7 Things You Should Know About WWE Royal Rumble 1996

4. "The Ringmaster" Steve Austin Made His Royal Rumble Debut

The most significant newcomer in the 1996 Rumble match was Steve Austin, who was known as "The Ringmaster" at the time. He entered the match as the 24th entrant. You can see him in the photo in a precarious situation up against Diesel. Austin's role in the match wasn't that significant. As soon as he got in the ring he delivered a knee to the back of Bob Holly to eliminate him. Other than that, he had no eliminations. He was eliminated by Fatu although there wasn't a great shot of it and the announcers missed it totally although Mr. Perfect on commentary wondered what happened to the Ringmaster. As we saw in future, Austin was the focal point in the Rumble match for five out of the next six Rumble matches after this one. It's so weird seeing him as just another guy in this match, but that's all he was at this point. Others had a lot more hype as newcomers. Who would have known that would happen when he showed up in the 1996 Rumble just a few weeks after his on screen debut on Raw? It just shows that anybody can really become a top guy if the company gets behind the guy and that person has enough talent.