Royal Rumble 2000

Royal Rumble 2000


Considered by many to be one of the best PPVs of the Attitude Era and of all time, but does it still hold up almost fifteen years later? Let's find out.



This is the first WWF show I've watched on the Network, and I've just realised that there will be no blurring of the logo which has me way too excited to watch this.



Kurt Angle vs Tazz
Tazz was the mystery opponent here, but the whole crowd knew it was him before he came out. This is Tazz's debut as a WWF superstar. This was incredibly short as it only lasted three minutes, but those minutes were completely action-packed and a ton of fun. Maybe the best three minute match ever. Good debut by Tazz. **3/4



The Hardy Boyz vs The Dudley Boyz : Tables Match
I think this might have been the first ever WWF tables match, but I'm not sure. Table matches aren't known for being great matches, but this one is definitely the exception. It was almost a TLC match, as chairs and ladders were used as well at tables. As usual with the Hardys there were some death-defying moves that kept the excitement going. Awesome match and probably the best tables match ever. ****




It's time for a swimsuit contest with judges such as Sgt. Slaughter and Classy Freddie Blassie. This was going well until Mae Young decided to show up and give everyone in the arena nightmares forever as she exposes herself. Thankfully it's completely censored here, so it's not as disturbing. It was kinda funny though, especially with Mark Henry coming out to cover her up. RIP Mae.



Chris Jericho vs Chyna vs Hardcore Holly
Here we decide who's the Undisputed IC Champion, as Y2J and Chyna were co-champs. I'm not sure why Holly was added though. Jericho doesn't speak fondly of this storyline in his book, or of Chyna. This was a much better match than I was expecting, and featured a couple of nice nearfalls and even teased another double winner. The finish was a bit abrupt but other than that, a good match. ***



New Age Outlaws vs The Acolytes
Tag Titles are on the line. Who would have thought that fourteen years later, the Outlaws would leave the Rumble as the Tag Champs once again. A very short match that didn't even last as long as the opener, so obviously, not much happened. 1/2*



Triple H vs Cactus Jack : Street Fight
WWF Title on the line. This is most definitely an easy contender for the best match of both of these guys' careers. HHH was made into a star thanks to Foley here, and unfortunately he let it go straight to his head and we're still suffering from it. Anyway this is still an all time classic featuring some brutal moments. There was a throwback to the 99 Rumble as HHH handcuffed Cactus and beat him with a chair. The pedigree onto the thumbtacks still looks absolutely insane, and I can't believe that anyone would take a bump like that. An all time great for sure. An absolute war. *****


If this show ended now, it would get a high recommendation from me, but we still have the Rumble to go! This truly was the best time to be a wrestling fan.



The Royal Rumble Match
D-Lo Brown and Grandmaster Sexay started things off. The sections featuring all three members of Too Cool were fun, as they decided to dance instead of fighting each other, that was until Rikishi turned on them and eliminated them. First he runs over Steve Austin and now this. It was sad seeing a run of wrestlers who have now passed away come out one after the other, including Boss Man, Test, British Bulldog, and Viscera. The appearance of Bob Backund was just awesome. This was a highly entertaining Rumble featuring most of the unique characters seen around this era, along with bigger stars like the Rock who absolutely blew the roof off of MSG. A great Rumble for sure. ****



9.5/10. Well this just might be the best PPV of 2000 and that is saying a lot. Let's see, we have a great Rumble, a five star war, a good triple threat, a fun opener, a strangely interesting swimsuit contest, and a great tables match. Yup, this is one of the best ever with only the short Tag Title match letting it down. This is a must-see show.