411’s WWE’s Greatest Moments Report: Royal Rumble ’80s and ’90s

-Back with our weekly dose of WWE ranking their nostalgia. Let’s get to it!

-Michael Cole is our narrator and gives us a quick rundown of The Royal Rumble.

-Show opening!

10. The First Royal Rumble

-I guess that is as good as a place to start as any. Hulk Hogan admits he didn’t think the idea was going to work. He then saw it and admitted he was a knucklehead when he saw how it worked. That first Rumble was only 20 men and came down to Hacksaw Jim Duggan and One Man Gang. Oh wow, they have OMG as a talking head here. Cool! Duggan gets the win and becomes the answer to a trivia question for eternity. Hogan says that put Duggan on the map as he will always have that accolade.

9. Icons Collide

-This should be so much higher on this list it’s not even funny. The wrestling world stood still in 1990 when Hulk Hogan and The Ultimate Warrior cleared the ring and left only the two of them. Schiavone on commentary: “My God.” Sell it Tony! Even the heel managers are ringside sell it like something epic and extraordinary. Just look at that crowd come to their feet in anticipation. Seth Rollins notes you didn’t get two heroes at the top of their game going head-to-head. Hogan realized they could draw some money with this one. They crisscross the ropes and hit double clothesline. Hogan ends up eliminating Warrior later in the match, but Warrior wins the war at WrestleMania.

8. Damian vs. The Goliath

-We go back a year to 1989 as Andre The Giant is wrecking shop in a match that suits him. Jake Roberts was eliminated earlier in the match by Andre and gets revenge by heading back down and unleashing Damian. Andre is terrified and eliminates himself.

-Commercials!

7. BONZAI!

-We head to 1993 where the stipulation of the winner getting a World Title Match at WrestleMania is born. It kind of happened at 91 when Hogan won and went to Mania, but it wasn’t until 93 when it became official and we have had the stipulation ever since. The match comes down to Macho Man and Yokozuna, and for some reason Savage tries a pin after a Flying Elbow. Yokozuna tosses him out and heads to Mania where he defeats Bret Hart. I am sure his title reign was long and nothing else notable happened after he beat Bret.

6. Chyna Makes History

-In 1999 Chyna became the first woman to ever enter The Royal Rumble. I think it has been done by 3 other women since then and now we have a Rumble for the women every year. Mickie James notes that Chyna was empowering for a generation of female wrestlers. Chyna gets to eliminate Mark Henry, which shows that Mark has no ego. Oh wait, Bayley is one of the talking heads and she is rocking an awesome SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS SHIRT! BAYLEY IS AWESOME. BANG BANG NINER GANG! Sorry, Chyna ends up getting tossed by Steve Austin to end her historic night.

5. Stone Cold Rumble

-Steve Austin goes from Ring Master to Stone Cold and is getting pushed up the card as he gets to Rumble 97. Steve was the star of the match as he eliminated men one by one and had the awesome visual of sitting on the top rope and checking his imaginary watch. Bret Hart comes out and Steve’s bugged eyed sell is great. Bret eliminates Austin, but the refs never see it and Bret gets screwed as Austin runs in to push out Bret, Taker, and Vader to win the first of his record, 3 Rumble victories.

4. Split Decision

-1994 and the two favorites heading into the match are Lex Luger and Bret Hart. It comes down to those two and they both spill over the ropes and hit the ground at the same time. Bret says it is a miracle they were able to pull it off. After some polling off the crowd to see who is more popular, they are declared co-winners. Lex is here as a talking head and let me say again, PUT THIS MAN IN THE HALL OF FAME NOW! Lex says he thought it was a good story line and Bret says when he sees Lex they still laugh about it.

3. Long-Lasting Heartbreak

-1996 as they drop the intervals to 60 seconds and promised the fastest Rumble of all time. Shawn enters #1 and becomes the first man to win from that spot. It is less impressive as the match lasted about 30 minutes. Shawn did a great job of having only one foot touch and teasing that the other might touch. He eliminates Bulldog to get the win.

-Commercials!

2. Three Faces of Foley

-I mean this was a cute little spot, but no way should it be this high and definitely that much higher than Warrior/Hogan. Mick Foley enters and gets tossed as Cactus Jack and then again as Mankind. Everyone knows the joke now and sure enough, Dude Love enters later in the match. A record that will never be broken as Mick Foley is the only man to be eliminated three times in the same Rumble.

1. With a Tear in My Eye!

-Hard to argue here! This Rumble is often cited as the greatest of all time. The stakes are the highest ever as the winner is the new WWF Champion. The star power is off the charts and then Ric Flair enters at 3 and puts in a performance of a lifetime. Speaking of amazing performances, Bobby Heenan was at his peak as an announcer and this was his finest hour. We also had the ending where the crowd turned on Hulk Hogan. This Karrion Kross wasn’t a fan and remembers being furious seeing Flair. Ric says it was a huge deal and the mecca of his career to that point. We get a snippet of his iconic victory speech as well. Match is amazing and clearly deserved the top spot.

-As always, just an easy watch and something great for those of us that love nostalgia. Again, you can quibble about the placement and what was left off, but that’s what makes for fun discussions. Thanks for reading!