The Royal Rumble is one of the show-piece events in the WWE PPV calendar
The Royal Rumble is one of the greatest gimmick-based wrestling matches in the history of WWE.
This is one of the biggest pay-per-view events in the WWE calendar and the Royal Rumble match itself is a huge draw.
The winner of the match can choose to face either the Universal or Heavyweight champion but it isn’t that simple.
Stars have to fight 29 other superstars, and the Rumble matches often last more than an hour.
There are several guest appearances in the matches too from older stars, and this is the start for the road to WrestleMania.
Several Royal Rumble matches have been held in the past, but there are some that stand out more than others.
Top 5 greatest Royal Rumble matches
1) 2001
Possibly the greatest Royal Rumble match ever in the history of the WWE. This closing match from the 2001 PPV had everything.
Stone Cold Steve Austin won the match, however, he was beaten before the start and was in a bloody mess.
Kane was in great form as he removed 11 men from the match, which was a record then. Austin and the Big Red Machine were the only ones left in the end, and the Texas Rattlesnake picked up the win.
This was one of the greatest matches from the Attitude Era too and had almost everything that was great in the WWE back then.
2) 2006
The story of an underdog, Rey Mysterio came in as the No.2 entrant and went on to win the Royal Rumble.
The high-flyer lasted more than an hour but the story was set even before Rey entered the ring. WWE legend Eddie Guerrero tragically passed away and his best friend was fighting in honour of Latino Heat.
Mysterio was the smallest man on show but his heart was possibly the biggest in the ring. It was fitting that he ended up winning the clash and eliminated Triple H and Randy Orton for one of the greatest moments in WWE history.
3) 2007
This match might not have had the big stars from other Royal Rumble events, but the final 10 minutes or so will remain etched in the memory of WWE fans.
The Undertaker took on Shawn Michaels as the pair battled to win the crown. It was Taker who came out on top of it all, however, those 10 minutes was an exhibition of quality wrestling.
Edge and Randy Orton were the others in the final four, but there was more to the final pair.
Michaels and Taker opened the Royal Rumble match in the following year, and then we also had those two crazy WrestleMania main events between the duo too.
4) 1990
Hulk Hogan remains one of the greatest stars in the history of WWE, and he picked up a Royal Rumble victory in 1990.
More than that, this match featured some of the greatest wrestlers from the 80s and 90s. Bret Hart, Macho Man, Andre The Giant and the Ultimate Warrior were all present.
Legends such as Dusty Rhodes and Mr. Perfect were also part of the 30-man Royal Rumble.
There was also this great stare down between Hogan and Warrior, which set up their big clash at WrestleMania a few months later.
5) 1992
This was the first time that the winner of the Royal Rumble would have been crowned as the WWE Champion.
Hulk Hogan was stripped of the championship and that added something extra to the clash. Ric Flair came out on top as the winner after entering the clash at No.3.
The Nature Boy lasted close to an hour in that clash. Flair also confirmed that he only came to know he was winning the title on the morning of the Rumble.
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This might not have been a Rumble with crazy spots, but Flair winning the title after lasting an hour is one of the greatest stories in Royal Rumble history.
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