100 Greatest WWE Royal Rumble Moments Ever

51. It Takes A King... To Know A King (1997)

WWE Royal Rumble 2020 Edge
WWE

Comedic heel announcer Jerry Lawler's fun-filled capers have already been examined earlier in this group of Rumble moments, but he's here again. This, fellow fans, is a wrestling 101 masterclass in understanding your role next to some of the biggest stars on the roster. Lawler understood the assignment in 1997.

He crept out from behind the commentary desk to enter as #22, and tried to sneak up on Bret Hart as the Hitman had Steve Austin locked in a Sharpshooter submission. Kudos to Jim Ross for explaining that Bret was just trying to punish a hated rival. He hadn't forgotten the rules of the match.

Apparently, Hart also had eyes on the back of his head.

He spotted Jerry coming in and socked him hard with a stiff punch. Lawler went sailing right back over the top rope. In a fun moment, Jerry said: "It takes a king..." before leaving the table. When he returned, he finished with "...to know a king". Excellent!

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.