The Top Ten Royal Rumble Matches

[djihad]

Бате Джулиан отново ни е подготвил неговата класация във мания.

The Top Ten Royal Rumble Matches

Honorable Mention: The Rockers vs. The Orient Express (1991)

This match kicked off the 1991 edition of The Royal Rumble and it immediately got the crowd into the event by providing some high flying action. The Rockers dominated early until the OE took over and Shawn played the face in peril. Shawn eventually got the hot tag to Jannetty and the crowd absolutely exploded. Seriously, the pop Jannetty got when he got that hot tag was deafening. The end came when the Orients went for the catapult karate chop, but HBK broke that up which enabled Jannetty to get a sunset flip on Tanaka for the 3 count. This match was absolute balls to the wall action and demonstrated why The Rockers were so insanely popular at the time.

Honorable Mention: Bret Hart vs. Razor Ramon (1993)

I remember this match being the match that made me turn into a huge Bret Hart mark because of the way he absolutely dissected Razor's leg, I thought that was immensely cool because I had never seen psychology in a wrestling match like that before. I also remember Razor throwing his toothpick at a kid at ringside after Bret gave him his sunglasses and thinking that even though Razor was a heel, he was pretty damn cool. I think that was the first time I cheered for anything a heel did. Anyhow, this match was brilliant. Bret spent the majority of the match focusing on Razor's leg, but Razor would fight back and nearly put the Hitman away a couple times. The match ended after Bret reversed a Razor's Edge attempt into a backslide and once Razor kicked out of that, he applied the Sharpshooter for the submission. This match made me a huge fan of both men and is proof that when Scott Hall was sober, he was one of the best in the business.

Honorable Mention: The Rock vs. Mankind (1999)

This match is one that is very hard to watch, but you can't help but look because of the sheer insanity of it. Mick Foley proved in this match why he is regarded as one of the craziest son-of-a-bitches to ever step foot in a wrestling ring. This match has gained an infamous reputation due to its inclusion on the "Between The Ropes" documentary as well as the knowledge that Mick's family was ringside while he absorbed all this punishment. The match included Mankind getting knocked off a ledge in the crowd onto an electrical unit that caused sparks to fly everywhere, a people's elbow to Mankind's face with a chair on top of it, and at least 10 unprotected shots to Mick's face with a chair. Absolutely brutal shit that is now the stuff of legend and is quite difficult to watch knowing the toll it took on Mick's body and career.

Honorable Mention: Bret & Owen Hart vs. The Quebecers (1994)

This match is mainly remembered for being the one where Owen finally snapped and turned on Bret, but it was also a damn good tag match before the post-match actions took place. The Quebecers worked over Bret's knee for the majority of the match with Owen on the apron begging for the hot tag. Bret avoided a double team move and finally had the opportunity to tag in Owen, but instead of doing that, he opted to apply the Sharpshooter to the fallen Pierre. His knee was in such bad shape, though, that it completely gave out on him and made him crumble to the mat which made the ref call for the bell and award the match to the Quebecers. Owen was absolutely pissed that Bret tried to pick up the win rather than tag him in, so once Bret was finally able to stand up, Owen kicked his leg out from under him and turned full blown heel, much to the crowd's displeasure. This was a great match that combined superior in-ring action with a top-notch storyline and brought it all together in one enjoyable package.

Honorable Mention: Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker (1998)

This match is mainly remembered for being the one that caused Michaels to miss four years of action due to a back injury he sustained in it, but what is amazing is the fact that he sustained that injury fairly early in the match and was still able to put on a damn good match. This match was a casket match and it featured some absolutely brutal action which included ‘Taker getting a piledriver on steel steps, ‘Taker taking a wicked shot to his knees on the steel steps, and HBK getting backdropped onto the casket which would turn out being the move that made him retire for four years. The match ended when Kane, seemingly out to help his brother, turned on The Undertaker and chokeslammed him into the casket which allowed Michaels to pick up the win. This match featured remarkable action that was even more impressive considering that Michael's had a severely damaged back for the majority of it.

10) Bret Hart vs. The Undertaker (1996)

Bret Hart and The Undertaker always had great chemistry together and this was another prime example of that as this match at the 1996 edition of The Royal Rumble was an instant classic. Bret came into this match as the WWE Champion and ‘Taker was trying to dethrone him, despite wearing a face mask due to having his face crushed by Yokozuna in the previous month. Bret did what he did best in this match and that was exploit a body part on his opponent, in this case The Undertaker's knee, and work on in mercilessly. Undertaker sold the beatdown to his knee beautifully as he limped all around the ring and even failed to hit a Tombstone on Bret due to his knee being in such bad shape. The match ended when ‘Taker finally was able to hit the Tombstone, but Diesal came and pulled out the referee which caused a DQ. This was just a fantastic match that fans of matches with psychology attached to them would love.

9) Bret Hart vs. Diesel (1995)

This was a match for Diesel's WWE Championship and it was proof positive that Bret Hart could pull out a classic match with virtually anybody. Well, to be fair, Nash could work a decent match during his original WWE run as he had some damn good matches with the likes of HBK, Hart and ‘Taker. Anyway, back to this match. This match originally was contested under normal rules under Shawn Michaels came out to stomp on Diesel's already injured knee with cause referee Earl Hebner to make the match No DQ to endure there a winner. The match showed both men working on a body part as Bret worked over Diesel's knees and Diesel worked on Bret's ribs which he had injured earlier in the match after getting slammed into the ring post. The match also featured Owen Hart interfere and throw Bret sternum first into an exposed turnbuckle, which further damaged Bret's already hurt ribs. The two men went back and forth until Bret caught Diesel in a small package, but Diesel was able to kick out and a ref bump occurred. This brought out various enemies of both competitors including HBK, Owen Hart, Jeff Jarrett and Bob Backlund which made the ref finally throw out the match seeing that there was no way the match could have a clean finish with these guys interfering all the time. It's a true testimony to how good this match was that it could have so many run-ins and have a screwy ending, but still leave such a positive lasting impression on me as well as many other fans that I know.

8) Chris Jericho vs. The Rock (2002)

This is a match that I feel is unjustly overlooked when people talk about some of the best matches ever at The Royal Rumble. Jericho had won the Undisputed Championship the prior month at Vengeance and The Rock was poised to dethrone Jericho of his title. This match featured some absolutely awesome action and Jericho hung in tough with The Rock, making him seem like a true main eventer. Everytime that it seemed that The Rock might pull off the win, Jericho would reach in his bag of trickeration to stay alive. The ending to this match is one of my favorite ever as Jericho used not one, not two, but THREE illegal maneuvers to pick up the W. First he gave The Rock a low blow, then threw him into an exposed turnbuckle and then rolled Rocky up with his feet on the rope. THREE TIMES THE HEELERY!! I felt this match made Jericho seem like a big time heel capable of using his cheating ways to outsmart his opponents ala Ric Flair & HHH, but alas Jericho would be promptly bitched out at Wrestlemania 18 and would never get another chance to run with the big belt. Shame I say, he was a damn good champ.

7) The Dudley Boyz vs. The Hardy Boyz (2000)

This match was a pre-cursor to all the TLC matches that would follow between these two teams as well as Edge & Christian and I think this match can stand next to any of those matches and fair pretty well. The amount of insane shit these guys pulled out during this match had never been seen by a WWE audience and it was the match that really made these two teams become insanely popular in the ‘E. Some of the insanity in this match included Matt getting powerbombed from the top turnbuckle through a table propped up on ring steps, Bubba getting driven through a table by a Matt legdrop off a ladder as well as a Jeff splash off the top rope, Bubba getting knocked off an entranceway through a stack of tables, and Jeff doing a swanton off said entranceway through D-Von who was propped up on a table. Absolutely awesome stuff that holds up very well to this day and can be compared to any of the TLC wars that we've all seen.

6) The 2001 Royal Rumble Match

This was the rumble match that featured Stone Cold making his march towards reclaiming the WWE Championship after being out for a year due to a neck injury. This rumble also featured Drew Carey making a brief cameo before shitting himself due to an encounter with Kane and promptly eliminating himself as well as a brief appearance by The Honky Tonk Man until Kane killed him dead and disposed of him. Kane also lasted very long in this rumble after entering at #6 and making it to the final two along with Austin. Kane was an absolute monster in this rumble and it took Austin delivering a stunner as well as a bunch of chairshots to finally eliminate the Big Red Machine. They also hinted in this match of the future Wrestlemania 17 main event as Austin and Rock would face off for a brief period which the crowd absolutely went wild for. Just a fantastic rumble match all around.

5) Chris Benoit vs. Chris Jericho (2001)

This match is also from the 2001 edition of The Royal Rumble and it was one of the better ladder matches that you'll ever see. This match featured some of the best action I've ever seen in a ladder match as everytime you thought that one man finally had the match won, they would get knocked down. Some of the awesome action in this match included Jericho applying The Walls Of Jericho on the TOP of the ladder, Jericho seesawing the ladder in Benoit's face, and Benoit taking an absolutely SICKALICIOUS bump by taking a chairshot to the face while in midair after diving through the ropes. Jericho picked up the win, but in a match this good, it really didn't matter who the winner was. A great effort by both men that stands as one of the greatest ladder matches ever.

4) The 1992 Royal Rumble Match

Yup, this is the one. The one where Flair entered at #3 and went the distance to pick up his first WWE Championship. This match would have already been automatically memorable for being the only one that decided a new WWE Champion, but the fact that Flair put in such an incredible performance makes it even more memorable. One of the things that greatly added to this match was Bobby Heenan on commentary who absolutely freaked out when seeing how early Flair entered the Rumble and thinking it was then impossible for Flair to win the match. Flair then amazed the commentary team and the crowd by going the distance and making the Final Four (which incidentally was probably the best Final Four ever with Flair, Hogan, Sid and Savage). Flair then won the match after Sid eliminated Hogan and Hogan, being the poster boy for sportsmanship, held onto Sid's hand which allowed Flair to dump Sid and pick up the title. Flair set a new record at the time by lasting in the Rumble for over an hour and became instantly credible to all WWE fans. A picture perfect Royal Rumble.

3) The 2004 Royal Rumble Match

Many people call the '92 Rumble the best one ever, but for my money, the 2004 edition of the rumble is hands down the best ever. It intertwined so many different storylines into one completely satisfying experience. You had Kane, who thought he had finally killed off his brother, encounter the Deadman on the TitanTron and ultimately proceed to freak out. You had Mick Foley make his return after being absent for months to eliminate Randy Orton and set up their feud. You had Brock Lesnar interfere in the match to F5 Goldberg and set up their Wrestlemania match. And of course you had Chris Benoit, who entered at #1, win the rumble by eliminating The Mother Fucking Big Show! I've never seen a rumble that was rewarding on as many levels as this one. Everything just clicked and it remains my favorite rumble ever and I doubt I'll ever see another rumble that can surpass this one in terms of the sheer excitement I felt watching it.

2) Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle (2003)

If you love technical wrestling, this may well be one of your favorite matches ever and I know many people who consider this the greatest pure wrestling match of all time. These two men went out and gave the Boston fans as well as the fans at home a match for the ages that people still talk about constantly to this day. Trying to even recap this match would be impossible because there's so many awesome moves and counters that take place during in, that I would have to literally recap the entire match to do it justice. I must say that I do love that spot where they kept switching germans and Benoit germans Kurt completely over onto his face. Absolutely awesome. Anyhow, this match is an absolute classic that is required viewing for any wrestling fan.

1) Cactus Jack vs. HHH (2000)

I fucking LOVE this match. It's one of my five favorite matches ever so I have an obvious bias towards it, but I don't think anyone can deny that this is one of the best matches in both of these guys career's and that's saying a lot considering the illustrious careers The Game and Foley have had. This match was absolutely brutal and featured some of the most cringe-inducing action I've ever watched. Whether it was HHH getting absolutely SMACKED in the face with a 2x4 wrapped in barbed wire or Foley piledriving HHH on the announce table that wouldn't budge or Cactus taking a Pedigree and landing face first in tacks, this is one of the most violent matches you'll ever see. This is the match that really cemented HHH as a main eventer because after he beat Mick Foley clean at his own game, the fans had to take notice and realize that The Game was indeed the real deal. This match is an unforgettable classic that will be talked about for generations.

[COLEMAN]

Моментът в тази анкета е че мачовете са не "Най-добрите класически мачове" а "Незабравимите моменти в историята на RR".

Някои от изброените които съм гледал се отличават с външна намеса или нещо интересно като цяло...да речем RR 1998 или Battle Royal 2001 макар че този мач наистина беше вълнуващ. Докато ако погледнем мачовете между HHH и Foley и другия между Benoit и Angle или мачът със стълби с победа на Jericho над Benoit са наистина шедьоври. Специално в тази класация трябва да присъства и мачът от 1994 между Undertaker и Yokozuna макар че е толкова критикуван. Общо взето ако се стремим да изготвим класация на наистина добри мачове, вълнуващи и технични ми се струва че 10 няма да съберем. Иначе незабравими моменти колкото искаш - все пак този бизнес се основава главно на тях.

[Brock_Lesnar]

Мачът между Менкайнд и Скалата трябваше да намери място в класацията, емблематичен мач е за историята на Ръмбъла, все пак.

Shawn като спомена действително мача между Трите Хикса и Майкълс от 2004-та ми е един от любимите и трябваше да присъства в класацията.

[Shawn_Michaels]

Класацията е що годе добра ама само долу горе,а и защо го няма Shawn Michaels vs Marty Jannetty от RR93 като това е един от най-добрите мачове за годината ?!А и ми се струва неуместно смесването между обикновените мачовете RR мача

[Radox]

Класацията е що годе добра ама само долу горе,а и защо го няма Shawn Michaels vs Marty Jannetty от RR93 като това е един от най-добрите мачове за годината ?!А и ми се струва неуместно смесването между обикновените мачовете RR мача

Да, и според мен е така. Предпочитам да имаше класация само на Кралските битки, където според мен тази от 2001-ва трябваше да спечели.

[UltraMadd]

Интересна класация, но и аз съм на мнение, че не трябва на едно място да се говори за Royal Rumble мачове и за други мачове от същия турнир. Доста от мачовете не съм ги гледал (всички от 1996 година надолу с изключение на Royal Rumble Match 1992). Според мен в една класация за най-добрите мачове в историята на Royal Rumble задължително трябва да попаднат мачовете Undertaker vs. HBK от 1998 и The Rock vs. Foley от 1999. Те трябва да бъдат в топ 10, не може такива мачове да са само honorable mentions. А като говорим за Royal Rumble мачове не мога да разбера защо Royal Rumble 1992 е толкова напред. Този сблъсък много го хвалят, но аз лично не намирам нищо особено в него. За мен най-добрият сблъсък е този от 2001 година и мисля, че той заслужава да е на доста по-предна позиция.

[HEIDENREICH]

Този път остро не съм съгласен с UltraMadd.Royal Rumble от 92 -ра за мен е най-добрата изобщо.

Съставът на 30-те беше много силен участваха Гробаря,Мачо Мен ,Хоган,Сид,Роди Пайпър,Сержант Слотър,Рик Флеър-всичките световни шампиони и за разлика от миналогодишната когато Рей Мистерио издържа много време ,но през цялото време лежа и не взе участие в мача ,Флеър излезе под номер 3 при 2 минутни интервали,издържа маса бой(биха го всички претенденти без изключение) и доказа че е номер едно.Отделно се чуха първите освирквания за Хоган от времето на Хълкоманията ,коментарът на Боби Хинан бе НЕВЕРОЯТЕН .

Сблъсъкът от 2001 беше добър ,но се запомни основно с невероятното представяне на Кейн,победителя беше ясен и според мен изобщо не може да се сравнява с този от 92-ра.

И това не е само мое мнение -водещите журналисти единодушно признават битката от 92-ра за най-добрата-виж им оценките за самите мачове-само тази от 2004 донякъде се доближава до нея.Имам чувството че повечето колеги тук отебават всеки мач дето е преди 2000-година.

Иначе не съм много съгласен с подредбата на Джулиън-мача Квебекърс-Хартс е един от най-запомнящите се отборни мачове които изобщо съм гледал,а момента в който Оуен изрита брат си е класически за този турнир.

Аз също поне като Honorable Mention бих споменал мача Гробаря-Йокозуна от 94-та като качество самия мач е за рейтинг DUD ,но битката му с 13 човека и първата му смърт е класически момент за всички фенове на ранния Гробар от началото на 90-те(в този форум това сме аз и UNDERTAKER* явно ).

Всеки си има право на вкус и мнение ,но по въпроса за Ръмбъл мачовете ,както и за качеството на мачовете на Брет Харт съм на диаметрално противоположно мнеие от моя приятел UltraMadd.

[UltraMadd]

Всеки си има право на вкус и мнение ,но по въпроса за Ръмбъл мачовете ,както и за качеството на мачовете на Брет Харт съм на диаметрално противоположно мнеие от моя приятел UltraMadd.

Нормално е да сме на различни мнения и да харесваме различни видове мачове. Аз гледам кеч от доста по-късно и въобще не си падам по old school мачове. Но при мен просто така са се получили нещата. През 1992 не съм имал възможност да гледам кеч, защото съм бил едва на три години (даже по време на Royal Rumble-а още не съм бил навършил и три), а пък и най-вероятно не съм хващал телевизии, по която дават кеч. За първи път кеч съм хващал може би чак през 1996-97 година и тогава го гледах от време на време, но пак съм бил доста малък, за да го разбирам, а пък и не е било на български език, а тогава съм си нямал никаква представа от английски или немски (всъщност немският и в момента ми е пълна мъгла). Започнах да гледам кеч чак през 2000 година по bTV. Повечето от мачовете, които даваха по това време, бяха доста динамични и аз просто привикнах към тях и ги заобичах. По-късно се опитвах да гледам и old school, но той просто не успя да ме впечатли. Не знам защо, може би не го разбирам. Не харесвам бавни мачове, следователно не съм фен и на Брет Харт (както ти добре знаеш), защото мачовете му са в този стил. По същата причина не харесвам и Royal Rumble 1992. Честно казано не го помня много добре, но съм сигурен, че беше доста муден. В мача нямаше никакви особени изпълнения, а само опити за изхвърляне по най-обикновения възможен начин, но за този период това си е съвсем нормално. Като драма може и да е бил на много високо ниво, но тъй като нямам никаква представа кои са били главни претенденти по това време и какво е значела тази победа за Рик, сблъсъкът не можа да ме грабне емоционално и затова ми остана да гледам само качеството на мача, а то определено не беше по вкуса ми. През 2001 година нещата вече стоят по различен начин. Там хем съм запознат с историите, хем в самия сблъсък си имаше всичко: динамика, забавни моменти (Honky Tonk Man, Drew Carey), hardcore (Raven, Steve Blackman), драма (нечестната намеса на Triple H) и т.н.

[Shawn_Michaels]

Забравих да кажа,че още един мач трябва да бъде включен,примерно Last Man Standing-a Shawn Michaels vs Triple H от Royal Rumble 2004 ,тоя мач също заслужава да бъде вътре в такава класация.

Иначе говорим за любими Royal Rumble мачове,вероятно любимия ми е Royal Rumble 1995 там Шон влезе под номер 1 и го изкара,влезе в историята,а и беше доста добро British Bulldog(който влезе под номер 2) също много добре се представи и накрая останаха тея,които бяха влезли в началото ,но Шон победи,макар и с една спорна и победа :)

[parcaleste]

Забравих да кажа,че още един мач трябва да бъде включен,примерно Last Man Standing-a Shawn Michaels vs Triple H от Royal Rumble 2004 ,тоя мач също заслужава да бъде вътре в такава класация.

Иначе говорим за любими Royal Rumble мачове,вероятно любимия ми е Royal Rumble 1995 там Шон влезе под номер 1 и го изкара,влезе в историята,а и беше доста добро British Bulldog(който влезе под номер 2) също много добре се представи и накрая останаха тея,които бяха влезли в началото ,но Шон победи,макар и с една спорна и победа

никъде не е споменат рор-а дето получи Майкълс, като се завърна '97-а - а и самата битка беше мощно въздействаща, имаша ебати яките спотове (еле тоя с Лоулър под ринга :clap: )

[HEIDENREICH]

никъде не е споменат рор-а дето получи Майкълс, като се завърна '97-а - а и самата битка беше мощно въздействаща, имаша ебати яките спотове (еле тоя с Лоулър под ринга :clap: )

Братле,май бъркаш битките Шон получи поп в Аламо Доум( Сан Антонио ) през 97-ма ,но тогава се би за титлата със Сид а не в Ръмбъл мача.

Отделно Лаулер се кри под ринга през 96(през 97-ма се качи на ринга от коментаторската маса и Брет веднага го изхвърли ).

Като си ми разправял кой ти е любимия ръмбъл май имаш предвид този от 96-та още повече ,че Майкълс тогава се завърна след контузията дето мунанесе Оуен,в началото на 97-ма не е отсъствал(махна се чак на прословутото Рау преди Ресълмания когато си "загуби усмивката"

[parcaleste]

e, мотат ми се годинките вече, не е срамно но рор-а беше ВЪЙЙЙЙЙЙЙ