One MIND-BLOWING Secret From Every WWE Royal Rumble

2024 - WWE Wanted An Attitude Era Star

Sean Waltman X-Pac
WWE.com

The surprise entrant in the men’s 2024 Royal Rumble match was Pat McAfee. While popular amongst many fans, this felt more like another sign that McAfee is now fully integrated into the backstage “boy’s club” than a well-intentioned treat for the fans.

A year later, YouTube star IShowSpeed was selected for the spot, and as awesome as it was, it represented a shift in direction. Gone are the days of a wrestler from a previous generation doing a tight five for a nostalgia pop. WWE wants to go viral. They don’t want to raise a smile on the faces of the older ultras; there are too many young fans to aggressively target.

This might not be a forever change, though, since a star from yesteryear was rumoured to appear in 2024 in a surprise capacity - and there was substance to the report, too.

Sean ‘X-Pac’ Waltman downplayed the talk on his own X account, saying that, while he can still go “at the drop of a hat” and perform virtually all of his old repertoire, there was “zero chance” he’d be in the Rumble, since he was at least a month away from confidently taking his shirt off in public. While this type of thing is dreamed up by optimistic fans every winter, Meltzer reported in the January 22 Observer that “there was interest in him from the WWE side”.

Hopefully, this interest has not waned; few deserve the pop more than the guy unfairly defined by growing stale. X-Pac didn’t have a great 2000 - but there wouldn’t be a stylistic revolution without his early 1990s.

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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!