WWE Royal Rumble power rankings: 10 best men's and women's rumble matches of all time

Once the new calendar year hits, it is officially WrestleMania season. Fans begin to follow WWE more closely as they get an idea what will be the big matches taking place on the year. Their first indication is at the Royal Rumble, which takes place every end of January or early February.

The Royal Rumble match carries huge WrestleMania implications. Whoever wins their respective 30-person Royal Rumble match will earn a world title match of their choosing at "The Grandest Stage of Them All." The only way to win is for a competitor to be the last person standing after the other 29 wrestlers are thrown over the top rope with both feet hitting the floor.

Not only does the match carry huge implications, but it also features some surprise entrants that take it to another level. The first Royal Rumble took place in 1988, meaning there are plenty to look back on and rewatch.

In terms of which Royal Rumble matches are the best ones, here is our Top 10.

10. 2002 men's Royal Rumble

Weeks before the Royal Rumble, Triple H made his return after recovering from a torn quadriceps muscle. It felt like a foregone conclusion he would win. He did, but it was a fun Royal Rumble to watch.

There was Tough Enough winner Maven shockingly eliminating The Undertaker with a dropkick sending the future Hall of Famer over the top rope. There was "Stone Cold" Steve Austin entering the match at the No. 19 spot, eliminating everyone in the ring quickly, but out of boredom (and listening to his imaginary watch), sent those competitors back into the ring only to eliminate them again. Oh, and there was the return of Mr. Perfect.

Triple H, who entered at the No. 22 spot, won the match after last eliminating Kurt Angle, who thought he won the match. Hearing Jerry "The King" Lawler scream "turn around Kurt, you didn't win," after Triple H made it back into the ring after being thrown over the top rope without his feet touching the floor made the moment that much better.

9. 2023 men's Royal Rumble

This was the first Royal Rumble in the "Paul Levesque" era. After what was a disastrous 2022 men's Royal Rumble, the 2023 version was leaps and bounds better, and it should be considered a Top 10 Royal Rumble match of all time.

Cody Rhodes was the favorite to win the match, as he was returning for the first time since suffering a torn pectoral muscle in the previous summer. Rhodes entered at No. 30 and won the whole thing, but it was far from easy. Rhodes had to outlast Gunther, who entered at No. 1 and lasted all the way through. It was a mini-match inside the Royal Rumble, with Gunther targeting Rhodes' recovered pectoral muscle. But Rhodes was able to hit a Cross Rhodes, and threw Gunther over the top rope to win. Gunther lasted one hour and 11 minutes in the match, a new men's Royal Rumble record.

There were also some notable moments in this match, such as Dominik Mysterio attacking his father Rey and stealing his mask, preventing him from entering the battle royal, and Logan Paul and Ricochet having a superhero-type collision while springboarding from opposite sides of the ring.

This is a Royal Rumble match worth watching again.

8. 2008 men's Royal Rumble

There are surprises in the Royal Rumble match nearly every, but no one could have seen this one coming in 2008 at Madison Square Garden.

This was a stacked Royal Rumble match, with The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels starting off the match at the No. 1 and 2 spots, respectively. Triple H, Batista, and Kane were also prominent participants. Even "Rowdy" Roddy Piper made his return to a gigantic reception in New York City.

But at the No. 30 spot, the crowd erupted when hearing and seeing John Cena make his entrance. Three months before the event, Cena suffered a torn pectoral muscle that was supposed to sideline him past WrestleMania. Instead, he returned in about 90 days, a superhero feat. Cena won the match by last eliminating Triple H to head to a WWE Championship match at WrestleMania 24.

7. 2023 women's Royal Rumble

The 2023 women's Royal Rumble may be one of the most well-done matches in quite some time. Rhea Ripley, the favorite to win the match, was less than 100 percent after getting hit with a spear by Beth Phoenix during the men's Royal Rumble match. Adding to the drama, Ripley entered at the No. 1 spot, with Liv Morgan entering at the No. 2 spot.

Both Ripley and Morgan were the final two participants in what might be the best ending to a Royal Rumble match in history. Both competitors and a returning Asuka went over the top rope and were on the ring apron. Asuka attempted to hit Ripley with the poison blue mist, only to hit Morgan in the face. Asuka was eliminated by Ripley, who was then hit with a codebreaker by a blinded Morgan, causing "The Eradicator" to dangle from the top rope with both feet nearly touching the floor. Morgan blindly tried to push Ripley to the floor, but couldn't. Instead, Ripley used her legs to eliminate Morgan with a headscissors takeover to win the match.

There were some surprises in the match, such as the aforementioned Asuka debuting her "Kana" character in the WWE, Michelle McCool entering the match from the crowd, and Chelsea Green making her return to the company.

This is a very fun Royal Rumble match, with the ending sequence being one of the best in WWE history.

6. 2018 men's Royal Rumble

The Royal Rumble matches in the 2010s were, admittedly, some of the worst in history, mostly due in part to the predictability of the winners each year. But 2018 is an exception.

There were many notable moments, such as the return of Rey Mysterio for the first time in nearly three years, and he looked like his old self. Plus, there were the Royal Rumble debuts of NXT stars Andrade "Cien" Almas and Adam Cole. Oh, and the hilarious moment of Heath Slater getting attacked repeatedly on the ramp as he tried to enter the match at the No. 5 spot. Sheamus, who entered the Royal Rumble at No. 11, toyed with Slater and threw him in the ring, only for "The Celtic Warrior" to be eliminated in just two seconds.

But once we got to the Final Six competitors, we had a battle between the Old School (John Cena, Randy Orton, and Mysterio) facing the New School (Roman Reigns, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Finn Balor). That then turned into the company favorites (Cena and Reigns) against the fan favorites (Balor and Nakamura) once we got to the final four.

Nakamura, who was called up from NXT last year, won the Royal Rumble from the No. 14 position by last eliminating Cena and Reigns after hitting them both with a Kinshasa.

5. 2007 men's Royal Rumble

Dubbed "the most star-studded Royal Rumble" in history, the expectations were high for the 2007 match. We would get an idea of who would compete for a world title at WrestleMania 23 at Ford Field in Detroit, Mich. Plus, this would feature ECW participants as well.

While not a lot may have went on for the majority of the match, everyone remembers this for the fantastic ending. Of course, it was The Undertaker and Shawn Michael as the final two competitors, and it broke out into a full singles match. Plus, a preview of the two legends' WrestleMania masterpieces in 2009 and 2010.

Michaels looked to finish off The Undertaker, who was bloodied, with Sweet Chin Music. The Undertaker ducked and managed to power Michaels over the top rope and onto the floor. This was the first time that The Undertaker won a Royal Rumble match. Also, this was the first time that a competitor entering from the No. 30 spot.

Give this match a watch, particularly for the end battle between The Undertaker and Michaels.

4. 2018 women's Royal Rumble

There was history made at the 2018 event. For the first time ever, there would be a 30-woman Royal Rumble match, with the winner earning a women's world title match at WrestleMania 34.

This match featured a mix of current stars and some legends from various eras of the WWE. Some of the legends competing in the match include Trish Stratus, Lita, Jacqueline, Molly Holly, and Beth Phoenix. The field was stacked with current roster members, such as Sasha Banks, Bayley, and Becky Lynch. But who would earn the distinction of winning the first-ever women's Royal Rumble match?

That would be Asuka, who entered from the No. 25 spot and eliminated three competitors, including Nia Jax, Ember Moon, and lastly Nikki Bella. Asuka not only won the match, but continued her undefeated streak at the time, which would shockingly come to an end at the hands of Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania.

If you want some nostalgia in a Royal Rumble, the 2018 women's match is the best option. It was a great match with historic implications.

3. 2020 men's Royal Rumble

What can we say about the 2020 men's Royal Rumble match. This had everything.

Brock Lesnar, who was the WWE champion at the time, decided to enter from the No. 1 spot to prove that there was no one worthy of challenging him at WrestleMania 36 that year. Lesnar eliminated the first 13 stars he faced off in the Royal Rumble, featuring the likes of Kofi Kingston, Rey Mysterio, Braun Strowman, and Keith Lee, making it seem like he was going to coast to a victory. But that all changed when Drew McIntyre entered at No. 16. With an assist from Ricochet, who hit Lesnar with a low blow, McIntyre connected with a Claymore Kick, causing the WWE Champion to fly over the top rope and onto the floor.

The match only got better after that, as Edge made his in-ring return after being medically forced to retire back in 2011 due to a neck injury. The pop Edge received was phenomenal, as no one saw this coming. What makes it better is the fact that Edge showed that he never lost a step, making it all the way to the final three competitors.

Reigns eliminated Edge, leaving just himself and McIntyre in the match. After running the ropes to hit a spear, Reigns was instead hit with a Claymore Kick by McIntyre, who quickly threw Reigns out of the ring to win the Royal Rumble match. This helped propel push McIntyre into the main event scene, as he won the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 36. From there, he played a huge role in carrying the company during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rewatch this match when you get the chance. It's phenomenal.

2. 1992 men's Royal Rumble

How can you make the Royal Rumble match even more consequential? How about putting the WWE Championship match on the line. Yes, they did this in 2016, but it is nowhere near as good as the 1992 Royal Rumble.

The WWE Championship was on the line due to it being vacated after inconclusive matches between Hulk Hogan and The Undertaker. 1992 may be the most stacked Royal Rumble ever in terms of the amount of legends in this match. Hogan, the Undertaker, Randy Savage, Roddy Piper, Jake Roberts, and Sid Justice were some of the big names in the match.

The winner was none other than Ric Flair, who made his WWE debut just four months prior. Flair entered at No. 3, and capitalized from the falling out between Hogan and Justice. Justice had eliminated Hogan from the Royal Rumble. Hogan was incensed and held onto Justice's arm, which allowed Flair to throw him over the top rope.

1. 2001 men's Royal Rumble

When it comes to the best Royal Rumble match of all-time, it's not a shocker when we and many others say the 2001 men's match. This was the final Royal Rumble match of the Attitude Era, and featured some of their biggest stars competing for a spot in the main event of WrestleMania X-Seven, which is universally considered the best WrestleMania of all-time. Some of the names in the match included "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, The Rock, The Undertaker, and Kane.

In terms of memorable moments, there was comedian Drew Carey entering, only to eliminate himself from the match after Kane entered the ring. There was Kane's elimination spree, including a hilarious moment in which he hit The Honky Tonk Man over the head with his own guitar. Plus, there was Triple H attacking Austin before he entered the ring after costing him a WWE Championship match against Kurt Angle earlier in the night.

Despite all of that, Austin overcame the odds and won the Royal Rumble match for the third time in five years. Austin last overcame Kane, who eliminated 13 competitors. After multiple chair shots to the head, Austin sent Kane over the top rope to win. That would then set the stage for Austin vs. The Rock II, which led to the former's heel turn, a moment most fans would like to forget.

With there being well over 30 Royal Rumble matches taking place, the 2001 match still ranks as the greatest of all-time.