The Royal Rumble Match is always one of the most highly-anticipated bouts on the WWE calendar, but some winners have been better choices than others.
With 30 men duking it out and surprise entrants growing in popularity, the Rumble Match is always one of the most unpredictable and wild bouts of the year. Since 1988, there have been 28 Rumble Matches and 23 different men have won the match.
Here are the best and worst winners of the 30-man classic.
The Worst
5) Roman Reigns
The Leader of the Roman Empire may now be the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, but he wasn't ready for such an honor when the 2015 Rumble Match came around. The WWE shoved Reigns down its fans' throats, which led to downright anarchy when he won the 30-man bout, which was poorly booked from start to finish.
4) Big John Studd
No offense to the late, great wrestling legend, but his win in 1989 made very little sense. Sure, the Rumble Match was still in its infancy and wasn't as important as it is today, but Studd was quite the curious choice. The WWE wanted to end his career with one final memorable moment, but it's remembered as one of the oddest choices in Royal Rumble history.
3) Yokozuna
During one of the worst time periods creatively for the WWE, it opted to push the mammoth Yokozuna to the moon. This included a Rumble Match win in 1993, which eventually led to a lengthy, boring title reign. The worst part was Yokozuna last eliminated "Macho Man" Randy Savage, who would have been a better choice to win the contest.
2) Sheamus
"The Celtic Warrior" was a victim of circumstance as most people were pulling for Chris Jericho to win the 2012 Rumble Match. As it happens, Sheamus ended up last eliminating Jericho to win a forgettable match.
1) Vince McMahon
That's right, the boss won the Rumble Match in 1999. During the whackiest stages of the Attitude Era, the WWE concocted a way for McMahon to come out as the No. 2 entrant, disappear for nearly an hour, and win the Rumble Match with assistance from The Rock. It was the worst ending to a Rumble Match in history.
The Best
5) Edge
Though guys like Steve Austin, The Rock, Triple H and Brock Lesnar had big career-defining wins, the Rumble Match is best when it's won by a surprise Superstar. Edge shockingly returned during the 2010 installment and stunned the WWE Universe by winning the Rumble Match.
4) John Cena
The "Cenation" leader has won the Rumble Match twice, but it's his 2008 victory that stands out. With Cena sidelined with a serious injury, it was expected that he wouldn't return for months. As it turned out, he surprised everyone by showing up to the Rumble Match and winning it all. at Madison Square Garden.
3) Chris Benoit
Though this obviously has a sad connotation today, the writing and booking of Benoit's big victory in 2004 can't be ignored. The "Rabid Wolverine" came out as the No. 1 entrant and outlasted everybody, last eliminating the gigantic Big Show, to finally win the big one.
2) Shawn Michaels
HBK won two Rumble Matches in his illustrious career, but his first win was the best. No one had ever won the Rumble Match from the first entrant before, but Michaels did just that in 1995. Though the field was lackluster and the match was rushed, it was still excellent booking in a down year for the WWE. Michaels went on to win it all again the following year.
1) Ric Flair
You've gotta be fair to Flair. The 1992 Rumble Match still holds up as the best of all time, not just because it was for the vacant WWE Championship, but also because the booking was brilliant. Having Flair come out from No. 3 and become the first heel to win the 30-man match against all odds while Bobby Heenan lost it on commentary was gold. Flair capturing the WWE Championship is the greatest Royal Rumble moment in history.
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