20 Greatest WWE Royal Rumble Undercard Matches

7. Kurt Angle Vs. Chris Benoit (2003)

Matt Hardy Powerbombed through a table Royal Rumble 2000
WWE.com

As noted elsewhere on this list, the value of this match may have plummeted due to the actions of Chris Benoit (and frankly, the future problems of Kurt Angle), but back in 2003, their intense style only served to send fans into sheer delirium.

Built off their inspired 2002 Tag Team Championship run on the wrestling-heavy SmackDown brand, their split came as 'The Wrestling Machine' aligned himself with Paul Heyman as a ruse to steal the WWE Title from Heyman nemesis Brock Lesnar. Also an enemy of 'the Pyscho Yuppie', Benoit was hugely popular with audiences but hadn't received an opportunity at the Championship in several years.

Predictably sublime bedfellows after their storied 2000 rivalry, Angle and Benoit showed even greater maturity in their performance on this night, entering in an exhausting twenty minute submission-heavy war. After endless nearfalls and broken submission attempts, it would be 'The Olympic Gold Medallist' who would secure the match-winning Anklelock, with Benoit heroically surviving for nearly two minutes before succumbing to Angle's devastating heel hook variation.

Receiving a standing ovation as he hobbled from the empty ring in defeat, Benoit was a made man for his loss, one year before he'd make Royal Rumble history on his own path to title glory.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett