WWE Royal Rumble 2019, out of Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, just wrapped up. We’ve got the match results, as well as our overall thoughts on the show, for you to check out below. Let us know what you thought about the Rumble by tweeting us, @TheRumbleRamble.
Royal Rumble 2019 Quick Stats
- Date: January 27th, 2019
- Attendance: 48,193
- Featured Song(s): We Got the Power by Zayde Wolf
Chad Gable and Bobby Roode vs. Scott Dawson and Rezar
Finish the sentence: This back body drop is _________.#RAW @REALBobbyRoode pic.twitter.com/aEzzU27lM6
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) January 27, 2019
In a surprise tag match, the Raw Tag Champs, Chad Gable and Bobby Roode, took on the duo of Scott Dawson and Rezar, of The Revival and AOP, respectively.
Unfortunately for Dawson and Rezar, it became evident that they were not used to working together, and a few misunderstandings between them on top of the fantastic teamwork from Roode and Gable cost them the match in the end.
Winner: Chad Gable and Bobby Roode
Rusev (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
United States Championship Match
BRUTE strength on display early by the #USChampion…
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) January 27, 2019
See what we did there? 😉#RoyalRumble @RusevBUL @LanaWWE pic.twitter.com/KnIThIXLyW
Determined to protect his US title and avenge the “injury” his wife sustained because of Nakamura, Rusev started things off hot against the president of Nakamerica.
Nakamura was soon able to turn the tables, momentarily keeping Rusev down. The two traded near falls until Nakamura became frustrated and attempted to remove one of the turnbuckle pads. This prompted Lana to climb onto the apron in an effort to stop him. Rusev charged Nakamura, but he jumped out of the way, and the Bulgarian Brute knocked his own wife off the apron and onto the floor.
Distracted by an “injured” Lana, Rusev fell victim to a vicious knee strike to the back of the head from Nakamura, losing him the United States Championship.
Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura
Buddy Murphy (c) vs. Hideo Itami vs. Kalisto vs. Akira Tozawa
The #CruiserweightChampion @WWE_Murphy didn’t expect this exchange to end like THIS.#RoyalRumble @TozawaAkira pic.twitter.com/iaGuTGjMvD
— 205Live (@WWE205Live) January 27, 2019
Hideo Itami started the match with the ultimate heel tactic: rolling out of the ring and allowing the other competitors to beat each other senseless while you remain 100%.
Kalisto and Akira Tozawa tried to take Buddy Murphy down, but neither succeeded. In fact, Murphy left both men incapacitated at ringside. It was at this moment that Itami chose to re-enter the match, picking Murphy apart while there was little possibility of an outside attack.
As always, the members of the Cruiserweight Division impressed the hell out of us. Their combined quickness and agility was off the charts, and they appeared to have made a handshake agreement that nothing was off limits in the brutality department.
All four competitors came close to winning the match at one point or another, but it was Buddy Murphy who would ultimately take the victory with a Murphy’s Law to Hideo Itami.
Winner: Buddy Murphy
Asuka (c) vs. Becky Lynch
SmackDown Women’s Championship Match
If your strategy is to try and out-KICK @WWEAsuka, you could be in for a long night… #RoyalRumble pic.twitter.com/0k0SCOxuvE
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) January 28, 2019
Both Becky Lynch and Asuka were extra vicious during this match, trading hard-hitting moves and taunts throughout the first few minutes. The two struggled for dominance, each having an answer for everything the other could throw.
Asuka appeared to have finally snagged the upper hand with a spinning neck breaker, but Lynch wasn’t down for long and the two traded smacks to the face until Asuka landed a fierce kick, but it only got her a two count.
Lynch hit a Bexploder from the top rope and tried to follow it up with a leg drop, but Asuka caught her in an Asuka Lock. Becky was able to reverse it into an Asuka Lock of her own, which Asuka escaped, but was immediately trapped in a Dis-Arm-Her.
From there, the two women frantically traded submissions until Asuka hit a Cattle M
Winner: Asuka
The Bar (c) vs. Miz & Mac
SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match
.@shanemcmahon = ⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️ QUICK. #RoyalRumble pic.twitter.com/ElIRGoYcON
— WWE (@WWE) January 28, 2019
The Bar, having been a team quite a bit longer than Miz and Mac, were able to take the lead the moment the bell rang. Using double team tactics, Sheamus and Cesaro kept Miz in their corner, unable to reach his partner.
Cesaro and Sheamus attempted to put Miz through an announce table, but the A-Lister was saved by Shane O’Mac, who prepared to leap from the top rope and put Cesaro through the table instead.
Sheamus stopped the attack, and he and Cesaro went back to pummeling The Miz. The Bar perhaps toyed with Miz rather than going for the victory a little too long, as Miz took a lull in the action as an opportunity to turn the match around.
Shane O’Mac finally got his time in the spotlight, wearing down both Sheamus and Cesaro until they were lying on top of each other in the corner – the perfect spot for a Coast to Coast. Cesaro saw the attack coming, however,and caught Shane in a swing.
Sheamus went for a Brogue Kick to
Winner: Miz & Mac
Ronda Rousey (c) vs. Sasha Banks
Raw Women’s Championship Match
That arm is a PRIME 🎯 for @SashaBanksWWE right about now… #RoyalRumble pic.twitter.com/NWRFTV5kn1
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) January 28, 2019
The contempt between Rousey and Banks has reached a fever pitch in recent weeks, making this bout between the two a little extra cruel.
Banks was clearly out to prove herself against the former UFC champion and dominated Rousey for much of the match.
At one point, Banks actually tapped to Rousey’s armbar, but it didn’t count, as they were outside of the ring at the time. A frustrated Banks resorted to choking Rousey out with a piece of her gear and manipulating the joints in Rousey’s hands.
Using the last ounce of energy she had left, Rousey hit Banks with a powerbomb followed by Piper’s Pit, retaining her championship.
The two appeared to put their differences aside post-match, showing mutual respect before Banks left Rousey to celebrate in the ring. Banks eventually thought better of it, however, and came back to taunt Ronda with the Four Horsewomen symbol before leaving for good.
Winner: Ronda Rousey
Women’s Royal Rumble Match
Thanks to @LanaWWE‘s injury, the REAL final entrant in the Women’s #RoyalRumble Match…is @BeckyLynchWWE! #RoyalRumble pic.twitter.com/kJZWjtWiQ2
— WWE (@WWE) January 28, 2019
The list of entrants, in order, was as follows:
- Lacey Evans
- Natalya
- Mandy Rose
- Liv Morgan
- Mickie James
- Ember Moon
- Billie Kay
- Nikki Cross
- Peyton Royce
- Tamina
- Xia Li
- Sarah Logan
- Charlotte
- Kairi Sane
- Maria Kanellis
- Naomi
- Candice LeRae
- Alicia Fox
- Kacy Catanzaro
- Zelina Vega
- Ruby Riott
- Dana Brooke
- Io Shirai
- Rhea Ripley
- Sonya Deville
- Alexa Bliss
- Bayley
LanaBecky Lynch- Nia Jax
- Carmella
Some notable moments included:
- Liv Morgan was thrown out by Natalya the moment she entered the ring
- Nikki Cross made the most of the opportunity, laying out every single woman in the ring when she got there
- Xia Li went toe-to-toe with Tamina, showing off her athleticism in her debut in front of the main roster crowd
- Naomi went straight for Mandy Rose, eliminating her with little opposition. Rose then tried to throw Naomi out, who flipped onto the barricade, walked along it, and jumped onto the stairs… only to be pulled down by Mandy and eliminated
- Zelina Vega hid under the ring for a solid portion of the match, avoiding confrontation
- Ruby Riott came to the ring with Liv and Sarah, and the three laid waste to several competitors
- Hornswoggle appeared next to Zelina under the ring, scaring her back into the action – right into Rhea Ripley’s waiting arms
- Bayley eliminated Rhea Ripley rather easily, who had dominated up until that point, throwing out 3 competitors
- Lana was already “injured” from the US Title match and was limping to the ring when she was attacked by Nia Jax. Officials tended to Lana as Becky ran up, demanding to take the fallen Ravishing Russian’s spot
- An Ember Moon/Alexa Bliss feud is potentially on the horizon, as there was a tense moment where they attempted to eliminate each other before Alexa finally threw Ember out
- Final Four Competitors: Becky Lynch, Bayley, Charlotte Flair, Nia Jax
- Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair were the final two after Jax eliminated Bayley and Lynch eliminated Jax
Winner: Becky Lynch
Daniel Bryan (c) vs. AJ Styles
WWE Championship Match
There is a LOT of FIGHT left in the challenger @AJStylesOrg! #RoyalRumble pic.twitter.com/ATVbHjqxEA
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) January 28, 2019
Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles started off at a methodical pace, each man fully realizing what he was up against and what was at stake. Bryan was absolutely ruthless, doing his best to break the right arm of Styles after smashing his face into one of the ringposts, bloodying his nose.
Picking Styles apart slowly, Bryan was in no rush to end his opponent’s suffering. Eventually, Styles was able to get a moment of offense, but was quickly brought down again by Bryan.
With a reverse DDT from the barricade, Styles looked to be gaining control, but when he tried to follow up with a 450, he landed on the new Daniel Bryan’s knees and was caught in a LeBell Lock.
Bryan and Styles continued to destroy each other until taking a momentary break to watch Rowan make his way down to stand by the ring. After a ref bump caused the official to turn his back, Styles hit a Styles Clash and looked to be seconds from victory, but was grabbed by the face by Rowan and slammed into the mat, allowing Bryan to take the it for himself.
Winner: Daniel Bryan
Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Finn Bálor
Universal Championship Match
When @BrockLesnar gets into THIS mode, there’s no chance.#RoyalRumble #UniversalTitle pic.twitter.com/obA3DNYVi1
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) January 28, 2019
Bálor did his best to get in some early offense, but was caught (and suplexed…many times) by Lesnar. Finn managed to shove Lesnar into the announce desk “midsection” first, which put The Beast off his game momentarily.
Even in pain, however, Lesnar continued to ragdoll Bálor until Finn countered one of Lesnar’s attacks, ground his foot into Lesnar’s injured “midsection”, then senton dove to the floor onto Lesnar. Three times. To finish things off, he went for a Coup de Grâce, which he landed, but Lesnar kicked out of the pin and trapped Bálor in a vicious Kimura Lock, tapping Bálor out and retaining the Universal Championship.
Post-match, Lesnar was clearly angry about Bálor giving him such a fight (and injuring his “midsection”) and beat Bálor down some more.
Winner: Brock Lesnar
Men’s Royal Rumble Match
ONLY in the #RoyalRumble Match!
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) January 28, 2019
👏👏👏👏👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/NgQ97ZnZfq
The list of entrants, in order, was as follows:
- Elias
- Jeff Jarrett
- Shinsuke Nakamura
- Kurt Angle
- Big E
- Johnny Gargano
- Jinder Mahal
- Samoa Joe
- Kurt Hawkins
- Seth Rollins
- Titus O’Neil
- Kofi Kingston
- Mustafa Ali
- Dean Ambrose
- No Way Jose
- Drew McIntyre
- Xavier Woods
- Pete Dunne
- Andrade
- Apollo Crews
- Aleister Black
- Shelton Benjamin
- Baron Corbin
- Jeff Hardy
- Rey Mysterio
- Bobby Lashley
- Braun Strowman
- Dolph Ziggler
- Randy Orton
- Nia Jax
Some notable moments included:
- Jeff Jarrett interrupted Elias’ pre-match concert. Following a brief interaction, Elias smashed a guitar over Jarrett’s back and eliminated him
- Shinsuke Nakamura eliminated Kurt Angle
- Kurt Hawkins eliminated Titus O’Neil then was immediately eliminated by Samoa Joe
- Mustafa Ali eliminated Shinsuke Nakamura
- Dean Ambrose attempted to eliminate Kofi Kingston, who kept one foot on the apron, then rolled around the ring and jumped back in
- No Way Jose led a conga line to the ring and was in the match maybe half a second before being thrown out by Joe. He seemed unfazed and congaed his way back up the ramp
- Drew McIntyre bulldozed his way through the conga line on the way to the ring
- Kofi was nearly eliminated again but was caught by Xavier Woods, who placed him back in the ring. They were both thrown out by McIntyre shortly after
- Aleister Black eliminated Dean Ambrose
- Mustafa Ali eliminated Samoa Joe
- Bobby Lashley was in the match a second or two before being eliminated, but he didn’t go quietly. Instead, he opted to put Seth Rollins through an announce table (Rollins was not eliminated)
- As R-Truth made his entrance, he was attacked from behind by Nia Jax, who entered herself into the men’s royal rumble match. Jax eliminated Mustafa, then participated in legitimate intergender competition until she was thrown out by Randy Orton and Rey Mysterio
- Final two: Seth Rollins and Braun Strowman
- Seth Rollins eliminated Braun Strowman following a Curbstomp on the apron
What letter grade would you give tonight’s show? #RoyalRumble
— Rumble Ramble (@TheRumbleRamble) January 28, 2019
