10 Most Overrated WWE Royal Rumble Moments Ever

The Royal Rumble has offered up some truly classic and memorable moments over the years. WWE’s Royal Rumble event is one of the most beloved and anticipated shows of the entire year, but fans and the company alike have over-egged some moments.

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Over the years, rose-tinted glasses and nostalgia have boosted up several instances that were actually not all that impressive or high quality. Sure, some of these moments mentioned are still good and have positives about them, but they aren’t as legendary or incredible as many people like to point out, and are therefore among the most overrated Royal Rumble moments of all time.

10 CM Punk’s 2010 Elimination Spree Was Fine, But Not Amazing

Fans Have Fond Memories Of CM Punk's 2010 Royal Rumble Performance

The Straight Edge Saviour cut a few decent promos and eliminated five entrants
It wasn’t as good as fans remember and it was ruined by Triple H

Fans to this day still look back on CM Punk’s dominance in the early stages of the 2010 Royal Rumble match, and whilst his mic work was good, the whole sequence is overrated. He didn’t exactly come up against anyone too tough - dumping out JTG, Zack Ryder, Matt Sydal, and Dolph Ziggler.

He got saved from Great Khali by Beth Phoenix, and was then quickly thrown out himself by Triple H. It was one of the better moments of the 2010 Rumble match, but not when it comes to Royal Rumble history.

9 Shawn Michaels Going From Number One To Winning Wasn’t That Impressive

Shawn Michaels Entered At Number One In 1995

Shawn Michaels was the first man to ever win the Royal Rumble from first place
1995 was the shortest 30-man Royal Rumble match

History was made in 1995 when Shawn Michaels entered at number one and won the whole Royal Rumble. WWE looks back on this as a massive achievement, but in truth the moment is very overrated.

For WWE’s 30-man Rumble matches, this was the shortest due to the 1-minute periods between entrances, so Michaels’ victory doesn’t even put him among the wrestlers with the longest time spent in a single Rumble. The match was poor anyway, and Michaels’ win came at the end of a messy bout.

8 Vince McMahon Tearing Both His Quads Is Only Good In Hindsight

The 2005 Royal Rumble Match Ending Was A Disaster

Fans love to rewatch Vince McMahon tearing his quads
The moment itself was a complete mess at the time

Vince McMahon rushing down to the ring to angrily restart the 2005 Royal Rumble match and tearing both quads was a hilarious moment in hindsight, but at the time the whole thing was painfully awkward and strange.

No one knew whether the Rumble finish had in fact been botched or not, and McMahon’s bizarre situation made things even weirder. In truth, the aftermath and looking back is better than the moment itself, which was really painful to watch at the time.

7 The Hurricane’s Double Chokeslam Spot Gained Too Much Prominence

The Hurricane Tried To Chokeslam Triple H & Steve Austin

This moment has been replayed so many times over the years
It was a fleeting comedy spot that was over in a second

Fans look back at The Hurricane trying to chokeslam Triple H and Steve Austin as an all-timer Rumble moment. In fact, WWE have tried to replicate it twice with The Hurricane in subsequent Rumbles too. However, the moment has been overrated for years.

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It was a quick moment which the fans did enjoy but they didn’t go absolutely wild over it. Austin & Triple H quickly threw The Hurricane out of the ring, and that was that. Nostalgia certainly props this moment up.

6 Goldberg & The Undertaker Face Off In The Royal Rumble

The 2017 Royal Rumble Was A Part-Timer Mess

WWE replayed this moment many times
The Undertaker was out of shape and interactions with Goldberg were poor

Goldberg and The Undertaker came face to face in the ring for the first time ever at the 2017 Royal Rumble match, and WWE drummed a lot of hype into this moment. It was replayed and has featured on several “top 10 Rumble moments” lists that the company has produced.

However, The Undertaker was a complete mess physically and couldn’t even keep up with Goldberg, which is saying something. The focus on two part-timers was frustrating, and it showed just how terribly WWE relied on these legends at the time. The moment was not that good.

5 Santino Marella As A Shocking Royal Rumble Runner-Up Wasn’t All That Exciting

Comedy Undercard Wrestler Santino Marella Came Second In 2011

Fans didn’t buy this potential upset victory
Santino Marella’s near-win was over quickly

Santino Marella nearly did the unthinkable when he crawled back into the ring, much to the surprise of fans, and attempted to throw Alberto Del Rio over the top rope to win the Royal Rumble.

Sure, it was a fun little moment, but not even the fans in the arena bought into the tease. The crowd didn’t go as crazy as WWE would have probably envisaged, and WWE rushed to the finish anyway, with Del Rio winning in what felt like a pointless moment overall. This has been overrated throughout the years as a near upset, but it wasn’t anywhere close.

4 Chyna In The Royal Rumble Was Fleeting

Chyna Was The First Woman To Enter The Royal Rumble

In 1999, Chyna made history in the Royal Rumble
Both her Rumble appearances were poor

Chyna receives a lot of plaudits to this day over her ability to hang with the male superstars during the Attitude Era, and her historic entry into the Royal Rumble (twice) is highlighted as a key moment to display that. However, both her cameos are severely overrated.

On both occasions she spent under 40 seconds in the ring, doing one or two moves and getting unceremoniously dumped out like any other undercard performer. WWE could have made more of her entries into the match, but they were quite underwhelming in truth.

3 The Three Faces Of Foley In The Royal Rumble

Mick Foley Entered The 1998 Royal Rumble Three Times

Three Faces Of Foley WWE Royal Rumble 1998

The crowd didn’t care for this moment as much as history does
It represented WWE’s thin star power

Mick Foley’s three separate entries under different gimmicks is always talked about among all time great Royal Rumble moments. When watching it back though, you wouldn't think so based on the silent reactions the crowd gave.

For whatever reason, those in attendance didn’t really care too much for seeing the returns of Mankind and Dude Love, which has led to this fun bit being hard to watch going back.

2 Jim Duggan Was Not A Worthy Inaugural Winner

Jim Duggan Will Be In WWE History Books Forever

WWE didn’t know what the Royal Rumble would become
WWE should have gone with a different Royal Rumble winner

When WWE looks back at the history of the Royal Rumble, it is rare that “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan isn’t mentioned due to the fact he won the first ever iteration of this historic matchup.

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Duggan was fine for what he was, but he was never a top tier performer in WWE, and his victory wasn’t all that impressive. Seeing WWE talk about Duggan among all the time Rumble greats is a farce, and in hindsight a different winner should’ve been chosen

1 Ric Flair’s WWE Championship Win Wasn’t About Him

Fans Look Back At Royal Rumble 1992 With Fondness

Ric Flair’s 1992 Rumble win saw him crowned as WWE Champion
It was not a clean victory for Flair

Many consider the 1992 Rumble to be one of the best, and it certainly was. However, the final portion and Ric Flair’s victory is overrated. Flair only won the match due to Hulk Hogan helping him throw out Sid, taking all the spotlight away from Flair’s WWE Title win.

This should have been Flair’s star-making WWE moment, but once again it was all about Hogan and his rivalry with Sid Vicious. For this reason, Flair’s victory is overrated.