Ranking All 30 WWE Royal Rumble Winners

WrestleMania title shot(s): N/A

Pop quiz: Who is the only reigning world champion to win a Royal Rumble match? If you answered anything other than “Hulk Hogan,” you should probably take a remedial course in Wrestling Politicking 101. Hogan won the 1990 Rumble while holding the world title, eliminating Mr. Perfect last.

At the time, an easy argument could have been made that Perfect eliminating Hogan – even by accident – and winning could have elevated him and made him an instant title contender. However, Hogan would go on to lose the title to Ultimate Warrior a few months later at WrestleMania VI. (The two had an awesome confrontation during that Rumble.)

At the ’91 Rumble, Hogan was not the champ, but he would win and then go on to challenge Sgt. Slaughter for the title, which the Iraqi sympathizer had won at the Rumble – though his victory was not tied to his Mania title shot. Thankfully Hogan won the Rumble, because he certainly needed the momentum to successfully defend freedom and beat Slaughter.

(Note that Hogan’s two victories are being counted as one entry here, hence only 29 items.)