10 Last-Minute WWE Disasters That Came So Close To Ruining Royal Rumbles

10. Shawn Michaels Gets His Face Smashed In - 2008

On top of being WWE's legendary Mr. WrestleMania, it's safe to rank Shawn Michaels as one of the finest Royal Rumble performers ever to grace that unique event too.

Winning the match back-to-back in 1995 and 1996 (becoming the first man to win it from number one in the process), The Heartbreak Kid could always be counted on to put in a decent shift when it came to the titular contest.

However, back in 2008, the star very nearly had his show-stopping evening cut short by an over-exuberant fellow veteran entering the match at number five. Upon Hardcore Holly's typically aggressive arrival, the bleach blonde ass-kicker proceeded to stomp HBK in the mug so hard that it legitimately busted open Michaels in next to no time.

Sensing something was up, the former WWE Champion clung onto his mug and crawled into the corner to confer with medical personnel. Sensing he had no choice but to power on and do his part in the contest, Michaels stayed put and wrestled on for 30 more minutes with a busted up nose, notably eliminating The Undertaker in what was one of the earliest nods to their eventual 'Mania epics.