Royal Rumble 2001

Royal Rumble 2001 Review


So since I've been struggling with what shows to review next, I thought I'd start reviewing the shows of certain years, starting with 2001. Don't ask me why, I just fancied doing it. I'll also do the shows I've done before like Wrestlemania 17 and Summerslam since I've not done them in a while. I won't do Invasion since I did that quite recently so I'll just put the link to that one in the show that comes after it (Summerslam I think). So here's a show I've wanted to do for a while.





Edge & Christian vs The Dudley Boyz
The Tag Titles are on the line. God I wonder how many times these teams have faced off against each other. Not that I'm complaining because they always had damn good matches and this one was no different. The Dudleys wanted revenge for E & C attacking them and given them both concussions with the conchairto. This was a well worked match as D-Von was the face in peril and got the crowd worked up and ready for a tag to Bubba. Once the hot tag came around, things were kicked into a higher gear and it was so fun to watch. I only wish it had been a bit longer but what we got was very good. ***1/4



Drew Carey has arrived.



Backstage, Triple H doesn't want Trish Stratus and Stephanie McMahon to ruin his chances of winning the WWF Title. Drew Carey interrupts and Stephanie sends him to meet Trish.


The APA are backstage in a card game drinking some beer. They show each other their Rumble numbers. Bit of a pointless segment.



Chris Jericho vs Chris Benoit : Ladder Match
The IC Title is on the line. This feud has been going on for close to one year and it is definitely one of those rare feuds that could have gone on for years without becoming boring. I do think that this is one of the better ladder matches in history, due to the fact that it wasn't a spotfest. Don't get me wrong there are some big spots, but these guys were mostly focusing on trying to beat the shit out of the other guy. This felt like a war and you'd never believe that these two were best friends in real life. The most brutal part of the match is when Benoit attempts a suicide dive and Jericho hits him with a vicious chair shot. It's harder to watch now than it was at the time. A tremendous ladder match that would go down in history if not for tragic circumstances. Absolutely one to check out if you haven't seen it before. ****3/4


Backstage, Vince McMahon enters Drew Carey into the Rumble match.


Billy Gunn tries to talk Chyna out of competing. Oh if only he had succeeded. Has Chyna's voice always sounded that silly?


Chyna vs Ivory
The Women's Title is on the line. Well I guess not every show can be perfect. This is reminding me of Mania 17 as this is the only blemish on the show, and it involves the same two women. This was just a squash match for Chyna as Ivory got no offense at all and only won due to Chyna hurting herself. This was all bad, including the post-match stretcher job. DUD



Only one way I can describe it:

Now let's get back to the good stuff. I really wish I'd used that video for Halloween Havoc 2000 though.


Kurt Angle vs Triple H
The WWF Title is on the line. It's hard to book a heel vs heel match (Shield vs Wyatts not withstanding) but these two guys definitely managed to do it well. The crowd wasn't sure who to cheer for at first, but once the women got involved (guess that pep talk didn't work for HHH) and the overbooking started, they were really into it. It was a tad overbooked but these guys worked hard to put on a great match and it was a lot of fun to watch. A great WWF Title match for sure. ***1/2



The Royal Rumble Match
 Oh yeah this is easily one of the better Rumble matches in history. It's biggest highlight used to be Kane's record for the most eliminations as he took out eleven men, but Roman Reigns broke that record this year with twelve eliminations. Kane's record lasted thirteen years, so I'd say that it is still an impressive feat. It was a bit obvious that either the Rock or Austin was going to win, but Kane still made it look like he had a chance of winning when it came down to Austin and himself. Even Drew Carey's involvement was fun and the Honky Tonk Man's elimination was a funny moment. A fantastic Rumble that never had a dull moment and gave Austin his third and record-breaking win. ****1/2



9.5/10. A fun opening contest? Check. An all time classic match? Check. A World Title match that delivered the goods? Check. A great Rumble match? Check. Yes this has all the ingredients of a classic show and that is exactly what we got. It is close to perfection but the Chyna/Ivory debacle drags it down a little bit. Thankfully that part didn't run on for too long. A suberb event that comes highly recommended and is definitely as good as the previous year's show.