15 Best WWE Royal Rumbles Ever

10. Royal Rumble 2003

The early part of this Rumble was some of the most entertaining stuff ever seen from the gimmick. Thanks in large part to Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio, and Edge, the first 10-15 minutes were absolutely awesome to watch. Jericho carried the majority of the match with his ill-fated quest to win from #2. His story with Shawn Michaels kicked off the match with a bang, reinvigorating the audience as it naturally came down from the Angle-Benoit induced high from minutes prior. A quest of the Y2J variety proved to be the ideal compliment to the climax. Jericho was clearly never going to win, but his attempts to make people think that he would added an element to the match that very few other Rumbles have executed quite so well. There were several good changes of pace, too. Edge and Mysterio added a high octane element, Matt Hardy and Shannon Moore provided comedy in a less obvious manner to what 2012 so prominently displayed, and the bigger talents like Lesnar, Batista, Taker, and Kane switched to a heavier-hitting gear later on. The final four was not overly spectacular, as it just was not that exciting when you saw Lesnar in there against three guys so highly unlikely to win. It weakened the unpredictability that so often carries Rumble matches, but never replaced it with anything to help sell the bigger picture of Brock's earning a title shot, as was the case with Triple H and Randy Orton, for instance, in 2009. Still a thoroughly enjoyable Rumble overall, though; a match that you should certainly not skip over if chronicling all of the Rumble matches.
Contributor
Contributor

"The Doc" Chad Matthews has written wrestling columns for over a decade. A physician by trade, Matthews began writing about wrestling as a hobby, but it became a passion. After 30 years as a wrestling fan, "The Doc" gives an unmatched analytical perspective on pro wrestling in the modern era. He is a long-time columnist for Lordsofpain.net and hosts a weekly podcast on the LOP Radio Network called "The Doc Says." His first book - The WrestleMania Era: The Book of Sports Entertainment - ranks the Top 90 wrestlers from 1983 to present day, was originally published in December 2013, and is now in its third edition. Matthews lives in North Carolina with his wife, two kids, and two dogs.