Royal Rumble (2024)
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The 2024 Royal Rumble was a
professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...
event Event may refer to: Gatherings of people * Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion * Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest * Event management, the organization of eve ...
produced by
WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...
. It was the 37th annual Royal Rumble event and took place on January 27, 2024, at
Tropicana Field Tropicana Field (commonly known as the Trop) is a Multi-purpose stadium, multi-purpose domed stadium located in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. The stadium has been the home of the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB) since the ...
in
St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...
. The event was broadcast via
pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...
and
livestreaming Livestreaming is streaming media simultaneously recorded and broadcast in real-time over the internet. It is often referred to simply as streaming. Non-live media such as video-on-demand, vlogs, and YouTube videos are technically streamed, but no ...
, and featured wrestlers from all three of WWE's brand divisions. It was the third Royal Rumble held in the Tampa Bay area (following the
1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
and
2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
events), and the second at Tropicana Field after 2021; however, as that event was held without an audience via the ThunderDome due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, this was the first Royal Rumble at the stadium to have live fans. This was the first major WWE event not to involve
Vince McMahon Vincent Kennedy McMahon (; born August 24, 1945) is an American media proprietor and retired professional wrestling promoter, executive, and performer. From 1982 to 2022, he served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the w ...
or any member of the
McMahon family The McMahon family is an Irish Americans, Irish-American family, primarily known for their involvement in the professional wrestling business. They are the founders, owners, and promoters of the wrestling company, WWE. Vince McMahon, a third gen ...
at any capacity since his resignation as chairman of
TKO Group Holdings TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (TKO) is an American media conglomerate created by Endeavor (company), Endeavor as part of a merger between WWE, World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE) and Zuffa, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championsh ...
a day before amidst the ongoing sex trafficking scandal. The event is based around the Royal Rumble match, and the winner traditionally receives a
world championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
match at that year's WrestleMania. For the 2024 event, the men's and women's winners received a choice of which championship to challenge for at
WrestleMania XL WrestleMania XL is the upcoming 40th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It will be held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event is scheduled ...
. The men's winner could choose to challenge for either
Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...
's World Heavyweight Championship or SmackDown's Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, while the women's winner had the choice between Raw's Women's World Championship and SmackDown's
WWE Women's Championship WWE (formerly the WWF, WWWF, and its predecessor, Capitol Wrestling) has maintained several women's professional wrestling championships since acquiring The Fabulous Moolah's NWA World Women's Championship in 1984. Whenever brand division has be ...
. The women's match, which was the opening bout, was won by Bayley from SmackDown, who also broke the record for longest time spent in the women's match, lasting 1:03:03. The men's match, which was the main event of the card, was won by Raw's Cody Rhodes for a second consecutive year. This made Rhodes the first wrestler since
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin Steve Austin (born Steven James Anderson; December 18, 1964), better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American media personality, actor, and retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most ...
(
1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
and
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
) to win back-to-back Royal Rumble matches, and fourth overall, after Austin,
Shawn Michaels Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965), better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative. Widely regarded as one of ...
(1995 and
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
), and
Hulk Hogan Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...
(
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
and
1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
). In addition to the two Royal Rumble matches, two other matches were contested on the card, which were for SmackDown championships. In the first, Roman Reigns retained the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship in a
fatal four-way match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
against
Randy Orton Randal Keith Orton (born April 1, 1980) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and actor who is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw brand but is currently out of action due to a back injury. H ...
,
LA Knight Shaun Ricker (born November 1, 1982) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name LA Knight. Ricker is known for his time in Impact Wrestling as Eli Drake. Rick ...
, and AJ Styles, while Logan Paul defeated Kevin Owens by disqualification to retain the
WWE United States Championship The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship#Location-specific championships, championship promoted by the United States, American professional wrestling promotion, promotion WWE, currently de ...
. Notably, this is the first WWE Network event since February 2022's
Elimination Chamber The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was founded by Chris Jericho , created and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel st ...
in which Roman Reigns wrestled in a match that was not the main event. The women's Royal Rumble match notably marked the WWE in-ring debut of
Jade Cargill Jade Cargill (born June 3, 1992) is an American professional wrestler. She is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where she is the inaugural and current AEW TBS Champion. Her ongoing reign is the longest reign of any AEW championship at + days ...
, who signed with the company in September 2023. TNA Knockouts World Champion
Jordynne Grace Patricia Forrest Parker (born March 5, 1996) is an American professional wrestler and powerlifter currently signed to Impact Wrestling, where she performs under the ring name Jordynne Grace. She is currently the Impact Knockouts World Champion ...
from
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promot ...
(TNA) also made a surprise appearance in the women's eponymous match. The event also saw the returns of Naomi, Liv Morgan, Andrade, and Omos in the men's and women's Royal Rumble matches, while the men's match was also notable for
CM Punk Phillip Jack Brooks (born October 26, 1978), better known by the ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler, sports commentator, actor, and retired mixed martial artist currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Best known for ...
's first WWE televised match since the
2014 Royal Rumble The 2014 Royal Rumble was the 27th annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by WWE. It took place on January 26, 2014, at the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the first Royal Rumble to b ...
.


Production


Background

The Royal Rumble is an annual
professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...
event produced every January by
WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...
since 1988. It is one of the promotion's five biggest events of the year, along with WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Survivor Series, and Money in the Bank, referred to as the "Big Five". The
concept Concepts are defined as abstract ideas. They are understood to be the fundamental building blocks of the concept behind principles, thoughts and beliefs. They play an important role in all aspects of cognition. As such, concepts are studied by s ...
of the event is based around the Royal Rumble match, a modified battle royal in which the participants enter at timed intervals instead of all beginning in the ring at the same time. Announced on September 13, 2023, the 37th Royal Rumble was scheduled to be held on Saturday, January 27, 2024, at
Tropicana Field Tropicana Field (commonly known as the Trop) is a Multi-purpose stadium, multi-purpose domed stadium located in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. The stadium has been the home of the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB) since the ...
in
St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...
, and it featured wrestlers from the
Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...
, SmackDown, and
NXT NXT may refer to: Professional wrestling * '' WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010 ** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory * '' NXT UK'', the British spi ...
brand divisions. This was the second Royal Rumble to be held at Tropicana Field after the 2021 event, but the first with live fans in attendance as the 2021 event was produced without fans via the WWE ThunderDome due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
that year. This in turn marked the third Royal Rumble to be held in the Tampa Bay area, but the first with fans in attendance since the 1995 event. In addition to airing on
pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...
worldwide, it was available to
livestream Livestreaming is streaming media simultaneously recorded and broadcast in real-time over the internet. It is often referred to simply as streaming. Non-live media such as video-on-demand, vlogs, and YouTube videos are technically streamed, but no ...
on
Peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera ''Pavo (genus), Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female pea ...
in the United States and the WWE Network in most international markets. Tickets went on sale on October 20, 2023, with premium hospitality packages also available. The Royal Rumble match generally features 30 wrestlers and the winner traditionally earns a
world championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
match at that year's WrestleMania. For 2024, the men and women could choose which world championship to challenge for at
WrestleMania XL WrestleMania XL is the upcoming 40th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It will be held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event is scheduled ...
; the men could choose Raw's World Heavyweight Championship or SmackDown's Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, while the women had the choice between Raw's Women's World Championship and SmackDown's
WWE Women's Championship WWE (formerly the WWF, WWWF, and its predecessor, Capitol Wrestling) has maintained several women's professional wrestling championships since acquiring The Fabulous Moolah's NWA World Women's Championship in 1984. Whenever brand division has be ...
. Days before the Royal Rumble event, Janel Grant, a former employee at WWE headquarters between 2019 and 2022, filed a lawsuit against WWE as well as TKO (by proxy of ownership). Grant alleged that Vince McMahon had coerced her into a sexual relationship and, along with the WWE executive John Laurinaitis and a WWE wrestler who was also a former
UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
fighter, sexually trafficked her and repeatedly sexually assaulted her during 2020–2021. Grant alleged that she was subjected to "extreme cruelty and degradation" by McMahon, including being defecated upon during a sexual encounter. Grant stated that McMahon had agreed to pay her $3 million in 2022 in return for a
non-disclosure agreement A non-disclosure agreement (NDA) is a legal contract or part of a contract between at least two parties that outlines confidential material, knowledge, or information that the parties wish to share with one another for certain purposes, but wish ...
, but stopped paying after only $1 million had been paid following the initial public emergence of the sexual misconduct allegations the same year. Federal prosecutors have subpoenaed McMahon, and have taken up the filing in question. One day after the report of the claims, on January 26, 2024, Vince McMahon had resigned from TKO. In a statement, McMahon said the decision was made "out of respect for the WWE Universe, the extraordinary TKO business and its board members and shareholders, partners and constituents, and all of the employees". Ari Emanuel took over as the Chairman of TKO. In response, Slim Jim, the sponsor of the event, temporarily paused its promotional work due to allegiations, only to resume the next day after McMahon resigned. The removal of McMahon from the TKO board makes the 2024 edition of the Royal Rumble, the first major WWE event, without him or any of his family involved at any capacity.


Storylines

The event included four matches that resulted from scripted storylines. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw and SmackDown brands, while storylines were played out on WWE's weekly television shows, ''
Monday Night Raw ''WWE Raw'', also known as ''Monday Night Raw'' or simply ''Raw'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that currently airs live every Monday at 8 p.m. ET on the USA Network in the United States. The show fe ...
'' and ''
Friday Night SmackDown ''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes sim ...
''. Before he went on hiatus in May 2022 due to a back injury,
Randy Orton Randal Keith Orton (born April 1, 1980) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and actor who is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw brand but is currently out of action due to a back injury. H ...
had been feuding with The Bloodline ( Roman Reigns, Jey Uso, and Jimmy Uso). The following year at Crown Jewel in November 2023, Reigns defeated
LA Knight Shaun Ricker (born November 1, 1982) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name LA Knight. Ricker is known for his time in Impact Wrestling as Eli Drake. Rick ...
to retain the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship after interference from the Bloodline. On the following episode of ''SmackDown'', Knight stated that he was not done with the Bloodline until he defeated Reigns for the title. Orton then returned at Survivor Series: WarGames later that same month, and on the December 1 episode of ''SmackDown'', he signed with the SmackDown brand after fending off an attack by the Bloodline (which had since added
Solo Sikoa Joseph Yokozuna Fatu (born March 18, 1993) is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE. He currently performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Solo Sikoa where he is a member of The Bloodline and a former NXT North American Ch ...
, while Jey had left the group and the SmackDown brand earlier that summer), vowing to get revenge. Two weeks later, the returning AJ Styles helped Knight and Orton fend off the Bloodline before attacking Knight. The following week, Styles explained that he attacked Knight for taking his spot in a tag team match at Fastlane in October 2023. After Orton interrupted and said that he also wanted a title match against Reigns, SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis announced that Orton, Styles, and Knight would compete in a
triple threat match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
at ''SmackDown'': New Year's Revolution on January 5, 2024, where the winner would face Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at the Royal Rumble. However, the match ended in a no contest after the Bloodline attacked all three competitors. As a result, Aldis announced that Reigns would instead defend his championship in a
fatal four-way match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
against Orton, Knight, and Styles at the Royal Rumble. At Crown Jewel on November 4, 2023, Logan Paul won his first WWE title, the United States Championship. Paul made his first appearance as champion on the December 1 episode of ''SmackDown'' where he announced that his first challenger would be determined by an eight-man tournament. The tournament was won by Kevin Owens at ''SmackDown'': New Year's Revolution on January 5, 2024, thus earning him a match against Paul for the title at the Royal Rumble.


Event


Preliminary matches

The event opened with the Women's Royal Rumble match. The first two entrants were Natalya from Raw, who continued her streak of being in every Women's Rumble, and Naomi, who returned to WWE after walking out of the company in May 2022 and after performing in
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promot ...
(TNA) the preceding few months. She was followed by SmackDown's Bayley at number three. TNA Knockouts World Champion
Jordynne Grace Patricia Forrest Parker (born March 5, 1996) is an American professional wrestler and powerlifter currently signed to Impact Wrestling, where she performs under the ring name Jordynne Grace. She is currently the Impact Knockouts World Champion ...
entered at number five as a surprise entrant, and briefly reignited her feud with Naomi, who she defeated in Naomi's final TNA match for the title. Past Women's Rumble winners
Asuka Asuka may refer to: People * Asuka (name), a list of people * Asuka (wrestler), professional wrestler * Asuka (wrestler, born 1998), professional wrestler also known as Veny outside of Japan Places In Japan * , an area in Yamato Province (now N ...
(2018) and
Bianca Belair Bianca Blair Crawford (born Bianca Nicole Blair; April 9, 1989) is an American professional wrestler and a fitness and figure competitor. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Bianca Belair, and ...
(2021), both from SmackDown, later entered at numbers seven and 10, respectively. As the ring filled up, Raw's Nia Jax entered at number 19 and went on a run of eliminations. 2019 winner Becky Lynch from Raw entered at number 21. As Raw's Valhalla was making her entrance as the 24th entrant, R-Truth (who was assigned as the 24th entrant for the Men's match) also tried to enter the match, not realizing that this was the Women's Rumble.
Jade Cargill Jade Cargill (born June 3, 1992) is an American professional wrestler. She is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where she is the inaugural and current AEW TBS Champion. Her ongoing reign is the longest reign of any AEW championship at + days ...
was another surprise entrant at number 28, making her WWE in-ring debut, and eliminated Jax and Naomi (who lasted for over an hour). Raw's Liv Morgan was the final entrant, making her return after over six months due to injury, and also continuing her streak of being in every Women's Rumble. Bayley, Cargill, and Morgan were the final three, and after Morgan eliminated Cargill, Bayley then eliminated Morgan to win the Rumble, and in the process set the new Women's Rumble longevity record at 1:03:03. She was also the second woman to win the match from the #3 position after Belair in 2021 and third person overall. In addition to the win this made Bayley the first Mexican-American female wrestler to win the Royal Rumble and the second ethnicity wrestler after Rey Mysterio in
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
to win the event. After that, Roman Reigns defended the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Randy Orton, AJ Styles, and LA Knight in a fatal four-way match. All three challengers started the match by triple teaming Reigns, then eventually paired off into their own battles. Orton hit his RKO finishing move on all of the other participants and attempted to pin Reigns, before Solo Sikoa attacked Orton on Reigns' behalf. Reigns eventually hit the spear on Styles to score the pinfall, winning the match and retaining his title. The penultimate match saw Logan Paul defend the United States Championship against Kevin Owens. Paul spent much of the match attacking Owens' injured right hand. One of Paul's friends, Jeff Levin tried to give Paul a pair of brass knuckles, but he was ejected by the referee.
Austin Theory Austin White (born August 2, 1997) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and Bodybuilding, bodybuilder. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand under the ring ...
and
Grayson Waller Matthew Farrelly (born 21 March 1990) is an Australian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Grayson Waller. Before signing to WWE, he previously wrestled on the independent ...
—who had been feuding with Owens as well as forming an alliance with Paul—then came out during this moment with Theory instead giving Paul the brass knuckles. Owens, however, got a hold of them and knocked out Paul, but during the pin, the referee saw the knuckles on Owens' hand, resulting in Owens being disqualified and giving Paul the victory to retain. After the match, Owens powerbombed Paul through the announcers' table.


Main event

The main event was the Men's Royal Rumble match. It began with Raw's Jey Uso at number one and his brother
Jimmy Jimmy may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Jimmy'' (2008 film), a 2008 Hindi thriller directed by Raj N. Sippy * ''Jimmy'' (1979 film), a 1979 Indian Malayalam film directed by Melattoor Ravi Varma * ''Jimmy'' (2013 f ...
from SmackDown at number two. Andrade, who returned to WWE after leaving the company in March 2021 and then worked for All Elite Wrestling, entered as a surprise participant at number four, as did Carmelo Hayes from NXT, who made his Rumble debut at number five, followed by 2018 Rumble winner
Shinsuke Nakamura is a Japanese Professional wrestling, professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown WWE brand extension, brand. Nakamura is known for his time in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where ...
from Raw at number six. SmackDown's Bobby Lashley (#11) eliminated eighth entrant Karrion Kross also from SmackDown, but Kross' Final Testament stablemates
Authors of Pain Legion of Pain are a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Sunny Dhinsa and Gzim Selmani. They are best known for their time in WWE as the Authors of Pain, under the ring names Akam and Rezar, where they are former one-time Raw Tag Team C ...
( Akam and
Rezar } Gzim Selmani (born 16 June 1994) is a Dutch-Albanian professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is best known for his time in WWE, where he performed under the ring name Rezar. After signing with WWE in 2015, he has since teamed ...
) stormed the ring, leading to Kross coming back in to eliminate Lashley, resulting in a ringside brawl between the Final Testament, Lashley, and his associates
The Street Profits The Street Profits are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford. The team is currently performing in WWE on the Raw brand. They are three-time tag team champions in WWE, having held the Raw, SmackD ...
(
Angelo Dawkins The Street Profits are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford. The team is currently performing in WWE on the Raw brand. They are three-time tag team champions in WWE, having held the Raw, Smac ...
and
Montez Ford The Street Profits are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford. The team is currently performing in WWE on the Raw brand. They are three-time tag team champions in WWE, having held the Raw, Smac ...
). As the ring filled up, 2023 Rumble winner Cody Rhodes from Raw entered at number 15. NXT's
Bron Breakker Bronson Parmar Rechsteiner (born October 24, 1997) is an American professional wrestler and former American football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Bron Breakker and is the current NXT ...
made his Rumble debut at number 20, and scored several rapid eliminations. Omos was next at number 21, followed by surprise entrant Pat McAfee (#22), who had earlier made a surprise return as a commentator for the event. After coming face to face with the over seven foot tall Omos, McAfee backed away and eliminated himself by climbing over the top rope and returned to commentary. Raw's
CM Punk Phillip Jack Brooks (born October 26, 1978), better known by the ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler, sports commentator, actor, and retired mixed martial artist currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Best known for ...
, who returned to WWE at Survivor Series: WarGames in November 2023, entered at number 27, marking his first WWE televised match since the
2014 Royal Rumble The 2014 Royal Rumble was the 27th annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by WWE. It took place on January 26, 2014, at the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the first Royal Rumble to b ...
match. 2020 Rumble winner Drew McIntyre entered at number 29 followed by Sami Zayn as the number 30 and final entrant, both from Raw. Jey was eliminated after a stint of 50 minutes and 50 seconds. The final four were Rhodes, Raw's
Gunther Gundaharius or Gundahar (died 437), better known by his legendary names Gunther ( gmh, Gunther) or Gunnar ( non, Gunnarr), was a historical king of Burgundy in the early 5th century. Gundahar is attested as ruling his people shortly after they ...
(#18), Punk, and McIntyre. After Punk and Rhodes eliminated McIntyre and Gunther, respectively, Punk and Rhodes engaged in a lengthy back and forth exchange of attempted eliminations, before Rhodes finally threw him over the top rope to win the match for a second consecutive year. With this victory, Rhodes became the first wrestler since
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin Steve Austin (born Steven James Anderson; December 18, 1964), better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American media personality, actor, and retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most ...
(
1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
and
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
) to win back-to-back Rumbles, and fourth overall after Austin,
Shawn Michaels Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965), better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative. Widely regarded as one of ...
(1995 and
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
), and
Hulk Hogan Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...
(
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
and
1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
).


Aftermath


Raw

During the Royal Rumble post-event press conference, Cody Rhodes, who won the men's Royal Rumble as a Raw wrestler, seemingly made his decision of which world championship he would challenge for at WrestleMania XL. He stated that while he respected
Seth "Freakin" Rollins Colby Daniel Lopez (born May 28, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Seth Rollins (often referred to as Seth "Freakin" Rollins). Prior to signing ...
and his run with the World Heavyweight Championship on Raw, Rhodes said that he needed to finish his story and defeat Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, as he failed to do so at
WrestleMania 39 WrestleMania 39 (marketed as ''WrestleMania Goes Hollywood'') is the upcoming 39th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It will be held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDo ...
the previous year. However, on the following episode of ''Raw'', Rollins explained why Rhodes should instead challenge him at WrestleMania, stating that the title Reigns held lost its luster due to Reigns defending it so infrequently, and the shady reputations of other past champions, while Rollins made his title representative of the blue collar, workhorse style that Cody's father
Dusty Rhodes Virgil Riley Runnels Jr. (October 11, 1945 – June 11, 2015), better known as "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, was an American professional wrestler, booker, and trainer who most notably worked for the National Wrestling Alliance, Jim Crocket ...
embodied. A conflicted Rhodes said he would think about it. Rhodes then appeared on ''SmackDown'' and confronted Reigns and said that he would eventually win Reigns' title, but not at WrestleMania. The Rock then came out and stared down Reigns in the ring as the episode went off the air, seemingly challenging for Reigns' title at WrestleMania, which has since drawn intense fan backlash. However, during the ''WrestleMania XL Kickoff'' event on February 8, Rhodes announced that he had in fact chosen Reigns, much to the dismay of Reigns and Rock. Two days after the event, reports emerged that CM Punk had gotten injured during the men's Royal Rumble match. Punk, with his arm in a sling, opened that night's episode of ''Raw'' and confirmed that he tore his right triceps and would have to miss WrestleMania XL. He was interrupted by Drew McIntyre, who Punk had eliminated in the match. McIntyre said he had hoped Punk would get injured so he could instead go to WrestleMania and challenge for a world championship. Punk then said that whenever he comes back, McIntyre would be his first target. On the same episode of ''Raw'', it was announced that Pat McAfee had returned to WWE full-time to be a commentator alongside Michael Cole for the brand, and on the heels of his return at the Royal Rumble, Andrade became a member of the Raw roster.


SmackDown

On ''WWE The Bump'' the day after the Royal Rumble, Bayley, who won the women's Royal Rumble as a SmackDown wrestler, seemingly confirmed that she would challenge Rhea Ripley for the Women's World Championship at WrestleMania XL due to her
Damage CTRL Damage Control (stylized as Damage CTRL) is a villainous professional wrestling stable composed of leader Bayley, Dakota Kai, & Iyo Sky currently performing in WWE on the Raw brand. Kai and Sky are the current WWE Women's Tag Team Champions ...
stablemate Iyo Sky holding the WWE Women's Championship. Bayley subsequently appeared on the following episode of ''Raw'' to officially announce her decision, but after being interrupted by Ripley and then Ripley being attacked by Nia Jax, who warned Bayley that Ripley would not make it to WrestleMania, Bayley said she would make her announcement on ''SmackDown''. On that episode, Bayley eavesdropped on Sky and The Kabuki Warriors (
Asuka Asuka may refer to: People * Asuka (name), a list of people * Asuka (wrestler), professional wrestler * Asuka (wrestler, born 1998), professional wrestler also known as Veny outside of Japan Places In Japan * , an area in Yamato Province (now N ...
and Kairi Sane) say something in Japanese with Sky saying they would end Bayley that night. Later in the ring, Bayley confronted Sky, Asuka, and Sane, revealing she understood what they were saying and wondered why they made fun of her. The three then attacked Bayley, who decided that she would challenge Sky for the WWE Women's Championship at WrestleMania, turning face. On the same episode of ''SmackDown'', Naomi and
Tiffany Stratton Tiffany may refer to: People * Tiffany (given name), list of people with this name * Tiffany (surname), list of people with this surname Known mononymously as "Tiffany": * Tiffany Darwish, (born 1971), an American singer, songwriter, actress kno ...
—both surprise entrants in the Women's Rumble—announced they had signed with SmackDown full time (Naomi coming in as a free agent after leaving TNA and Stratton from NXT). Two weeks later, Bron Breakker—a surprise Rumble entrant on the men's side—had signed with SmackDown, coming over from NXT.


Results


Women's Royal Rumble match entrances and eliminations

: –
Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...
: – SmackDown : –
NXT NXT may refer to: Professional wrestling * '' WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010 ** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory * '' NXT UK'', the British spi ...
: –
TNA TNA may refer to: Organisations * Tamil National Alliance, a political coalition in Sri Lanka * The National Alliance, a political party in Kenya * The National Archives (United Kingdom), a UK public body * Tonga Nurses' Association, a trade union ...
: – Unaffiliated : – Winner


Men's Royal Rumble match entrances and eliminations

: –
Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...
: – SmackDown : –
NXT NXT may refer to: Professional wrestling * '' WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010 ** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory * '' NXT UK'', the British spi ...
: – Unaffiliated : – Winner


WWE United States Championship #1 Contender Tournament


Notes


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Royal Rumble (2024) 2024 WWE Network events 2024 WWE pay-per-view events
2024 Predicted and scheduled events * January 1 ** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1928 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law. ***''Steamboat Willie'', Walt Disney's fi ...
2024 in Florida 2024 in professional wrestling in Florida January 2024 events in the United States Professional wrestling shows in St. Petersburg, Florida