Royal Rumble (2019)

WWE's 2019 Royal Rumble pay-per-view

Royal Rumble (2019) was a professional wrestling show made by WWE that happened at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona on January 27, 2019 and could be watched on the WWE Network and pay-per-view.[1] Happening after NXT TakeOver: Phoenix and before Worlds Collide, it was the thirty-second Royal Rumble show. WWE has said that 48,193 people were in Chase Field to watch the show, but wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer said that this is not true and that only a little more than 40,000 people were there.[2] Golden Crisp was the sponsor of the show.[3]

Royal Rumble
Information
PromotionWWE
Brand (s)Raw
SmackDown
205 Live
DateJanuary 27, 2019
Attendance48,193 (according to WWE)
VenueChase Field
CityPhoenix, Arizona
Royal Rumble chronology
2018 Royal Rumble 2020

Ten matches happened at the show, including three on the pre-show. The last match was the men's Royal Rumble match and it was won by Seth Rollins. Becky Lynch won the women's Royal Rumble match, but lost the first match which was against Asuka for the SmackDown Women's Championship. In other important matches, Brock Lesnar kept the Universal Championship by beating Finn Bálor, Daniel Bryan kept the WWE Championship by beating AJ Styles, and Ronda Rousey kept the Raw Women's Championship by beating Sasha Banks.

Storylines

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It has been a tradition for the winner of the Royal Rumble match to get a WrestleMania match for a world championship. This year, the winner of the men's Royal Rumble would get a match at WrestleMania 35 for either the WWE or the Universal Championship, while the winner of the women's match would get a match for either the Raw or the SmackDown Women's Championship.[source?]

The show had ten matches with three on the pre-show. The matches were organized as part of stories where wrestlers played faces (heroes), heels (villains) or tweeners (somewhere in between). The winners of these matches were chosen by the writers of the stories from WWE.[4]

In December 2018, WWE had a show called TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs where a team called Fabulous Truth (whose members were Carmella and R-Truth beat a team called Mahalicia (whose members were Alicia Fox and Jinder Mahal) in the final of a tournament called the Mixed Match Challenge. For winning the tournament, Carmella would be the last to enter the women's Royal Rumble match, while R-Truth would be the last to enter the men's.[5] For weeks after TLC, there were announcements that several other wrestlers would enter the Royal Rumbles.[6][7]

At Crown Jewel in November, Brock Lesnar beat Braun Strowman to win the Universal Championship which was not held by anyone before the match.[8] At TLC, Strowman beat Baron Corbin to earn another match against Lesnar for the championship.[5] On the January 14 episode of the weekly WWE show called Raw, Corbin spoke badly about Strowman to him. So, Strowman chased Corbin into a parking lot and then, Corbin hid in a limousine car. Strowman broke the car's glass and door when Mr. McMahon, the chairman of WWE, came out and said that it was his car. Mr. McMahon then fined Strowman $100,000. Strowman argued with McMahon, who cancelled the match between Strowman and Lesnar. Later on that episode, Corbin, John Cena, Drew McIntyre, and Finn Bálor all said that they wanted to face Lesnar at the Royal Rumble. Mr. McMahon then organized a fatal four-way match between them, but Bálor had to fight Jinder Mahal first and the winner would be a part of the fatal four-way. Bálor won and then also won the fatal four-way match so he could get a Universal Championship match against Lesnar, but he could not compete in the Royal Rumble anymore.[9]

At TLC, Daniel Bryan beat AJ Styles to keep the WWE Championship.[5] On the January 1 episode of the weekly WWE show called SmackDown, Styles beat Randy Orton, Mustafa Ali, Rey Mysterio, and Samoa Joe in a fatal five-way match to earn another match against Bryan for the championship.[10]

At TLC, Asuka beat Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair in a triple threat Tables, Ladders & Chairs match to win the SmackDown Women's Championship.[5] On the January 1 episode of SmackDown, Lynch, Flair, and Carmella all said that they should face Asuka at the Royal Rumble. Triple H, the COO of WWE, then organized a triple threat match between them.[10] Lynch won so she could get a SmackDown Women's Championship match against Asuka.[11]

At TLC, Ronda Rousey beat Nia Jax to keep the Raw Women's Championship.[5] On the January 7 episode of Raw, Rousey was interviewed by Alexa Bliss on "A Moment of Bliss" and said that she wanted to face Sasha Banks next because she could be a true test to how good Rousey is. Jax interrupted the interview and said that she wanted a rematch with Rousey. Banks then came out and she and Jax organized a match between each other. Banks won so she could get a Raw Women's Championship match against Rousey.[12]

At Crown Jewel, Shane McMahon won the WWE World Cup. He replaced The Miz as a finalist because Miz got into a fight before the final and got injured, so he could not compete.[8] After this, the Miz started asking McMahon to start a tag team with him and said that they could be the best tag team in the world. McMahon eventually agreed to do this. On the January 8 episode of SmackDown, Miz told the Bar (Cesaro and Sheamus) that he and McMahon wanted a match for their SmackDown Tag Team Championship at the Royal Rumble and the Bar agreed to the match.[11]

On the TLC pre-show, Buddy Murphy beat Cedric Alexander to keep the Cruiserweight Championship.[13] On the December 26, 2018 episode of WWE's weekly show 205 Live (only for Cruiserweights who are wrestlers under 205 pounds), Drake Maverick, the GM of 205 Live, organized a fatal four-way match for Murphy to try to keep his title his title at the Royal Rumble.[14] On the next episode of 205 Live, Kalisto beat Lio Rush and Akira Tozawa beat Drew Gulak so they could be a part of the WWE Cruiserweight Championship match at the Royal Rumble.[15] On the next episode, Hideo Itami beat Alexander to take the last spot in the fatal four-way.[16]

On the December 25, 2018 episode of SmackDown, Rusev beat Shinsuke Nakamura to win the United States Championship.[17] On the January 1 episode, Rusev and his wife/manager Lana celebrated the win, but Nakamura attacked Rusev (Lana was also hurt during the fight).[10] On January 15, a match between Rusev and Lana was organized for the Royal Rumble.[18]

Results

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Pre-show

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Three matches happened on the pre-show, which aired for free on the WWE network and WWE's social media accounts.

Firstly, Drake Maverick, the manager of a tag team called AOP (Akam and Rezar), organized where Bobby Roode and Chad Gable, who were the Raw Tag Team Champions, would fight Scott Dawson (from a team called The Revival and Rezar (from AOP). If Dawson and Rezar won, the Revival and AOP would have both gotten a Raw Tag Team Championship match. Bobby Roode and Chad Gable beat Dawson and Rezar.

In the second match, Shinsuke Nakamura won the United States Championship from Rusev who had Lana as his manager.

In the third match, Buddy Murphy kept the WWE Cruiserweight Championship by beating Akira Tozawa, Hideo Itami, and Kalisto in a fatal four-way match.[19]

Main show

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Seven matches happened on the main show.

In the first match, Asuka kept the SmackDown Women's Championship by beating Becky Lynch.

In the second match, The Miz and Shane McMahon won the SmackDown Tag Team Championship from the Bar (Sheamus and Cesaro).

In the third match, Ronda Rousey kept the Raw Women's Championship by beating Sasha Banks.

The fourth match was the women's Royal Rumble match which Becky Lynch won by last eliminating Charlotte Flair. She got a women's championship match for WrestleMania 35.

In the fifth match, Daniel Bryan kept the WWE Championship by beating AJ Styles.

In the sixth match, Brock Lesnar, who had Paul Heyman as his manager, kept the Universal Championship by beating Finn Bálor.

The seventh match and the main event was the men's Royal Rumble which Seth Rollins won by last eliminating Braun Strowman. He got a men's championship match for WrestleMania 35.[20]

Women's Royal Rumble match entrances and eliminations

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Each color represents the show/brand that each wrestler is a part of. NXT is the show that wrestlers perform on before they make it to Raw, SmackDown, or 205 Live with NXT UK being a part of the brand for British wrestlers. Free agents are wrestlers who were not a part of a show/brand. Becky Lynch is in gold because she won.

Draw Entrant Brand/Status Order Eliminated by Time Elimination(s)
1 Lacey Evans Free agent 11 Charlotte Flair 29:20 2
2 Natalya Raw 23 Nia Jax 56:01 2
3 Mandy Rose SmackDown 9 Naomi 25:50 1
4 Liv Morgan Raw 1 Natalya 00:08 0
5 Mickie James Raw 2 Tamina 11:38 0
6 Ember Moon Raw 24 Alexa Bliss 52:23 0
7 Billie Kay SmackDown 4 Lacey Evans 09:25 1
8 Nikki Cross Free agent 3 Billie Kay and Peyton Royce 09:00 0
9 Peyton Royce SmackDown 5 Lacey Evans 08:38 1
10 Tamina Raw 7 Charlotte Flair 08:22 1
11 Xia Li NXT 6 Charlotte Flair 04:48 0
12 Sarah Logan Raw 8 Natalya and Kairi Sane 05:38 0
13 Charlotte Flair SmackDown 29 Becky Lynch 50:01 5
14 Kairi Sane NXT 15 Ruby Riott 17:00 1
15 Maria Kanellis 205 Live 12 Alicia Fox 08:12 0
16 Naomi SmackDown 10 Mandy Rose[a] 01:28 1
17 Candice LeRae NXT 14 Ruby Riott 09:35 0
18 Alicia Fox Raw 13 Ruby Riott 06:55 1
19 Kacy Catanzaro NXT 16 Rhea Ripley 10:45 0
20 Zelina Vega SmackDown 18 Rhea Ripley 11:42 0
21 Ruby Riott Raw 20 Bayley 13:08 3
22 Dana Brooke Raw 17 Rhea Ripley 07:17 0
23 Io Shirai NXT 22 Nia Jax 13:21 0
24 Rhea Ripley NXT UK 21 Bayley 07:55 3
25 Sonya Deville SmackDown 19 Alexa Bliss 04:26 0
26 Alexa Bliss Raw 25 Bayley and Carmella 12:59 2
27 Bayley Raw 27 Charlotte Flair and Nia Jax 14:27 3
28 Becky Lynch[b] SmackDown Winner 13:20 2
29 Nia Jax Raw 28 Becky Lynch 11:59 3
30 Carmella SmackDown 26 Charlotte Flair 07:12 1

[21]

  1. Mandy Rose was already eliminated when she eliminated Naomi.
  2. Lana came out as the #28 entrant, but after she broke her ankle (as part of a story), Becky Lynch was allowed to take her spot.

Men's Royal Rumble match entrances and eliminations

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Each color represents the show/brand that each wrestler is a part of. NXT is the show that wrestlers perform on before they make it to Raw, SmackDown, or 205 Live with NXT UK being a part of the brand for British wrestlers. Free agents are wrestlers who were not a part of a show/brand. Seth Rollins is in gold because he won.

Draw Entrant Brand/Status Order Eliminated by Time Elimination(s)
1 Elias Raw 5 Seth Rollins 15:07 1
2 Jeff Jarrett Free agent 1 Elias 01:20 0
3 Shinsuke Nakamura SmackDown 8 Mustafa Ali 17:46 1
4 Kurt Angle Raw 2 Shinsuke Nakamura 03:15 0
5 Big E SmackDown 4 Samoa Joe 06:01 0
6 Johnny Gargano NXT 9 Dean Ambrose 13:50 1
7 Jinder Mahal Raw 3 Johnny Gargano 00:30 0
8 Samoa Joe SmackDown 14 Mustafa Ali 23:43 3
9 Curt Hawkins Raw 7 Samoa Joe 04:09 1
10 Seth Rollins Raw Winner 43:26 3
11 Titus O'Neil Raw 6 Curt Hawkins 00:05 0
12 Kofi Kingston SmackDown 12 Drew McIntyre 08:53 0
13 Mustafa Ali SmackDown 23 Nia Jax 30:00 2
14 Dean Ambrose Raw 13 Aleister Black 12:42 1
15 No Way Jose Raw 10 Samoa Joe 00:02 0
16 Drew McIntyre Raw 22 Dolph Ziggler 20:06 4
17 Xavier Woods SmackDown 11 Drew McIntyre 00:03 0
18 Pete Dunne NXT UK 17 Drew McIntyre 11:13 0
19 Andrade SmackDown 27 Braun Strowman 22:31 1
20 Apollo Crews Raw 15 Baron Corbin 05:47 0
21 Aleister Black NXT 16 Baron Corbin 06:09 1
22 Shelton Benjamin SmackDown 20 Braun Strowman 09:21 0
23 Baron Corbin Raw 19 Braun Strowman 07:19 2
24 Jeff Hardy SmackDown 21 Braun Strowman and Drew McIntyre 07:55 0
25 Rey Mysterio SmackDown 25 Randy Orton 12:30 1
26 Bobby Lashley Raw 18 Seth Rollins 00:13 0
27 Braun Strowman Raw 29 Seth Rollins 14:37 5
28 Dolph Ziggler Raw 28 Braun Strowman 11:34 1
29 Randy Orton SmackDown 26 Andrade 06:00 1
30 Nia Jax[a] Raw 24 Rey Mysterio 03:11 1

[22]

  1. Jax attacked the #30 entrant, R-Truth, and took his spot. She became the fourth woman to enter a men's Royal Rumble match and the first to to so since the women's Royal Rumble match was introduced at the 2018 event.

References

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  1. "Royal Rumble tickets available now". WWE. October 11, 2018. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  2. "WWE habría inflado el número de asistencia de Royal Rumble" (in Spanish).
  3. "WWE Royal Rumble 2019". WWE. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  4. Grabianowski, Ed (13 January 2006). "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on November 18, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Powell, Jason (16 December 2018). "Powell's WWE TLC live review: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair vs Asuka in a TLC match for the Smackdown Women's Championship, Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles for the WWE Championship, Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose for the IC Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  6. Burdick, Michael. "2019 Men's Royal Rumble Match". WWE. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  7. Burdick, Michael. "2019 Women's Royal Rumble Match". WWE. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  8. 8.0 8.1 Powell, Jason (2 November 2018). "Powell's WWE Crown Jewel live review: Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman for the vacant WWE Universal Championship, AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe for the WWE Championship, Undertaker and Kane vs. DX, World Cup tournament". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved November 2, 2018.
  9. Powell, Jason (January 14, 2019). "1/14 Powell's WWE Raw TV Review: Dean Ambrose vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Seth Rollins in a Triple Threat for the Intercontinental Championship, Ronda Rousey and Sasha Banks vs. Nia Jax and Tamina, the Royal Rumble build continues". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 Powell, Jason. "1/1 Powell's WWE Smackdown Live TV Review: Five-way match for a WWE Championship match at the Royal Rumble, John Cena returns, New Day's New Year's Celebration". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  11. 11.0 11.1 Barnett, Jake (January 8, 2019). "1/8 Barnett's WWE Smackdown Live TV Review: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Carmella for a shot at the Smackdown Women's Championship at the Royal Rumble, Sheamus and Cesaro vs. The Usos in a non-title match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  12. Powell, Jason. "1/7 Powell's WWE Raw TV Review: First Raw of 2019 with Brock Lesnar, Braun Strowman, and John Cena appearances, Hulk Hogan hosts a tribute to Gene Okerlund, Bobby Roode and Chad Gable vs. The Revival for the Raw Tag Titles, Alexa Bliss talkshow with Ronda Rousey". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  13. Powell, Jason (16 December 2018). "Powell's WWE TLC 2018 Kickoff Show coverage". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  14. Trionfo, Richard. "WWE 205 LIVE REPORT: LOOKING BACK AT 2018 AND MORE". PWInsider. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
  15. Vishwakoti, Anish (3 January 2019). "1/2 Anish V's WWE 205 Live TV Review: Lio Rush vs. Kalisto and Akira Tozawa vs. Drew Gulak for spots in the four-way for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship at the Royal Rumble". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
  16. Martin, Adam (9 January 2019). "SPOILERS: WWE 205 Live tapings from Jacksonville to air January 9 on WWE Network". WrestleView. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  17. Powell, Jason (December 25, 2018). "12/25 Powell's WWE Smackdown Live TV Review: Vince McMahon and AJ Styles segment, John Cena's return date, Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev for the U.S. Title, Samoa Joe vs. Jeff Hardy, Andrade Almas vs. Mustafa Ali". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  18. Barnett, Jake (January 15, 2019). "1/15 Barnett's WWE Smackdown Live TV Review: Rey Mysterio vs. Andrade Almas, The Miz throws Shane McMahon a birthday party, Sonya Deville vs. Carmella, the Royal Rumble build continues". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  19. Powell, Jason (27 January 2019). "WWE Royal Rumble 2019 Kickoff Show live review: Rusev vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for the U.S. Championship, Buddy Murphy vs. Hideo Itami vs. Kalisto vs. Akira Tozawa for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
  20. Powell, Jason (27 January 2019). "Powell's WWE Royal Rumble 2019 live review: Men's and Women's Royal Rumble matches, Brock Lesnar vs. Finn Balor for the WWE Universal Championship, Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles for the WWE Championship, Ronda Rousey vs. Sasha Banks for the Raw Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
  21. Benigno, Anthony. "Becky Lynch won the 30-Woman Royal Rumble Match". WWE. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
  22. Benigno, Anthony. "Seth Rollins won the 30-Man Royal Rumble Match". WWE. Retrieved January 27, 2019.