10 Fascinating WWE Royal Rumble 2004 Facts
8. It Was Chris Benoit's First Rumble Match
Four years had passed since Chris Benoit and his "Radical" comrades made their collective exodus from WCW, bringing world-class technical skill into a WWE product that could find use for it. The group's arrival came eight days after the 2000 Royal Rumble.
It wouldn't be until four years later that Benoit would finally take part in a Rumble match. In 2001 and 2003, he was busy in the undercard wrestling borderline five-star matches against Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle, respectively. Benoit had missed the 2002 show, sidelined for a year after spinal surgery.
Benoit was the third Radical to participate in a Rumble match. Perry Saturn wrestled in the 2001-02 editions, while Eddie Guerrero wouldn't make it into one until 2003. Dean Malenko would never take part in one.