Royal Rumble (2005)

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Royal Rumble
Promotion
World Wrestling Entertainment
Brand(s)Raw
SmackDown!
DateJanuary 30, 2005
CityFresno, California
VenueSave Mart Center at Fresno State
Attendance12,000
Buy rate575,000[1]
Tagline(s)All the rumbling, minus the dancing and singing[2]
Pay-per-view chronology
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New Year's Revolution 		Next →
No Way Out
Royal Rumble chronology
← Previous
2004 		Next →
2006

The 2005 Royal Rumble was the 18th annual

Save Mart Center in Fresno, California. As has been customary since 1993, the Royal Rumble match winner received a world championship match at that year's WrestleMania. For the 2005 event, the winner received their choice to challenge for either Raw's World Heavyweight Championship or SmackDown!'s WWE Championship at WrestleMania 21
.

Five

John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL), Kurt Angle, and Big Show, which JBL won by pinning Angle. No tag team match was featured on the card, which made this the first PPV since The Wrestling Classic
in 1985 to not include one.

Production

Background

Save Mart Center in Fresno, California
.

The

Save Mart Center in Fresno, California. It featured wrestlers from the Raw and SmackDown! brands.[4][5]

The Royal Rumble match generally features 30 wrestlers. Traditionally, the winner of the match earns a world championship match at that year's WrestleMania.[6][7] For 2005, the winner could choose to challenge for either Raw's World Heavyweight Championship or SmackDown!'s WWE Championship at WrestleMania 21.[5]

Storylines

The event comprised five matches that resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayed

less distinguishable characters to build tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw and SmackDown brands, with storylines produced on WWE's weekly television shows, Raw and SmackDown.[8][9]

Triple H as the World Heavyweight Champion

The main

Maven) defeated Team Triple H (Triple H, Edge, Batista, and Snitsky) in a traditional Survivor Series elimination match to earn control of Raw after Orton last eliminated Triple H.[12] At New Year's Revolution, Triple H won an Elimination Chamber match to win the vacant World Heavyweight Championship by last eliminating Orton after interference from Batista and Flair.[13] On the January 10 episode of Raw, Orton defeated Batista to become the number one contender for the title at the Royal Rumble.[14] On the January 17 episode of Raw, after a verbal confrontation between the two in the arena, Triple H ambushed Orton backstage. They fought until Orton tried to use a steel chair, and Triple H fled.[15] On the January 24 episode of Raw, Orton defeated Flair, despite interference from Triple H.[16]

The main feud on the

The Big Show, and Kurt Angle, with the three feuding over the WWE Championship. On the December 16 episode of SmackDown!, Angle challenged JBL to a match for the WWE Championship. The Cabinet (Orlando Jordan, Doug, and Danny Basham) interfered and attacked Angle, causing the match to end via disqualification. They continued to attack Angle after the match until Big Show came out, beat down everyone, and signaled to JBL that he wanted the title.[17] On the December 30 episode of SmackDown!, a triple threat match for the title between the three was booked for the Royal Rumble.[18] Following this, JBL set up Angle to anger Big Show, but Angle angered JBL in response. After realizing this, on the January 20 episode of SmackDown!, JBL aligned himself with Big Show and confronted Angle; however, JBL turned on Big Show and beat him down with Angle.[19] On the January 27 episode of SmackDown!, SmackDown! General Manager Theodore Long booked a Last Man Standing match between JBL and Angle for later that night. The two eventually turned on each other, and the match ended in a no contest. It was later revealed that the match was Big Show's idea.[20]

Another feud heading into the event from SmackDown! was between The Undertaker and Heidenreich. Their feud first started at No Mercy when Heidenreich helped John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) defeat The Undertaker in a Last Ride match by attacking The Undertaker and putting him in the hearse.[21] At Survivor Series, The Undertaker defeated Heidenreich after executing a Tombstone Piledriver.[22] At Armageddon, Heidenreich once again cost The Undertaker the WWE Championship against JBL after interfering in a fatal four-way match that involved Booker T and Eddie Guerrero, allowing JBL to pin Booker T to retain.[23] SmackDown! General Manager Theodore Long let The Undertaker name the stipulation for his match against Heidenreich at the Royal Rumble. As Heidenreich mentioned his fear of caskets, The Undertaker chose to face him in a casket match for the Royal Rumble their first casket match at the event since the 1998 event involved with Shawn Michaels and the third occurrence the other was in the 1994 event involved with Yokozuna.[24]

A preliminary Raw brand feud was between

Sweet Chin Music on Edge, who would be eliminated by Chris Jericho.[26] On the January 10 episode of Raw, a confrontation between Edge and Michaels ended in the two men brawling around the arena. A match between the two was then booked for the Royal Rumble.[27]

Event

Other on-screen personnel[28]
Role: Name:
English commentators Jim Ross (Raw/Royal Rumble match)
Jerry Lawler (Raw)
Michael Cole (SmackDown!)
Tazz
(SmackDown!/Royal Rumble match)
Spanish commentators Carlos Cabrera (Spanish)
Hugo Savinovich (Spanish)
Ring announcers Tony Chimel (SmackDown!)
Howard Finkel (Raw/Royal Rumble Match)
Referees Mike Chioda (Raw)
Jack Doan (Raw)
Brian Hebner (SmackDown!)
Earl Hebner (Raw)
Jim Korderas
(SmackDown!)
Nick Patrick (SmackDown!)
Chad Patton (Raw)
Charles Robinson (SmackDown!)
General Managers Eric Bischoff (Raw)
Theodore Long (SmackDown!)
Bingo machine tumbler Christy Hemme (Raw)
Torrie Wilson (SmackDown!)

Preliminary matches

Before the event went live on pay-per-view,

Maven defeated Rhyno in a match taped for Sunday Night Heat.[5][28][29]

The first match was between

Sweet Chin Music into an electric chair drop for a near-fall. Edge applied the Edgecator on Michaels, but Michaels broke the hold. Michaels attempted a roll-up, but Edge pinned Michaels with a roll-up using the ropes to win the match.[5][28]

The second match was a Casket match between The Undertaker and Heidenreich. The match started back and forth until Heidenreich sent Undertaker into the casket. Undertaker applied the triangle choke until Gene Snitsky interfered and attacked Undertaker. Snitsky and Heidenreich attacked The Undertaker and called for the casket to be opened but Kane was revealed to be inside the casket. He attacked Snitsky and Heidenreich and fought Snitsky throughout the arena. Heidenreich sent Undertaker into the steel steps and pushed the casket into him. Heidenreich put Undertaker in the casket after applying the cobra clutch but Undertaker stopped the lid from closing. Heidenreich put Undertaker in the casket again but Undertaker countered. Undertaker executed a chokeslam and a Tombstone Piledriver and put Heidenreich in the casket to win the match.[5][28]

The third match was a

Clothesline from Hell on Angle to retain the title.[5][28]

The fourth match was between

clothesline and tried to hit Orton with a sledgehammer but Orton pulled him into the ringpost. Triple H performed another clothesline and a Pedigree to retain the title.[5][28]

Main event match

Batista eliminated John Cena
to win the 2005 Royal Rumble match

The main event was the Royal Rumble match. Before the match, Kurt Angle attacked

quadriceps muscles when his knees were caught on the apron, with the planned finish and attempt to restart the match botched,[30][31] and ordered the match to be restarted with the final two participants. Batista eliminated Cena following a spinebuster to win the match.[5][28]

Aftermath

The following weeks on Raw surrounded

drafted to SmackDown! on June 30.[35] Batista remained champion until the January 13, 2006, episode of SmackDown! when he vacated the title due to injury.[36]

"I Quit" match at Judgment Day.[38] Cena would then go to hold on to the title until New Year's Revolution 2006 when Edge cashed in the Money in the Bank contract he won at Wrestlemania 21 and defeat Cena after an Elimination Chamber match.[39]

Following the Royal Rumble,

Carlito afterwards.[46]

During the 2005 WWE Draft Lottery in June, the World Heavyweight Championship and WWE Championship switched brands.[47]

Results

No.Results
Singles match for the World Heavyweight Championship
21:28
6Batista won by last eliminating John Cena30-man Royal Rumble match for a world championship match at WrestleMania 2151:27
(c) – the champion(s) heading into the match
H – the match was broadcast prior to the pay-per-view on Sunday Night Heat

Royal Rumble entrances and eliminations

  – Raw
  – SmackDown!
  – Winner
Draw[49] Entrant[49] Brand Order[49] Eliminated by[49] Time[50] Eliminations
1 Eddie Guerrero SmackDown! 11 Edge 28:11 3
2 Chris Benoit Raw 25 Batista & Ric Flair 47:26 2
3 Daniel Puder SmackDown! 1 Hardcore Holly 04:09 0
4 Hardcore Holly SmackDown! 2 Chris Benoit & Eddie Guerrero 01:59 1
5 The Hurricane Raw 3 Eddie Guerrero 01:04 0
6 Kenzo Suzuki SmackDown! 4 Rey Mysterio 03:31 0
7 Edge Raw 28 Batista & John Cena 40:19 5
8 Rey Mysterio SmackDown! 27 Edge 38:25 2
9 Shelton Benjamin Raw 10 Edge 14:35 1
10 Booker T SmackDown! 9 Rey Mysterio & Eddie Guerrero 10:42 3
11 Chris Jericho Raw 21 Batista 28:22 2
12 Luther Reigns SmackDown! 7 Booker T 07:13 1
13 Muhammad Hassan Raw 5 Booker T, Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, Edge, Luther Reigns & Shelton Benjamin 00:54 0
14 Orlando Jordan SmackDown! 8 Booker T 03:36 0
15 Scotty 2 Hotty SmackDown! 6 Unable to compete[1] N/A 0
16 Charlie Haas SmackDown! 13 Shawn Michaels 06:20 0
17 René Duprée SmackDown! 16 Chris Jericho 11:32 0
18 Simon Dean Raw 12 Shawn Michaels 00:20 0
19 Shawn Michaels Raw 15 Kurt Angle[2] 04:56 3
20 Kurt Angle SmackDown! 14 Shawn Michaels 00:37 1
21 Jonathan Coachman Raw 23 Ric Flair 13:48 0
22 Mark Jindrak SmackDown! 19 Kane 08:15 0
23 Viscera Raw 17 John Cena 03:00 0
24 Paul London SmackDown! 18 Gene Snitsky 03:15 0
25 John Cena SmackDown! 29 Batista 15:28 3
26 Gene Snitsky Raw 20 Batista 03:38 1
27 Kane Raw 22 John Cena 03:54 1
28 Batista Raw — Winner 10:54 6
29 Christian Raw 24 Batista 02:09 0
30 Ric Flair Raw 26 Edge 01:58 2

^ Scotty was attacked by Hassan before he made it to the ring, and therefore was unable to compete and never officially entered the match.

^ Kurt Angle had been eliminated by Shawn Michaels and then returned to the ring, and eliminated Michaels in retaliation.

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External links

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