5 most impressive Royal Rumble eliminations

The Royal Rumble match is always one of the WWE’s most entertaining events of the year.In most Royal Rumbles, there are 29 eliminations as the field is whittled from 30 men down to the final competitor. That means there have been lots and lots of ways that wrestlers have found to toss their opponents over the top rope to stay alive in the match. Some of those eliminations have risen above the others, either for the circumstances or the way in which they transpired. Here are five that immediately come to mind when fans are discussing one of wrestling’s most famous annual events.

#5 Triple H/Stone Cold elim. Hurricane

Hurricane Helms managed to anger two of the biggest legends of the Attitude Era at the same time.

So two men eliminating Hurricane Helms isn’t perhaps the most impressive feat ever accomplished, but there are a couple elements of this 2002 tossing that are enough to catch an eye.

First of all, Hurricane Helms managed to tick off Triple H and Stone Cold enough to get them to work together to get rid of him. Second of all, the two men – not known for being friendly toward one another in the ring – were able to see eye to eye long enough to get rid of Hurricane.

And together, the three men managed to give us a mostly insignificant moment that is remembered more than a decade later. That’s impressive.

#4 Kane elim. Sabu

Sabu did not find a soft place to land in the 2007 edition of the Royal Rumble.

Few men have the pedigree of Royal Rumble success that Kane has without actually winning the match. Until 2014, he held the record for the most eliminations in a single Rumble at 11 in 2001, and he’s always one of the most feared men in the event.

But he managed to outdo himself in 2007. With former ECW legend Sabu standing on the apron, Kane grabbed him by the throat and everyone knew what was coming. Kane chokeslammed Sabu, and the table waiting below was icing on that extreme cake.

#3 Demolition elim. Andre the Giant

Big men like Andre the Giant are always key targets in a battle royale.

When choosing likely winners in any battle royale, the big men are always popular options. For reasons of strength and sheer weight, guys like Big Show, Vader, Yokozuna, Undertaker and Kane are difficult to get out of the ring and have an easier time tossing their opponents.

The king of that class of wrestler is Andre the Giant, though, and he was one of the first such performers. That made Demolition teaming up to push him over the top rope in 1990’s Royal Rumble a big deal and more important than the usual elimination.

#2 Maven elim. Undertaker

Maven didn’t realize what he had gotten himself into when he eliminated The Undertaker.

The 2002 edition of the Royal Rumble match had several eliminations worthy of this list, and this is the second to make the cut, this time because the caliber of the men involved. Maven had a short-lived run in the WWE based on a reality show and The Undertaker is, well, The Undertaker.

But in that event, Maven took advantage of a distracted Phenom and pushed him over the top rope. The benefit of that move was short-lived, though, as Undertaker proceeded to beat Maven all over the arena.

#1 Shawn Michaels elim. Vader/Yokozuna

Shawn Michaels is widely known as one of the most talented men to ever set foot in a WWE ring.

Shawn Michaels has done a lot of things in the ring, from winning belts to playing a central role in the Attitude Era. But one of his eliminations, or actually two, on the way to winning the 1996 Royal Rumble took a monstrous amount of effort.

About midway through the match, the Heartbreak Kid managed to hoist both Yokozuna and Vader over the top rope. Based on billed weights, that’s nearly a 1,000 pounds the roughly 200-pound Michaels lifted up and out of contention.