10 WWE Royal Rumble Wins That Would Have Improved WrestleMania
8. John Morrison (2011)
Sometimes, WWE avoids striking while the iron is hot. Other times, they’ll strike one that’s frozen solid or one misshapen from seven years of percussion. On the Road to WrestleMania 27, fans got all three. Unsurprisingly, it’s still broadly received as one of the worst in the event’s history.
For 15 years, John Morrison’s popularity has remained evergreen. In two stints with WWE, he’s been an exhilarating in-ring presence, collecting almost as many championships as surnames. Versed in numerous disciplines, namely parkour, his masterstroke came at the 2011 Royal Rumble. Easily the highlight of the evening, Morrison’s elimination escape defied both logic and gravity while inspiring WWE (specifically Kofi Kingston) into a decade of attempted Royal Rumble replications.
Unfortunately, Morrison’s standing with the fans didn’t exactly translate to management. As with most of his preceding brushes with the main event scene, was dispatched halfway through 2011’s expanded 40-man field and WWE opted to endorse Alberto Del Rio for the WrestleMania main event instead. Almost in direct contrast to Morrison, Del Rio experienced a respectable four-year tour with three World title runs but audience reception remained lukewarm to indifferent. Since his 2016 departure however, he also has collected more personal baggage than a metropolitan airport.
Between a WrestleMania dying for something exciting, a lengthy history with then-WWE Champion The Miz and his addition to the equation at Extreme Rules a month later anyway, handing the ball to ‘The Shaman of Sexy’ a few months earlier should have been common sense.