One of the most intense professional wrestling events in the history of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), the Royal Rumble was started as a pay-per-view event in 1988 and has been an integral part of the WWE legacy ever since. Royal Rumble is popularly hailed as one of the WWE’s five biggest wrestling events, in addition to SummerSlam, WrestleMania, SurvivorSeries and Money in the Bank. Although not every Royal Rumble wrestling match has been a phenomenal hit among the fans, a few of them have definitely stood out as thrilling bouts over the years.
In this article, we will take a look at the top five most iconic Royal Rumble victories in the history of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
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The 2001 Royal Rumble: Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Kane
The nerve-wracking bout between Stone Cold Steve Austin and Kane during the 14th annual edition of the Royal Rumble is still hailed as one of the most iconic Royal Rumble events in the history of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). While Stone Steve Austin was all-set to make his brutal comeback after a serious neck injury, Kane was positioned as the top contender at the 2001 Royal Rumble. After a hard, bloody battle fought between the two, Stone Cold Steve Austin grabbed a steel chair and smashed Kane multiple times before knocking him down and ultimately clinching his record-total of third Royal Rumble title.
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The 2002 Royal Rumble: Triple H vs Kurt Angle
Although making a comeback is often recognized as a tough deal for most of the professional wrestlers in WWE, the legendary WWE wrestler proved to be an exception as he made a roaring comeback at the 2002 Royal Rumble event after overcoming a major quadriceps injury. The final bout between Triple H and Kurt Angle was one of the most intense rivalries that the fans had ever witnessed until that point. While Triple H was seen struggling with his injury in the initial rounds, Kurt Angle left no opportunity to pin his opponent down and clinch the Royal Rumble 2002 title. Just after knocking down Triple H, Kurt Angle thought that his battle against the legendary wrestler was over and got engaged in celebrating his victory a little too early. Triple H wasted no time and grabbed Kurt Angle off guard and threw him over the ropes. Well, the early celebrations proved to be a nightmare for Kurt Angle and Triple H clinched the 2002 Royal Rumble.
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The 2005 Royal Rumble : Batista vs John Cena
Often hailed as one of the most sensational final bouts in the history of WWE’s Royal Rumble, the showdown between the two most popular and prominent wrestlers of WWE of that era, John Cena and Batista, is at the third spot on our list of top five most iconic Royal Rumble victories in the history of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Shockingly, the “Batsista vs John Cena” bout is one of the very few bouts in the history of Royal Rumble that were “restarted” as both the wrestlers fell out of the ring simultaneously, causing immense confusion about who was actually the winner. In order to make sure that the final result remains unbiased, Vince McMahon demanded a re-match where Batista ended up hitting John Cena brutally with a spine buster and clinching the 2005 Royal Rumble title.
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The 2007 Royal Rumble : The Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels
At the fourth spot in our list of the top five most iconic Royal Rumble victories in the history of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), we have the final bout between the Undertaker and Michaels at the 2007 Royal Rumble. Well, if you’re a fan of WWE, you must agree that nothing can be more furious and soul-stirring than a bout with “the demon of Death Valley” aka “The Undertaker”. The final battle of the 2007 Royal Rumble between the two legends of WWE – Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker, is still hailed as one of the most intense rivalries ever witnessed in the history of the WWE. The final few seconds of the bout proved to be a game changer for the undertaker as he grabbed and threw Michaels over the rope while he was executing his signature move “Sweet Chin Music”. It might surprise you a bit to know that Undertaker became the first ever wrestler in the history of the WWE to win a Royal Rumble title from No.30.
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The 2010 Royal Rumble: John Cena vs The Edge
The 2010 Royal Rumble event has undoubtedly reserved its place as one of the most-watched Royal Rumble events in the history of WWE with a star-studded lineup of wrestlers including John Cena, The Edge, Triple H, Batista, and many others. After an intense battle, the final showdown was held between John Cena and The Edge. Although John Cena had already been the Royal Rumble winner in the 2008 edition, the crowd was all fired up to witness the fuming rivalry between the two most popular WWE wrestlers of that time. Edge ultimately defeated John Cena and clinched his very first Royal Rumble title. While the hardcore fans of John Cena were quite heartbroken after his defeat at the 2010 Royal Rumble, a majority of the WWE fans treasured The Edge for making a formidable comeback against John Cena.
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