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What's the story?
WWE star Heath Slater did not start the Men's Royal Rumble Match in a fashion that he enjoyed. However, it seems that he may have come away from the Rumble by breaking one of the long-standing records.
Slater spent time outside the ring after he came out to take part in the Rumble as he was taken out by Baron Corbin on his way backstage. When he did make it into the ring, his first move was to eliminate Sheamus who had just entered.
In case you didn't know...
Slater has been on a losing streak, with Rhyno determined to toughen him up by putting him in matches with tough opponents.
The record for the fastest elimination was held by Kane when in the 2009 Royal Rumble he eliminated Santino Marella with a clothesline as soon as the superstar entered the ring. Marella saying "I was not ready" to everyone who would hear him in a desperate manner, is one of the most memorable instances in Rumble history.
Watch Santino Marella being eliminated by Kane here:
The heart of the matter
In a backstage segment, Slater was excited during his post-match interview as he thought that he had broken a Rumble record for the fastest elimination. He had been hit by each star who went into the ring while he was prone on the ground. When he was finally put into the ring by Sheamus, but in one of the biggest upsets of the match, he dumped Sheamus over the top rope.
Watch Heath eliminate Sheamus here:
Unfortunately for him, though he celebrated his 'record' with Rhyno, according to WWE's statistics, he was not able to beat the record of Marella and Kane. Whereas Marella had been eliminated from the Rumble by Kane in one second, WWE timed his elimination of Sheamus at 2.09 seconds.
What's next?
Heath missed out on his opportunity to break a record, but he came close. The storyline may be followed up on tomorrow's episode of Monday Night Raw.
Author's take
Heath eliminating Sheamus was one of the most hilarious and unexpected moments in the men's Rumble Match. Slater has developed into one of the best comedy characters in WWE.
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