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In most cases, the title does not change hands at the Royal Rumble, but that does not mean there has not been some classics etched in the history books at this event.
In this slideshow, we rank the top 10 World Championship matches at the Royal Rumble!
#10 Edge vs Jeff Hardy - 2008
There are certain Superstars in the WWE that just mesh well and Edge and Jeff Hardy definitely fit that mould.
After years upon years of warring with each other over the tag team championships in some of the best tag matches in WWE history, this really felt like a culmination of all the hard work from both men. This was two former tag team wrestlers competing for the richest prize in the business and it had a big fight feel. They had made it!
This was a No DQ match which lasted about 20 minutes. It appeared as though Jeff was about to scale the ropes for a Swanton when Matt appeared, striking his brother with a chair and setting up a Brother vs Brother clash at Wrestlemania. This was easily the match of the night.
#9 CM Punk vs Dolph Ziggler - 2012
For some reason, a lot of matches in the modern era get forgotten in time. This was one of them!
At the time, Ziggler was a red-hot heel who was - as always - teetering on the edge of a real main event push. John Laurinaitis was the special guest enforcer and Ziggler was the man the powers that be wanted to get the title away from a babyface CM Punk, who was also at the height of his popularity.
A mixture of CM Punk's insane move-set and Dolph's selling ability meant that the in-ring work was stellar. The best matches are the ones where you think you know the result but the Superstars still manage to execute great false finishes.
We knew Punk was not losing the belt so soon into his run but there was a few times we thought The Showoff was going to steal it, with help from Big Johnny of course.
However, when push came to shove, it was the babyface Punk who was able to hit the GTS (which Dolph sold like a grenade blast) and get the pinfall to carry on one of the longest title runs on the modern era.
#8 Brock Lesnar vs Seth Rollins vs John Cena (Triple Threat) - 2015
Up until this point, people were used to watching Brock defend in one-on-one encounters where he would essentially squash his opponent and disappear for a few months.
There were many factors in this match, one main one being the fact that Seth Rollins was currently the Money in the Bank holder, so there was always the possibility of a cash in after the match if things did not go his way. This did not happen but did add to the tension.
This was 25 minutes of great in-ring work from all three men and there was a moment at the end where it did look like Rollins would steal it after striking Lesnar with the title belt. Being the beast he is however, he managed to shake that off and finish Rollins off with an F5 to go on to defend the belt at Wrestlemania where as well all know Rollins pulled off the great heist.
To me, this was a year where the title match will be rewatched more than the Rumble itself!
#7 Triple H vs Shawn Michaels (Last Man Standing) - 2004
Triple H and HBK have had some classics and it might be controversial, but this is my all-time favourite.
Some great in-ring work, intense emotion, big spots and the use of blood turned this one into an instant classic. This match told the story of the babyface HBK desperate to wrestle the title away from the tyrannical Triple H, and both men pulled out all the stops to win the biggest prize in the business.
The history between these men makes every encounter epic. The ending to this one came when, despite being on the losing end the majority of the match, HBK was able to muster one last ditch Sweet Chin Music which left both men a bloodied, broken mess in the ring. Neither man was able to answer the 10 count and the title was retained by HHH due to the champion's advantage.
Watching HBK try desperately to get to his feet only to succumb to all the damage that had been done created a lasting image and the double count out is an ending that should be utilised more in my opinion.
#6 2016 Royal Rumble Match
For the first time in 24 years, the WWE championship was on the line in a Royal Rumble Battle Royal match.
This was all a ploy by the authority, who were growing desperate to snatch the title away from Roman Reigns. Reigns entered the match at Number. 1 and was given the unenviable task of getting through 29 other men to leave with his championship intact.
The best Rumble matches are the ones where multiple stories culminate in the one big event and this was no exception. At the time, the League of Nations were still quite dominant and had a great heel faction run in this match-up.
Also, who can forget the debut of the Phenomenal One, AJ Styles, and the pop he received. The mini clash between himself and Reigns was electric and the look of shock on the champ's face told the story.
There was also the shock site of the Wyatt Family dismantling Brock Lesnar and dumping him out of the match to set up a Mania clash between Brock and Bray, a match that for some reason never transpired.
In the end, Triple H was able to dump Reigns from the ring. This was followed by a tense clash of the last two - Ambrose and The Game - and despite some good teasing with false finishes, HHH was able to outlast The Lunatic Fringe and leave with the gold.
#5 Chris Jericho vs The Rock - 2002
Yet another one that seems to have been forgotten in history is this epic clash between the Great One and Y2J.
Jericho, the heel champion, was still riding the wave of doing the unthinkable when he defeated the Rock and Stone Cold on the same night at Vengeance. This meant he was the first man to unify the then WCW title with the WWE title to become the first ever Undisputed Champions.
The Rock and Y2J are another classic example of a pairing that just clicked really well and this was a great back and forth contest with plenty of false finishes. Lots of people felt the Jericho experiment had failed and that The Rock would get the title back at the main event of Mania, but it was not to be as Y2J hit a low blow and a pin with his feet on the ropes in typical heel fashion, to leave with the belts intact.
#4 Bret Hart vs Diesel - 1995
Sometimes matches are not all about big spots and false finishes and just great because of the technical display by one or both of the competitors.
This match told the story of a heel Bret Hart, going up against the still unproven champion, Diesel, in a matchup that had been brewing for months. Hart was always able to get the best out of his rivals and this was the same with Diesel who was not exactly known for putting on match of the year worthy matches.
In this one, it showed the technician that Hart was, working the legs of the babyface champion, and slowly breaking him down systematically.
Sometimes the creative team book themselves into a stalemate and this was an occasion where so close to Mania neither Superstar could really afford the loss, so just when the resilient champion looked to make his comeback, Owen Hart and Shawn Michaels joined the fray and led this match to a no contest.
Regardless, these men put on a masterpiece and Diesel surpassed all expectations for his best match to date, and possibly of all time!
#3 John Cena Vs Umaga (Last Man Standing) - 2007
John Cena was in the prime of his career but had still not put on a real show-stealing matchup. All of that changed against an opponent you may not have expected to put on such a classic.
With the amount of blood that Cena shed for the company that night, it was amazing that he was able to leave the arena on his own feet, especially after the beating he endured at the hands of the Samoan Bulldozer.
Umaga was just finding his feet as the company's biggest monster heel and this match was a hard-hitting affair which did not disappoint. Both men chucked their best shots at each other and both kept on reaching their feet before the count of 10.
In the end, we were left with the epic image of Cena removing the ring rope and wrapping it around the neck of the Samoan and choking him unconscious to put his opponent down for the 10 count.
This match worked wonders for both men. Cena left as the ever-resilient champion that would later be known to overcome the greatest odds, while Umaga was now the monster heel that pushed the champion to his absolute limit.
#2 1992 Royal Rumble Match
In my opinion, the first few Rumble Battle Royals did not really live up to expectations and were a bit of a cluttered mess. This one was the first to realise the full potential of the event by combining multiple stories into one epic matchup.
The rivalry between Hulk Hogan and Sid Vicious as well as Randy Savage and Jake Roberts dominated the majority of the match as the two sets of rivals battled it out for supremacy but the real story to be told was that of a heel Ric Flair who had entered at No. 3, vowing to overcome the odds and become the WWE champion.
The ending would come when Sid dumped Hogan to the outside eliminating him from the match. Hogan would then grab Sid by the arm and attempt to pull him out when Flair capitalised and dumped the bigger man out on to the floor, therefore, winning the WWE championship.
This was a real who's who of Superstars of that era and no one can forget the epic and impassioned promo from Ric Flair where he proclaimed the Royal Rumble 1992 'The greatest night of his life'
I think he meant it!
#1 Cactus Jack vs Triple H (Street Fight)
Is it just me or is there not enough Last Man Standing matches in the modern era?
This, in my opinion, is the undisputed best title match in Royal Rumble history and would probably be in my 'Top 5 of all time list'
Leading up to the Royal Rumble, Triple H and his wife Stephanie had been terrorising the popular babyface Mankind, week after week, drumming into his head that he would never have a chance in hell of winning the WWE championship from The Game.
After weeks of beat-downs, Mick Foley re-emerged as the hardcore legend, the unhinged Cactus Jack, who was known for the damage he had caused opponents in gimmick match across the globe.
With a new found psychotic glare in his eye, Cactus Jack met HHH in a no holds barred street fight where these men hurled everything but the kitchen sink at each other. Although if Jack had pulled a sink out from under the ring I would not have been surprised!
Both men were merciless in their use of chairs, barbed wire bats and more until eventually, Cactus Jack introduced the thumbtacks that would be his own undoing.
Cactus kicked out of everything Triple H chucked at him, as did Triple H, until the end when the latter did the unthinkable and Pedigreed Cactus head first into the thumbtacks for the three count. The Game had to be helped backstage by his wife, while Cactus was eventually able to leave on his own merits.
The Game put down Cactus by any means necessary and Cactus became a bigger star than he ever was after the best showing of his storied career under any of his guises.
The Rumble has a habit of putting on epic title matches even though the title rarely changes hands, will it be same this year?
Sound off below and please check out my other article ranking possible challengers for the WWE title at this year's event!
What makes Sting special? His first AEW opponent opens up RIGHT HERE.
