10 Wrestlers We Can't Believe Scored Eliminations In 2010s Royal Rumble Matches
The Royal Rumble is an extremely difficult match with a WrestleMania opportunity on the line. So, it makes sense that usually only the top wrestlers in the company manage to throw their opponents over the top rope. However, every once in a while there's an ordinary wrestler who surprises the audience by eliminating someone.
In the 2010s, there were some epic Royal Rumble Matches, with memorable performances from some of the biggest wrestlers in history. But what people probably don't remember is that there were also a handful of wrestlers who never stood out, but unbelievably managed to score some eliminations.
10 Elias (2019)
Elias is over with the fans but he's not known to win many matches. Most of his in-ring performances are not a big deal. However, at Royal Rumble 2019, Elias started things out and even managed to eliminate one opponent.
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WWE's "Heavy Metal Jesus" entered first and eliminated Jeff Jarret in 60 seconds. Elias had to deal with wrestlers like Shinsuke Nakamura, Kurt Angle, and Samoa Joe for a few minutes until he was eliminated by Seth Rollins, who was the big winner that night.
9 Curt Hawkins (2019)
Just like Elias, Curt Hawkins (currently known as Brian Myers in Impact Wrestling) also managed to score an elimination at the 2019 Royal Rumble. Hawkins entered at #9 and a couple of minutes later he eliminated Titus O'Neil, who only spent five seconds in the ring. This was the first and only elimination that Hawkins registered in his career.
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Hawkins was eliminated by Samoa Joe two minutes later, but at least he didn't leave empty-handed and accomplished something that many wrestlers could never do. It was especially impressive since Hawkins was still in the midst of a 200+ match losing streak.
8 Heath Slater (2018)
The 2018 Royal Rumble match was one of the most shocking of the decade, as Shinsuke Nakamura surprised everyone by winning the battle after a masterful performance. During this match, Heath Slater managed to eliminate former Royal Rumble winner Sheamus.
The One Man Band was the fifth entrant, he received attacks from several wrestlers even before he could get into the ring. When Slater finally entered the ring, he tossed Sheamus over the top rope, but seconds later Slater was eliminated by Bray Wyatt.
7 Titus O’Neil (2016)
Perhaps everyone remembers Titus O'Neil for his hilarious slide during his entrance to the Greatest Royal Rumble, but it wouldn't be fair to just remember the bad, as O'Neil has had some good times too. In 2016, "The Real Deal" had his best Royal Rumble match performance, spending nine minutes in the ring and scoring one elimination.
Titus O'Neil was the 11th entrant. He did not fall on the way to the ring, and instead, he eliminated the experienced Goldust and performed quite well until he was eliminated by The Big Show.
6 El Torito (2014)
El Torito had a practically irrelevant stint in WWE because in four years he only participated in 72 matches. Most were not televised, and most likely many fans have forgotten about him. However, El Torito managed to eliminate a wrestler in his only appearance in a Royal Rumble match.
In 2014, El Torito entered at the number 20 spot and managed to eliminate Fandango from the match, but immediately afterward, he became one of 12 Roman Reigns’ victims that night.
5 Bo Dallas (2013)
On January 26, 2013, The Inspirational Bo Dallas defeated Luke Harper, Conor O’Brian, and Leo Kruger to win an NXT Tournament for a Royal Rumble spot. Dallas entered at #16 and then eliminated then Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett. But a few seconds later, Barret took revenge and tossed Dallas over the top rope. It was shocking since not many had even heard of Bo or NXT at that point.
After Bo Dallas's good performance, many fans may have believed that he was on his way to greatness, but Dallas did not live up to expectations and had a disappointing career.
4 Kharma (2012)
The powerful and terrifying Kharma (currently better known as Awesome Kong in AEW) was the third woman in history who entered a men's Royal Rumble match. Kharma only lasted one minute in the ring, because she was quickly eliminated by Dolph Ziggler, but still she surprised everyone by eliminating Hunico. Also, she clotheslined Michael Cole and stole the show for a few seconds.
Interestingly, this was Kharma's only match in WWE, which makes it much more unbelievable that she was able to score an elimination.
3 Michael McGillicutty (2011)
This was the only 40-man Royal Rumble match in WWE history, and maybe that's why there were so many surprises, Alberto Del Rio was the winner after eliminating Santino Marella, Booker T returned to WWE and Michael McGillicutty (also known as Curtis Axel) eliminated four men.
Michael McGillicutty eliminated JTG, Ted DiBiase, John Morrison, and Mark Henry, the latter two with help from his The Nexus partners CM Punk, David Otunga, and Husky Harris. McGillicutty spent 15 minutes in the ring before being eliminated by John Cena.
2 Ezekiel Jackson (2011)
Ezekiel Jackson was always heavily criticized because he was just a big guy without standout in-ring abilities and his mic skills were lacking. He also didn't have much charisma.
Even so, WWE always gave him opportunities, as for example at Royal Rumble 2011, when the Big Zeke was the 36th entrant and eliminated none other than The Big Show. Alas, Ezekiel Jackson’s joy was short-lived because he was eliminated by Kane, who holds the all-time record for the most eliminations in Royal Rumble history.
1 Mason Ryan (2011)
Mason Ryan also belongs to the group of men who have an extraordinary physique but who unfortunately were not born for wrestling, because having only muscles is not enough to be successful.
Ryan had been working for WWE for five years, but only made one appearance at the Royal Rumble. Mason Ryan eliminated Booker T and The Great Khali in 2011 alongside his Nexus buddies before being eliminated by John Cena.
