7 Things You Should Know About WWE Royal Rumble 1988

4. It Was A 20 Man Royal Rumble Instead Of 30 Man

This was the first Rumble match that was televised. The rules were the same as they've always been except they had 20 men in the match instead of the usual 30 entrants that would follow for the majority of the next two decades. The match went 33:23 even though they said that wrestlers were going to enter every two minutes. If that was the case then it would take at least 36 minutes for the ring to get full (two people start, 18 others enter) so the intervals were less than two minutes. A WWE event where a lie is told? It happens all the time. It's what they do! Why the change from 20 to 30 men in other years? It's probably because the crowd reaction was so good during this match that WWE felt like they could put ten more guys in there and the fans would be really open to it. It's the only 20 man Royal Rumble match that took place as part of this TV special or on PPV. There were other Rumble matches in WWE history, but this is the only one where a 20 man Rumble took place during an event with the Rumble name.