One MIND-BLOWING Secret From Every WWE Royal Rumble

2023 - Incontrovertible Proof That Vince McMahon SUCKED

Vince McMahon
WWE

Remember in the late 2010s, when you couldn’t criticise WWE’s irredeemable slop without running into some woeful “six stars in Tokyo Dome” joke? And then in 2022, when Triple H took over creative, those same defenders were really glad that Vince McMahon was gone, now that WWE had been saved?

Saved from what: the great action that you were biased for thinking was abject rubbish?

Halcyon days.

Vince McMahon killed the joy of the Royal Rumble match. 2022’s edition might have been worse than even 2015: it was a total waste of an hour dedicated almost exclusively to a booking troll-job. Lesnar won LOL. At least in 2015, Vince had a harebrained idea to get a new babyface over. In 2022, he executed the least inspiring idea possible, and took an eternity to get to it.

In stunning contrast, the 2023 Royal Rumble was a record-breaking smash of a PLE that formalised the third WWE boom.

According to the February 6 Observer, Dave Meltzer was told that “two million people watched [on Peacock]” - meaning that it was seen by more people than WrestleMania 28, which, in drawing 1,219,000 buys, was WWE’s most successful PPV ever. The higher cost of the 2012 show shouldn’t be ignored, but regardless: the 2023 Royal Rumble was a monster of a smash. Moreover, the gate out-drew the previous Rumble high by a staggering $2.5 million.

This is more subjective, but the scene in which Sami Zayn turned on Roman Reigns was one of the most well-received angles in WWE history. Triple H restored faith in the event at the first time of asking.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!