10 Obscure WWE Royal Rumble Records

4. Most Late Entries

Jeff Jarrett Royal Rumble 1999 Royal Rumble 2019
WWE.com

Record-holders: Kane, Randy Orton and Big Show (tie), 5

There’s no denying that if you enter the Royal Rumble late in the match, your odds of winning are greater than if you enter early. It makes sense from a sporting point of view, but also is in fact true in WWE’s signature match.

Of the 35 men’s Rumbles, 12 winners have entered the match at one of the last five slots (#26-#30 in a traditional 30-man Rumble). One of those 12, Alberto Del Rio, drew #38 in the 2011 40-man Rumble, so he’s counted here. Four have won at #27, three at #30, and two each at #28 and #29. No one has won at #26 yet (though three have won at #24).

Out of the men who have drawn one of those coveted late spots in the Rumble, three wrestlers have been lucky enough to pull those numbers five times: Kane (1996, 2000, 2002, 2005 and 2011), Big Show (2000, 2002, 2009, 2012 and 2015) and Randy Orton (2006, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2019). Three men have entered in the last five slots four times: Rikishi, Undertaker and Batista.

Fear not though, Roman Reigns, Miz or Rey Mysterio could conceivably catch up, having each entered three Rumbles late.

Contributor
Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.