3. 2000 Royal Rumble Match
| Date | January 23, 2000 |
|---|---|
| Longest time in the match | Test (26:17) |
| Shortest time in the match | Faarooq (0:18) |
| Most eliminations | Rikishi (7) |
| Winner | The Rock |
One year after Vince McMahon’s controversial victory, the Royal Rumble Match became normal again in 2000! The match started somewhat slowly, but things picked up as soon as Rikishi came out at number five and started cleaning house. Big Kish even stopped for a Royal Rumble dance-break alongside his Too Cool brothers Scotty 2 Hotty & Grandmaster Sexay, before dumping them both over the top rope!
The Royal Rumble moved along nicely from there. The Big Bossman, Test, The British Bulldog, Gangrel, Edge, Crash Holly, Road Dogg, and Al Snow all had respectable performances, lasting 15 minutes or more. Former WWF Champion Bob Backlund appeared at #14 and even helped eliminate Rikishi.
@onthisdayinwwe A great reception for Bob Backlund in a place he knows so well, at the 2000 Royal Rumble For years, he starred in Madison Square Garden as WWWF Champion Jim Ross said on his Grilling JR podcast of this moment: “Bobby coming back to The Garden was so organically nostalgic, that guys who had their kids there could say ‘He was my guy, Son’” Sadly Bob is now being cared for by his sister as he now has dementia #onthisdayinwwe
The bigger stars came out towards the end, including the final two participants: The Rock (#24) and Big Show (#26).
It all came down to those two in the end. The Big Show thought he had the match won when he tossed Rocky over the top rope, but the officials missed The Great One’s elimination, and The Rock won the 2000 Royal Rumble.
