The Royal Rumble produced some surprises, maybe not the ones that fans were waiting for, but 12 unannounced individuals took part in both the men’s and women’s matches.
When it comes to the men’s match, there were five unannounced spots with only one non-WWE performer making the list.
Ridge Holland was the first unannounced entry at #5 and had a good showing lasting just over 19 minutes. Drew McIntyre also returned after an injury and was #21, also going just over 19 minutes himself. Music superstar and crowd favorite Bad Bunny returned for the first time since WrestleMania and was #27, lasting just under eight minutes. Shane McMahon came out #28 to a thunderous pop from the crowd and was out in just under six minutes and #30 was Brock Lesnar, who eventually won the whole thing in under three minutes.
The women’s match produced seven surprise entries and the winner as well!
Melina was #2, and overcome with emotions, she was quickly dispatched out by Sasha Banks in under a minute. Former Funkadactyl Cameron came in at unlucky #13 and also lasted under a minute. The Right to Censor version of Ivory was #18 and talked on the mic while getting eliminated in less than 30 seconds. Alicia Fox did better than expected, coming in at #21 and lasting six-and-a-half minutes. Sarah Logan, formerly of the Riott Squad, was #25 and again, was out in 43 seconds. Mighty Molly was #27 and was out in 20 seconds as Nikki A.S.H. did not appreciate a second super hero in the match. And last and certainly not least, former Raw Women’s champion Ronda Rousey returned to a gigantic pop at #28 and won the match in just over 10 minutes.
The proverbial forbidden door was only opened once, for Mickie James, showing that there’s still a lot to go for WWE when it comes to working with other promotions.
