About WWE Greatest Royal Rumble
The Greatest Royal Rumble was a single PPV event organized by WWE in April 2018. The event was the first WWE event held in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as a part of WWE's deal with Saudi Arabia in line with the Saudi Vision 2030. The program is a reform program for the country's society and economy.
The event was held on April 27, 2018, at the King Abdullah International Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. At the event, every main roster male title was defended and a 50 Men Royal Rumble match took place. This is the only time the format has taken place besides the Royal Rumble PPV and the only time when a total of 50 participants entered the match. The eponymous match was the last time when Chris Jericho, The Great Khali, Mark Henry and Hornswoggle wrestled in WWE.
Also Read: Who all superstars have won the WWE Royal Rumble match?
WWE Greatest Royal Rumble Results
| Results | Stipulations | Time |
| John Cena defeated Triple H by pinfall | Singles match | 15:45 |
| Cedric Alexander (c) defeated Kalisto by pinfall | Singles match for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship | 10:15 |
| Bray Wyatt and Matt Hardy defeated Cesaro and Sheamus by pinfall | Tag team match for the vacant WWE Raw Tag Team Championship | 08:50 |
| Jeff Hardy (c) defeated Jinder Mahal by pinfall | Singles match for the WWE United States Championship | 06:10 |
| The Bludgeon Brothers (Harper and Rowan) (c) defeated The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) by pinfall | Tag team match for the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship | 05:05 |
| Seth Rollins (c) defeated The Miz, Finn Bálor, and Samoa Joe | Ladder match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship | 15:05 |
| AJ Styles (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura ended in a double countout | Singles match for the WWE Championship | 14:25 |
| The Undertaker defeated Rusev (with Aiden English) | Casket match | 09:40 |
| Brock Lesnar (c) (with Paul Heyman) defeated Roman Reigns by escaping the cage | Steel Cage match for the WWE Universal Championship | 09:15 |
| Braun Strowman won by last eliminating Big Cass | 50-man Royal Rumble match for the WWE Greatest Royal Rumble Trophy and Championship | 01:17:20 |
WWE Greatest Royal Rumble Background and History
The Royal Rumble match and the PPV both first took place in 1988. Since then, the January-based event is known for its over-the-top timed battle royal match where entrants enter the ring at fixed intervals and can be eliminated only when they are thrown over the top rope. There are no disqualifications and the one who stays in the ring the last gets the win. Since 1993, the winner of the Royal Rumble match has been awarded a world title match at WrestleMania except for the 2016 event, where Roman Reigns was forced to defend his WWE Championship in the Royal Rumble match itself.
In 2018, WWE introduced a Royal Rumble match for its women's roster as well. 2018 was the first year to have two Royal Rumble matches. However, just a few weeks later, it became the only year, thus far, to actually have three Royal Rumble matches. In March 2018, WWE announced an event in Saudi Arabia and that a 50-man Royal Rumble match would be the highlight of the night. Further, all main roster male titles were announced to be defended at the event. No women took part in the event.
WWE Greatest Royal Rumble - Who Won?
Braun Strowman won the WWE Greatest Royal Rumble match.
Some of the biggest names in WWE took part in the event. Multi-time world champions and WrestleMania main-eventers John Cena and Triple H opened the night with a 16-minute fight. This was followed by the NXT Cruiserweight Championship match where Cedric Alexander retained his gold against Kalisto.
Up next, Bray Wyatt and Matt Hardy defeated Cesaro and Sheamus to win the Vacant WWE Tag Team Championship. Jeff Hardy then retained the United States Championship against Jinder Mahal. In the next three matches, The Bludgeon Brothers, Seth Rollins and AJ Styles retained their SmackDown Tag Team Championship, Intercontinental Championship and WWE Championship. The Undertaker then defeated Rusev in a Casket Match. In the penultimate match, Brock Lesnar retained the Universal Championship against Roman Reigns.
The eponymous 50-Men Royal Rumble match was won by Braun Strowman who eliminated 14 superstars to ensure his victory.
On to the trivia of the event. A total of 26 World Champions had wrestled in the ten matches of the event. Speaking in terms of 2023, these matches involved 14 superstars who have at least once headlined WrestleMania. Further, there were eleven wrestlers in these matches who have won the Royal Rumble match at least once in their careers.
WWE Greatest Royal Rumble Participants and Stats
| No. | Wrestler | Brand | Elimination Order | Eliminated by | Time | Elimination(s) |
| 1 | Daniel Bryan | SmackDown | 48 | Big Cass | 1:16:05 | 3 |
| 2 | Dolph Ziggler | Raw | 12 | Kurt Angle | 21:44:00 | 3 |
| 3 | Sin Cara | SmackDown | 1 | Dolph Ziggler | 1:18:00 | 0 |
| 4 | Curtis Axel | Raw | 2 | Mark Henry | 2:00:00 | 0 |
| 5 | Mark Henry | HOF | 5 | Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler | 3:27:00 | 3 |
| 6 | Mike Kanellis | Raw | 3 | Mark Henry | 0:03:00 | 0 |
| 7 | Hiroki Sumi | Free Agent | 4 | Mark Henry | 0:46:00 | 0 |
| 8 | Viktor | Raw | 6 | Daniel Bryan | 0:51:00 | 0 |
| 9 | Kofi Kingston | SmackDown | 14 | Elias | 16:34:00 | 1 |
| 10 | Tony Nese | 205 Live | 9 | Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods | 7:13:00 | 1 |
| 11 | Dash Wilder | Raw | 7 | Daniel Bryan and Hornswoggle | 1:26:00 | 0 |
| 12 | Hornswoggle | Free Agent | 8 | Dolph Ziggler and Tony Nese | 1:00:00 | 1 |
| 13 | Primo | SmackDown | 11 | Kurt Angle | 5:10:00 | 0 |
| 14 | Xavier Woods | SmackDown | 15 | Elias | 9:56:00 | 1 |
| 15 | Bo Dallas | Raw | 10 | Kurt Angle | 1:34:00 | 0 |
| 16 | Kurt Angle | Raw | 16 | Elias | 7:59:00 | 3 |
| 17 | Scott Dawson | Raw | 19 | Bobby Roode | 11:44:00 | 0 |
| 18 | Goldust | Raw | 18 | Bobby Roode | 10:04:00 | 0 |
| 19 | Konnor | Raw | 13 | Elias | 2:25:00 | 0 |
| 20 | Elias | Raw | 41 | Bobby Lashley | 34:04 | 5 |
| 21 | Luke Gallows | SmackDown | 20 | Rey Mysterio | 9:16:00 | 0 |
| 22 | Rhyno | Raw | 25 | Roderick Strong | 16:22:00 | 0 |
| 23 | Drew Gulak | 205 Live | 17 | Tucker Knight | 1:47:00 | 0 |
| 24 | Tucker Knight | NXT | 23 | Big E | 10:08:00 | 1 |
| 25 | Bobby Roode | Raw | 29 | Baron Corbin | 17:44:00 | 2 |
| 26 | Fandango | Raw | 21 | Mojo Rawley | 3:42:00 | 0 |
| 27 | Chad Gable | Raw | 24 | Apollo Crews | 8:17:00 | 0 |
| 28 | Rey Mysterio | Free Agent | 37 | Baron Corbin | 20:25:00 | 1 |
| 29 | Mojo Rawley | Raw | 27 | Randy Orton | 8:52:00 | 2 |
| 30 | Tyler Breeze | Raw | 22 | Mojo Rawley | 0:16:00 | 0 |
| 31 | Big E | SmackDown | 33 | Braun Strowman | 13:59:00 | 1 |
| 32 | Karl Anderson | SmackDown | 26 | Randy Orton | 4:25:00 | 0 |
| 33 | Apollo Crews | Raw | 28 | Randy Orton | 3:26:00 | 1 |
| 34 | Roderick Strong | NXT | 30 | Baron Corbin | 6:00:00 | 1 |
| 35 | Randy Orton | SmackDown | 39 | Elias | 10:58:00 | 4 |
| 36 | Heath Slater | Raw | 34 | Braun Strowman | 7:38:00 | 0 |
| 37 | Babatunde | NXT | 31 | Braun Strowman | 5:53:00 | 0 |
| 38 | Baron Corbin | Raw | 38 | Randy Orton | 7:08:00 | 3 |
| 39 | Titus O'Neil | Raw | 35 | Braun Strowman | 4:42:00 | 0 |
| 40 | Dan Matha | NXT | 32 | Braun Strowman | 2:01:00 | 0 |
| 41 | Braun Strowman | Raw | — | Winner | 22:14:00 | 13 |
| 42 | Tye Dillinger | SmackDown | 36 | Braun Strowman | 0:29:00 | 0 |
| 43 | Curt Hawkins | Raw | 40 | Braun Strowman | 0:20:00 | 0 |
| 44 | Bobby Lashley | Raw | 45 | Braun Strowman | 14:38:00 | 2 |
| 45 | The Great Khali | Free Agent | 42 | Braun Strowman and Bobby Lashley | 0:31:00 | 0 |
| 46 | Kevin Owens | Raw | 47 | Braun Strowman | 10:43:00 | 0 |
| 47 | Shane McMahon | SmackDown | 44 | Braun Strowman | 8:07:00 | 0 |
| 48 | Shelton Benjamin | SmackDown | 43 | Chris Jericho | 4:23:00 | 0 |
| 49 | Big Cass | SmackDown | 49 | Braun Strowman | 7:23:00 | 1 |
| 50 | Chris Jericho | SmackDown | 46 | Braun Strowman | 3:18:00 | 1 |
FAQs
The one-off 2018 WWE Greatest Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia had 50 participants.
The Greatest Royal Rumble is one of the grandest event of WWE to kickstart its working relationship with Saudi Arabia, the land Vince McMahon now considers to be the new home of WWE.
Yes. 50 Men entered the 2018 Greatest Royal Rumble match in April 2018. Unlike the conventional Royal Rumble, the winner was not awarded a WrestleMania match. Instead, the winner Braun Strowman was awarded the WWE Greatest Royal Rumble Championship.
A total of 50 men entered the WWE Greatest Royal Rumble in 2018.
Braun Strowman eliminated 13 wrestlers in the Greatest Royal Rumble.
Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman are tied at 13 for the most eliminations in a single Royal Rumble match. While Strowman did so in the 50-Man Greatest Royal Rumble, Lesnar threw off 13 men in the traditional Royal Rumble in 2020.
