7 Times Vince McMahon Thought WWE's Royal Rumble Sucked

7. When It Was Pitched

Royal Rumble 1988 Bret Hart Harley Race Jake Roberts Jim Neidhart
WWE
"Alright, tell Dick that stupid idea you’ve got!"

Those were McMahon's words to long-time lieutenant Pat Patterson during a meeting with NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol in late-1987. Patterson, who quickly reminded his boss that the idea wasn't stupid, then pitched the first ever Royal Rumble to an intrigued Ebersol and was pleased when the TV exec loved what he was hearing.

Vince didn't. He couldn't wrap his head around why Patterson and Ebersol were wetting their knickers at the thought of a 20-man Battle Royal with tweaked rules and a longer format. NBC's finest thought it was a grand idea, so much so that he turned to the WWF leader and remarked, "Vince, this is unbelievable for television."

Giving in, McMahon agreed that the Rumble could pin down a special on NBC in January 1988. One year later, he was already making plans to expand the match to 30 participants and put it on pay-per-view. Not bad for a "stupid idea" Vince though would suck hard.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.