10 Most Exciting WWE Royal Rumble Finishes
9. The Future Is Now - 2005
Heading into the 2005 Royal Rumble, it appeared that a changing of the guard was afoot. On Raw, Batista looked to be unstoppable - despite technically being an underling in Evolution. On Smackdown, John Cena was a rising star who seemed destined to end JBL's lengthy title reign.
Sure enough, it came down to the two men, marking the first time in years that neither of the final two competitors in the Royal Rumble had ever been a world champion before. They both fought for the right to headline WrestleMania, but then the unthinkable happened - when Batista lifted John Cena for a Batista Bomb, he fell backwards over the ropes and both men hit the floor at the same time.
Believe it or not, that spot actually wasn't planned - Batista was supposed to hold onto the ropes, eliminating Cena. That forced Vince McMahon to run down to the ring (tearing his quad in the process) and call an audible from a seated position. They went to sudden death, and Batista got his planned victory. Needless to say, the confusion made things quite remarkable.