Since its inception in 2014 at WrestleMania XXX, the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal has seen up-and-coming names become even bigger as they won the annual memorial tribute gauntlet. The likes of inaugural winner Cesaro, Baron Corbin, Braun Strowman, Bronson Reed, and last year’s winner, Carmelo Hayes. On this week’s WWE SmackDown, we crowned the 2026 winner of this huge battle royal ahead of WWE WrestleMania 42.
A lot of men came into this match looking to make an impact, and one by one, the field was weeded out, and the strongest came down to the final four of Otis, Aleister Black, Talla Tonga, and Royce Keys. All four of these men dominated this match; it’s like Andre the Giant’s spirit was running through the veins of these monsters. We saw Black eliminate fan favorites like Joe Hendry and Akira Tozawa, delivering a Black Mass like it was running out of style.
While Talla Tonga threw out notable names like Psycho Clown of AAA, to assert his dominance. Otis went into another gear, as well, reminding everyone that he might be funny. Still, he’s also extremely devastating, and of course, Royce Keys, nobody wanted to get in the way of the powerhouse throughout the match.
When the dust settled, we had these four, with Royce Keys eliminating Aleister Black with a decapitating Clothesline. Talla Tonga would not be outmatched, eliminating the mastodon Otis to stand toe-to-toe as the final two in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. The two would have a monster mash for quite a bit, until Royce Keys caught Talla Tonga for an impressive and crushing Spinebuster.
Straps down, Royce Keys would Lariat Talla Tonga out of the ring, becoming the 2026 Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal Winner! Hard work pays off, as the man who dominated in his debut match last week, and went through adversity and came out on top every time, Royce Keys, is your 2026 Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner.
