8 WWE Royal Rumble Winners Who Put Their Title Shot On The Line

2. John Cena (2008, 2013)

Now, John Cena's case in 2008 was slightly different than all the others, but still unique enough to land him a spot on this list of lunacy. In shocking fashion, he returned from a career threatening neck injury at No. 30 in the 2008 Royal Rumble, tossing Triple H over the top rope to win the match. Instead of waiting until WrestleMania to get his hands on the then-WWE champion (and the man who took him out initially) Randy Orton, he made history when he cashed in his title shot one month early at the No Way Out pay-per-view. Although Cena emerged victorious in their encounter, it was by way of disqualification, meaning Orton maintained possession of the gold. That same night, Triple H won a No. 1 Contender's Elimination Chamber match to earn a shot at the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 24. On the subsequent Raw, the leader of the Cenation was given one last opportunity to punch his ticket to The Show of Shows by going one-on-one with Orton; if he won, he'd be entered into the title match at 'Mania. With the stakes higher than they had ever been, Cena was able to emerge victorious, making the WWE Championship match at WrestleMania 24 a Triple Threat between three of the all-time best. Five years later, Cena won the Rumble match for a second time. Before he could advance to WrestleMania 29 to contend for the gold against The Rock in a rematch from the year prior, he defended his number one contendership against former champ CM Punk, soundly defeating The Voice of the Voiceless in an instant classic on the February 25, 2013 edition of Raw.