10 Fascinating WWE Royal Rumble 1989 Facts

4. It's The First Of Two Royal Rumbles Where The Reigning World Champion Failed To Win

Savage Hogan Royal Rumble 1989
WWE.com

Randy Savage had been reigning as WWE Champion for nearly ten months to this point. Since this was before the time where the Rumble match was used to determine a WrestleMania number one contender, Savage was merely just another entry, looking to win the match as another feather in his own cap.

Only three times has a World Champion been an active participant in a Royal Rumble match, and Savage was only one of two to not win the match. The other instance wouldn't come until 2016, when Roman Reigns was booked to defend the WWE Championship in that Rumble match, from the number one spot.

The only reigning World champion that won a Rumble match was Hogan himself, who did so in 1990.

Contributor
Contributor

Justin has been a wrestling fan since 1989, and has been writing about it since 2009. Since 2014, Justin has been a features writer and interviewer for Fighting Spirit Magazine. Justin also writes for History of Wrestling, and is a contributing author to James Dixon's Titan series.