5 times WWE changed the Royal Rumble winner
The Royal Rumble is one of the most exciting matches in pro wrestling history. At the beginning of the year, WWE kicks off the road to WrestleMania with the pay-per-view titled Royal Rumble. The marquee attraction of this PPV is the 30-man/woman Rumble.
Two WWE Superstars begin the match, and after every 90 seconds, one more Superstar joins them in the race to become the #1 contender for the world championship. The winner of the match receives an opportunity to headline the Grandest Stage of Them All, WrestleMania.
Over the years, several legendary names have participated in this match. Given the bout's nature, the fans love to speculate about the Royal Rumble winners when the event approaches. WWE often plans for this event in advance. However, injuries, returns, and other factors compel them to make some last-minute changes.
Here's a look at the five occasions when Vince McMahon changed the winner of the prestigious multi-man match.
#5 WWE Royal Rumble 2008
Original choice: CM Punk, Ultimate winner: John Cena
CM Punk was one of the hottest Superstars in WWE back when he was an active in-ring competitor. The Voice of Voiceless has become an analyst now as he frequently appears on FOX's show WWE Backstage. During his recent appearance on the show, Punk spoke about the 2008 WWE Royal Rumble match.
The former WWE Champion claimed that he was supposed to win the Royal Rumble that year. However, John Cena's miraculous recovery from his pectoral muscle injury forced WWE to change the plans. Cena was expected to sit out for 6-12 months, but the Leader of Cenation recovered to full fitness in only four months.
WWE made last-minute changes to their Royal Rumble plans and changed the winner. Punk had entered the match at #12 and lasted for almost 23 minutes. Cena won the Rumble that year to progress to the main event of WrestleMania.
Unfortunately, he could not win the world title as Randy Orton defeated him and Triple H in a triple threat match to retain his WWE Championship. On the other side, Punk captured the Money in the Bank contract at WrestleMania 24.