heels, particularly when the returning wrestler in question hasn't been seen on TV for a while. The first ever women's Royal Rumble in 2018 had a proportionally higher amount of nostalgia entrants than usual to help reinvigorate the crowd, who had been worn out by the men's Royal Rumble an hour prior and had been dead for the following two matches, and because of the much smaller women’s roster size. As a result, there were a number of nods to the previous fifteen years of women's wrestling in WWE, such as a reunion between the Divas of Doom (Beth Phoenix and Natalya), a face-off between old rivals Mickie James and Trish Stratus, and even a reference to the onscreen alliance/friendship between Michelle McCool and Vickie Guerrero. In the 2023 event, Sami Zayn made a Heel–Face Turn when he hits Roman Reigns with a steel chair from behind, reminiscent of Seth Rollins hitting Reigns from behind with a steel chair to solidify his 2014 betrayal of The Shield. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_9dab0a6e | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_9dab0a6e | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_9dab0a6e | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a188ac4b | type |
Overly Long Gag | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a188ac4b | comment |
Long-time announcer Howard Finkel counts in general anyway, but some of his Royal Rumble match introductions cranked the hamminess up to eleven, and his year-after-year summaries of the rules have sometimes seeped into the territory of Overly Long Gag. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a188ac4b | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a188ac4b | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a188ac4b | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a18df6c3 | type |
Three Month Rule | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a18df6c3 | comment |
The Three Month Rule often gets put on the backburner during the Rumble match; because of the sheer number of superstars involved (and the fact that the bookers probably do this on purpose), two wrestlers who had feuded some months back are bound to run into each other at some point during the Rumble. This can often result in some Oh, Crap! moments for heels, particularly when the returning wrestler in question hasn't been seen on TV for a while. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a18df6c3 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a18df6c3 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a18df6c3 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a32334b4 | type |
Canon Discontinuity | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a32334b4 | comment |
Canon Discontinuity: The 2004 Royal Rumble match is barely alluded to. This is due to the Unpersoning of the victor in regards to his controversial death. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a32334b4 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a32334b4 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a32334b4 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a458ae3d | type |
The Notable Numeral | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a458ae3d | comment |
The Notable Numeral: The numbers with the most Rumble victories are #1, #27, #28, and #30; 4 wrestlers have won as entrants #1 and #27 and 5 #30note For #1 there were Shawn Michaels (1995), Chris Benoit (2004, although he's not mentioned often for obvious reasons), Edge(2021) and Rhea Ripley (2023); for #27 those were Big John Studd (1989), Yokozuna (1993), Bret Hart (1994 - shared his Rumble victory with Lex Luger, who entered at 23) and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin (2001); For #30 those were The Undertaker (2007), John Cena (2008), Triple H (2016), Brock Lesnar (2022), and Cody Rhodes (2023), while the first two instances where #28 won was done by the same personnote Batista in 2005 and 2014, the other two are Becky Lynch in 2019 (as an emergency substitution for an injured Lana) and Ronda Rousey in 2022. This tends to get brought up by commentators whenever the #27 entrant arrives. Played for Laughs in the 2017 Royal Rumble match: Brock Lesnar entered at #26 and laid waste of everyone in the ring, and then waited for the #27, who the commentators wondering who got both the notable number and now the task of having to deal with Lesnar. It turned out to be... Enzo Amore, who cemented his status as the Joke Character of the moment when Lesnar quickly eliminated him.note everyone knew Goldberg and The Undertaker were still due to enter the Rumble Typically, before the match, they go through all the statistics that have accumulated over the history of the Royal Rumble. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a458ae3d | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a458ae3d | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a458ae3d | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a505fdd7 | type |
Jobber | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a505fdd7 | comment |
Jobber: A few of them show up to the Royal Rumbles and are quickly eliminated. Usually in a matter of seconds. Gillberg in the 1999 Rumble didn't even seem to realize what was going on and immediately posed on top of the ropes upon his entrance, which leads to him being quickly eliminated by Edge. Kaientai weren't even in the 2000 Rumble, and their repeated interference always resulted in them being swiftly ejected by the much more taller and musclebound wrestlers. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a505fdd7 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a505fdd7 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_a505fdd7 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ab473580 | type |
Wrestling Family | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ab473580 | comment |
So far, there are nine winners belonging to the same Wrestling Family. The Samoan Dynasty produced the most with three; Yokozuna in 1993, The Rock in 2000, and Roman Reigns in 2015. The McMahons produced two; Vince in 1999 and Triple H in 2002 and 2016, but latter wasn't an official family member yet during the first time he wonnote HHH married Stephanie McMahon in September 2003. The Flairs produced two, with Ric winning in 1992 and his daughter Charlotte winning in 2020. 2019 winners Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch are a strange case; Like HHH above, they weren't officially a family at the time (they would marry on June 2021) but were already dating at this point. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ab473580 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ab473580 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ab473580 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abc60c5d | type |
Harmful to Minors | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abc60c5d | comment |
Harmful to Minors: Mick Foley's children were present during his infamous I-Quit match against The Rock in the 1999 event. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abc60c5d | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abc60c5d | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abc60c5d | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abd29ad8 | type |
No-Sell | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abd29ad8 | comment |
No-Sell: When The Undertaker was attacked by the heels in 1994, he did not budge when Jeff Jarrett hit him with a fist drop. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abd29ad8 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abd29ad8 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_abd29ad8 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ad1db87c | type |
Oh, Crap! | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ad1db87c | comment |
Oh, Crap!: Whenever a main eventer enters. The effect is often sweetened by delaying the wrestler's entrance music for a few moments after the countdown. André the Giant, when – minutes after eliminating Jake Roberts (by completely squashing him) – he saw the first sign of Damien the snake and eliminated himself. Andre didn't quit running until he was almost all the way to the back. note (At the time, Andre and Roberts were in a storyline where Roberts caused Andre to suffer a massive heart attack after having Damien thrown on top of him after a match.) This can also happen whenever a Wrestling Monster (like The Great Khali or the Big Show) enters the Royal Rumble match. They may eliminate a lot of people when they first get in, although as the past has shown, giants have a lesser chance of winning due to being ganged up on by everyone else. In the 2001 Royal Rumble match, there's two Oh Crap! moments during that year. First, Drew Carey realizing he has to face Kane after the Hardy Boyz were eliminated. The second is Scotty 2 Hotty realizing that the only other people in the ring were Kane and The Undertaker, who were working in tandem and just finished eliminating everyone in the ring (except The Rock who was still knocked out outside the ring, thanks to the Big Show). Scotty, who usually danced his way to the ring, somberly walked there instead with a look on his face that clearly said "This Is Gonna Suck". The Great Khali's first Royal Rumble match appearance in 2007, where most of the superstars stop fighting to see him. Not even a huge number of superstars were able to take him down. Ironically, Khali would end up having a moment of his own during the same match when the #30 entrant was revealed to be The Undertaker, with whom he had feuded months before, and would go on to eventually eliminate Khali. Especially noticeable is the 2009 Royal Rumble match, where when the Undertaker entered, every single superstar in the ring immediately stopped fighting and moved towards one side of the ring to await for his arrival. Roman Reigns had two moments in the 2016 Rumble. After entering at #1 and eliminating #2, Rusev, Reigns looks confident as he waits for #3 to come out, only for it to be AJ Styles, in his WWE debut. He then starts pacing the ring, a look that says "Oh, what have I gotten myself into?" He even shakes his head in disbelief. Then again once #30 comes out, and it's Triple H, for the first time since Reigns attacked him at TLC. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ad1db87c | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ad1db87c | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ad1db87c | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b01abe4f | type |
Catchphrase | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b01abe4f | comment |
Catchphrase: The Rumble has often been described as "every man for himself", and more than lives up to it. Superstars are capable of being Enemy Mine allies to eliminate tougher opponents even if they hate each other, while siblings and close friends have betrayed each other for a chance to win. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b01abe4f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b01abe4f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b01abe4f | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b1dde8fd | type |
Loophole Abuse | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b1dde8fd | comment |
Loophole Abuse: Because you're only eliminated if you go over the top rope, some of the more Genre Savvy wrestlers will use this clause to stay out of the ring (or, like Jerry Lawler, hide under it) until later in the match if knocked out through the middle or bottom rope, only to jump back in when everyone else involved is fatigued - or as seen in 2001, in the the midst of the Hardcore title's 24/7 era, come back armed with weapons. Subverted in 2000 when, after weeks of arguing his case, Big Show proved that the Rock, the official victor of the match, did not deserve the win, as at the end he was thrown over the top rope and - though he held on and came back in to win - his feet still touched the mat and he would have been eliminated if a ref saw it, the loophole being that such decisions can't be reversed so long after a bout. This resulted in a match at No Way Out over who got to challenge Triple H at WrestleMania, and the Rock lost. Double Subverted when Vince McMahon teamed up with Rocky to make it a Triple Threat Matchnote which later became a Fatal Four Way with Mick Foley, backed by Linda McMahon, joining so Rock main evented anyway. Since the rules say you're only eliminated if you go over the top rope AND both feet touch the floor, you can land on one foot, hop to the stairs, and get back into the ring and not be considered eliminated. Kofi Kingston practically becomes Houdini when in the Royal Rumble match. In 2012, he did a handstand on the outside to get into the ring. In 2013, he piggy-backed Brodus Clay to the announce tables, then bunny-hopped on JBL's chair to get to the apron. And in 2014, he topped them all by riding Rusev to the guardrail, and jumping from the guardrail to the ring apron. In 2015, he was saved by Adam Rose's rosebud crew. In 2016, he rode on Big E's shoulders to stay in. During the first Women's Royal Rumble in 2018, Naomi combined three of Kofi's saves in one. She landed on the guardrail, walked her way on the guardrail towards guest ring announcer Maria Menounos, convinced her to give up her chair, put her feet on said chair, and walked with her hands to the ring steps with her feet still not touching the floor thanks to still being on the chair. Corey Graves lampshaded the similarities to Kofi, wondering if Naomi had been watching one of Kofi's Rumble highlight reels. Naomi has made a Running Gag of this in seeming to be eliminated, only to somehow keep her feet from hitting the floor and then creatively making her way back into the ring. Sadly, she's usually eliminated for real soon after. Also, the rules only say you're eliminated if you go over the top rope and both feet touch the floor, no matter how it happens. This has led to eliminated wrestlers (and on rare occasions, wrestlers simply holding a grudge) entering the ring and eliminating a wrestler still participating in the Rumble. It's also possible for wrestlers to eliminate themselves by going over the top rope and dropping to the floor on their own. During the early days of the Brand Extension, it was believed that the winner of the Royal Rumble match simply received a shot at their brand's championship. In 2004, Chris Benoit pointed out that it was only stated that the winner received a main event title opportunity at WrestleMania and nothing about being restricted to their current brand's title, and took the opportunity to jump ship from SmackDown to Raw and compete for the World Heavyweight title instead of the WWE title, partly because then-GM Paul Heyman had been making his life hell at the time. All future Royal Rumble match winners were granted the opportunity to choose which championship they wanted to compete for, until the 2014 event, at which point WWE had unified the WWE and World Heavyweight titles, eliminating the need for the choice. This particular loophole led to one of the biggest face turns in recent WWE history in 2005, when Batista was about to sign the contract to go after the WWE Championship on SmackDown (with Evolution stablemate Triple H having the World Heavyweight Championship on Raw), giving a big thumbs up to Trips and Flair...then turning it into a thumbs down (in a mirror of what Trips did to Randy Orton when he won the title), leaving Evolution, and signing the contract for Trips' championship instead. That said, Benoit currently holds the distinction of being the only winner so far to have exploited this, as almost all victors since have challenged for their brand's main belt. This stipulation was formally brought back in 2018 (the second year of the second brand extension) where it was stated that the winners (Asuka and Shinsuke Nakamura) could go after any champion of their choice, regardless of show. Although, because this stipulation doesn't specify that you have to go to compete for a world championship (for men's Rumble winner) or a Women's championship (for women's Rumble winner) as the reward for winning the Royal Rumble, this can potentially lead to the Rumble winner (male or female) to declare their intentions to compete for any other championship that WWE currently have.note Thus technically, a female wrestler can potentially compete for a men's title, and vice versa. Thankfully, no one has fully invoked this loophole just yet. Early in the Rumble's history, Ted DiBiase tried to sidestep a rule that stated that the number they drew is the number they must enter at, and no switching was allowed. In a pretaped segment featuring the wrestlers drawing their numbers, DiBiase was shown being very unhappy with his draw but, upon learning Slick was very happy with the numbers his men drew, he took him aside and convinced him to trade numbers for a cash payoff. As such, DiBiase entered at No. 30. Although this did not work out for "The Million Dollar Man" in the end (DiBiase was left alone with Big John Studd and ended up a squash victim), future Rumbles were supposedly set up to prevent a situation such as what DiBiase attempted to pull off. You can also be eliminated by a wrestler not participating in the Rumble match, as in the 2021 Men's Rumble, when AJ Styles brought his bodyguard Omos to the ringside, where he eliminated Big E and Rey Mysterio, in addition to saving Styles from being eliminated several times. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b1dde8fd | featureApplicability |
-0.3 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b1dde8fd | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b1dde8fd | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b58b4e3c | type |
Too Dumb to Live | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b58b4e3c | comment |
Too Dumb to Live: In 1993, Randy Savage seemed to forget the rules to the Royal Rumble match, attempting to pin Yokozuna near the ropes, which of course led to the big man simply tossing him right over to win the match. In 2012, Jack Swagger got a K.O. Punch from the Big Show when he wasn't too happy that Big Show eliminated him outside the ring. In 2016, R-Truth got his Gimmick Matches mixed up, thinking he was in a Ladder Match. He was greeted with bewildered looks, and Kane tossed him right out. This happened twice in 2024: at first he entered the Women's Rumble (he thought his number was called up just as Valhalla was heading into the ring), only to be eliminated by Nia Jax a few seconds later (Valhalla would be quickly eliminated herself, setting the match's shortest time of competing at five seconds). He later went to participate in the Men's Rumble, where he put the eliminated JD McDonagh back into the match only for him to be tossed out against, and then Truth, assuming it was a tag team match, waited for Dominik Mysterio to tag him in. Once he got tagged, Truth quickly unleashed a barrage of moves at Gunther, only to be quickly smashed by the Ring General. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b58b4e3c | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b58b4e3c | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b58b4e3c | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b8e3f20a | type |
Demoted to Extra | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b8e3f20a | comment |
Demoted to Extra: Starting 1993, and with the sole exception of 1997,note Since then WWE Champion Shawn Michaels vacated the title due to injury, the following PPV featured a Fatal Four Way which included the winner Stone Cold. the Rumble winner has been main eventing WrestleMania to fight the WWE Champion. Things started to change from 2006-2012, as all Main Event privileges were given to someone else (mostly to John Cena) except 2008note ironically, as Cena himself won that year's Rumble but didn't headline WM and 2009.note Rumble winner Randy Orton vs. WWE Champion Triple H The trend started repeating itself since 2017, where Roman Reigns would headline WrestleMania over the Royal Rumble winners. But then came 2019, with women's Royal Rumble winner Becky Lynch main-eventing WM 35 alongside Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b8e3f20a | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b8e3f20a | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_b8e3f20a | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c03916ef | type |
X-Pac Heat | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c03916ef | comment |
invoked It's that Rumble. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c03916ef | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c03916ef | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c03916ef | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c308e6bb | type |
Subverted Trope | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c308e6bb | comment |
Subverted - hilariously - by Stone Cold Steve Austin in 2002 when he simply waited quietly for each new Superstar to appear, effortlessly threw each out, and then waited some more, occasionally looking bored and miming glancing at a wristwatch. He had attempted something similar in 1997, except that then his attempt at being nonchalant was ruined when Bret Hart entered. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c308e6bb | featureApplicability |
-0.3 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c308e6bb | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_c308e6bb | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ca85e684 | type |
Power Trio | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ca85e684 | comment |
Speaking of Orton, he was part of a Power Trio stable in the two events that he won (Legacy in 2009, The Wyatt Family in 2017). Both times the final few came down to Orton, at least one trio mate, and his runner-up. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ca85e684 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ca85e684 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_ca85e684 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_cf92fea8 | type |
Cassandra Truth | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_cf92fea8 | comment |
Alberto Del Rio in 2011 was one as well, though he had been bragging for weeks that it was his "destiny" to win the Rumble. | |
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Unexpected Character | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_cfd5cbd3 | comment |
Unexpected Character: Invoked. The event is increasingly sold on the unpredictability of the Rumble's match format leading itself to unexpected entrants – and consequently some of the biggest pops of the entire wrestling year: Mick Foley in 2004 (at number 21 in place of a knocked-out Test). Subverted by The Undertaker, who made his presence felt but did not actually appear. The early and ultimately victorious returns from injury of both of John Cena (2008, from a torn pectoral muscle, at #30) and Edge (2010, from an achilles injury, at #29) often top lists of surprise entrants. Especially Cena, who nobody thought would be back until after WrestleMania. 2009 had the one-night return of Rob Van Dam. 2011 had Booker T and Diesel. 2012 had Road Dogg and Kharma. The latter entered immediately after Michael Cole (the last of the three commentators to enter), who tried to bail... leaving his co-commentators Jerry Lawler and Booker T (both had been eliminated by Cole's entry) wide open to complete the elimination of Cole. Chris Jericho, NXT Wrestler Bo Dallas and The Godfather in 2013. An unexpected non-character in the 2014 Rumble. Fans had been waiting the entire match for Daniel Bryan to appear, and after all 30 entrants appeared with no Bryan the fans were pissed, with the fans taking their anger out on poor #30 entrant Rey Mysterio and eventual winner Batista. Kevin Nash enter the Royal Rumble at #14. 2015 had Bubba Ray Dudley and Boogeyman. Bubba Ray, entering at number 3, would subject #1 entry The Miz to two Dudley Boyz signature moves (with #2 entrant R-Truth playing the role of Bubba Ray's usual partner D-Von). The 2016 Rumble had the debut of AJ Styles. You could tell that he was the last person Roman Reigns expected to see coming down the ramp. Also from the 2016 Rumble, though to a lesser extent, was the recently returned-from-injury Sami Zayn. Kevin Owens, whose night was already going less-than-ideally (having previously lost a Last Man Standing match earlier that night to eventual runner-up Dean Ambrose), had a minor Villainous Breakdown at that one, which reached its apex when Zayn eliminated him from the match. Roman Reigns as the last entrant in 2017 in a meta-example, as most fans were expecting either the debut of either Samoa Joe or Shinsuke Nakamura, or the return of either Finn Balor or Kurt Angle in the famous #30 spot; when Roman's music hit, the fans did not take it well. In 2018, the men's Rumble had Rey Mysterio, who had shown some vague interest in eventually returning to WWE but not anytime soon, and The Hurricane, a massive fan favorite from the days of old. To a lesser extent were the entries of NXT Champion Andrade "Cien" Almas and Adam Cole, both of whom had wrestled in absolutely grueling matches at NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia the previous night. The first women's Rumble in 2018 had a fair few, which was only compounded by the novelty of the event. Among them include Torrie Wilson, Molly Holly, NXT Women's Champion Ember Moon, Kairi Sane, Lita, Beth Phoenix and Trish Stratus. Lita was an early entry while Trish entered at 30. In the 2019 women's Rumble they were mostly from NXT: Xia Li, Candice LeRae, Kacy Catanzaro, Io Shirai and Rhea Ripley. The 2019 men's Rumble had Jeff Jarrett and NXT wrestlers Johnny Gargano, Pete Dunne and Aleister Black. Of course, these were all totally overshadowed by Nia Jax ambushing #30 R-Truth and taking his spot in the men's Rumble. The IWC typically accepted Edge's denials of a return in late 2019-early 2020 at face value, given his abrupt retirement in 2011 because of fears a single bump gone wrong could easily paralyse him. This only made his return at the 2020 Rumble (entering at number 21) even more shocking (and sweeter), with 40,000 fans in attendance blowing the proverbial roof off. NXT cameos included Keith Lee and Matt Riddle, and the event also saw the return of Montel Vontavious Porter. In the 2020 Women's Rumble, mostly from NXT: Bianca Belair, Mercedes Martinez,note Her case was particularly surprising as her signing with the company was announced only weeks before the Rumble. Mia Yim, Dakota Kai, Chelsea Green, Toni Storm, Shotzi Blackheart and Tegan Nox, alongside legends Mighty Molly and Beth Phoenix. Perhaps the most surprising entrant in that match, however, was the return of Santino Marella in his long-forgotten "Santina" gimmick, complete with the theme of Billy & Chuck and Rico from the gimmick's first run. In the 2021 Men's Rumble had Carlito, Kane, Hurricane Helms, Christian (entering at number 24 and reuniting with long-time tag partner and real-life BFF Edge, who entered at number 1), Seth Rollins and NXT wrestler Damian Priest. In the 2021 Women's Rumble had Jillian Hall, Victoria, Alicia Fox, Torrie Wilson and Mickie James. In the 2022 Women's Rumble had Melina, Cameron, Ivory (in her Right to Censor gimmick nonetheless!), Summer Rae, Sarah Logan and Ronda Rousey. Rousey, entering at 28, went on to win the match. In the 2022 Men's Rumble had non-combatant and rapper Bad Bunny while Shane McMahon made his brief in-ring return at the 28th spot (the spot immediately after Bunny, who entered at 27). The 2023 Women's Rumble had Michelle McCool, Chelsea Green and Nia Jax, as well as the NXT Women's Champion Roxanne Perez, Zoey Stark and Indi Hartwell from NXT. Michelle entered from the crowd at 25, Jax entered through a slight timing botch at 30, and Green lasted only four seconds. The only real surprise entrant in the 2023 Men's Royal Rumble was Booker T. The 2024 Women's Rumble had Naomi, Jordynne Grace, Jade Cargill and NXT's Tiffany Stratton (entries 2, 5, 28, and 29 respectively). Jade lasted until the final three (with a single-handed elimination of Jax to her credit) while Naomi (who had previously clashed with Grace while competing under her real name Trinity with TNA) only missed out on the ironwoman title by less than a minute to the victorious number 3 entrant Bayley (both lasting longer than the previous winner Rhea Ripley did). The 2024 Men's Rumble saw the return of Andrade, Bron Breakker, and Omos. Pat McAfee had the double-whammy of making an unannounced appearance as co-commentator along with Michael Cole and Corey Graves, as well as also being announced as the #22 entrant (who swiftly eliminated himself after realizing he'd be getting in a ring with Bron and Omos). | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_cfd5cbd3 | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d397657d | type |
Hoist by His Own Petard | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d397657d | comment |
Hoist by His Own Petard: Zig-zagged at the 1994 Rumble; Undertaker was set to challenge Yokozuna for the WWF Championship at the event, but Jim Cornette, serving as Yokozuna's "American Spokesperson," weaved a little "Smokey Mountain Magic" and was able to add the stipulation in the match contract that it would be the only opportunity Taker would have to challenge Yokozuna as long as he had the championship (a trick Cornette had pulled on Lex Luger at the previous year's SummerSlam). Paul Bearer, however, took a page out of Cornette's own playbook and weaved a little black magic of his own, and made the match a Casket Match - to win, you had to stuff your opponent in a casket at ringside and shut the lid. Since it was touted as Taker's specialty, and since Yokozuna seemed to have a severe phobia of caskets, it looked like Taker would be win the title - he was even dominating the match. But, Yokozuna's manager Mr. Fuji would have the last laugh; taking full advantage of the no disqualification aspect of the match, Fuji arranged for more than half a dozen heels to come down and gang up on Taker, who eventually ended up getting stuffed in the "double wide, double deep" casket that he had made special for the 500 pound-plus champ. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d397657d | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d609b01a | type |
Carnival of Killers | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d609b01a | comment |
Carnival of Killers: In late 2005, after pillorying and firing Monday Night Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff on live television (and having him thrown into a garbage truck as a final insult) WWE Chairman Vince McMahon assumed full control of Raw (a position he would not relinquish until appointing William Regal the new general manager in 2007) and began to take on some of the characteristics of a Mafia crime kingpin. One of the first things he did was launch a vendetta against Shawn Michaels for refusing to serve as his lackey (just as Michaels had done in Real Life at the 1997 Survivor Series), going so far as to pay off a number of heels to eliminate Michaels from the 2006 Rumble match. But Michaels thwarted all of these efforts by eliminating the eliminators, so Vince was forced to do it himself, having his son Shane launch a sneak attack while Vince provided a distraction at ringside. (This angle then continued for most of the year as Michaels raised the stakes by reforming D-Generation X with Triple H, with the McMahons recruiting even more henchmen, including heels from SmackDown and WWE's ECW.) | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d609b01a | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d687ba2a | type |
Guest Fighter | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d687ba2a | comment |
Guest Fighter: As part of a deal WWE made with a Mexican wresting association called Lucha Libre AAA World Wide, four luchadors under their employment entered the 1997 Royal Rumble. 2022 featured guests in both Rumbles: the Womens' featured Impact Knockouts Champion Mickie James, while the Men's featured Johnny Knoxville and Bad Bunny. The 2024 Women's Rumble featured TNA Knockouts World Champion, Jordynne Grace. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d687ba2a | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d9cf40fa | type |
Screw This, I'm Outta Here | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d9cf40fa | comment |
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Drew Carey entered the Rumble in 2001, finding himself alone in the ring after Matt and Jeff Hardy eliminate each other. He celebrates... until Kane is the next entrant. After fruitlessly trying to beg the referees for help, offering the Big Red Monster a handshake and even attempting to bribe him, Kane has him in position for a chokeslam, and only the arrival of Raven, who hits Kane in the back with a pool cue, saves him from certain doom. Carey decides to capitalize while Raven distracts Kane... to climb over the ropes and eliminate himself. The 2020 Women's Royal Rumble saw the return of Santino Marella — or rather, his sister/female alter ego, Santina, who promptly gets caught between Natalya and Beth Phoenix, and at first considers breaking out the Cobra... before just tossing "herself" over the top rope and out of the match. In 2024, Pat McAfee, who was one of the commentators, was surprised to hear his number being called out and entered the ring in a dress shirt and shoes, only to see extremely angry Bron Breakker and Omos in the center. Wisely, he decides to go over the top rope, then to get back into the ring and square up... only to change his mind once more and actually eliminate himself. Omos in particular (standing 7-plus feet tall and weighing 400-plus pounds) would've been very bad news for the former NFL punter had they actually clashed. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_d9cf40fa | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_da2b1604 | type |
Foe-Tossing Charge | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_da2b1604 | comment |
In every Rumble match from 1998 to 2002, the #30 entrant note Vader in 1998, Chyna in 1999, X-Pac in 2000, Rikishi in 2001 and Booker T in 2002 would chuck out precisely one person before being eliminated themselves shortly thereafter. This gag ended in the 2003 Rumble when the Undertaker drew #30 and went on a Foe-Tossing Charge. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_da2b1604 | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_da2b1604 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e003c829 | type |
History Repeats | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e003c829 | comment |
History Repeats: "Stone Cold" Steve Austin has won the event a record three times, while Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, John Cena, Edge, Batista, Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar, and Cody Rhodes have all won twice. Overlapping with The Notable Numeral, the 27th and 28th entrants have won four times, the 1st and 24th entrants have won thrice, and the 2nd, 19th, 22nd, 23rd, 25th, and 29th entrants have all won twice...on the men's side. For the women, the 3rd and 28th entrants have won twice. The 30th entrant has five wins as of 2024. The WWE Title was on the line twice during the eponymous Rumble match. Coincidentally (or not), both events saw a former (or future) Evolution member crowned as the new champion (HHH and Ric Flair). Speaking of Batista, he was the first 28th entrant to win twice mentioned above. Speaking of Orton, he was part of a Power Trio stable in the two events that he won (Legacy in 2009, The Wyatt Family in 2017). Both times the final few came down to Orton, at least one trio mate, and his runner-up. Big Show, Triple H, John Cena, Randy Orton, Charlotte Flair, Drew McIntyre, and Liv Morgan have all been runner-up on two different occasions, while Roman Reigns ended up in second place four times. Hunter's were in consecutive Rumbles, both to the entrant immediately after him (2008, to #30 entrant Cena after Trips entered at 29, and 2009, to #8 entrant Orton after Trips entered at #7). Speaking of Reigns, he was eliminated by two former Evolution members in the two events that he placed 2nd. If you count the 2016 event where HHH eliminated him, he was eliminated by a former Evolution member three times. Of course, he has yet to appear in a Rumble with Ric Flair. Roman Reigns and Kevin Owens have faced each other for the Universal Championship in this event three times (2017, 2021, and 2023), with Kevin winning the first bout while Reigns won the latter two (both of Reigns' victories came during the same title reign). The number 30 entrant has won consecutive men's Rumble matches twice. First it was Undertaker in 2007, followed by John Cena in a surprise return as number 30 in 2008 (which 'Taker and his runner-up Shawn Michaels started). Then Brock Lesnar won the 2022 Rumble as number 30, which Cody Rhodes backed up with his own win from the same entry. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e003c829 | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e003c829 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e567510d | type |
Determinator | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e567510d | comment |
Determinator: Frequently one wrestler will last from very early on until the final phase of the match (usually over 40 minutes), often referred to as the "Iron Man / Woman" of the match by fans. This happens so often that the absence of one in 2010note John Cena was the longest-lasting wrestler that year, but with a comparatively meager 27 minutes was noted as being surprising. 2016 had a variation with Kevin Owens and Dean Ambrose, who had just wrestled a brutal Last Man Standing match for the Intercontinental Championship earlier that night, and entered the Rumble anyway. Owens managed to eliminate AJ Styles before being eliminated himself, while Ambrose made it to the final two before being eliminated by Triple H. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e567510d | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e567510d | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e9e35e8f | type |
Exact Words | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e9e35e8f | comment |
Since the rules say you're only eliminated if you go over the top rope AND both feet touch the floor, you can land on one foot, hop to the stairs, and get back into the ring and not be considered eliminated. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e9e35e8f | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_e9e35e8f | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_eb7c34cf | type |
Crossover | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_eb7c34cf | comment |
Crossover: The 2022 edition of the Women's Royal Rumble match had Mickie James entering as Impact Wrestling's Knockouts World Champion. Two years later, with Impact having revived their old TNA name, Jordynne Grace (holding the same title under a new name related to the TNA name's revival) entered the Women's Rumble. | |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_eba6a077 | type |
Cain and Abel | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_eba6a077 | comment |
Cain and Abel: As the saying goes, it's every man or woman for themselves. Siblings like the Hardy Boyz and the Bella Twins were more than ready to fight and backstab each other if they were in the Rumble at the same time. This is averted at certain times, such as by The New Day in 2020, and The Brothers of Destruction in 2001, in which cases the teammates will refuse to fight one another. Interestingly, the Rumble has never come down to the final two participants being members of the same team or stable (if one member of a team or stable is part of the final two and they were not the only member of said team or stable to enter the Rumble, they're always the last member remaining). | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_eba6a077 | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_eba6a077 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f10d3363 | type |
Distracted by the Sexy | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f10d3363 | comment |
Distracted by the Sexy: When Beth Phoenix entered a Men's Rumble as the only female participant, she faced off against the Great Khali. Beth gave Khali a long kiss to distract him, and then eliminated him when he lowered his guard. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f10d3363 | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f10d3363 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f7909e21 | type |
Tonight in This Very Ring | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f7909e21 | comment |
Tonight in This Very Ring: The Royal Rumble match usually main events the Royal Rumble show, but it has been averted in 1988, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2006, 2013 and 2023. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f7909e21 | featureApplicability |
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1.0 | |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f7909e21 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f8df38e6 | type |
Pater Familicide | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f8df38e6 | comment |
Due to the Chris Benoit double-murder and suicide, this Rumble is mostly ignored by WWE. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f8df38e6 | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f8df38e6 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f935efbf | type |
Unnecessary Roughness | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f935efbf | comment |
Unnecessary Roughness: At the 1999 event, Mick Foley took ten unprotected chair shots to the head during his "I Quit" Match with The Rock. The Rock wasn't supposed to keep on hitting him, and Mick himself classified the match as "having gotten away" from both of them; i.e. they both got caught up in the drama and neither was willing to end it before the scheduled finish. This was made worse by the fact that Foley's family was at ringside, and were clearly traumatized. The Rock didn't apologize to Foley for his actions, and this later became a bitter sticking point on Foley's part, though he said that when he eventually confronted The Rock about it, The Rock thought that he had checked on Foley after the match, and became very upset upon realizing he hadn't. In his second book, Foley admits both did wrong in the scenario but he was more in the wrong. Once the Rock was made aware of the situation, he apologized immediately. Foley was aware of the slight for several months but let it simmer unknown and lead him into bitterness (mostly as fuel for a Face–Heel Turn during the Rock 'n' Sock Connection days against the Rock that never materialized.) Rather invoked in the 2019 Men's Rumble Match towards Nia Jax of all people: After ambushing R-Truth at the entrance walkway, then later eliminating Mustafa Ali, she immediately gets a Superkick, a 619, and an RKO (in that order) for her troubles. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f935efbf | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f935efbf | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f9f2c33 | type |
Running Gag | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f9f2c33 | comment |
Running Gag: Jerry Lawler's predictions turning out badly, which has been repeated with a few other commentators like Tazz. Starting in 2012, Kofi Kingston will always find some crazy or incredibly flukey way of avoiding elimination, whether it's walking on his hands over to the steps without letting his feet touch the floor, or being sent flying out to be caught by Adam Rose's posse of Rosebuds, who aren't quite keeping up with the action and end up putting him back in again. Unfortunately averted in 2020, when Brock Lesnar tosses Kofi out so quickly he doesn't have a chance to do a spot at all. During the 2018 Men's Rumble, Heath Slater was assaulted by Baron Corbin while on his way to the ring and left lying in a heap on the ramp. The following five or so entrants would all abuse him in various ways, wiping him out before he could officially enter the match, culminating in Big E stuffing his face with pancakes. Heath's pain would end when Sheamus took pity on him and finally got him into the ring (only for Heath to immediately clothesline Sheamus out in return as soon as he climbed through the ropes). In every Rumble match from 1998 to 2002, the #30 entrant note Vader in 1998, Chyna in 1999, X-Pac in 2000, Rikishi in 2001 and Booker T in 2002 would chuck out precisely one person before being eliminated themselves shortly thereafter. This gag ended in the 2003 Rumble when the Undertaker drew #30 and went on a Foe-Tossing Charge. Naomi has taken a page from Kofi's book and made a running gag of somehow saving herself from elimination and creatively getting back in the ring. Sadly, she's usually eliminated for real soon after. | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f9f2c33 | featureApplicability |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) | hasFeature |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_f9f2c33 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_fa87021 | type |
Kill Streak | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_fa87021 | comment |
Kill Streak: Kane set the record of the most eliminations in a Royal Rumble match during the 2001 with 11. This would last until 2014, when Roman Reigns (then a member of The Shield) picked up 12 in his first appearance in the match. Braun Strowman would go on to break the record in 2018, coming in at 13 eliminations during the Greatest Royal Rumble, and Brock Lesnar would tie the record in 2020. The Lesnar example in 2020 actually took this to its logical extreme, as he entered the Men's Royal Rumble match at number 1, and proceeded to eliminate the first 13 men to come after him (the next two candidates to continue that chain, Ricochet and Drew McIntyre, worked together to eliminate him via Ricochet hitting Brock from behind with a low blow leaving him vulnerable to the Claymore that eliminated him). In the Women's Royal Rumble match, Bianca Belair and Shayna Baszler established a record eliminating 8 participants each in 2020. Similar to the Lesnar example, Baszler (the last entrant in the match) made her record in part by quickly eliminating 7 of the remaining 8 participants in a row. | |
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Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_fa87021 | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_fe0330fb | type |
Brick Joke | |
Royal Rumble (Wrestling) / int_fe0330fb | comment |
Brick Joke: In the 2011 Rumble, Santino Marella, who at that point had averaged about 15 seconds in two previous Rumble matches, would get knocked out by Sheamus within 20 seconds of his appearance and would have the fortune to fall under the bottom rope. Later on, Alberto Del Rio would be celebrating his apparent victory only to turn around and get hit with The Cobra! Unfortunately for Santino, he would take a few seconds too long to celebrate, and would instead go home as the runner up when Del Rio reversed his elimination attempt. | |
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