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A Royal Rumble match is a match style with anywhere from 10 up to 30 competitors. The winner of the match is typically awarded a large prize, such as an opportunity to face a champion of their choosing at any time. For most winners, specifically in the WWE, that time is WrestleMania.
The excitement of the Royal Rumble match is that not all competitors are announced ahead of time, so there is the possibility for surprise entrants. A Royal Rumble differs from a battle royal match in that not all the competitors start in the ring. During the match, the competitors who draw numbers one and two begin in the ring. Every two minutes after that, a new entrant is announced and enters the match. The match rules, or stipulations, are a little different as well.
During the match, the competitors defeat their opponents by sending them over the top rope and having both of the opponents feet hit the floor. Only in this way can someone be eliminated.
The very first Royal Rumble was held in 1988. In the history of the Royal Rumble, the winners have come from any number of slots throughout the match. The entrant number that has won the most is number 27. Also, only four times has the winner been number 1 or number 2. Notably, those are Shawn Michaels (1995), Vince McMahon (1999), Chris Benoit (2004) and Rey Mysterio (2006). And though you would think coming in at number 30 would be the greatest advantage, this spot has only won 3 times (The Undertaker (2007), John Cena (2008), and Triple H (2016)).
Other notable superlatives for the Royal Rumble match include shortest time in a single match, longest time in a single match, and most eliminations. To date, those in order are as follows:
- Santino Marella (1 second)
- Daniel Bryan (1 hour, 16 minutes, 5 seconds)
- Braun Strowman (13 eliminations)
