Every Wrestler Announced For WWE Royal Rumble 2023 (So Far)
Surprise pops are fun, but the Royal Rumble is getting back to best and back to business in 2023.
The Royal Rumble became something it was never intended to be in the mid-2010s.
It's largely forgotten that the ingenious Pat Patterson invention was actually on its sixth on-screen run-out when the stipulation was added that the winner would go on to WrestleMania to fight the WWE Champion. Yokozuna profiting from this almighty bounty in 1993 felt like the most natural move in the world, and nobody asked the question about where it had been when existing World Champion Hulk Hogan was winning it in 1990, or the belt itself was being placed up for grabs in 1992's seminal offering.
It was the stipulation that made the near-perfect actually perfect. And one that seemed to fade into the background by 2015 along with the Rumble itself as WWE booked the gimmick, its winners and WrestleMania main events into oblivion. The pops for comedic entrants and surprise appearances became vital rather than novelty. It's a pattern Triple H has seemingly attempting to reverse at his first (and only?) attempt.
Surprises are fun, but Rumbles have to be functional too. The battle royals are gradually starting to fill up as a result, but could any of these early announcements go the distance...