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The Royal Rumble might be the greatest concept in wrestling, with the simple idea of 30 Superstars entering the ring one after the other at staggered intervals. It has birthed several memorable moments and made countless stars in WWE.
And with so much action going on in the ring most of the time, it is natural that something might go wrong. There have been several unplanned moments that occurred during the Royal Rumble, some of which were detrimental to the flow or the outcome of the match.
Accidental eliminations make up the bulk of this list, but that is not all. Quite a few things went wrong at the Rumble, with WWE either addressing it or scrambling to work around it depending on the severity of the botch. Here are the five most infamous botches in the history of the Royal Rumble Match.
#5 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin gets eliminated early (WWE Royal Rumble 1996)
The most accomplished competitor in Royal Rumble history is 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin, who has won the match three times. He was also the Iron Man of two other Rumbles. However, his first appearance in the match was not one that will be remembered as all of his others.
Austin was set to be a part of the 'Final Four' of the 1996 Royal Rumble Match, but he was prematurely eliminated. A while before his planned elimination spot, The Rattlesnake was dumped out of the ring. He was clotheslined over the top rope by Fatu but wasn't able to hang on.
While discussing this botch, Austin said that the ropes were very slippery because of everybody wearing baby oil back then. He also mentioned how he needed to get the attention of Shawn Michaels, who then had to figure out to work around the elimination. Luckily for Austin, his WWE career only went uphill from that point.
That being said, 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin was involved in another Royal Rumble botch one year later. There were some issues with the countdown clock at the start of the 1997 Rumble Match, with him entering at number 5 without any prior indication.
#4 The other Titus O'Neil moment (WWE Royal Rumble 2015)
No, this isn't the one you were thinking about. This list is only focusing on in-ring botches during Royal Rumble matches. Titus O'Neil's tumble at the Greatest Royal Rumble does not count in that respect, but this moment does.
His elimination from the match in 2015 isn't much talked about, possibly because of what happened three years later. It may be the fact that there was already a lot wrong with the 2015 Royal Rumble Match. O'Neil was likely tasked with matching the record for the shortest time in a Royal Rumble - a near-impossible feat.
The former WWE Tag Team Champion was supposed to be immediately clotheslined out of the ring by Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose but he did not go over the top rope in time. O'Neil then promptly jumped over by himself and ended his Rumble stay at four seconds.
There were timing issues in that spot, which had to be exactly on the mark. But much like most of the 2015 Royal Rumble Match, it did not come off as well as hoped. A series of booking mishaps in that match culminated in Roman Reigns and The Rock being booed out of the building.
#3 Alex Riley slips off the apron (WWE Royal Rumble 2011)
The 2011 Royal Rumble Match was the first and only one to feature 40 Superstars, with several big moments being planned. CM Punk enjoyed a period of domination along with The New Nexus, while Booker T and Diesel were the surprise entrants. However, one of the biggest moments of the match nearly belonged to Alex Riley.
The Miz's sidekick was apparently supposed to eliminate John Cena from the Rumble, following his entrance at number 34. However, before that could happen, Riley slipped off the apron during a regular two-on-one spot in the corner of the ring. Cena, who was involved in the botch, was left bewildered.
As a result, WWE changed up that significant part of the booking. As the WWE Champion at the time, The Miz had come out for commentary when A-Ry entered the Royal Rumble. The new plan saw The Miz eliminate Cena after a distraction from an already eliminated Riley.
Despite a promising start and an appearance in the main event of WrestleMania 27 between The Miz and John Cena, Alex Riley's WWE career would not pan out as expected.
#2 The Rock's feet touch the floor (WWE Royal Rumble 2000)
The 2000 Royal Rumble Match was won by The Rock, who was the most popular WWE Superstar at the time. However, the manner in which he won was pretty controversial. The Rock and The Big Show both went over the top rope at the end of the match, with The Great One's feet touching the floor first.
It was for a solitary moment, but the botch did occur. However, WWE ignored it on the night as The Rock celebrated his Royal Rumble victory. It did get turned into a storyline, which saw Big Show claim that he was the actual winner of the match. His complaints were truly legitimate.
As a result, the giant Superstar defeated The Rock to be added to the main event of WrestleMania 2000. With Mick Foley being back in the fold as well, Triple H was forced to defend his WWE Championship in a four-way at the Show of Shows. And to spice things up, there was 'a McMahon in every corner'.
This might be the biggest botch in Royal Rumble history, which could have forced WWE's hand to crown The Big Show as the winner of the Rumble in 2000. However, there is one more moment more infamous than this.
#1 John Cena and Batista eliminate each other (WWE Royal Rumble 2005)
There it is. The most infamous botch in Royal Rumble history. John Cena and Batista were the final two in the 2005 edition of the January classic, with The Animal set to go over and win the Rumble match. However, in an unprecedented moment, both Batista and Cena eliminated each other.
They fell to the floor at the exact same time, which is even more astonishing considering it was not planned at all, unlike in 1994. A furious Vince McMahon stormed to the ring, while RAW and SmackDown referees improvised and 'declared' their brand's respective Superstar the winner.
McMahon accidentally tore both of his quads while entering the ring to deal with the situation, rendering him unable to get up. The Chairman, seated in the ring, screamed orders for the match to restart. Batista then promptly eliminated Cena to finally win the Royal Rumble Match.
Seeing a visibly upset Vince McMahon sitting in the ring with two torn quads and trying to work out an alternative finish for the biggest WWE match of the year, live on pay-per-view, has to be up there as one of the most surreal moments in WWE history, let alone the Royal Rumble.
