Who Should Have Won…EVERY Royal Rumble?
Hi, I’m Scotty Flamingo. You might remember me from such BoD’s as “I Dream of Wrestling”. Last year, I sent in a rather lengthy tribute to Wrestlemania where I speculated what every main event should be. For my next trick, I decided to try to do it with every Royal Rumble winner. You are encouraged to play at home.
(Scott sez: I accept the challenge, because I don’t really feel like watching RAW anyway and this is more fun.)
Royal Rumble (1988)
Who won? “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan
Who should’ve won? I don’t think the WWF had any idea what the event was going to become. Just looking at the participants, it seems like it was just a nice midcard gimmick match to draw interest. In fact, the event wasn’t a PPV and was more to set up the events leading to Wrestlemania IV. It seems incredibly odd to me that Randy Savage wasn’t even in the match. Especially given that he was about to become “The Man”.
Hindsight being 20/20 and all, the first Rumble should have had a better winner. I love Hacksaw as much as the next guy, but they needed a top name to sell the importance of the match. One idea would have been to have Andre win it since the show was setting up the SNME rematch with Hogan and that Andre was often billed as the king of the battle royale. However, a heel winning the first Rumble would have not set well with the crowd (especially back then) . I think Savage was the guy that should’ve won.
(Scott sez: Give ‘em a pass on this one, as they didn’t know it would become what it would become. Duggan, Race, Bad News, JYD…any of those level guys were fine to win it.)
Royal Rumble (1989)
Who won? Big John Studd
Who should’ve won? I am taking these one by one, in order. I’m worried some of these are gonna be tough, but this one is a no brainer. Mr. Perfect. What better way to keep that gimmick rolling? Studd was never more than a poor man’s Andre anyway.
(Scott sez: Hey, he had $15,000 per bodyslam to pay out! That’s hardly poor. I don’t agree 100% with your detective work on the Perfect thing there, Lou. Perfect was barely midcard at that point. I think THIS is where you put Macho Man over, tossing out Hogan to win while Hulk is distracted by Slick macking on Elizabeth or something.)
Royal Rumble (1990)
Who won? Hogan
Who should’ve won? Hogan. I agree with this one. Hogan was still the top guy and if the Rumble was going to be something worth winning, he needed to win one. Also, Perfect was #30 it would‘ve been some good drama to have my 1989 winner against Hogan at the end. Not to mention this was the beginning of the road to Wrestlemania VI and Hogan needed to be strong as World Champion.
(Scott sez: Motherfucking Ultimate Warrior.)
Royal Rumble (1991)
Who won? Hogan
Who should’ve won? I was already getting tired of Hogan by this point, even as a kid. Also, winning the Rumble twice is enough of a stretch but back-to-back?? This was a bad time in booking for the WWF as they were setting up the horrible Slaughter feud. Unfortunately, I don’t see much of an alternative. If you went for Hogan Vs Warrior II instead of Hogan Vs Slaughter at WM7, Hogan will still need to win the Rumble. The other option would be to stick with what happened and have either Savage or Warrior win the Rumble to set up that match at Mania. Since Warrior was defending the belt, that leaves Savage and yes, that would make Savage a two time winner, but at least it wasn’t consecutive.
(Scott sez: I actually agreed with Hogan winning this one. The Slaughter win was such a kick in the nuts that you needed something to send the fans home happy, and it set up Hogan up as the challenger for WM.)
Royal Rumble (1992)
Who won? Ric Flair
Who should’ve won? You will touch nothing. The perfect Rumble match.
(Scott sez: Duh.)
Royal Rumble (1993)
Who won? Yokozuna
Who should’ve won? Another dead period for the WWF as we are leading up to the horrible Wrestlemania IX. Other than his size, there was nothing about Yoko that made me feel like he was a big deal. He just seemed like an overpushed midcarder. I think I’d go one of two ways. The first would be to give Lex Luger a megapush and have him win and face Bret at Mania. The other idea would be The Undertaker as he was becoming a very popular act by then. Luger had that whole WBF run and I can’t remember if that was because of injury or Vince shying away from muscular guys with the steroid stuff still floating around. Screw it, I’ll stick with Luger.
(Scott sez: Luger wasn’t even in the promotion at that time, dude. In fact I’m not even sure he was cleared to wrestle given contractual issues and the motorcycle injuries. As others have noted in the past, this should have been Savage’s miracle win so he could challenge Bret at Wrestlemania.)
Royal Rumble (1994)
Who won? Co-winners: Lex Luger and Bret Hart
Who should’ve won? I never liked the mini-tourney for Mania X, so I’d just give Bret the win. The Bret Vs Owen match was their best storyline anyway and you’d have Bret winning the Rumble but losing in the tag match with Owen to further it.
(Scott sez: Co-winners was the worst thing ever. Bret goes over, end of story.)
Royal Rumble (1995)
Who won? Shawn Michaels
Who should’ve won? Shawn was a good choice, but then we get a consecutive Rumble winner in 1996 and I hate that. Let’s go with Diesel.
(Scott sez: Yeah, but the winner getting the title shot was a thing by this point, so Diesel wouldn’t have been in the match. Shawn was the right call.)
Royal Rumble (1996)
Who won? Shawn Michaels
Who should’ve won? Shawn Michaels. This was when Shawn should have gone over.
(Scott sez: Yup.)
Royal Rumble (1997)
Who won? Steve Austin
Who should’ve won? Is there any other choice?
(Scott sez: Austin wasn’t the big deal he would become, though. Either Bret or Austin would have been fine.)
Royal Rumble (1998)
Who won? Steve Austin
Who should’ve won? Aw crap. Consecutive winner. Screw it, Austin was that over.
(Scott sez: Any opinion other than Austin is objectively stupid.)
Royal Rumble (1999)
Who won? Vince McMahon
Who should’ve won? No Chance in Hell Vince should have won the Rumble regardless of the overbooking. Austin was runner up, but even I don’t love Austin enough to give him 3 Rumbles running. The Rock was the way to go here.
(Scott sez: Rock was already the champ. Three in a row for Austin because MONEY.)
Royal Rumble (2000)
Who won? The Rock
Who should’ve won? The Rock. And yes I know I am pissing all over my “no consecutive winner” rule, but I like Austin and Rock a helluva lot better than Hogan and HBK, so sue me.
(Scott sez: This was indeed the Rock’s time.)
Royal Rumble (2001)
Who won? Steve Austin
Who should’ve won? This is where it gets tricky. Austin Vs Rock at Wrestlemania X-7 was obviously the way to go, but both guys have already won two Rumbles in my alternate universe. I think that Kurt Angle should have won and insisted on getting his shot at No Way Out the next month, then have Austin win a match to be #1 contender. No a great scenario, but that’s what I’m going with.
(Scott sez: Rock again. Or Austin. Can’t lose either way.)
Royal Rumble (2002)
Who won? Triple H
Who should’ve won? Triple H. I was at this Rumble and he was mega-over. I am far from a fan, but this was his time. He was hot coming back from injury.
(Scott sez: Yup.)
Royal Rumble (2003)
Who won? Brock Lesnar
Who should’ve won? No problem with this.
(Scott sez: Yup.)
Royal Rumble (2004)
Who won? Chris Benoit
Who should’ve won? I could sit here and sugar coat this with hindsight and say someone else should have won, but at the time it was a huge moment and the horrible events that ended Benoit’s life don’t change that.
(Scott sez: Still one of the highlights of my fandom.)
Royal Rumble (2005)
Who won? Batista
Who should’ve won? The company was really picking the right guys to win these things. This was another smart move by them. They had basically penciled in Orton Vs HHH as the main event of Wrestlemania but the fans were far more supportive of The Animal, so the changed plans. Nowadays Batista would been fired while begging for his job on RAW only to be brainwashed by a cult and led out of the ring with his head hanging down.
(Scott sez: I see what you did there. Either Batista or Cena would have been fine here.)
Royal Rumble (2006)
Who won? Rey Mysterio
Who should’ve won? Now we get to the period where I stopped watching nearly as much. Doing my research, the aftermath of this was a big convoluted mess, so really anyone could have won. But looking at the participants, nobody really stands out. Rey was as deserving as anyone. That’s 5 straight years I agree with their booking!
(Scott sez: Rey on top was a disaster. This should have been Edge retaining the title over someone else at the Rumble, and then Cena winning the Rumble and regaining the belt at WM.)
Royal Rumble (2007)
Who won? The Undertaker
Who should’ve won? Make that 6 years. Taker totally deserved to win a Rumble by this point in his career and it was also high time a #30 won it.
(Scott sez: No problem with it here.)
Royal Rumble (2008)
Who won? John Cena
Who should’ve won? 7 in a row. Cena returning early and winning was a great wrestling moment.
(Scott sez: Returning early was huge, but he didn’t need to win, especially since he blew the title shot against Orton anyway. I’d go with Jeff Hardy and put him over at WM.)
Royal Rumble (2009)
Who won? Randy Orton
Who should’ve won? I really wanna pick someone different, but Orton was really clicking here. He was the heel that fans were starting to get behind by beating up the McMahons. Of course the booking after this neutered him by doing things like having Shane McMahon beat up the entire Legacy but whatever.
(Scott sez: I barely remember this period. I’m sure Orton was fine.)
Royal Rumble (2010)
Who won? Edge
Who should’ve won? This is where the Streak was becoming more important than the belts, so I think Michaels should have won used his shot to challenge the Undertaker.
(Scott sez: People were losing their shit when Shawn got eliminated after fighting so long and so hard. He could have won easily.)
Royal Rumble (2011)
Who won? Alberto Del Rio
Who should’ve won? CM Punk. 2011 should have been all CM Punk all the time. But logic be damned we needed that Latino demo!
(Scott sez: Yeah, in hindsight this was a really misplaced win, especially given how meaningless his title shot ended up being and because they hit the reset button and gave him the briefcase anyway. That being said, too early for Punk because he wasn’t a big deal until June anyway. This was, what, Miz v. Cena at Wrestlemania? What a shitshow all around. Was Jericho around at that point? Maybe give it to him for the hell of it.)
Royal Rumble (2012)
Who won? Sheamus
Who should’ve won? I’m torn on this one. At the time I totally called the winner of the match and everyone thought I was crazy, but Sheamus was a “HHH Guy” and the face turn was getting his some good fan reactions. At the time, everyone thought Jericho was a lock to win and go on to take on Punk at Mania. That feud was not as good as it should have been. Still I’ll go with Jericho as the winner since Sheamus went on turn into Cena Jr. smiling all the time and making a joke out of everything.
(Scott sez: Yeah, Sheamus didn’t do much with the win. Should’ve been Jericho or Dolph Ziggler on the outside.)
Royal Rumble (2013)
Who won? John Cena
Who should’ve won? Cena Vs Rock II was set in stone, but I really think they should have had Rock end Punk’s reign at Mania instead. It was just the hotter match. So I’ll say Rock should have been in the Rumble and won instead of beating Punk.
(Scott sez: I would have had Ziggler win the Rumble while still holding the briefcase and thus given him two shots at the belt.)
And there you have it. 26 Rumbles, 26 winners. This was harder to come up with than the Mania Main Events, but it was still fun in an obsessive wresting fan sort of way. I got kinda lazy during that 2004-2010 period because the shows weren’t doing much for me. This year should be interesting as we are back to an Undisputed Champion and that should make things more predictable But just for fun, let’s do 2014.
Royal Rumble (2014)
Who should win? This has been Daniel Bryan’s year. I mean, not even Punk is getting the connection with the fans that D-Bry is getting right now.
Who will win? What is the rumored Wrestlemania card THIS week? With Lesnar wanting the belt it seems like they are gonna do Cena Vs Lesnar II for Elimination Chamber. If Lesnar wins, I think there is a chance Bryan gets the Rumble win and the shot at Lesnar. I also wouldn’t rule out Roman Reigns as a surprise win. Meltzer said he’s getting a push sooner than you think and the seeds have already been planted for a Shield breakup. I really don’t know, and for the Rumble, that’s a good thing.
(Scott sez: I have no idea how they’re gonna get to WM and I’m finding it hard to care at this point. )
Quite a few possible winners this year - Punk, Bryan, Lesnar, Batista, maybe even Wyatt? At least we know that there's no chance we're getting Orton/Cena as the WM main. Well, maybe there's a small chance.
ReplyDeleteIt might just be me, but I think Rick Martel has one of the most underappreciated Rumble performances of all-time in 1991. He sets the iron man mark at the time and the crowd was going nuts for anyone who nearly eliminated him. I'm not saying that he should've gone over, but it was his last "big time" highlight in the company until he made the finals of the 1993 IC title tournament against Razor Ramon.
ReplyDeleteYep, I have a feeling that when they get down to the final 5-6, with all legit potential winners, it will be mark out city. I don't care who wins, as long as the match is entertaining.
ReplyDeleteShawn should have won in 2010 but the shock value of Edge's return went over logic.
ReplyDeleteStill damn near a five-star Rumble.
Scott sez: Luger wasn’t even in the promotion at that time, dude.
ReplyDeleteI might be mistaken, but didn't Bobby Heenan unveil Luger as The Narcissist at Royal Rumble 93?
Luger came back at Wrestlemania VIII so he was there, not sure when he became the Narcissist.
ReplyDeleteYeah, but that was just him debuting as a character. No way should he have won the Rumble, and I'm not even 100% sure he was healthy at that point. When was the accident?
ReplyDeleteI don't get when people fantasy book Savage-Bret for WM9. Bret/Savage was such a big match that I would have saved that for WM10, plus with WM being 10 years old, it would have been a perfect moment to do the passing of the torch thing.
ReplyDeleteFor WM9 I would have done Bret/Perfect as Perfect was arguably the most over guy in the company at that point, plus doing a Bret/Perfect match would have been a perfect showcase match of what the new generation was all about.
(Scott sez: Returning early was huge, but he didn’t need to win, especially since he blew the title shot against Orton anyway. I’d go with Jeff Hardy and put him over at WM.)
ReplyDeleteJeff Hardy got wellnessed right after the Rumble and was not even on the card as a result at Mania. He would've been an awful choice to win the Rumble.
Also if Cena is returning during the match, he has to win or else his comeback is instantly flat.
I think Martel's run was definitely appreciated... but the following year Flair eclipsed it AND won, and then the year after that Backlund eclipsed it further AND also nearly won.
ReplyDeleteShawn should not have won in 2010. That goes against the whole story of the feud.
ReplyDeleteI remember being 9 & expecting Perfect to win the Rumble/Bret vs Perfect at mania!
ReplyDeleteAh I dream Wrestling, fun thread...
ReplyDeleteNaah, I think his losing just added to the drama. Then he had to go to 1 more level of desperation by costing Taker the title in the Chamber. It was perfect.
ReplyDeleteNah Edge winning was perfect; with that rumble win he's got the most impressive resume
ReplyDeleteLuger was only shown at WM8 to promote the whole WBF thing.
ReplyDelete2 reasons for WM 9.
ReplyDelete1- Bret was still relatively new as champ (mostly just beating mid-carders), so beating a 2 time champ like Savage would have given him major credibility.
2- Savage was just 4-5 months off from his 2nd world title, so he was still seen as main event caliber. By WM 10, he was mostly a part time announcer. (Still a possible champ, but not as much as the previous year)
You make some good points, but they still could have reworked it. Say Bret keeps the title past WM9, then later on in the year Savage teases retirement, but then turns heel and ends up beating Bret for the title at Survivor Series, then Bret goes on to win the '94 Rumble and challenges Savage at WMX and the big gimmick to the match would be Roddy Piper officiating as you can build some intrigue whether or not Piper would call the match down the middle or be biased because Bret beat him and Piper feels loyal towards Savage because they're both part of the old guard.
ReplyDelete1988: How many times would a guy like Duggan be World Champion in today's environment. He's like Sheamus today. During his proper run, he never held a belt (did he ever get a shot at the WWF Championship?) but he was still a house show main eventer (he did programs with Andre and Earthquake when Hogan wasn't around, right?) This is Duggan's one big accolade and he deserves it.
ReplyDelete1989: The Rumble wasn't established as a big deal, so I have no probelm with Studd winning.
1994: The problem without having the co-winners is, what do you do with Luger? He needed to have his blowoff with Yokozuna, and Bret needed to kick-start his feud with Owen, so while it would have been nice for Bret to win outright, the tie and the mini-tournaments were almost necessary for where they wanted to go.
1999: The apex of Vince Russo's creativity.
2005: They had already started a strong angle with Batista and HHH, so I never felt Batista needed to win that Rumble. On the other hand, they wanted to strap the rocket to Cena and he hadn't really done much up to that point, other than winning the US title from Booker T and like a one-match feud with Carlito. Cena needed the big win to challenge JBL, and they could have found another way for Batista to get the title shot against HHH.
2006: I had no problem with Rey on top. I mean, he was doing it for Eddy for god's sake. Him winning the Rumble and winning the title I don't have much of a problem with, but he did do way too many jobs along the way.
2011: CM Punk winning would have probably ruined the allure of the Summer of Punk. Del Rio winning made no sense. Cena winning is probably want should have happened.
2014: I feel like Lesnar declaring he was going after the belt means he's getting the belt -- AND SOON. And I feel like Heyman sort of "forgiving" Punk and Punk acknowledging he "lost a friend" in Heyman means that feud is coming back. DO THE MATH: Punk v. Lesnar for the big belt. Although I may be insanely optimistic.
Luger debuted as the Narcissist at the Royal Rumble. This was to start a feud with Perfect.
ReplyDeleteThe accident was around June of 92. He never made that WBF appearance.
ReplyDeleteI also expected Perfect to win that Rumble.
ReplyDeleteDidn't Duggan fight Slaughter for the WWF title in a match in early 1991?
ReplyDeleteIf Bret/Savage happens at WrestleMania IX, what do you do with Hogan and Yokozuna? Have them wrestle as a co-main event?
ReplyDeleteThis year's Rumble is pretty exciting because I haven't been watching much so I legit have no idea who's gonna win. Last year was kind of obvious, so it's a nice change of pace coming into the Rumble this year.
ReplyDeleteSure, Hogan wouldn't mean anything to the company in the long term anyway, so it would have been just fine giving Hogan the semi main event slot for the whole nostalgia thing. Of course whether or not Hogan would agree to take a backseat is another argument entirely.
ReplyDeleteI see Batista winning.
ReplyDeleteAs a kid I assumed Flair would win the Rumble and get his rematch with Bret. After Flair dropped the title he was immediately removed from contention, which seemed weird at the time.
ReplyDelete1999: Austin. Vince can then desperately challenge Austin to put his title shot on the line and their cage match goes on as planned. Instead of Vince winning.
ReplyDelete2006: I like Scott's idea of Edge defending the title(do the Mick Foley street fight here?) at the Rumble while Cena wins the Rumble.
They've done a good job of Rumble winners. Since 2000, I really only have beef with Rey Mysterio winning. Even Sheamus winning didn't bother me because that Rumble was so fun and that finishing sequence with Jericho rocked.
Heenan talked up "the Narcissist" in vignettes leading up to the Rumble. It wasn't revealed that Lex was The Narcissist until the PPV.
ReplyDeleteThat also would have worked. I never liked Yoko winning because it felt to soon for that yupe of push as Yoko was still a relative newcomer at that point and I think WM should be headlined by the two biggest stars. Yoko seemed more like a Summerslam world title challenger than a WM one.
ReplyDeleteDidn't really do anything for Edge. The Jericho feud fell flat, he turned heel like two weeks after Wrestlemania. Great that he won it but it was arguably one of the driest runs his character had in that period.
ReplyDeleteMartel's heel run is very unappreciated. He always seemed to take a back seat to Perfect and Shawn's IC title pushes. He deserved one of his own.
ReplyDeleteThis is a cool idea. Kudos to Flamingo, would appreciate a link to the WM one if anyone has it. Searched for it but couldn't find it.
ReplyDeleteAnd when Flair drew #1 I thought he'd win as well, since I was like "well he won as #3 the previous year!"
ReplyDeleteEdge was feuding with Flair at the time and although Edge/Flair had their big blowoff on Raw in the TLC match, I would have saved the big blowoff for the Rumble and I also like Scott's idea of Cena challenging Edge at WM as it seemed that's what Edge was pushing for in Jericho's podcast.
ReplyDeleteHe didn't end up doing much with it, but he was a better pick than HBK. I don't get why Jericho went over if he was just jobbing to Swagger
ReplyDeleteTried to edit my post but accidentally deleted it and didn't want to retype what I had written. You're right. I forgot Edge and Flair had their thing going. Definitely could have worked for the Rumble.
ReplyDeleteAgreed on Yoko. He had barely been around six months and had only wrestled job guys and Virgil. His win seemed rushed.
ReplyDeleteIt would have been interesting to see what Duggan would have become had he not been pinched with the Iron Shiek and the drugs in 87.
ReplyDeleteYoko was a relative newcomer at this point. It was one of the fastest rises to the top ever, I think he could have easily squashed someone in a WM 9 midcard match, to continue to be built. (Sort of like Taker Snuka at WM 7. )
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing that we vewed Hogan as a nostalgia act... TWENTY ONE YEARS AGO.
ReplyDelete2004 is still my favorite, 1992 be damned. Wouldn't change a thing about it.
ReplyDeleteI'm in the minority but I don't have huge issues with Vince winning, primarily because there were no other real "this guy has" to win candidates. I wouldn't have booked it but Vince was the top heel and it furthered the whole Austin/McMahon thing. Sure you could have had Rock win or a youngster but the McMahon/Austin thing was driving the product so why not feed it a little?
ReplyDeleteI've been watching or at least paying attention, and I have no idea who's going to win. And I love it. The Rumble is my favorite gimmick match, and nothing gets me as excited for it as when I don't know who's gonna win.
ReplyDeleteSid should have won in '92 and then Hogan could have fought off that nasty, stinky, slimy giant for the the belt at WM VIII.
ReplyDeleteMy biggest beef was 2006. Edge was so hot as champion, I agree 100% with Scott's assessment. I'm not a HHHater by any means, but Triple H shoehorning his way into Edge's spot as top heel was just ridiculous. This was also the point in which I think Cena absolutely should have been turned heel. The crowds even turned on him in the Wrestlemania match.
ReplyDeleteSid is super smelly!
ReplyDelete1992 is hands down the best. My other sleeper is 2001, the Rumble was STACKED and featured great performances by all involved.
ReplyDeleteThe TLC match was amazing.
ReplyDeleteCena should not have turned heel.
ReplyDelete92.
ReplyDeleteCm punk was the top heel in the wwe the SES and the he was majorly over with new nxt. His run at the 2010 rumble was phenomenonal. He should have won that one.
ReplyDeleteThe fans started shitting all over him and this was before the Make-A-Wish stuff. People cheered Triple H at Mania 22 it was a complete embarrassment. Business has been way down since.
ReplyDeleteI never cared much for the sheer number of almost elimination spots Martel did. At a certain point watching him hang on in ways that defy physics got old.
ReplyDeleteAs much as people talk about Austin vs. Punk, I feel that this was the time they should have done it.
ReplyDeleteComing later this week: I present to you the Top 5 January PPV Matches of All Time. Completely subjective, of course. Royal Rumble ends up being the majority focus, and who knows, maybe one or more of these Rumbles made the list.
ReplyDeleteVince winning the 1999 Rumble was fine. It was totally unexpected, and it setup for the awesome cage match between Vince and Austin for the WM shot, and Big Show made his debut to try and help Vince. The only issue I had with it was that Vince and Austin left the Rumble ring for most of the match only to come back. You shouldn't be allowed to leave the ring that long.
ReplyDeleteI found WM 22 perfect. Edge wasn't quite ready for a WM main event, and Cena was not quite cemented yet. So they got 2 legit main eventers (Foley and HHH) to put them over clean on the grandest stage, so both guys were indeed *MADE* by the time they re-started their feud in mid-2006. I was perfectly fine with it.
ReplyDeleteYes he made an appearance at RR93 as Heenan unveiled Luger as the Narcissist. I was there live and it kinda fell flat with the crowd. Having him debut in the Rumble and win it might have been a great way to go if Vince planned that kind of megapush. However with Hogan coming back and Yokozuna, I don't think Vince saw Luger as getting that kind of push. It was only after Hogan left and he needed a new all-american superstar that Luger got a bus tour and a silly countout win.
ReplyDeleteBusiness has not been way down since. Everyone who boos him would've just started cheering him again. Then what? Turn him face?
ReplyDeleteFor the 2007, he says "Make that 6 years.", what does that mean?
ReplyDelete2000 and 2001 are my favorites. The '01 Rumble was stacked and the '00 had a lot of great little things. I loved how over Rikishi was with the MSG crowd, too.
ReplyDeleteHas it been reported anywhere that Brock/Cena is the match at EC? I'd LOVE it but I don't see them changing the title at Rumble then again at EC. Also, would they have Cena lose right the ppv before mania (im working under the assumption that Brock wins the title at EC regardless of its Orton or Cena)? I'd assume Cena is going to be in the main event so would they job him at EC? I know they've done it before (Austin 3 stages of hell comes to mind). Just sayim
ReplyDeleteDBry will be the last person standing and Bray Wyatt will tell him to get out of the ring, thus getting the shot against Cena.
ReplyDelete..or not.
They had the loser-leaves-WWF match on Raw the night after the Rumble (I'm guessing taped before hand), but I was hoping for a Perfect win in 93.
ReplyDeleteYea, I did also. Liked 99 more then most also. Wasn't a huge fan of the 00 one but it definitely served it's purpose.
ReplyDeleteSo...In order of probability, who wins this year?
ReplyDeleteBatista, Punk, Bryan, Reigns? I have no idea where they're going, I'm not sure they do to either.
I don't know, that's one hell of a final four though. Possibly Wyatt or Lesnar in there as well.
ReplyDeleteEvery smarks dick gets hard for fantasy booking the Rumble finish were a guy just comes out and wins because everyone else has been eliminated.
ReplyDeleteThat's one school of thought, I think he becomes the most hated heel ever.
ReplyDelete6 years on the trot they booked the logical winner.
ReplyDelete01' gets no love.
ReplyDeleteDefinite possiblities. Having it wide open really makes for some drama
ReplyDeleteWhen Jericho was doing his troll gimmick everyone was hoping he'd come in, randomly leave, and then when everyone was eliminated he'd run out and cheerfully celebrate like he just won the world series.
ReplyDeleteNo he doesn't Fans don't like him because he's the phony white meat babyface. They will cheer him when he changes his attitude
ReplyDeletehe would have to turn heel to face Bret, which would have been awfully quick after turning face right before Survivor Series
ReplyDeleteI'll get pilloried for this, but Santino Marella should've won the 2011 Rumble. It was exactly the type of chaotic thing they never do anymore, and it was at the tail end of that short time when people bought him as a legitimate feel-good underdog.
ReplyDeleteThe crowd goes home happy, and it's easily overturned later by Del Rio complaining about the under the ring shenanigans. All ADR has to do is win a gift-wrapped 1-on-1 match for the title shot later. Instead, we got Santino prancing around like a moron and a heatless ending that was telegraphed from a mile away.
I don't like when they cheapen the Rumble though. The winner should get the title shot
ReplyDeleteThe dumb thing was that Vince relinquished his title shot on Raw, then HBK declared that it went to Austin as the runner up...which set up Austin putting the title shot on the line at SVM. If you were going to do all that, you should have had Austiin actually win the Rumble.
ReplyDeleteI see, thanks. I just skimmed through it and missed the reference.
ReplyDeleteThe original discussion was about 2006, back then a heel turn would have been on like Donkey Kong. People hate him becuase he is a dorky wigger. He is the Fred Durst of wrestling, a big time heel turn won't change this.
ReplyDeleteHas to be The Animal.
ReplyDeleteSo you anoint Cena as face of the company and then turn him heel less than a year later?
ReplyDeleteI agree. The rumble win by Vince I didn't mind but the execution was questionable at best. The follow up was easy, have Austin bait Vince into putting up his title shot at SVM.
ReplyDeleteThe stips for the cage match should have been the title shot (for an Austin win) vs. Austin's career in WWF (for a Vince win).
ReplyDeleteYes, a huge part of the crowd hated him. You turn a guy heel when that happens and move on to someone else. Cena can draw $ as a heel at that point. OR they work to change his character to get him connected to the crowd. Instead we've been stuck with his same 90's esque character for the last 10 years.
ReplyDeleteThat would have been awesome
ReplyDeleteThis character that is a big hit with the fanbase they are building around leading to record profits and tons of merchandise.
ReplyDeleteRe: 1988. "However, a heel winning the first Rumble would have not set well with the crowd (especially back then) "
ReplyDeleteTrue, and this is why I've always doubted the stories that DiBiase was supposed to win the tournament at WMIV. A heel winning the Rumble would have been an outrage at that time, but a heel winning the World title... at WRESTLEMANIA??? The Fed wold have had a full-blown riot on their hands! Ten years later, of course, it was almost expected, but not in 1988 by a long shot.
They really should have wrapped up this feud between Bryan and the Wyatts long ago, but somebody at Titan Tower is hell-bent on getting Wyatt into a higher position on the card than Bryan, for reasons known only to them.
ReplyDeleteDude it's cool, we've just got very different philosophies on this. I am a Cena Heel Turn Guy. We can agree to disagree.
ReplyDeleteThe crowd booing Cena wasn't exactly hurting ticket sales. The minute he turned heel they would cheer him again. That's why he turned face to begin with. Who do you replace Cena with? Who makes up the merchandise sales? Who becomes the face for the kids who= house show gates? The fans were booing Cena but not really voting with their wallet.
ReplyDeleteYour booking idea destroys WWE, Cena and the PG was a big part of them weathering the post-Benoit storm.
My opinion is not common on the blog but I still think Bryan is getting pushed, I still think the "joining the Wyatts" is a short term thing, I still think he hasn't necessarily turned on his fans, and I still think he's going to win the Rumble and beat Orton for the belt at Wrestlemania to pay off the long year of storytelling.
ReplyDeleteI said 5 months ago that they're santitizing and re-telling Benoit's story through Bryan and I'm not backing off of that. Bryan sticks with the Wyatts until the rumble, wins the rumble, finally breaks free at Elimination Chamber and goes on to beat Orton once and for all to make the fans happy in the end.
2008, just because the Cena return was a legitimate surprise and the three-way face-off between HHH, Cena, and Batista at the end was one of the last true epic moments this company had.
ReplyDeleteI C what you are saying. All valid points. Again though you haven't changed my mind.
ReplyDeleteMaybe they'll add Brock to the title match at the Rumble?
ReplyDeleteFair enough, agree to disagree. Appreciate your points as well.
ReplyDeleteWhat's this- civil discussion on the internet? Whoa.
Agreed. Those two were pretty great
ReplyDeleteWow, yeah that would have sucked. I would have picked Hardy too, in a vacuum. Had no idea about the wellness thing
ReplyDeleteI feel like Bret-Flair "title vs. career" should have been at Rumble '93. The Perfect-Flair feud was great, but Bret could use the PPV win over a guy of Flair's stature.
ReplyDeleteWas the only one paying attention when they flat out said (through Lesnar) that he wasn't going to be in the rumble match?
ReplyDeleteGood stuff, I do enjoy the Rumble and fantasy booking it. I wouldn't mind seeing Punk or Bryan winning it this year. I also would like to see a real long shot win it one year to play up the anybody can win it aspect.
ReplyDeleteSo am I going to be the sad sack to ask this? Any chance we'll get a New Years Eve thread for the more pathetic of us here?
ReplyDeleteLol I was thinking the same thing.
ReplyDeleteI would have turned him into an anti-heroish doesn't give a fuck about anyone else tweener at One Night Stand in 2006. It's a really easy setup: He's busting his ass, putting on a great match with RVD, and the raucus ECW crowd is going to shit all over him no matter what. So you have him get increasingly annoyed at his inability to win over the crowd, culminating with him beating the holy hell out of RVD with a chair to win the match. The next night he gives a "fuck you all" speech, and if the crowd cheers him you've got an avenue to turn him into an Austin-esque face.
ReplyDeletex3.
ReplyDeleteYou ask, you shall receive.
ReplyDeleteRoyal Rumble 1989 was my first live show, a few months before my 11th birthday. My dad was originally going to take me, but he ended up in the hospital. He came home but was too weak to go, so my aunt took me instead. Here's the crazy part...he told me a few days before the event that he met this guy in the VA who supposedly was an 'insider' that told him that Big John Studd was going to win by eliminating Ted Dibiase, and that Hogan was going to eliminate Savage to setup a breakup storyline. Now, I was firmly in my mark days at that point, so I didn't believe it, plus I wanted Rick Martel to win because he was just returning. He told me that Martel was going to be turning against Santana soon. Of course, all of this ended up happening. It boggles my mind that this happened pre-internet, and I have no idea who this guy was.
ReplyDeleteThey could of done a face/face match like KOTR with Perfect teasing a heel turn much like Piper at WM8.
ReplyDeleteDiBiase as champion for the summer of 88, dominating Savage and Duggan (maybe) on the house show circuit until Hogan comes back as the conquering hero at Summerslam 88 does a MONSTER buyrate.
ReplyDeleteAs awesome as that would have been, keep in mind that WWE was worried that if they had Cena win, the ECW crowd might have jumped the barricade and attack Cena
ReplyDelete2012 was an incredibly fun Rumble match. 2010 was damn good too
ReplyDeleteI will say I was MARKING THE FUCK OUT that night when Santino popped up from underneath the ring. It would have been awesome for him to get the win that night. I mean, he was over as a comedy act, and they could have turned him into a huge underdog... maybe have Edge drop the title to Del Rio at the Elimination Chamber, then have a focused Del Rio v. a well-trained Marella? I mean, Mania 27 was dogshit. It couldn't have hurt to try something different.
ReplyDeleteI caught me off guard too.
ReplyDeleteYeah, except they totally fucked it up the next night by having Vince forfeit the title shot, then have Michaels and Austin claim that it was "in the fine print" that if the winner forfeits then the runner-up (Austin) gets the shot. Also the entire match was terribly booked and just a total shitshow.
ReplyDeleteI think if Cena does the "face of the company" role Orton is doing now the fans will boo him. Especially against guys like Daniel Bryan and CM Punk.
ReplyDeleteOnly doing a couple of these
ReplyDelete93-Since he debuted at the Rumble, I'd just have Luger debut during the match and win the damn thing. You could do the "ten guys elimintae him" thing for Yoko BUT have Yoko destroy each guy until Mania. Save one guy for Mania (Savage or even keep earthquake around a bit longer)
95: Bret. Have HBK challenge Diesel at the Rumble
99: Random mid carder. Anyone but Vince. Even do the same finish. Remember how Vince paid the Rock the bounty money for elimating Austin? Well do that here too and let the midcarder get pissed about not getting the money. Add him to the Feb rock/mankind ppv match. But since the Mania title shot is now vacated, the Austin/Vince cage match storyline still plays out.
02: Mr. Perfect. Because fuck logic.
04: What are you guys talking about? There was no 30 man rumble on ppv. Eddie G won a 15 man Rumble on smackdown a few days after the ppv...
06: HHH. He was going to hog up all the ppv time at Mania anyway so you might as well give him the Rumble win
11: Santino. What's the point of Del Rio winning if he was going to open the show AND lose at Mania.
12: Jericho. Comes in at #30 and doesn't get into the ring. Last two guys (Sheamus and Rhodes) are fighting along the ropes and he comes in and pushes both guys out. Jericho then proceeds to not wrestle (on tv) until a tag match teaming with CM Punk. Jericho never tags in and leaves Punk.
2014: FANTASY BOOKING MODE
Cena beats Orton at TLC. HHH and Steph decide to have Cena defend the belt IN the rumble match. Cena (who comes in at 20/21) and the guy who was #1 (DB or Punk) have survived 27 others until #30 comes out. #30 is of course Brock Lesnar. Cena is F5ed out and after a few hope spots, the #1 guy is thrown out. Brock wins but then the lights go out. The lights come back up and Taker hits the chokeslam. Taker/Brock headlines Elimination Chamber (first network ppv) while the 1 chamber match determines who challenges for the title at Mania. They can even hype up how the chamber winner will either fight a guy who's damn near unstoppable at mania or a guy who's unbeatable at Mania.
Was Luger a proven draw for WCW? I don't think so. Having him win the Rumble would have been a very bad move, and Bret/Luger at Mania 9 wouldn't have been an intriguing matchup.
ReplyDeleteAfter rewatching RR '92, I can't help but think that Hogan was a massive douchebag for pulling out Sid. It's not a typical face action, IMHO.
ReplyDeleteThat's why the live crowd shit all over him and cheered for Sid during the post-match pull-apart.
ReplyDeleteLuger had a no-compete clause from his WCW days that prohibited him working a match until the next month (Feb. 93, released from his WCW contract immediately after SuperBrawl II.
ReplyDeleteSince ADR did nothing with the win anyway, I don't see why they didn't see if they could really try to do something with Santino. It was so "out there" that it could've been midcard fodder for the World Heavyweight title at WM anyway.
ReplyDeleteYeah I didn't care for making Vince #2. I'm a Vince mark so I was really happy he won, though. I would've preferred Austin going in at #1 and then Vince being #30, which was the original conception of the angle. Vince could've just done that, sat down and done commentary like he did for that match, and then Austin goes through everyone, which only leaves him.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Hogan winning the 90' Rumble as it added fuel to the Warrior NEEDING to beat him at WM6... I mean Hogan sort of eliminating the Warrior at the time pissed me off no end and made me want to see that match pronto!
ReplyDelete2004 had a lot of stuff going on in it. Besides the thread of Benoit going coast-to-coast, you had Orton and Benoit both lasting a long ways, the Foley-Orton feud developing, Goldberg destroying everything that ever breathed, Brock-Goldberg being set up(I know, I know) the Undertaker return tease. Damn it was loaded and it set up a lot of WrestleMania.
ReplyDeleteThis was a cool-as-hell concept and I'd love to see the Main Event of Wrestlemania version that I must have missed.
ReplyDeleteIn my perfect "alternative 1990", Mr. Perfect is not dismantled by Hogan but instead built up to be the first challenger for Warriors title. so what better way than making him a huge deal by having him win the Rumble?
ReplyDelete(just to be complete: instead of Hogan vs. Earthquake it would be Warrior vs. Quake at SummerSlam. why not use the built up monster heel to challenge your champion? you can still do the revenge match one ppv later)
In my perfect 1990, Mr. Perfect is not dismantled by Hogan but instead built up to be the first challenger for Warriors title. so what better way than making him a huge deal by having him win the Rumble?
ReplyDelete(just to be complete: instead of Hogan vs. Earthquake it would be Warrior vs. Quake at SummerSlam. why not use the built up monster heel to challenge your champion? you can still do the revenge match one ppv later)
Wasn't that WBF show the one that a cable company publicly listed as having a buyrate of 11 buys nationwide from that one cable company? That number makes the TNA One Night Only buyrates look like the Mayweather/Alvarez buyrate.
ReplyDeleteHeenan sounding like he was auditioning Luger for a role in Brokeback Mountain 2 didn't help either.
ReplyDeleteIt kind of makes Flair look weak too.
ReplyDeleteI'm gonna disagree with that, because Flair wrestled for AN HOUR and was awesome at it. And the last memory anyone has of Flair on that night was cutting the MONEY promo in the back afterwards.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to skip a few here:
ReplyDelete94: The co-winner thing was stupid, Bret should have won outright. Wasn't that a botch?
95: Shawn was the only person in that Rumble that even remotely had the credibility. You can make a small case for Owen (and if Bret was the champ at the time I probably would have had Owen win to do Bret/Owen III), but that's about it.
96: I honestly would have had Shawn as champ going in and had Vader win the Rumble.
99: ANYONE but Vince. ANYONE.
06: Even from a kayfabe POV having Rey win was idiotic. I guess Batista...
13: Should have been either Bryan or Ziggler. Probably Ziggler, have him job at WM, only to beat down whoever the WHC was at the time (Del Rio, right?) and cash in and win. Hell, he got the belt the very next day anyway.
14: Figure out who of the 3 Shield guys is getting the push and have him win.
Off topic slightly but I could give a shit about Randy Orton as champion, hell I could give a shit about Randy Orton as a wrestler! That being said if you take Punk, Bryan, Lesnar and Cena and start using matches and the Rumble itself to set up a challange for number one contender then you have my attention. Orton as a champion place holder until Wrestlemania or Extreme Rules is fine with me. Give one of those four a shot at Wrestlemania, lets say Lesnar and then already set up for the following pay per view with the next contender lets say Punk because I like him and you suddenly have atleast four PPV's where I am invested in the main events and I start to care about the belt because so many big names are trying to go after it. The time really is now to bring value back to the belt!
ReplyDeleteIt also fit Flair's character perfectly to win like that....
ReplyDeleteI remember way back in the day around WM V this guy Rich Mancuso used to go on overnights with Jody McDonald on WFAN in NY and would discuss insider shit like the Rockers probably breaking up soon because of pull apart fights in locker rooms and shit...
ReplyDeleteIf the Taker/Yokozuna casket match isnt on that list, dont waste our time...
ReplyDeleteI agree that they should've gone with Bret-Flair II at the Rumble, but they could've just used Flair's rematch as the rationale. Which doubles as adding to Savage playing paranoid-tweener against Bret at WM9, because Flair got his rematch before Savage. Then you can still do Flair-Perfect loser leaves town, though preferably at WM.
ReplyDeleteSo I'd have booked it like this: Flair gets his rematch at the Rumble. He's confident because this time he has Razor Ramon as backup instead of that ingrate Perfect, who he blames for losing the title. Ramon's interfering all match to give Flair the advantage. Perfect runs in to stop Ramon, allowing Bret to beat Flair one on one.
Meanwhile, when the title match is announced Savage gripes that Flair got a rematch before he ever got his. Is Bret ducking him? Savage is coming for that Rumble win, because he's getting his title back at WM9 regardless. The final 3 are Savage, Perfect, and Ramon. Flair runs in and distracts Perfect, allowing Ramon to eliminate him. Savage then eliminates Ramon to win the Rumble.
So at WM9 we've got Flair-Perfect, loser leaves town, and Bret-Savage for the title. Flair and Perfect have their Raw match there, and crazy, paranoid tweener Savage puts Bret over a la Piper at WM8. They shake hands after, and Savage raises Bret's hand.
This whole exercise has now gotten me re-booking all the way through WM10, provided Perfect had been able to stay healthy through then.
Im not giving up the Flair/Savage title match or the Warrior run in at the end, no thanks...
ReplyDelete92 is better thanks to Heenan, but 04 is right there with it...
ReplyDeleteThe whole problem with this is how does Hogan wind up the champ at the end?
ReplyDeleteHogan proved em wrong on that as he nearly helped put WWF out of business just a few years later...
ReplyDeleteThere were members of the McMahon family that wouldnt even order that pile of dung...
ReplyDeleteIt's weird that in kayfabe terms, Vince McMahon is the greatest Royal Rumble competitor of all time! He was only in one Rumble, entered at #2 and won the thing.
ReplyDeleteThen again, Vince is also the only ex-WWE champion who never lost his title in the ring.
I don't get why that spot was booked in the first place. I mean, wouldn't have it made a ton more sense for Hogan to toss Sid (since it's every man for himself) and then it's Sid who gets upset and pissy, and then pulls Hogan out? It makes Sid look like the clear heel for being a sore loser.
ReplyDeleteThat's one of the perils of being a booker. You can create a great and compelling storyline, but you need to add in the human factor (like somebody getting injured) that might make all your plans go to crap.
ReplyDelete2011 should have been Morrison.
ReplyDeleteCan't agree more. I thought for awhile at the end of 2010 he'd be a star.
ReplyDelete94 was not a botch. They did the co- winners to test crowd reaction for each guy.
ReplyDeleteI thought the 2005 end with Cena and Batista was supposed to be the botch...
ReplyDelete"99: ANYONE but Vince. ANYONE."
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I would've wanted Beaver Clever: Royal Rumble winner. That was around that time, wasn't it?
New to the site and this was a very fun read:
ReplyDeleteThe only Rumble victors I have a big time problem with is ADR in 2011, Mysterio in 2006, Sheamus in 2012 and Austin in 1997.
Austin in 97 was a problem because it was too early in his wwe run to win that match. Bret should've won that one by nefarious means to set-up the final four ppv and WM 13.
ADR in 2011 was a mistake from the get-go. The guy has always looked like midcarder and his win did nothing for anybody. Hindsight says that Christian probably should've won that match and faced his brother/best friend at Mania for the world title.
Sheamus in 2012 was a mistake because it ruined Jeticho's return angle with the "end of the world" stuff. His build to WM and his victory at WM hurt Sheamus more than helped him to boot.
Mysterio in 2006
Hogan honestly did a LOT of things that were cheap or being a sore loser. But for some of us, we were stupid kids who cheered him anyway because it was Hogan. Though by that time, we were starting to clue in.
ReplyDeleteJericho should have won in 2012, and he should have done so by being number 30 after everyone else had been eliminated. Then he could give another of his over-the-top trolling celebrations. They killed that off way too quickly.
ReplyDeleteChristian was injured.
ReplyDeleteAlso, wrestling is fake. It's unrealistic to do about 90 percent of the moves in wrestling.
Batista was injured.
ReplyDeleteThat idea was so universally loved, they really should have done it.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't change most of them. I think Edge in 2010 was kind of a waste because it wasn't paid off on in any way, but other than HBK winning it to get his match against Taker, I'm not sure who should have won.
ReplyDeleteSheamus in 2012 was probably a mistake, but they paid it off, so it wasn't wasted. Jericho should have won something to build up his match with Punk and Sheamus I think would be better served by winning a chamber match.
Yeah, I knew I was walking into a "It means you're gay" but I figured others shared the affliction.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.rspwfaq.net/2013/03/wm-main-events.html
ReplyDeleteMy bad. Should have reread and edited.
ReplyDeleteI'm just assuming because Brock called out the winner of Cena Vs Orton.
ReplyDeleteFair enough. My assumption was they'd just keep it on Orton to job to Brock but I'll endorse any scenario that gives me another Brock vs Cena match
ReplyDeleteThanks
ReplyDeleteYep. He said he didn't need to do anything to be a #1 contender at any time.
ReplyDeleteIt was obviously a member of the New Breed. Or maybe Lazer Tron.
ReplyDeleteI was a kid then and TOTALLY sided with Sid.
ReplyDeleteI hate Orton as much as anyone, but a lot of the apathy is because he is portrayed as second in importance to Steph and HHH. Which I predicted after Summerslam would happen.
ReplyDeleteAs much as they act like they don't care about the IWC, I think it is entirely possible they didn't do it out of spite.
ReplyDeleteLike I said: "some." :)
ReplyDeleteNo? I've heard conflicting stories about that.
ReplyDeleteThat too, but I've heard 94 was a botch as well.
ReplyDeleteI want to say that was after the Rumble. Pretty sure Mosh (or Thrasher, whoever) was still part of the Headbangers and that point.
ReplyDeleteDebuted on tv 10/31/92, so less than three months. It was a huge-ass rocket to his ass.
ReplyDeleteMr Perfect should have won the 2002 Rumble.
ReplyDeleteFor sure. Also, you had Angle having a decent run in it, and the mini-storyline in the end with the remaining guys teaming up to try to oust Big Show was cool, too.
ReplyDeleteHogan should've won every Rumble. Period.
ReplyDeleteI only say that because he then drops the belt to Savage at WrestleMania two months later.
ReplyDeleteEven Heenan and Monsoon during their tour de force call of that Rumble kinda moved past that as quickly as they could. Their commentary made that Rumble even better.
ReplyDeleteI agree, although Santino was actually hotter the following year. They took advantage of the hot Jeremy Lynn story, booking Santino as a complete underdog. The fans really rallied behind him, more so than they ever have behind Sheamus.
ReplyDeleteOrton had an amazing character after he started using the punt kick and they started selling it like death... when he punted Vince, with the reaction he got, I remember thinking they'd finally done it; they'd found a way to make Orton the star they always wanted to. Then they blew it of course.
ReplyDeleteIn Flair's book, he said he was supposed to keep the belt at WrestleMania, but Savage complained and got it switched. Not sure I buy that, unless Vince thought Savage/Flair with Savage chasing the belt would do good business, and in parallel he could build Warrior up as the savior to take the belt off Flair at Summerslam.
ReplyDelete"I hate Orton as much as anyone, but a lot of the apathy is because he is portrayed as second in importance to Steph and HHH. "
ReplyDeleteIf the plan is eventually HHH v. Vince avatar, a way to get there would be to have Vince claiming Orton is a paper champion who's only got the belt because of HHH/Steph, and have Vince help Cena get the belt at the Rumble. Then BROCK LESNAR can beat Cena the following night with HHH's blessing (because no one would ever accuse BROCK LESNAR of needing help) and now we have World Champion Brock Lesnar v. hopefully Punk or Bryan.
It's good to dream.
Yeah, definitely after.
ReplyDeleteScott wrote that in his '94 Rumbles match. I don't believe it was a botch.
ReplyDeleteWas the double-elimination in 2005 a botch? Cena and Batista both go out, Vince runs down (and blows out both his quads!) and restarts the match for Batista to win it outright.
I recently read that it was supposed to be a Flair/Hogan program for WM, but Hogan sorta ducked out because of the steroids scandal.
ReplyDeleteActually, I could see Cena doing something like this, and then just shrugging it off.
ReplyDelete"Rumble favours the Giants..."
ReplyDeleteCan you imagine if they kept to this, and we get Big Show, Henry, Khali as winners... or Snitchky.
That whole trolling gimmick by Jericho that year was way overated. Nobody except us insiders understood it and the crowd confusion proved it (and it was dropped).
ReplyDeleteI usually agree with u but Morrison under wwe creative lacked that intangible that would have made him seen as a star-- he's like a guy playing a guy who is supposed to be a star. They never presented him right and he never really grew as a character. I loved his YouTube bits after he left--very funny and natural.
ReplyDeleteYou're right. Vince was a sad cartoon for years until that raw kick in 2009. Orton had that killer aura after that-- of course wwe "creative'd" the whole deal and it became a sad parody with HHH on top AGAIN.
ReplyDelete2005 definitely was a botch
ReplyDeleteI still say someway, somehow we're getting another Cena/Orton match for Mania. Maybe a three way with Daniel Bryan, but anyway you slice it we're gonna wind up with Orton/Cena at Mania. I expect a major screwjob ending for their match at RR, and Cena winning the title at EC, and Orton gets his rematch at Mania. Not what anyone wants but Vince doesn't seem to give a shit about the fans anymore.
ReplyDeleteLet's be honest, Heenan and Monsoon calling anything makes it better. The announcers nowadays are nowhere near the caliber of Monsoon/Heenan or Monsoon/Ventura even.
ReplyDeleteWhat about the first Rumble they did back in 1987. It was a house show in October from St. Louis and was won by One Man Gang. Is there any video of that anywhere? It's less then 15 minutes long, but would still love to see it. I've seen the 1994 missing Rumble before, which is awesome, but this is the only one I'm missing. Any reason it was never included on a Coliseum Video or anything?
ReplyDeleteI saw that in my research, but it was even more of an experiment than the Duggan one. I kinda looked at it as a dark match.
ReplyDeletePainful...
ReplyDeleteI don't think they realized how big the match was gonna be, as it seems rushed. No idea how many guys were in it, but still.
ReplyDeleteThe MSG 1994 one was cool and had the right guy win it (Owen). It's too bad Borga got injured beforehand and pretty much ended his WWF run. Anyone know why they did this one? Just seems odd to have one house show Rumble a week before the real one.
Luger was in the WWF at the time of the 93 rumble!!
ReplyDelete