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

by Michael Hamflett

1. Women's 2022 - Knockouts Champion Makes Her Mark

Mickie James WWE Royal Rumble 2022
WWE.com

It had already been quite surprising news to hear then-current Knockouts Champion Mickie James announced for the Royal Rumble in the build-up, but even more of a twist was to come when the strains of "Hardcore Country" echoed around The Dome at America's Center in St Louis, Missouri.

Her run wasn't particularly memorable, but a short battle with Michelle McCool was a nice callback to their infamous (and occasionally excellent) feud.

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Hacksaw Jim Duggan Royal Rumble 1988
WWE.com

1. Royal Rumble 1988

Don Muraco

One Man Gang

Junkyard Dog

Jim Neidhart

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 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 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, 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