Royal Rumble
Promotional poster featuring various WWE wrestlers brawling on the New York City Subway
Promotion	World Wrestling Entertainment
Brand(s)	Raw SmackDown ECW
Date	January 27, 2008
City	New York City, New York
Venue	Madison Square Garden
Attendance	20,798[1]
Buy rate	575,000[2]
Pay-per-view chronology
← Previous Armageddon Next → No Way Out
Royal Rumble chronology
← Previous 2007 Next → 2009

The 2008Royal Rumble was the 21st annualRoyal Rumbleprofessional wrestlingpay-per-view (PPV)event produced byWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was held for wrestlers from the promotion'sRaw,SmackDown, andECWbrand divisions. The event took place on January 27, 2008, atMadison Square Garden inNew York, New York. The event was also the first WWE pay-per-view broadcast inhigh definition. As has been customary since 1993, theRoyal Rumble match winner received a world championship match at that year'sWrestleMania. For the 2008 event, the winner received their choice to challenge for either Raw'sWWE Championship, SmackDown'sWorld Heavyweight Championship, or theECW Championship atWrestleMania XXIV.

Fiveprofessional wrestling matches were featured on the event'ssupercard. Themain event was the 2008 Royal Rumble match, which featured wrestlers from all three brands. Raw'sJohn Cena, the surprise 30th entrant returning from a tornpectoral muscle, won the match by last eliminating Raw'sTriple H, the 29th entrant. The primary match on the Raw brand wasRandy Orton versusJeff Hardy for the WWE Championship, which Orton won to retain the title. The primary match on the SmackDown brand wasEdge versusRey Mysterio for the World Heavyweight Championship, which Edge won to retain the title. The featured matches on theundercard wereMontel Vontavious Porter (MVP) versusRic Flair in aCareer Threatening match andJohn "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) versusChris Jericho.

TheRoyal Rumble is an annualgimmickpay-per-view (PPV) produced every January byWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) since 1988. It is one of the promotion's original four pay-per-views, along withWrestleMania,SummerSlam, andSurvivor Series, dubbed the "Big Four".^[3] It is named after theRoyal Rumble match, a modifiedbattle royal in which the participants enter at timed intervals instead of all beginning in the ring at the same time. The 2008 event was the 21st event in the Royal Rumble chronology and was scheduled to be held on January 27, 2008, atMadison Square Garden inNew York, New York. It featured wrestlers from theRaw,SmackDown, andECWbrands.^[4][5] It was also the first WWE pay-per-view broadcast inhigh definition.^[6][7]

The Royal Rumble match generally features 30 wrestlers. Traditionally, the winner of the match earns aworld championship match at that year's WrestleMania.^[8][9] For 2008, the winner could choose to challenge for either Raw'sWWE Championship, SmackDown'sWorld Heavyweight Championship, or theECW Championship atWrestleMania XXIV.^[4]

The event comprised six matches, including onedark match, that resulted from scripted storylines. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brands, while storylines were produced on WWE's television shows,Raw,SmackDown, andECW on Sci Fi.^[10][11][12]

Prior to the annual Royal Rumble match, several qualifying matches for the match took place onRaw. The first qualifying match was on the December 31, 2007, episode asUmagasquashedJim Duggan to earn a place in the Rumble.Snitsky also defeatedDrew McIntyre at ahouse show in White Plains, New York to also qualify for the Royal Rumble.^[13]Triple H was disqualified againstRic Flair after interference from Rawgeneral managerWilliam Regal; therefore he was no longer allowed to compete in the Royal Rumble match, per the orders of Regal. After Triple H destroyed part of the lower TitanTron on the January 14 episode, however,Vince McMahon announced he would allow Triple H a second chance at the Royal Rumble if he could defeat his opponent on the January 21 episode.^[14] Triple H defeatedSnitsky,Mark Henry, and Regal in agauntlet match to gain entry.^[15]

Royal Rumble Qualification Matches

• Umaga defeatedJim Duggan –Raw, December 29 (aired December 31)^[16]
• Snitsky defeatedDrew McIntyre – Rawhouse show, January 4^[13]
• Hardcore Holly defeatedTrevor Murdoch – Raw house show, January 5^[17]
• John Morrison and the Miz defeatedJimmy Wang Yang andShannon Moore – SmackDown/ECW house show, January 6^[18]
• Hornswoggle andMick Foley defeatedThe Highlanders (Robbie and Rory McAllister) –Raw, January 7^[19]
• Jamie Noble defeatedChuck Palumbo –SmackDown, January 8 (aired January 11)^[20]
• Cody Rhodes defeatedWilliam Regal – Raw house show, January 11^[21]
• Carlito andSantino Marella defeatedDH Smith andSuper Crazy in a tag team match at a Raw house show, January 12^[22]
• Shelton Benjamin defeatedTommy Dreamer - Smackdown/ECW house show, January 12
• Shawn Michaels defeatedTrevor Murdoch –Raw, January 14^[14]
• Triple H defeated Snitsky, Mark Henry, and William Regal in an Over the Top Rope Gauntlet match –Raw, January 21^[15]
• CM Punk defeatedChavo Guerrero – WWEsupershow, January 26^[23]

The mainfeud on the Raw brand was between theIntercontinental ChampionJeff Hardy andRandy Orton, with the two feuding over the WWE Championship, which was held by Orton. Orton retained the title atArmageddon against the returningChris Jericho after beingdisqualified, when the then-SmackDown! broadcasterJohn "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) interfered and kicked Jericho in the head. Orton retained the championship, as a result, due to titles not changing hands on disqualifications.^[24] On the same night earlier, Jeff Hardy had defeated Triple H to earn the opportunity to face Orton at the Royal Rumble for the WWE Championship.^[25] The following night, on the December 17, 2007, episode ofRaw, Hardy teamed up with Shawn Michaels to defeat Orton andMr. Kennedy after Hardypinned Orton.^[26] Two weeks later on the lastRaw of 2007, Hardy and Orton had a face-to-face confrontation. Orton looked set toRKO Hardy, but Hardy countered and delivered aTwist of Fate to Orton. Later in the night, during Hardy's match withSantino Marella, Orton appeared on theRawTitanTron and stated that he had kicked Jeff's brotherMatt where his appendix used to be, proceeding further to punt him in the head.^[16] The following week on a special "Raw Roulette" edition ofRaw, Hardy retained his Intercontinental Championship against Umaga in aSteel Cage match after performing aWhisper in the Wind from the top of the cage.^[19] On the January 14, 2008 edition ofRaw, Hardy agreed to face Orton that night with his Intercontinental Championship on the line. However, as soon as the bell rang for the match, Orton immediately low-blowed Hardy, getting himselfdisqualified. Orton tried to deliver an RKO to Hardy on the concrete floor outside, but Hardy retaliated and the two began to brawl up the ramp. When Orton looked set to kick Hardy in the head, the Intercontinental Champion countered and back-dropped Orton onto the arena floor below. Hardy then climbed 30-feet above on theRaw set, and then Swanton Bombed off the side of the set onto Orton below.^[14] The following week onRaw, Hardy and Orton were scheduled to "shake hands", but Hardy instead shook the hands of "people he respected more than Orton", likeLilian Garcia,Jerry Lawler,Jim Ross, and several fans in the crowd before re-entering the ring to confront Orton. A frustrated Orton ordered Hardy to shake hands with him, but Hardy performed a Twist of Fate on the WWE Champion instead.^[15]

The main feud on the SmackDown brand was betweenRey Mysterio andEdge with the two feuding over the latter's World Heavyweight Championship. Mysterio won aBeat the Clock Challenge on the January 4, 2008, episode ofSmackDown! defeating Edge with 90 seconds to go, and securing an opportunity for the World Heavyweight Championship at the Royal Rumble.^[27]

The rivalry betweenChris Jericho and John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) started in Jericho's WWE Championship match against Randy Orton at Armageddon. During the match, Ortonwhipped Jericho over theSmackDown! announce table straight into JBL and when Jericho tried to get up, he "nudged" JBL out of his way. Later in the match, Jericho had Orton trapped in theWalls of Jericho, when JBL stormed into the ring and kicked Jericho in the head, thus giving the win to Jericho via disqualification, and hence, Jericho did not win the WWE Championship.^[28] This led to an argument the next night onRaw, where Jericho ended up stating to JBL, who appeared via satellite from theRaw TitanTron, that he was no longer a "wrestling god", but a "wrestling afterthought".^[26] Afterward, JBL gave his farewell address asSmackDown! color commentator on the December 21, 2007, airing ofSmackDown! and announced his return as an active wrestler onRaw.^[29] JBL made his return toRaw on December 31, entering in his personal limousine with balloons and confetti shooting from the ceiling, and proceeded to address the crowd, Jericho quickly interrupted hispromo and the two brawled until officials separated them.^[16] The following week, Jericho was put into ahandicap match againstSnitsky and JBL, which ended with JBL hitting Jericho in the head with the ring bell, resulting in a disqualification. He then tied a cable wire around Jericho's neck and dragged Jericho, by the wire, from near the ring to theRaw set, where he assaulted him some more.^[19] Jericho suffered from a bruised larynx, burns around his neck, and had difficulty speaking for a week.^[30]

Before the event went live on pay-per-view, Shannon Moore and Jimmy Wang Yang defeatedDeuce 'n Domino in adark match.^[31] The first match that aired was a non-title "Career Threatening" match between theWWE United States ChampionMontel Vontavious Porter (MVP) and Ric Flair, in which had Flair lost, he would have had to retire from wrestling. At the start of the match, Flair started out working on MVP's left arm. Flair attempted to get thefigure-four leglock on MVP, but MVP turned it into asmall package for a two count. MVP executed arunning big boot on Flair in the corner and went for a pin, but Flair managed to get his foot on the rope when the refereeCharles Robinson counted to three. After the three count, the referee did not call for the bell as he had noticed Flair's leg on the bottom-rope and restarted the match. The match ended when MVP attempted aPlaymaker, but Flair countered the attempt into the figure-four leglock, to which MVP eventuallytapped out. Hence, Flair won and kept his career alive.^[32][33]

The second match was between John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) and Chris Jericho. The match began with Jericho trapping Layfield in theWalls of Jericho. JBL got to the ropes, however, and slid out of the ring with Jericho quickly following him. JBL strangled Jericho with the ring ropes and later, plunged him onto the ropes. Jericho recovered andclotheslined JBL out of the ring. When they got in again, JBL threw Jericho into the ring post, as a result of which, Jericho was busted open. JBL tried to take advantage of this situation, but Jericho still fought back. The fight went outside the ring, where JBL began clearing the ECW announce table. Jericho grabbed asteel chair and hit JBL with it. The referee immediately disqualified Jericho, who ignored the fact that he had lost the match and started to strangle JBL with some wires by the ring, in the same process JBL did to Jericho onRaw.^[32][33]

The third match was for the World Heavyweight Championship with champion, Edge taking on Rey Mysterio. During the match,Vickie Guerrero stood up from her wheelchair, attempting to comfort Edge. Mysterio had Edge set up for the619, and Vickie jumped in the way, risking herself. Edge then recovered, andspeared Mysterio in mid-air for the pinfall.^[32]

The fourth match was between the Intercontinental Champion Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton for Orton's WWE Championship. Early in the match, Hardy performed abaseball slide on Orton who hit head-first into the barricade outside due to the impact. Knowing he couldn't win the WWE Championship via a countout victory, Hardy brought the knocked-out Orton into the ring. Later, Orton took advantage in the match, as he applied abody scissors on Hardy, followed by a choke-hold. Some of the other main highlights of the match were Hardy performing aWhisper in the Wind on Orton; and, later executing amoonsault from the top-rope to Orton outside the ring. When Hardy brought Orton back in the ring and tried to deliver aTwist of Fate, Orton suddenly reversed it into anRKO and pinned Hardy to retain his WWE title.^[32][33][34]

The main event was the annual Royal Rumble match for a world championship match at WrestleMania XXIV; for the match, WWE was able to getMichael Buffer as a special guest ring announcer. The match began withThe Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, who were the final two superstars in the previous year's Royal Rumble match. The Undertaker and Michaels would both last over thirty minutes until Michaels eliminated The Undertaker, only to be eliminated himself by Mr. Kennedy.Batista entered at number eight and would last the longest in the match at almost forty minutes. Hall of FamersJimmy Snuka andRoddy Piper were both surprise entrants during the match, but both were eliminated byKane. Hornswoggle, the ninth entrant, stayed hidden under the ring throughout most of the match (emerging once to help eliminateThe Miz, the sixteenth entrant), however he was soon grabbed byMark Henry andBig Daddy V, promptingFinlay to come out early and attack the two with his shillelagh. Finlay was disqualified for failing to wait for his entry number to be called and he left with Hornswoggle, who never returned. Triple H came out at number twenty-nine and scored the most eliminations with six. Afterwards,John Cena entered as the surprise thirtieth entrant, returning from a tornpectoral muscle injury months before his scheduled return. The ring soon cleared out and the final three came down to Batista, Triple H, and Cena. The three would go back and forth trying to eliminate each other until Cena reversed a Batista Bomb attempt which allowed Triple H to eliminate Batista. Triple H and Cena were left as the final two and they traded moves for almost five minutes. The end came when Triple H attempted a Pedigree on Cena, but Cena reversed it and lifted Triple H up for an Attitude Adjustment, which he used to send Triple H over the top rope to eliminate him and win the match, earning the WrestleMania title shot. With this victory, Cena broke the record for spending the least amount of time in the rumble match before winning it, beatingBrock Lesnar's 8:59 time by 31 seconds.^[32][33]

The next night onRaw, John Cena said that he did not want to wait until WrestleMania XXIV to face Randy Orton. The two agreed to face each other atNo Way Out for the WWE Championship.^[35] In the match, Cena won after Orton intentionally got himself disqualified. As a result, Orton retained the title. At No Way Out, Triple H won Raw'sElimination Chamber match by last pinning Jeff Hardy after aPedigree on asteel chair, earning the right to face Randy Orton for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania XXIV.^[36] At WrestleMania XXIV, Randy Orton retained the WWE Championship against Triple H and John Cena in a triple threat match.^[37]

Rey Mysterio received a rematch against Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship at No Way Out. Edge defeated Mysterio, who had suffered a biceps injury prior to the match. The Undertaker also won SmackDown's Elimination Chamber by pinning Batista last after aTombstone piledriver and earned the right to face Edge at WrestleMania XXIV.^[36] The Undertaker won the World Heavyweight title from Edge at WrestleMania XXIV via Submission using the Hell's Gate.^[37]

The Ric Flair retirement storyline continued as Flair defeated Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) that same week onSmackDown in a rematch, which he won by disqualification.^[38] He then faced Mr. Kennedy at No Way Out, defeating Kennedy to further extend his wrestling career.^[36] At WrestleMania XXIV, Flair lost to Shawn Michaels, ending Flair's career.^[37]

During the2008 WWE Draft, the WWE Championship and World Heavyweight Championship switched brands.^[39]

  –Raw

  –SmackDown

  –ECW

  –Hall of Famer (HOF)

  – Winner

^ Hornswoggle spent most of the match under the ring before being forced into the ring by Mark Henry, who would then team up with Big Daddy V to assault him. Finlay, who was supposed to be the next scheduled entrant, came out early and attacked them both with his shillelagh and was immediately disqualified. He left the ring with Hornswoggle, who left through the ropes and never returned.

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