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

32. 1996 - Vader Arrives, Raises Hell, Leaves

Edge Royal Rumble
WWE

The same match that played host to Stone Cold Steve Austin and Triple H's Royal Rumble debuts was completely stolen by Vader appearing to turn the entire company on its f*cking head.

Dominating as a monster heel was the norm, but 'The Mastodon's path of rage was anything but. Vader's thrilling spell in the clash saw him war with new stablemate Yokozuna and brutalise Shawn Michaels after an incandescent 'HBK' tipped the super-heavyweights out as they brawled. It was all so chaotic and awesome that nobody even noticed he was wearing his ring gear backwards.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 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. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, 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