Ranking EVERY WWE Royal Rumble's Biggest Surprise 1988-2022

39. 1989 - Ax Vs Smash

Edge Royal Rumble
WWE.com

An excellent exhibition of the gimmick's possibilities from the show's pay-per-view debut, babyface Tag Team Champions Demolition entering as #1 & #2 was a potent use of the first 30-man edition.

That they went all out and actually fought each other was even better. It paid respect to the rules of this bold new venture and put over the then-babyface Tag Team Champions as tough enough to battle each other. The will to win was strong in both until Andre The Giant arrived at #3 and allowed them to pool their resources once again.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett