The Royal Rumble is an annual professional wrestling event put on by World Wrestling Entertainment. The evening includes a series of matches, culminating with the 30-man Royal Rumble battle royal at the end of the show. The first Royal Rumble was held in 1988, and it has been one of the company's main pay-per-views each year since.
Premise
The premise of the Royal Rumble match is that two wrestlers begin the match, with another competitor stepping into the ring every two minutes until 30 have entered. Contestants are eliminated by being thrown over the top rope so both feet touch the ground below. The last man in the ring -- the winner -- earns a match for the WWE title at Wrestlemania.
The First Rumble
The first Royal Rumble was held in Hamilton, Ontario, on January 24, 1988. "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan won the main event in 33 minutes. Other participants in that first Rumble included Bret Hart, the Ultimate Warrior, Tito Santana, Jake Roberts, Junkyard Dog and Dino Bravo. World Wrestling Entertainment, formerly World Wrestling Federation, owner Vince McMahon created the Royal Rumble. The first Rumble in Hamilton was aired on free television to compete with a pay-per-view put on by a rival company, notes the Wrestling 101 website.
Interesting Facts
With so many years running, the Royal Rumble has produced many memorable moments. The shortest time anyone had spent in the Rumble before being eliminated was Santino Marella at 1.9 seconds in the 2009 Rumble. The longest was Rey Mysterio at just over 62 minutes in 2006, says WWE.com. The shortest time a wrestler spent in the event while going on to win was "Stone Cold" Steve Austin in 2001, at nine minutes. The entry number that went on to win the Rumble the most times is entry number 27. Four wrestlers have won after being the 27th man to enter the ring.
Memorable Winners
Hulk Hogan became the first person to win the Rumble back to back, defeating all comers in 1990 and 1991. Shawn Michaels also won two times in a row, in 1995 and 1996, as did "Stone Cold" Steve Austin in 1997 and 1998. Austin won again in 2001, making him the only three-time winner. In 1995, Shawn Michaels entered the match as the first contestant and outlasted everyone to win; Chris Benoit repeated the feat in 2004.
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