8 Wrestlers Who WWE Gave The 'Diesel Push' At Royal Rumble
7. Kane (2001)
Classifying a former world champion as receiving a major push in the Royal Rumble might seem strange, but it’s also hard to leave out Kane’s record-setting performance in the 2001 Rumble.
Kane debuted at the top of the card in late 1997, feuding with The Undertaker and winning the WWF Championship later that year – albeit for a day. He meandered in storylines for the next two years, partnering with Mankind, joining the Corporation and allying with D-Generation X.
At the 2001 Rumble, Kane entered at #6 and proceeded to quickly toss six men, then continued to eject other wrestlers and last until the very end, eliminating 11 in total before Steve Austin tossed him to win.
That performance helped keep Kane at the top of the card, as he would team up with his brother, The Undertaker, throughout the year. He obviously has remained a fixture in WWE since then, in various different incarnations, but his 2001 Rumble performance was the standard for more than a decade.