As a wrestling fan, there’s almost nothing worse than witnessing a terrible ending to the Royal Rumble. Well, except for John Cena defeating Rey Mysterio the same night Rey won the WWE Title – that’s a story for another time (you can read it here).
With the 2025 Royal Rumble fast approaching, let’s look at the Top 5 Worst Royal Rumble Winners of recent memory and the superstars who should have walked out on top instead.
4. Brock Lesnar 2022 – (Should’ve – ???)
Another classic case of ‘what the hell was the point?’ WWE booked themselves into a massive corner that didn’t need to happen, all because of the choices made after the Royal Rumble. Brock Lesnar winning was expected, and his subsequent challenge to Roman Reigns made sense, but the real mistake came a month later when Brock was handed the WWE Title. Sure, they wanted the unification match, but this could’ve been done in so many other ways. This win ranks so low due to the wasted potential of the Royal Rumble victory. The constant cycle of repeat winners has drained the excitement from the match. And when Brock and Roman faced off at WrestleMania 38 – billed as the ‘Biggest WrestleMania Match of All Time’ – it turned out to be a massive letdown. There were far better ways to book WrestleMania that year, and this wasn’t one of them.
3. Roman Reigns 2015 (Should’ve – Daniel Bryan)
Almost ten years ago, we witnessed the wrong winner and one of the worst Royal Rumble endings in history. At that point, Roman Reigns was actively despised by almost 99% of WWE fans. The constant push of the soon-to-be OTC was so painful that it made this year almost unbearable to watch. Roman wasn’t ready for this spot, and the fans made it clear that they didn’t want him there.
But beyond that, Daniel Bryan’s overwhelming support from the fans was undeniable. The desire to see him back in the main event was palpable. WWE should’ve recognized they were in trouble when Bryan was eliminated early by Bray Wyatt. The crowd instantly lost all interest, signaling the beginning of a disastrous show.
Adding insult to injury, the final three – Roman, Big Show, and Corporate Kane, with a sleeping Rusev – were a joke. The crowd didn’t care, and neither did the rest of us. Not even The Rock could save this disaster.
One rarely discussed but still hilarious moment was when Roman pointed to the WrestleMania sign, only for a painful five-second delay before the Pyro went off. It was almost as if the Wrestling Gods themselves were mocking the decision
2. Randy Orton 2017 – (Should’ve -Bray Wyatt)
Honestly, I’m just glad they didn’t give Roman Reigns the Royal Rumble win, but looking back, this entire year was a mess of poor decisions.
Randy Orton didn’t need this win, which made it all the more surprising when it happened. If WWE wanted Orton vs. Bray Wyatt for the title at WrestleMania, fine – but why give Orton both the Rumble win and the WWE Title? The roles should’ve been reversed. Bray should’ve won the Rumble, and Orton could’ve claimed the WWE Title at Elimination Chamber. Then Bray could have challenged for and won the title at WrestleMania 33. Seems like a simple, straightforward choice, right?!
Instead, we got one of the worst matches and decisions in WWE history. How they botched a moment for one of the most brilliant minds and characters in WWE – Bray Wyatt – is beyond baffling. Maybe adding Luke Harper to the match could’ve salvaged it and made up for Orton’s questionable win, but who knows? What’s clear is that this remains one of the most frustrating and misguided decisions WWE has ever made.
1. Batista 2014 – (Should’ve – Daniel Bryan)
As if there was anything else.
There’s no denying that 2014 was Daniel Bryan’s year. The fans were adamant about seeing him in the main event of WrestleMania, hopefully by way of a Royal Rumble victory.
Boy, were we wrong? It’s almost impossible to understand what WWE was thinking when they decided to have a babyface Batista win the Royal Rumble in his first match. There was no consideration for the overwhelming desire to see Daniel Bryan at the top. Even Batista knew this was a bad call, especially coming back as a face. The moment Rey Mysterio entered at number 30, only to be booed out of the arena because fans knew Bryan wouldn’t be in the match, cemented how wrong this choice was. Overall, it was a poor decision and a disastrous year.
However, what’s strange is that despite how badly the Royal Rumble played out, it ended up working in Bryan’s favor. His underdog story was only strengthened by the need to beat Triple H first, and being added to the main event made his victory even sweeter. WWE might have messed up with the Rumble, but the way the story unfolded made it all the more satisfying. And, let’s be real if Bryan had won the Rumble outright, would we have gotten one of the greatest video packages of all time?
Probably not. So, in a strange fashion, this was the worst Royal Rumble win, but with the best result.
Let’s hope 2025 makes the better choice.
