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The 2019 Royal Rumble is right around the corner and the build-up for the first pay-per-view of the year has already started. This past week on TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs, we were introduced to the no. 1 contender for the Universal Title. In addition to that, no. 30 entrants in both Men's and Women's Royal Rumble matches were also determined. A Top Superstar also announced his entry while the next week's edition of Raw was being taped. However, the name will not be mentioned here to prevent any spoilers.
Royal Rumble is one of the "Big 4" pay-per-views and has been around since 1988. The best thing about the event has got to be the namesake match. It consists of 30 Superstars trying to throw each other over the top rope in order to earn a World Title shot at Wrestlemania.
During the match, we get our first look at countless upcoming feuds. In addition to that, anticipating the return of legends as surprise entrants always makes for an amazing time.
As discussed before, the winner receives a World Title shot at Wrestlemania. Due to this, well-established Superstars end up winning the match most of the time. However, there have been some exceptions in the past. Although it is uncommon, there are a number of Superstars who have won the Royal Rumble match in their first attempt.
So without any further ado, here are 5 Superstars who ended up winning their Royal Rumble match debut.
#5 Alberto Del Rio (2011)
2011 was the year of Alberto Del Rio. Not only did he win the Rumble that year, but also ended up winning the Money in the Bank Ladder match and two World Championships.
What makes it even more interesting is the fact that Del Rio made his main-roster debut in the summer of 2010. So, WWE should have really seen something special in him before giving :"The Pride of Mexico" a monster push the following year,
2011's Royal Rumble match was the biggest Royal Rumble match (until 2018). It was the first-ever 40-man Royal Rumble match and marked the WWE returns of Booker T and Kevin Nash (Diesel).
Having Del Rio win a match of such a large magnitude in his first attempt was a clear sign that he was on his way to the top of the mountain. Del RIo then went on to face Edge at Wrestlemania 27 for the World Heavyweight Championship in the latter's final match.
#4 Chris Benoit (2004)
Although his achievements don't get acknowledgement from WWE because of what happened, they can't be ignored. Chris Benoit was one of the best technical wrestlers of his time. Before arriving in WWE, Benoit tried his luck in WCW and ECW too. His feuds and matches with the likes of Edge, Chris Jericho, Triple H etc. made the shows he was on must-see.
Although Benoit made his WWE debut in 2000, it wasn't until 2004 when he entered the Royal Rumble match. The Canadian Crippler entered the Royal Rumble match in 2004 as the first entrant and outlasted all 29 Superstars to secure his spot in the Wrestlemania main-event. Benoit is one of the two Superstars (other being Shawn Michaels) to have won the match from the no. 1 spot.
Benoit then went on to win the World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestlemania 20, in a classic triple threat match. It's sad what happened with Chris Benoit and how all of his achievements seem to be non-existent now. His contributions to the wrestling industry for over 20 years are noteworthy.
#3 Shinsuke Nakamura (2018)
One of the most talked about signings of 2016, apart from AJ Styles, was Shinsuke Nakamura. The King of Strong Style, unlike The Phenomenal One, didn't arrive on the main roster directly. He was sent to NXT first, where he became a 2-time NXT World Champion. He was called up to the main roster right after Wrestlemania 33.
This year, Nakamura made his Royal Rumble match debut and last eliminated Roman Reigns to win the match. It looked like WWE was quite high on him. I mean, who gets to eliminate John Cena and Roman Reigns in the same match (other than Seth Rollins)?
However, things went downhill for Nakamura after he unsuccessfully challenged AJ Styles for the WWE title at Wrestlemania 34. It looked like creative dropped the ball on Nakamura. After unsuccessfully challenging for the WWE title on several different occasions, Nakamura turned his attention to the US title. Nonetheless, Nakamura still remains as the only male Superstar to have won his debut Royal Rumble match in the last 7 years.
#2 Brock Lesnar (2003)
It shouldn't come as a surprise that The Beast Incarnate is on this list. Lesnar was given a monster push right after he made his main roster debut in 2002. He remained unpinned for nearly 8 months.
During that period, he won the King of the Ring tournament, and defeated top Superstars such as The Undertaker, The Rock, Hulk Hogan etc. Defeating The Rock won Lesnar his first WWE Championship.
It didn't take a genius to figure out the winner of the 2003 Royal Rumble match heading into the namesake event. It was of course going to be Brock Lesnar, considering the successful 2002 he had. Lesnar ended up winning the match by last eliminating The Undertaker. Lesnar then went on to face Kurt Angle for the WWE Championship at Wrestlemania 19. What's even more interesting is the fact that he also became one of the few Superstars to main event Wrestlemania in their first appearance at the "Show of Shows".
#1 Vince McMahon (1999)
This happened while the famous Austin/McMahon rivalry was at its peak. Stone Cold won two back to back Rumbles in 1997 and 1998. Vince McMahon wanted to prevent Austin from winning his third consecutive Rumble match (story-line).
He tried to prevent Austin from entering the match. When that failed, he tried to sabotage his chances of winning the match by announcing The Texas Rattlesnake as the first entrant.
Vince McMahon then inserted himself into the match and after his chances of entering at no. 30 were ruined twice, he was made the no. 2 entrant by then-commissioner Shawn Michaels.
McMahon started training as a competitor. He also offered the man who eliminated Austin from the match a $100,000 bounty. Although McMahon hid under the ring during the entire match (almost), he ended up winning by last eliminating Austin while the latter was being distracted by The Rock.
Thus, Vince McMahon is also among the few Superstars to have won the Rumble in their first attempt.
