Take up thy wrestling boots and walk - Royal Rumble special
Submitted by Pt2 on Friday, January 25, 2008 at 1:21 PM EST





Welcome once again to the column that refuses to ever try anything called ‘Lean Dean Fitness Cream’, Take up thy wrestling boots and walk. I’m the man who has never been able to say hello to the blue guy, Pt2, back once again from the brink to discuss all things connected to the goldmine of blood stained delights that is the world of professional wrestling.

I wrote a little series of column around about Christmas time, all about trying to find out who is the greatest wrestler of the modern era. The feedback I received on these columns was overwhelmingly positive. In fact, I got asked to do more of them, when the occasion called for it. Now, I’m not going to have this one spread over four columns like the previous effort, but I am going to do something similar this time. In honour of the Royal Rumble this Saturday, I’m going to finally answer the question – who are the greatest performers in Royal Rumble history?

To do this, I had to work out a formula that would take into account all the aspects of surviving in a Rumble. I wanted something simple, that could be easily applied, yet that took into account everything essential in providing a good showing. I came up with the following.

For every minute spent in the Rumble, you get a point. You see, the first thing that struck me is that ultimately, the Rumble is all about survival, and some of the best and most memorable Rumble performances come from guys who scrap and scrape and spend what seems like an eternity in there. This stipulation favours those guys. For every wrestler that you eliminate, you get a point. This also includes all multiple person eliminations. Some of the most memorable Rumble performances I have ever seen involve one guy coming in and clearing the ring of ten guys – this stipulation rewards the man who can enhance his Rumble winning chances by clearing a third or more of the field on his own. This figure is then divided by the number of Rumble’s entered – so that guys who enter ten rumbles don’t have a massively unfair advantage over guys who have only entered three or four.

Finally, on top of that figure, an additional ten points is added for every Rumble victory. The Rumble is all about winning, after all, and a certainly immortality is attached to the victors. I think it is only fair to reward the man who gets his hand raised. For winning the initial 20 man Rumble, Hacksaw Jim Duggan receives 5 extra points, as opposed to 10 that is allocated to anyone who wins a thirty man match. Winners are considered to be the man awarded the victory on the night by the referees – therefore Steve Austin won the 1997 Royal Rumble, not Bret Hart, and The Rock won the 2000 Rumble, not the Big Show. As Vince McMahon was very fond of saying in the mid-nineties, the instant replay rule is not in effect in the WWE.

I think this rating is fair, because not only does it show how long you were able to survive and how many people you were able to eliminate, but also it shows how you perform in the Rumble overall. If you have a really bad Rumble one year, it can tank your rating. One really good Rumble followed by two or three bad ones, and you are stuck right back in the middle of the field. There will be one or two surprises along the way, perhaps more due to omission than anything else, and some of the choices more prove to be unpopular, but in this venture I am a servant to the statistics. Whatever the numbers add up to, I publish. One last note; to be eligible, you have to have entered more than one Rumble. I think it is stretching it to suggest anyone with only one Rumble appearance could be one of the greatest Rumble performers in the history of the event. With that said, it does eliminate the 1989 winner John Studd, the 1999 winner Vince McMahon, and the 2003 winner Brock Lesnar, from consideration.

Let’s begin the countdown! From how high, you ask? Well, it’s a Royal Rumble column, it seems fitting to me that the number should be 30.

30. Crush: 17.5. Crush would start out as a member of Demolition, and enter his first Rumble as number 18 in 1991. Crush never exactly set the world alight in any Rumble, but in his four attempts only had one bad performance, being eliminated early on by Phineas Godwinn after drawing number one in 1997. His longest Rumble stint came in 1994 when he survived into his twenty sixth minute before being eliminated by three men, during which time he played a part in the elimination of Diesel and Mabel, and also eliminated Randy Savage. The closest he ever came to winning was in 1995, where he was the last man left in the ring before the classic finish between Shawn Michaels and the British Bulldog. Sensational? No, but certainly solid, and almost always managed to put in a good long spell.

29. Bob Holly: 17.8. This one surprised me. Bob Holly made his first appearance in the Rumble under the name of Thurmann ‘Sparky’ Plugg in 1994, entering at number 17. Like Crush, he played a part in the elimination of Mabel and Diesel that year, but trumps Crush by also playing a part in HIS elimination. He’d last into his 22nd minute before he was finally eliminated by Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels (working as a team…. Dramatic irony at work). His longest spell in the Rumble came in 1996, where he lasted an impressive forty minutes before being eliminated by the man who would go on to be ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin. Holly’s worst appearance came in 2005, where he was a victim of the Benoit-Guerrero alliance that dominated the beginning of that rumble, although in that time he was able to eliminate Daniel Puder. The closest Holly has ever come to winning is a ninth place finish, in 2001.

28. John Morrison: 18. I must admit, I was more than a little surprised by this one as well. There can be no denying though, that in both of his Rumble appearances so far, ‘Johnny Nitro’ (as he was then called) has done just fine. He made his Rumble debut in 2006, scoring two eliminations and lasting into his 26th minute. Last year, he wasn’t so impressive, lasting only seven minutes, but still managed to play a part in the elimination of Viscera before being eliminated by Chris Benoit. This year, I would bet on Morrison, who will be in the Rumble, being in there for more than 20 minutes.

27. Rob Van Dam: 18. Rob Van Dam finishes ahead of Johnny Nitro on virtue of having entered more Rumbles’. He made an inauspicious debut in 2002, lasting only a couple of minutes before his quick fire elimination by Booker T, but turned things around with a 33 minute stint in 2003. Van Dam came closest to winning in 2006, where an another impressive 24 minute stint saw him finish in fourth following his elimination by eventual winner Rey Mysterio. Has never been one for lots of eliminations, but has put some big spells together in his five attempts.

26. Jerry Lawler: 18.3. Jerry Lawler is the master of ingenuity. After all, it doesn’t matter how you survive, as long as you do. Who could forget his hiding under the ring? Lawler’s first Rumble appearance came in 1993, where he lasted into his 15th minute before being eliminated by Mr. Perfect. We next saw him in 1996, when a 36 minute spell was eventually ended by eventual winner Shawn Michaels. His last attempt at the Rumble, in 1997, was paradoxically both his worst and the closest he has come to winning. Lasting a matter of seconds after getting up from his commentary position, he was eliminated by Bret Hart. Due a late draw though, this 4 seconds still allowed him an eventual finish of 11th, his best to date.

Did you know, that the records for consecutive Rumbles, most appearances in a Rumble, and most eliminations in a single Rumble, are all held by the same man? The man behind the mask of Kane, Glen Jacobs, who has entered 11 Rumbles, 9 of them consecutively as Kane, and eliminated 11 men in the 2001 Rumble.

25. Terry Funk: 22. More of an NWA legend than a WWE one, this may come as a surprise to some, but both of the Funker’s stints in the Rumble were memorable enough. The one that will probably jump immediately to most minds is the 1998 Rumble, where he appeared as Chainsaw Charlie, eliminating tag team partner Cactus Jack and lasting an impressive 26 minutes. Equally memorable to me though, is his first appearance at the 1997 Rumble. Coming out of his home state of Texas, Funk jumped the gun by a few seconds and went on to 16 minutes of brawling, mostly with Mick Foley, before recording a seventh place finish in this one.

24. Ted DiBiase: 22. DiBiase has a stellar record, one that was it not for one poor attempt, would be almost beyond criticism. His first attempt was in 1989, when he ‘acquired’ a later number and went on to be runner-up, losing out to eventual winner Big John Studd after making three eliminations. Though this is the closest he ever he came to winning, his finest hour came the following year, when entering at number one he almost double the longevity record, lasting an impressive 45 minutes, and setting the benchmark for modern Rumble Ironman performances. His worst performance at a Rumble came in 1992, where was eliminated first by the British Bulldog. His final Rumble showing was in Sacramento in 1993, where he put in 25 minutes before being eliminated by The Undertaker.

23. IRS: 22.5. How many people out there bet on IRS finishing higher than his money, inc. tag partner? Not many, I’ll wager, but people have always underestimated Mike Rotunda. His first attempt came in 1992, where he entered in 18th place and lasted for 28 minutes until his elimination by Roddy Piper. Along with his tag partner DiBiase, his final attempt came in Sacramento in 1993, where he entered 18th and lasted until just into his 20th minute before being eliminated by the big John Tenta, wrestling as Earthquake. IRS is possibly the only wrestler to make it into this list without a single elimination in Rumble history. For the taxman, it was all about longevity.

22. Greg ‘the hammer’ Valentine: 23.25. If I have been surprised a few times throughout the results of this column, seeing the Hammer here certainly isn’t one of them. In 1989, Valentine lasted for 20 minutes after entering number 6. In 1991, he came within a minute of beating DiBiase’s longevity record set the previous year, lasting into his 45th minute before being eliminated by Hulk Hogan some 42 seconds short. Valentine has never really come close to winning the whole thing, his best finish being the 18th man eliminated in 1994 after a 21 minute stint. Ironically, the man who would upstage his brilliant 1991 performance by breaking DiBiase’s Ironman record would upstage Valentine again by eliminating him in 1994, Rick Martel. Hammer’s worst attempt came in 1992, where in Albany he lasted five minutes before being eliminated by Barry Darsow.

21. Jim Duggan: 23.33. After taking part in the smallest Rumble of all time, it is unsurprising to see that Duggan is ranked the lowest of all the men to win one. You can’t do much better than his first attempt, where he won the 1988 Rumble. Entering 13th, he eliminated 3 men on his way to immortality as the first Rumble winner in Hamilton, Ontario. From then on, it was always a case of trying to recapture the highs. In 1992 he went some way to doing just that, with a 21 minute showing, but the year previously in Miami he had his worst ever attempt, lasting only 5 minutes before his elimination at the hands of Mr. Perfect.

Did you know that Royal Rumble has only returned to the same city on three occasions? The only cities to host two are Miami (1991 and 2006), Fresno (1996 and 2005), and San Antonio (1997 and 2007). In Fresno, the first city to repeat, the only men to feature in both the 1996 and 2005 Rumble matches were Bob Holly, Shawn Michaels and Glen Jacobs, who had wrestled in his first Royal Rumble as Isaac Yankem. In 2008, New York will become the fourth city to host two Royal Rumble events, and Madison Square Garden will become the first Arena to host two Royal Rumble events.

20. Dave Batista: 23.5. Batista has only entered two Rumble’s, but winning one certainly doesn’t hurt your chances. His first shot came in 2003, and he came close to winning that one, finishing in fourth place and eliminating Rumble veteran Solafa Fatu, as well as Andrew ‘Test’ Martin. In his next attempt though, he wouldn’t stopped. Batista would win after entering 28th, eliminating Snitsky, Edge, Christian and John Cena on his way to victory. Entering late in both Rumbles (28th in both), he’s never really put the massive hours in, but always picks up eliminations and is helped into the top 20 by that 2005 victory. Will doubtless be a big player come the 2008 event. Will he pick up another late draw?

19. British Bulldog: 23.66. The forgotten man of the 1995 Royal Rumble, Davey Boy Smith made his debut some years earlier in 1991. He would enter in 14th place, lasting for 37 minutes and finishing fifth in what can only be considered a hugely impressive debut. The following year, he drew number one, and last for 24 minutes before his elimination at the hands of Ric Flair, who would win the WWF title in that year’s event. He returned to the event in 1995, and again put on an impressive showing – in fact, that is something of an understatement. Everybody remembers Shawn Michaels contributions since he drew number one and was there at the end, but Davey Boy matched him step for step. Bulldog drew number two and was there at the end, in his 39th minute, as Bulldog recorded his best finish of 2nd. His worst Rumble is optional, but I have chosen 1996, when from a good draw of 29th, Bulldog failed to assert himself on the field, lasting only a few minutes and managing only the elimination of Marty Jannetty, before being eliminated by Michaels for the second year in succession. You could make an equally valid case for the 1997 Rumble, however, when he lasted only 9 minutes, was gone within the first ten eliminations, and managed only the elimination of Solafa Fatu, under the mask of the Sultan.

18. The Undertaker: 23.75. The winner of the other series, Undertaker can’t even crack the top ten when it comes to the Rumble. Much of that comes from illegality, but we don’t take that into consideration, so Undertaker maybe has a reason to feel hard done by. He made his debut in 1991, drawing number 12 and making several eliminations before being tossed out himself by both members of LOD, who hit him with a double clothesline, if my memory serves me correctly. Undertaker would be eliminated by Hulk Hogan the following year, mere months after beating (and then losing to) him for the WWF title. In 1993 he was eliminated illegally by Giant Gonzales, but still managed to make four eliminations before the attack ended his rumble. He would make his next appearance in 1997, drawing number thirty and finishing in fourth, behind Austin (his eliminator, who himself had been eliminated by Bret Hart only to re-enter the ring unseen), Bret Hart and Glen Jacobs. 2001 would be a disappointing Rumble by his standards, lasting only ten minutes but still managing to make four eliminations. The biggest shock would come the following year though, when Undertaker would be eliminated after only 8 minutes by Maven. Undertaker, looking dominant with 6 eliminations, had been felled by a rookie. The following year Undertaker drew thirty for the second time, but ended up having to settle for runner up as Brock Lesnar took the duke. In his last appearance in 2007, Undertaker drew number thirty for the third time, finally getting the win, and picking up three eliminations in his fourteen minute spell.

17. Diesel: 24. Diesel first appeared in 1994 and it is safe to say that he made an immediate impression. Drawing number seven, he lasted eighteen minutes, and for much of that he stood alone in the ring, making seven eliminations before he was finally quadruple teamed out of the ring. He would be champion at the following years event, but make his return in 1996, where he drew number 22. Again, he lasted 18 minutes, and this time recorded his best finish of second, losing to back to back Rumble winner Shawn Michaels and making a further five eliminations. Off to WCW that May, he’d never appear in another Rumble event. Quite the impact for two shows, though.

16. Chris Jericho: 24. Jericho finishes above Nash on more Rumble entries. His first Rumble match came in 2000, where he was eliminated after a paltry four minutes by Chyna, who herself was only in the Rumble for approximately forty seconds. From there, things could only get better. In 2003, Jericho drew number 2, and was in the ring for 39 minutes, eliminating several world champions including Michaels, Edge, Mysterio and Christian. The following year he entered 25th, and only the 7 foot Big Show was able to remove him, giving him a sixth place finish (after eliminating Christian for the second year running). In 2005 Jericho made his last appearance to date, staying in the ring for 29 minutes before losing out to eventual winner Batista (who also broke his run and eliminated Christian).

Did you know, that although Chyna was pushed as an equal opportunities female wrestler and spent a reasonable amount of time wrestling men, it never translated to the Rumble? Of all the men to have entered more than one Rumble, only one, Simon Dean, performed worse than she did. Neither managed (in either attempt) to remain in the ring for a whole minute. Even both Bushwhackers recorded a better score. Jeff Jarrett’s pathetic final rating of 2.6, easily the lowest for a world champion I came across, looks like an Ironman in comparison.

15. Eddie Guerrero: 24.5. Eddie Guerrero made his first Rumble appearance in 2003, and while it was solid, it certainly wasn’t spectacular. He entered at number 14 and lasted for 17 minutes. He missed the 2004 Rumble match, and returned to it in 2005 where a much improved performance saw him enter at number 1, and last for 29 minutes, eliminating 3 people. The fact that he’s never had a ‘bad’ Rumble means this is enough to get Guerrero not only over the finish line, but into the top half of the field.

14. Roddy Piper: 25.5. Piper didn’t exactly stick around for a massive amount of time in his first Rumble entry. Entering at 6 in 1990, he lasted for 13 minutes before he eliminated, and was eliminated by, Bad News Brown. In the star studded 1992 Rumble though, his performance was much more impressive. Entering at 15th, Piper would IRS in his 35 minute stint, which was good enough to ensure him a 5th place finish – in fact, everyone that finished above him was a former or future WWF Champion.

13. Edge: 28. Edge’s claim to fame has to be that he is the one man to eliminate Gillberg from Royal Rumble competition, which he achieved in his 12 minute stint in the 1999 Rumble. The following year he was back with a similar length stint, lasting 14 minutes and again taking one elimination, this time taking part in the mass elimination of Rikishi. In 2003, Edge AGAIN had a similar length spell in the Rumble, but this time managed to garner three eliminations following his entry at number 5. There was a huge improvement in the 2005 Rumble. Edge entered at 7, and finished third in the Rumble overall. He took five eliminations in his 41 minutes in the ring – but the best performance came in 2007. Again he finished third and took five eliminations, but this time he entered at number 5, and lasted into his 45th minute before he was eliminated by Shawn Michaels. 2005, 2007 – I’d look for a huge part in the Rumble for Edge come 2009.

12. Randy Orton: 28.3. Orton just edges out his partner from Team RKO. Orton entered at number 2 in 2004, and lasted a long time for a debutant, going into his 34th minute before being eliminated by Mick Foley. 5 eliminations in his Rumble debut set the tone for things to come. In 2006 Orton was the 30th entrant, but only managed the runners up berth and two eliminations in what is clearly his worst performance in terms of everything except result. In 2007, he managed a fourth place finish and spent 28 minutes in the ring, and also 2 eliminations. Sneaks ahead of Edge due mostly to Edge’s solidly unspectacular start to his Rumble career. If recent years are anything to go by, don’t be surprised to see these two switch places after 2009, assuming they both compete.

11. Ric Flair: 29.2. Ric Flair’s Rumble debut is well documented. Coming in at number three, Flair lasted an hour (all bar thirty seconds) to win the WWF Championship in 1992. Taking four eliminations, this match is widely regarded as one of the best Rumble’s in history. Flair would never perform so well in the event again. The following year, he lasted 19 minutes and one elimination before being dumped out unceremoniously by Mr. Perfect, the man who would also dump him out of the company soon after in a loser leaves town match. Twelve years later, he made his Rumble return in Fresno. Entering at number 30, Flair would only last two minutes before his elimination at the hands of Edge. He did, however, manage an elimination for each of those minutes, dropping Benoit and Jonathan Coachman. 2006 was undoubtedly his worst year, as he lasted only 2 minutes before being thrown out by HHH. 2007 wasn’t much better, as entering at number one, he was canned by Edge after only six minutes. Flair has that one excellent Rumble performance in 1992 to his name, but has never been able to recreate it – mostly due, it must be said, to spending the peak of his career a) before the creation of the Rumble and b) in another company.

Did you know that the Ironman record was set at each of the first six Royal Rumble events? Set initially by Bret Hart, it was topped by Mr. Perfect in 1989, Ted DiBiase in 1990, Rick Martel in 1991, Ric Flair in 1992, and Bob Backlund in 1993. In 1994, the longest spell was held by Bam Bam Bigelow at 31 minutes, 30 minutes less than the record Backlund set at the age of 42.

10. Bret Hart: 31.8. Bret Hart’s debut at the Rumble was actually the debut of the Rumble match itself. Bret Hart was the first entrant at the very first Rumble match in 1988, putting in a respectable performance and putting in the first ‘Ironman’ time. Hart would miss the ’89 Rumble, but managed 17 minutes in 1990, before drawing number one again in 1991. This time, he managed 21 minutes before his elimination at the hands of the Undertaker. In all three of these Rumble’s, it is time alone that makes them respectable, as Bret managed just one elimination across all three matches. In 1994 however, that would all change, as Bret secured his best finish in winning the first ever ‘drawn rumble’. Hart would take four eliminations in a 16 minute spell, and win the World Championship at that year’s Wrestlemania. Involved in the World title match at the next two events (challenging in 1995, defending in 1996), Hart would next appear as number 21 in the 1997 event in San Antonio. 22 minutes and two eliminations later, Hart was the runner up in this event, even though he had already eliminated eventual winner Steve Austin – if this had been seen, Hart would have finished in 5th position in this list. Hart left the company shortly before the 1998 Royal Rumble.

9. Yokozuna 32.5. What the hell do you do in a Rumble match with a guy the size of Yokozuna? In 1993, nobody knew. At the very first attempt, Yokozuna won, and went on to win the World title at Wrestlemania. He only spent 15 minutes in the ring in this victorious effort, but eliminated no less than seven superstars in that time. In 1996 his performance was less impressive, but he still lasted for 20 minutes and made three eliminations – including a repeat of 1993. He eliminated Bob Backlund in both events.

8. Lex Luger 35.5. I am a bit surprised to see Luger finish so highly, but when you consider he only entered two Rumble’s at the height of his ‘American Made’ fame, it shouldn’t really come as too much of a surprise. Especially when you consider that he was co-winner in his first attempt, eliminating Bam Bam Bigelow, Shawn Michaels and Adam Bomb amongst others on the way to the 1994 Royal Rumble being declared a tie between him and Bret Hart. Following on from that 23 minute stint, Lex would get the number 19 draw in 1995 and go on to a fourth place finish after 19 minutes – this time his dream bought to an end by the double team of Michaels and Crush.

7. Hulk Hogan: 40. Hogan had pretty much left WWE by the emergence of the modern Rumble in 1993, but that still doesn’t stop the red and yellow (or as some people prefer, Orange) from making it’s way into the top 10. Of course, being a huge superstar before the Rumble ever debuted means that he was never going to have a bad one. In 1989, Hogan scored no less than 9 Eliminations before he was turfed out by both members of the Twin towers. In 1990 Hogan entered at 25 and eliminated 5 people on his way to his first win. In 1991 he won his second (and final) Rumble, entering at 24 and wrestling for 20 minutes, eliminating Earthquake to take the duke. Hogan’s last Rumble result was a third place finish in 1992, eliminated by Sid Justice after 12 minutes and 3 eliminations.

6. Shawn Michaels: 41.5. Michaels Royal Rumble debut was inauspicious enough. As a member of the Rockers, he entered at number 9 and hung around for 15 minutes, doing respectably enough for a young tag wrestler, before his eliminationa t the hands of Arn Anderson and Randy Savage. The following year came Michaels worst performance – he was eliminated in less than a minute by the Ultimate Warrior. By 1992 Michaels had branched out on his own, and made a huge improvement on the 1990 debacle, entering at six and lasting for 16 minutes. 1994 gave a hint of what was to come as Michaels lasted for 30 minutes and secured a fourth place finish. 1995 is legendary – entered number one, won the match, lasted 39 minutes, and took eight eliminations. Enough said. 1996, he became the second man to win consecutive Royal Rumbles, after entering at 18 and spending 27 minutes in the ring. Following a gap of seven years, Michaels returned to the Rumble in Boston, entering again at number one. This time, however, he could only last 3 minutes before elimination at the hands of rival Chris Jericho. In 2005, he entered at 19, and was illegally eliminated after 5 minutes by rival Kurt Angle. In 2006 Michaels was again illegally eliminated, this time by Shane McMahon after 13 minutes. At last year’s event, Michaels put in his best performance since his 1996 victory, lasting for 25 minutes and ensuring the runners up spot after entering at 23.

Did you know that the most recent Rumble appearance by anyone who took part in the original Rumble was in 1997, when both Bret Hart and Jake Roberts appeared. Both were eliminated from that Rumble by Steve Austin. If Jim Duggan, the only man to take part in that match still employed as an active wrestler by the WWE, were to have won his qualifying match against Umaga, he would have taken part in both the 1988 and 2008 Rumble’s and also eclipsed Road Warrior Animal’s 15 year record for time elapsed between Rumble appearances.

5. The Rock: 42.25. The Rock made his debut at the 1997 Rumble under the name Rocky Maivia, and after his entry at 25 was helped over the top rope by Mick Foley. The following year he was already on his way to being a superstar, and after entering at number four was runner up, after surviving for no less than an impressive 52 minutes. At the 2000 event, The Rock was the recipient of a poor refereeing decision, and won the Rumble match although he had been eliminated. He did add four eliminations to his tally in that match, and was officially declared the winner. The following year he drew unlucky thirteen, but pushed it down to the wire again, finishing up third before being eliminated by Kane after a 39 minute stint. With his transition into acting, it looks as if 2001 will be The Rock’s final Rumble.

4. HHH: 43.4. HHH’s debut is one of the more impressive on record. Entering at number one in 1996, he lasted for 49 minutes before his eventual elimination at the hands of Diesel. The following year was less impressive, as (after defending his IC title earlier in the night), Hunter lasted only seven minutes before his defeated challenger, Goldust, gained some measure of revenge. In 1999, Triple H had 15 minutes in the ring, but also took his first two eliminations in the form of Jeff Jarrett and Val Venis. He missed the next two Rumble’s, but following a long injury lay off returned to take part in the 2002 Rumble match. He entered at number 22 and won the event after 24 minutes, taking four eliminations as he went. He almost topped that success in his last appearance at a Rumble, in 2006, when he entered first and finish third overall, putting in over an hour and taking five names before his downfall to eventual winner Rey Mysterio. With him taking part in 2008, there is a good chance he’ll be among the last few once again.

3. Rey Mysterio 49. Mysterio’s first Rumble appearance was certainly nothing special. In 2003, he lasted only six minutes, and the only distinction he has from that match is of eliminating Chris Nowinski in the match that Nowinski suffered his career ending concussion. Come 2005 though, that is all change, and you start to see why he is up this high. Mysterio survived for 39 minutes after entering 8th, and eventually settled for a fourth place finish. A year later came his great triumph, winning the Rumble from number 2 after no less than a staggering, current record of 1 hour, two minutes and twelve seconds. He managed five eliminations in that match, and after it, no one was ever as quick to write off Mysterio again.

2. Chris Benoit: 53.25. I said early on that there would be some unpopularity in this column, and this will be one of the most unpopular, I do not doubt it. However, this is how my ranking system worked out, and I’m not going to hide it and pretend none of it happened. The fact is, Chris Benoit, in his Rumble debut in 2004, drew number one and went for close to 62 minutes, managing 6 eliminations. It’s the best debut ever, better even than Flair’s. The following year, he went in at number two, and put in a 48 minute stint. In 2006, he entered at 12, and put in 31 minutes before being eliminated by Randy Orton, and though he only lasted 18 minutes in 2007, he still managed to eliminate two and play a part in the elimination of Viscera. The sobering reality of this is that over the past few years, as much as anyone Benoit has been the Rumble – that is something that will have to change this year, and someone will doubtless step up to the plate.

I don’t think there is too much doubt as to who is going to be number one….

1. ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin: 63.3. Austin made his debut in 1996, the year that fellow Texan Shawn Michaels equalled Hulk Hogan’s record for two Rumble wins. Austin would go on to be the man who would eclipse that record. In his first show, he put in 11 minutes and took one elimination. It was a steady showing from him, but not even hinting at what was to come. In 1997, he won the Rumble from number 5, spending 46 minutes out there and taking no less than 10 names as he made his way to victory. In 1998, he became the third man to win back to back Rumble’s, winning from lot 24 after taking a further seven people out of the match. In 1999, he was runner up after 57 minutes and another eight eliminations. He missed the 2000 match with injury, but on his return in 2001, he became the first, last, and only person to win 3 Rumble’s when he eliminated Kane, who had cleared a third of the field. Austin entered 27th that year and spent only ten minutes in the ring, but still eliminated three men. Austin’s final Rumble appearance came in 2002, where he was eliminated by Kurt Angle after 23 minutes following a draw of number 19 – but that still didn’t stop the eliminations as Austin put 7 people over the top rope.

So there you have it – the greatest performer in the history of the Royal Rumble. Three times winner, one time runner up and a finish of fourth, 36 men eliminated, and a total time of two hours, forty minutes and 5 seconds across 6 Rumble matches, I give you ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin.


With that, there’s only one thing left to say. Enjoy the Rumble.

Feedback can be sent to takeupthywrestlingboots@gmail.com.

Hope you enjoyed it.

Take care

Pt2.









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