Ranking EVERY WWE Royal Rumble Match - From Worst To Best

23. 2017

Randy Orton Royal Rumble 2017
WWE.com

WWE was a weird place come 2017. Thus, the Rumble was too. Too many of the recent entries had been lacklustre, and it was obvious the soft reset button needed to be hammered. Seeking ways to maintain interest, the promotion booked big time moments like Goldberg and the Undertaker having a staredown, and there was potential for a heavyweight winner thanks to Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, Braun Strowman, etc, too.

Randy Orton would take the acclaim by pipping Bray Wyatt to the 'anyone but Roman' crown. That's worth discussing, especially in more modern times when Reigns winning the Rumble would be fully accepted by the masses. In 2017, people were still charred by Vince McMahon's forced babyface push booking, so Roman winning would've been unwanted.

Mr. RKO got a healthy pop then.

NXT's Tye Dillinger living up to his Perfect 10 nickname by entering as #10 was a laugh, and so was Kofi Kingston clinging onto the ring post for dear life to escape elimination. Overall, a decent enough Rumble, but not one deserving of a spot close to the top 10. There's fun to be had though, and that's all that'll matter to those on an annual gimmick match sprint before the latest.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.