5 curious facts and stats you probably never knew about the Royal Rumble

WWE Royal Rumble comes at us on Sunday night, January 26 from Houston, Texas, and kicks off The Road to WrestleMania.

The January spectacular starts one of the biggest periods in the WWE year, and it's also typically the time of year fans, commentators, and pundits alike combine to throw out all kinds of impressive stats about the Rumble.

You know the kind; Who has eliminated the most Superstars? Who holds the record for the shortest time in the match? Is it still Bushwhacker Luke? Maybe it was Butch? Wait, Maybe it's Santino? You know the score.

But that's not the extent of the Royal Rumble 'stat pack' - generally lasting an hour or so, the match is typically the longest in any given year, so its statistical stories are aplenty.

With that in mind, and with the 2020 installment of the Rumble now just hours away, I've delved into some of the lesser-known & more obscure facts relating to Royal Rumble history.

You guessed it - here's your Royal Rumble Useless Trivia!

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#1 Easy work?

Mr. McMahon celebrates winning the 1999 Royal Rumble having eliminated just one man in almost an hour

The Rumble match, so big, so fast and so jam-packed full of WWE talent, is often known as the ultimate endurance test for a Superstar.

Often, the winner has had to go through some almighty pain and punishment to taste victory at the end of the night - but that hasn't always been the case. In fact, on two occasions, wrestlers have won the Royal Rumble match by eliminating just one competitor!

In 1999, Vince McMahon famously won the Rumble match by eliminating only his arch-rival, Stone Cold Steve Austin. In 2017, Randy Orton's victory in the match was by similar circumstances after he ousted only Roman Reigns to secure victory.

Interestingly, both men spent considerable time as active in each bout. McMahon spent nearly 57 minutes in his winning Rumble (but spent most of it outside the ring), while Orton clocked up 20-plus minutes on his way to earning a WWE Title match at WrestleMania.

#2 Dave's Groundhog Day

Dave Batista

Dave Batista was comfortably one of the biggest stars of the 2000s and 2010s in WWE, making a huge name for himself in the squared circle before going on to do huge things in Hollywood.

However, he has some interesting history in the Royal Rumble match. He is one of six men to have twice won the mass brawl, clinching victory in 2005 and 2014. The 'interesting' fact here? He won both matches from the number 28 entrant's spot.

Batista worked long and hard through the night in another Rumble match, becoming the Iron Man of 2008's affair with 37 minutes under his belt before, ultimately, being eliminated. He started much earlier that night, coming in at number eight before being toppled by Triple H. John Cena would go on to win that evening's Rumble.

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#3 Not so unlucky, Hacksaw

The first televised Royal Rumble match was won by Hacksaw Jim Duggan

Back in 1988, the very first Royal Rumble match to be presented as such was won by Hacksaw Jim Duggan.

While so much of the Rumble and winning it involves luck and a little bit of fortune, the maiden Rumble saw its winner reject one of the world's biggest superstitions. Did you know Hacksaw entered the match at number 13 that night?

So often a cursed number in many walks of life, it's occasionally yielded massive rewards in the Rumble - not least the first time out. Some would say he had it easier than some subsequent winners as that Rumble match only featured 20 competitors, compared to the traditional 30, but Duggan isn't likely to be too worried about that.

#4 The ladies keep it late

Asuka made history by winning the first-ever women's Royal Rumble in 2018

When including stats and facts about the Women's Royal Rumble match, it is important to keep in mind that the bout itself is relatively new as only two of such encounters have ever taken place.

In that short space of time, however, there are a couple of things you may not know - both winners of the Rumble have entered the match late, meaning there has been little reward for those who put in some real-time at the office.

Natalya, for instance, has nothing to show for the fact that, across both the 2018 and 2019 Rumbles, she's clocked up a total of one hour, 21 minutes in the ring. That's tough going.

Indeed, the two winners of the women's Rumble matches have rocked up late - Asuka entered at number 25 for her victory two years ago, while Becky Lynch strolled down to ringside at number 28. Good work if you can get it!

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#5 Nineteen times for Glenn

The Big Red Machine

We all know about the Iron Men and Women, and who has done the biggest and baddest things at the Rumble. But, can you name the man who has the distinction of simply having shown up the most? Don't worry, I can help.

None other than Glenn Jacobs, aka Kane, is the man who has featured in the Royal Rumble the most, at 19. The Mayor of Knox County these days, he was a regular face in the Rumble when he was performing for WWE full time, so much so that nobody entered more Rumbles than him.

The one caveat is that you have to count the times he appeared as Fake Diesel and Issac Yankem, too. But who wouldn't count them, right? Thanks to the fantastic Smarkout Moment for their superb analysis of past Royal Rumbles, which has played a big part in bringing you some of the above useless trivia!