WWE ROYAL RUMBLE PPV REPORT
January 26, 2014
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Report by Wade Keller and James Caldwell, PWTorch editors

Rumble PPV Undercard

The Royal Rumble PPV pre-show opened with Josh Mathews introducing the show from the All-Star Panel location. Mathews introduced “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, Shawn Michaels, and Ric Flair at the panel.

Social Media Lounge: Renee Young introduced some social media business.

Legends Panel: Flair, Duggan, and Michaels hyped the John Cena vs. Randy Orton WWE Title match as WWE strangely introduced ring announcers JBL and Jerry Lawler in the background, creating a chaotic few moments.

Backstage: Various wrestlers were assembled in the GM Office. Vickie Guerrero and Brad Maddox rolled the Rumble Drum to give wrestlers their numbers. Alberto Del Rio liked his number, then cut a promo on Batista. Kofi Kingston said his number could be better. R-Truth was next and did not like his number. Antonio Cesaro liked his number, but tag partner Jack Swagger didn’t like his number. Last was Great Khali. He got a bad number, which Damien Sandow mocked upon entering the shot. Sandow got an even worse number, which Khali mocked.

Legends Panel: Michaels endorsed Bryan, playing a face role supporting Bryan. Flair played contrarian, saying he likes bad boys.

(A) The New Age Outlaws beat Cody Rhodes & Goldust to capture the WWE World Tag Team Titles at 6:28.

Nicely paced match ending when Gunn blind-tagged in for Dogg by slapping him on the back, then Cody, unaware of the tag, took a Fameasser for the pin and the win. The crowd popped for the title change.

Legends Panel: Hacksaw Duggan picked Dolph Ziggler to win, Shawn Michaels picked The Shield so he has three options, and Ric Flair picked Batista coming off four years of rest.

Rumble PPV Main Card

(1) Bray Wyatt pinned Daniel Bryan in 21:30 after Sister Abigail. Very good match start to finish which seemed designed mostly to get Bray ready for a feud with John Cena, as they’re trying to get Bray over a top tier heel this season. The crowd was totally into Bryan from the start, with enthusiastic “Yes!” chants almost as if they were willing management to put him in the Rumble and hopefully let him win. Cole noted that Bryan was “rumored” to have suffered a concussion last week, perhaps giving Bryan a bit of an “out” for losing later to the Sister Abigail finisher. First Bray gave Bryan the Sister Abigail into the ringside barrier as a counter to his dive through the ropes at him, and then gave him another inside the ring for the clean win.(****)

Renee Young interviewed Paul Heyman who said Lesnar plans to challenge the winner of the Orton-Batista match later... They showed Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger at ringside... Back to the Legends Panel, Michaels said his money is still on Bryan in the future. He said he only superkicks people he likes. That seemed like a brush-off of his heated situation with Bryan a few weeks ago..

(2) Brock Lesnar beat Big Show in 2:01. Show was injured going into the match, which may have dictated the nature of this match, but this was a one-sided beatdown starting before the bell. Lesnar went after Show with chairshots. Show showed some life with a KO punch to Lesnar’s chin as a counter to his swinging a chair at him. WWE replayed it in slo-mo from several angles as it looked good for a worked punch. The ref finally officially signaled for the match to start even though Show was beaten down. There were literally dozens of chairshot that Show absorbed from Lesnar. Then Lesnar ducked another KO punch and then gave Show an impressive F5 mid-ring for the win. He continued to attack Show with more chairshots after the match. The point of this was to establish firmly that Lesnar can take out Show with a brutal barrage of offense with a chair, so what might happen if Undertaker and his Streak faced the same fate at WrestleMania 30.

A backstage promo aired with The Shield. Seth Rollins said it will be every man for himself once it’s down to the three of them. Reigns bragged about his entrance number, but refused to show to it Ambrose. Ambrose offered to show him his if Reigns showed him his. No deal. They teased a little dissension.

Young interviewed Orton about facing Batista. He also called Bray Wyatt a “Duck Dynasty reject” who isn’t fit to be the Face of WWE like he is.

(3) Randy Orton beat John Cena to retain the WWE Title. Orton came out first, even though he’s the champion. Cena got booed during ring intros, which Cena acknowledged with his smirk-of-acceptance he has mastered to show he’s a good sport while selling it just a little. Right before the bell rang the crowd amped itself up with a loud “Daniel Bryan” chant. It was just the beginning of the crowd making news on this show. There were some “Let’s Go Cena / Cena Sucks” dueling chants. There was a chant of “We Want Angle” (Angle is from Pittsburgh and just said in a newspaper interview he wants to return to WWE some day), “Randy Savage,” “Y2J,” and “Undertaker.” Eventually, the crowd turned on Orton and Cena, chanting “boring” which seemed to irritate Orton, and maybe even hurt his feelings a little. When the action went to ringside, there were some Bryan chants. Orton yelled that he’s the WWE Champ, not Bryan or Cena. They picked up the pace for a while but the crowd just wasn’t going to accept this match no matter what they did. They ended up chanting “End this match,” “We Want Divas” (which morphed into) “We Want Refunds,” and “This is awful” about 15 minutes into the match.

Late in the match Orton applied an STF, but Cena escaped and applied his own. Orton escaped and gave Cena an Attitude Adjustment. He went for an RKO, but Cena countered and gave Orton the RKO, so they each did the other’s finisher. Orton kicked out of his own finisher. As the match hit the crescendo, the Wyatt music played and the screen flashed their logo, then they appeared on the ring apron. Orton surprised a distracted Cena with an RKO for the win. Afterward, the Wyatts dismantled Cena in the ring. Bray then finished off Cena with Sister Abigail to “Yes!” chants after shouting: “Behold the creators of the new world.” Although it was totally rejected by the crowd, it wasn’t so much that the match stunk as what it represented - status quo and the old guard. This was among the most remarkable rejections of a match, right there with Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 20.

Young interviewed the New Age Outlaws. Road Dogg said they’re the best at tag team wrestling and they have a victory party to attend. He said Renee was not invited.

Rumble Video Package: WWE introduced soundbytes from wrestlers talking about why they will win the Rumble match. For some reason, this was on the PPV, not the Raw that sold the show, but it was better late than never. The Miz, The Usos, IC champion Big E. Langston, Fandango, Batista, Damien Sandow, Ryback, and Rey Mysterio all made their case for winning.

(4) Batista won the 30-man Royal Rumble. Justin Roberts introduced the Rumble main event. Out first was C.M. Punk, given the #1 spot by Kane last Monday on Raw. The Shield’s music then played to bring out Seth Rollins to start the match with Punk.

•#1-10: Both Punk and Rollins were knocked down to start the match. Damien Sandow then charged the ring to join the party at #3. After the heels beat down Punk, Cody Rhodes came out as #4 to even the odds. On cue, Cody and Sandow battled to resume their issues. Sandow then tried to charge Punk, but Punk dumped him over the top rope at 3:48.

*** Sandow out via Punk at 3:48***

Next out was Kane, drawing Punk’s attention. DOO Kane was in his dress clothes and he removed his dress shirt on the way to the ring to wrestle in dress pants and dress shoes. Kane wanted a chokeslam on Punk, but Punk blocked and dumped Kane over the top rope for another elimination.

*** Kane out via Punk at 5:44 ***

Out next at #6 was NXT star Alexander Rusev, who slowly marched to the ring as Cole hyped his background. Rusev picked apart babyfaces Punk and Rhodes as Rollins recovered in the corner. As Rusev battled the ring, out next at #7 was Jack Swagger, flanked by Zeb Colter. Swagger and Rusev came face-to-face for a mid-ring battle as the crowd picked up a “We The People” chant.

Next out at #8 was Kofi Kingston. No eliminations and some basic elimination teases before Jimmy Uso hit the ring at #9. No eliminations and more basic teases before Goldust came out at #10. Rusev was then eliminated by a group of people.

*** Rusev out via group of people at 13:10 ***

Rusev angrily yanked Kofi out of the ring, then smashed him into the guardrail, but Kofi was not eliminated. After Rusev left, Kofi recovered, balanced himself on the guardrail, and flew clear off the guardrail across the ring to the ring apron, keeping himself in the match after his annual feat of athleticism.

•#11-20: U.S. champion Dean Ambrose came out at #11. After the comedown segment, Dolph Ziggler was introduced at #12. Ziggler came in hot on the wrestlers in the match as the crowd picked up a “Let’s Go Ziggler” chant. Ambrose tried to eliminate Ziggler, but he held on. Meanwhile, Swagger tried to get Punk out, but Punk blocked. No one was eliminated, then R-Truth came out at #13. Shield quickly beat down Truth, putting him down and out. Ambrose then eliminated both Truth and Jimmy Uso.

*** Truth out at 18:14 and Uso at 18:32 by Ambrose ***

Kofi Kingston was nearly eliminated moments later, but he held on again. Kevin Nash was then introduced next at #14, the “TV Pilot” look change being a ruse. Nash hit the ring and promptly eliminated Swagger.

*** Swagger out by Nash at 20:00 ***

Out next at #15 was Roman Reigns, who started destroying folks. Reigns and Nash then came face-to-face. Reigns tossed him aside, then chucked Kofi clear over the top rope to the floor for a quick elimination. Next, Reigns speared Ziggler, eliminated him, and then eliminated Nash.

*** Kingston at 21:50, Ziggler at 22:16, Nash at 22:25 by Reigns ***

Out next at #16 was Great Khali. The Shield quickly ganged up on him and eliminated Khali over the top rope.

*** Khali by The Shield at 23:41 ***

In the chaos that followed, Goldust eliminated brother Cody Rhodes, then Reigns dumped over Goldust.

*** Rhodes by Goldust at 24:05, Goldust by Reigns at 24:08 ***

The only other man left was Punk. But, to provide some help, Sheamus returned to WWE TV at #17. Sheamus beat up The Shield while Punk recovered in the corner, standing tall after knocking down each heel. The Miz then came out at #18. The match slowed down until #19 was introduced as Fandango, who came out on-stage with Summer Rae.

Fandango hit the ring, kicked Miz in the head as the crowd chanted for Fandango, and avoided an elimination. As the action slowed down, the crowd chanted “Daniel Bryan.” The countdown clock then expired to bring out Los Matadores. But, it was not Fernando or Diego, but El Torito who hit the Rumble.

Punk had a good laugh at El Torito’s entry, so Torito snapped off a huracanrana on him. The comedy segment broke down into Fandango being eliminated by Torito, then Reigns lifted Torito into the air and chucked him over the top rope onto Fandango.

*** Fandango out by Torito at 30:35, Torito out by Reigns at 31:00 ***

•#21 - 30: Antonio Cesaro then came out at #21. Cesaro busted out the Big Swing on everyone, saving his best for Rollins, getting a standing ovation for a multiple-revolutions swing. Luke Harper then came out at #22 for the “comedown” entry. Out next at #23 was Jey Uso.

Suddenly, #24 hit for JBL. JBL casually stood up at the announce position as Cole said JBL has never been in a Rumble match. JBL, in a full suit and tie, casually strolled into the ring and removed his jacket. JBL shouted down at Cole to come get his coat, so Cole obliged. And, Reigns dumped JBL over the top rope, drawing aaahs from the crowd. The crowd hilariously picked up a “You Still Got It” chant as JBL returned to the announce table.

*** JBL by Reigns at 36:42 ***

Out next at #25 was Erick Rowan, who emerged to dead silence. JBL name-dropped Hulk Hogan. Meanwhile, Miz walked into a clothesline from Harper, who eliminated Miz. The Wyatts then eliminated Jey Uso, setting up a confrontation between The Shield and The Wyatts.

*** Miz by Harper at 38:13, Jey Uso by the Wyatts at 38:52 ***

Ryback came out next at #26. The crowd picked up a “Goldberg” chant, then quieted down to count who was left to enter in the last four slots. Out next at #27 was Alberto Del Rio, taking care of one of the remaining obvious entries. Del Rio stormed the ring to attack people in front of him as the announcers said Del Rio wants to go after that “frothy perro dog” Batista. Yes, go after the frothy dog dog. The crowd was quiet as they waited for an elimination or another entry.

Out next at #28 was Batista following Del Rio. Batista jogged to the ring in biker shorts and quickly ran over everyone. There were some boos for Batista, interestingly. Batista quickly eliminated Rowan, then confronted Ryback. Batista quickly eliminated him, then Ryback, then Del Rio.

*** Rowan by Batista at 42:35, Ryback by Batista at 43:03, Del Rio at 43:33 ***

Out next at #29 was Big E. Langston, who went after Sheamus with power offense. In the background, the crowd chanted for “Daniel Bryan” as the final slot. No eliminations, then the countdown clock expired to bring out ... Rey Mysterio as #30. No Bryan or Cena in the Rumble. The crowd booed once Rey’s music stopped. And, a “Daniel Bryan” chant picked up again. Sheamus then eliminated Langston to start clearing out some wrestlers.

*** Langston by Sheamus at 46:40 ***

The crowd remained restless, unhappy with the match. Poor Rey out at #30 was booed going for the 619. Rolling then eliminated Rey, who got cheered upon his elimination.

*** Mysterio by Rollins at 47:37 ***

Roman Reigns then Superman-punched Harper out of the ring.

*** Harper by Reigns at 48:07 ***

Suddenly, Ambrose tried to eliminate Reigns, but Reigns saved himself. Reigns freaked out, then eliminated Cesaro, Rollins, and Ambrose, yelling down that you don’t do that to him.

*** Rollins, Ambrose, and Cesaro at 48:30 ***

Batista, Reigns, Sheamus, and Punk were left as the Final Four. Suddenly, Kane showed up and yanked Punk over the top rope despite being cut from the match, exposing the annual flaw in the Rumble format. Kane beat up Punk ringside, leaving him in a heap.

*** Punk by Kane at 49:25 ***

Back in the ring, the match reset with Batista, Sheamus, and Reigns, who has tied Kane’s record of 11 eliminations. Meanwhile, the crowd booed the remaining participants. Sheamus and Batista battled to boos, then Batista powerslammed Reigns to “No!, No!” chants. Sheamus then dropped Batista to boos. Sheamus tried to warm up the Brogue Kick to rhythmic “No!” chants, but Batista blocked to boos. Reigns then dumped Sheamus over the top rope, taking the eliminations record.

*** Sheamus by Reigns at 52:50 ***

Batista quickly tried to eliminate Reigns, but Reigns blocked. Reigns and Batista then reset to boos. Batista sold being winded as he slowly approached Reigns, delivering strikes to boos. The crowd backed Reigns, who exploded on Batista with a clothesline. The crowd picked up a “Roman Reigns” chant, forced to cheer for someone. Reigns wanted the Superman Punch, but Batista smashed him with a spear, drawing more boos. Batista wanted the Batistabomb, but Reigns smashed him with a spear, drawing cheers. Reigns tried to follow up, but Batista reversed momentum and chucked him over the top rope to win, drawing boos, which the announcers continued to ignore.

Batista was so winded that he couldn’t stand up to celebrate. Batista eventually pulled himself up by the ropes to kind of stand tall as the winner. Meanwhile, the crowd grumbled as Cole tried to hype the victory. The crowd continued to boo over Batista’s music as Batista continued to bend over at the waist, unable to lift his face for the money shot. Ben Tucker relayed from the building that it’s an incredible atmosphere because the crowd can’t stand this.

WWE replayed the high points and finish, then cut back to Batista finally pulling himself up to celebrate. Batista tried to force a smile, then climbed one rope to stand and pose. Batista told the crowd to deal with him as the winner, then pointed to the WrestleMania 30 sign hanging in the building, drawing fireworks and boos. WWE blasted the pyro over the boos, but the pyros faded out and the boos came down as the Rumble closed at 10:44 p.m. EST.

WINNER: Batista at 55:07 to win the Rumble.

An amazing rejection of the returning Legacy Star, which is a mix of a rejection of Batista, who is better as a heel and shouldn’t have hugged Stephanie when he returned, and in part just a general protest of Bryan not being in the Rumble. A fascinating, memorable night. (***1/4)

ORDER OF ENTRY

(1) C.M. Punk; (2) Seth Rollins; (3) Damien Sandow; (4) Cody Rhodes; (5) Kane; (6) Alexander Rusev; (7) Jack Swagger; (8) Kofi Kingston; (9) Jimmy Uso; (10) Goldust; (11) Dean Ambrose; (12) Dolph Ziggler; (13) R-Truth; (14) Kevin Nash; (15) Roman Reigns; (16) Great Khali; (17) Sheamus; (18) The Miz; (19) Fandango; (20) El Torito; (21) Antonio Cesaro; (22) Luke Harper; (23) Jey Uso; (24) JBL; (25) Erick Rowan; (26) Ryback; (27) Alberto Del Rio; (28) Batista; (29) Big E. Langston; (30) Rey Mysterio

ORDER OF ELIMINATION

(1) Sandow by Punk at 3:48; (2) Kane by Punk at 5:44; (3) Rusev by group at 13:10; (4) Truth by Ambrose at 18:14; (5) Jimmy Uso by Ambrose at 18:32; (6) Swagger by Nash at 20:00; (7) Kingston by Reigns at 21:50; (8) Ziggler by Reigns at 22:16; (9) Nash by Reigns at 22:25; (10) Khali by Shield at 23:41; (11) Rhodes by Goldust at 24:05; (12) Goldust by Reigns at 24:08; (13) Fandango by El Torito at 30:35; (14) El Torito by Reigns at 31:00; (15) JBL by Reigns at 36:42; (16) Miz by Harper at 38:13; (17) Uso by the Wyatts at 38:52; (18) Rowan by Batista at 42:35; (19) Ryback by Batista at 43:03; (20) Del Rio by Batista at 43:33; (21) Langston by Sheamus at 46:40; (22) Mysterio by Rollins at 47:37; (23) Harper by Reigns at 48:07; (24) Cesaro by Reigns at 48:30; (25) Rollins by Reigns at 48:30; (26) Ambrose by Reigns at 48:30; (27) Punk by Kane at 49:25; (28) Sheamys by Reigns at 52:50; (29) Reigns by Batista at 55:07

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