Royal Rumble
Promotional poster featuring various WWE wrestlers
Promotion	World Wrestling Entertainment
Brand(s)	Raw SmackDown ECW
Date	January 31, 2010
City	Atlanta,Georgia
Venue	Philips Arena
Attendance	16,697[1]
Buy rate	462,000
Tagline	I Am The One
Pay-per-view chronology
← Previous TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs Next → Elimination Chamber
Royal Rumble chronology
← Previous 2009 Next → 2011

The 2010Royal Rumble was aprofessional wrestlingpay-per-view (PPV)event produced byWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was the 23rd annualRoyal Rumble and took place on January 31, 2010, at thePhilips Arena inAtlanta,Georgia, held for wrestlers from the promotion'sRaw,SmackDown, andECWbrand divisions. As has been customary since 1993, theRoyal Rumble match winner received a world championship match at that year'sWrestleMania. For the 2010 event, the winner received their choice to challenge for either Raw'sWWE Championship, SmackDown'sWorld Heavyweight Championship, or theECW Championship atWrestleMania XXVI—this was the last Royal Rumble in which the ECW Championship was an option as the ECW brand was disbanded in February, also deactivating the title, thus also being WWE's last PPV to include the ECW brand.

Sixprofessional wrestling matches were featured on the event'ssupercard, a scheduling of more than onemain event. The main event was the 2010 Royal Rumble match, which featured wrestlers from all three brands. SmackDown'sEdge, the twenty-ninth entrant, won the match by last eliminating Raw'sJohn Cena, the nineteenth entrant. The primary match on the Raw brand was for the WWE Championship between reigning championSheamus andRandy Orton, which Sheamus won bydisqualification. The primary match on the SmackDown brand was betweenThe Undertaker andRey Mysterio for theWorld Heavyweight Championship, which The Undertaker won to retain the championship. The featured match on the ECW brand was betweenChristian andEzekiel Jackson for the ECW Championship, which Christian won to retain.

TheRoyal Rumble is an annualprofessional wrestlingpay-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".^[2] Theconcept of the event is based on 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 2010 event was the 23rd Royal Rumble and was scheduled to be held on January 31, 2010, at thePhilips Arena inAtlanta,Georgia. It featured wrestlers from theRaw,SmackDown, andECWbrand divisions.^[3]

The Royal Rumble match generally features 30 wrestlers. Traditionally, the winner of the match earns aworld championship match at that year's WrestleMania.^[4][5] For 2010, the winner could choose to challenge for either Raw'sWWE Championship, SmackDown'sWorld Heavyweight Championship, or theECW Championship atWrestleMania XXVI.^[3]

The event included matches 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 weekly television shows,Raw,SmackDown, andECW.^[6][7][8]

On the December 15, 2009, episode ofECW,general managerTiffany announced that the ECW brand would host a competition called the "ECW Homecoming", where the winner would faceChristian for the ECW Championship at the Royal Rumble. Featuring current and former wrestlers from the ECW brand, the first round of the competition consisted of eight singles matches. The winners would then qualify to the "Homecoming Finale" on the January 12, 2010, episode, where they would fight in an eight-manbattle royal that will determine the competition winner. The first two qualifying matches were featured later that night withEzekiel Jackson defeatingVladimir Kozlov andKane defeatingZack Ryder.^[9] The following week,Jack Swagger returned in a losing effort toYoshi Tatsu, whileVance Archer advanced with a victory overGoldust.^[10] On the December 29 episode,Matt Hardy andEvan Bourne defeatedFinlay andMike Knox, respectively, to qualify.^[11] The two remaining qualifying matches were held on the January 5, 2010, episode of and sawShelton Benjamin defeatingChavo Guerrero Jr. andCM Punk defeatingMark Henry to qualify.^[12] On the January 12 episode, Jackson won the "Homecoming Finale", last eliminating Kane, to earn the right to face Christian at the Royal Rumble.^[13]

On the January 4 episode ofRaw, a fatal four-way match was held to determine the number one contender forWWE United States Championship featuringMontel Vontavious Porter (MVP), Mark Henry,Carlito, and Jack Swagger. MVP emerged victorious by pinning Swagger and earned a match againstThe Miz for the championship.^[14]

It was announced on December 31, 2009, on the company's official website thatThe Undertaker would be defending the World Heavyweight Championship at the Royal Rumble; the means of determining the challenger was stated to be via the "Beat the Clock Sprint", a series of matches that sees whoever wins their match in the fastest time would be declared the number-one contender. The sprint, held on the January 1, 2010, episode ofSmackDown, consisted of four matches involving CM Punk, Kane,Chris Jericho,Rey Mysterio,Dolph Ziggler,R-Truth, Matt Hardy, andBatista. The wrestler who won his match in the quickest time would earn the championship match. Punk defeated Hardy in his match, setting the time at 7:20. The next match featured Kane and Ziggler; both failed to beat the time limit and the match ended in a draw. Mysterio defeated his former rival Jericho one second faster than Punk's time, with 7:19. The final match was Batista versus R-Truth; the match resulted in another time-limit draw, due in part to interference from Mysterio. Despite Mysterio's fastest time, on-screen consultantVickie Guerrero overruled the result, announcing a match the following week between Mysterio and Batista, who had disputably won his match.^[15] The match between the two on the January 8 episode ofSmackDown was declared a no contest following both men being incapacitated.^[16] A rematch between the two was held the following week, this time as aSteel Cage match. Mysterio won the match, earning the right to face The Undertaker at the Royal Rumble.^[17]

The main event forRaw was determined on the January 11 episode withguest hostMike Tyson announcing the winner of atriple threat match later that night betweenJohn Cena,Kofi Kingston, andRandy Orton would advance to faceSheamus at the Royal Rumble for the WWE Championship. Orton ultimately won with the help of Legacy, who took out Cena and Kingston for him.^[18]

Since November of the previous year,WWE Women's ChampionMichelle McCool had been relentlessly insultingMickie James over a perceived weight issue.^[19] The two had a match atTLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, which saw McCool win, continuing the torment.^[20] James confronted McCool on the January 15 episode ofSmackDown during a mockingmonologue about James, leading to the champion assaulting her. It was also confirmed that day that McCool would defend her title again at the Royal Rumble against James.^[17]

Before the event aired live on pay-per-view, adark match took place in whichGail Kim,Kelly Kelly,Eve Torres, andThe Bella Twins (Nikki Bella andBrie Bella) defeatedMaryse,Katie Lea Burchill,Jillian Hall,Alicia Fox, andNatalya in a10-Diva tag team match.^[21]

The event opened with Christian defending the ECW Championship against Ezekiel Jackson (accompanied byWilliam Regal). Regal attempted to interfere but the referee noticed, ejecting Regal from ringside. Christian executed theKillswitch on Jackson to retain the title.^[22]

Next, The Miz defended the WWE United States Championship against Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP), a match thatTheodore Long booked in a backstage segment. After MVP chased Miz into the ring, Miz pinned him with asmall package to retain the title.^[22]

After that, Sheamus defended the WWE Championship against Randy Orton. Sheamus dominated most of the match, targeting Orton's left arm. Sheamus attemptedPale Justice on Orton but Orton countered the move with aRope Hung DDT. Orton pinned Sheamus but Sheamus touched the bottom rope, voiding the pinfall. Orton attempted apunt on Sheamus but Sheamus countered and targeted Orton's left arm.Cody Rhodes interfered and attacked Sheamus, meaning Sheamus retained the title by disqualification. After the match, Orton confronted and attacked Rhodes.Ted DiBiase came out but was also attacked by Orton. Sheamus attacked Orton with aBrogue Kick and celebrated his victory.^[22]

Next, Michelle McCool defended the WWE Women's Championship against Mickie James. McCool was accompanied byLayla. Before the match began, McCool taunted James by calling her "Piggy James" and Layla wore a fat suit to mock James. As the match started, "Piggy James" Layla tried to attack the genuine James but McCool accidentally executed aBig Boot on Layla. James took advantage and executed aMickie DDT to win the title.^[22]

In the penultimate match, The Undertaker defended the World Heavyweight Championship against Rey Mysterio. After countering a Last Ride, Mysterio executed two 619s on Undertaker. Mysterio attempted a West Coast Pop but Undertaker caught Mysterio and executed a Last Ride to retain the title.^[22]

Themain event was the Royal Rumble match for a world championship match at WrestleMania XXVI.Dolph Ziggler (#1) andEvan Bourne (#2) were quickly eliminated by CM Punk (#3). After eliminating both men, Punk begantalking on the microphone, boasting of his intention to win, carrying this on for all of his time in the match. Punk quickly eliminatedJTG (#4), before being stopped byThe Great Khali (#5).Beth Phoenix then entered at #6, becoming only the second female to participate in an all-male Royal Rumble, afterChyna did so in1999. Phoenix eliminated Khali by pulling him over the top rope while kissing him but was eliminated by Punk immediately afterwards.Triple H entered at #8 and eliminated Punk. Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) (#14) was attacked by The Miz during his ring entrance and taken backstage by medical personnel without entering the match. Miz then entered at #16 but MVP returned to the match and eliminated both himself and Miz. The other half ofD-Generation X,Shawn Michaels, entered at #18 and he and Triple H eliminated all the other competitors in the match, leaving themselves. Michaels and Triple H were immediately joined by John Cena (#19). After double-teaming Cena, Michaels performed aSweet Chin Music on Triple H to eliminate him. A notable moment in the match came when R-Truth (#25) eliminatedBig Show (#22) and Mark Henry (#23) at the same time. Chris Jericho entered the ring at #28 and was soon joined by entrant #29,Edge, who was making his return following a six-month hiatus due to injury. Edge performedspears on Jericho, Michaels, and Cena before eliminating Jericho. Dave Batista entered at #30 as the final entrant. This brought the final four down to Michaels, Cena, Edge, and Batista. After all four competitors traded moves on each other, Batista eliminated Michaels, who tried to rejoin the match but was stopped, resulting in him superkicking a referee before walking to the back frustrated.^[22]

After a quick back and forth, Cena eliminated Batista, bringing the final two down to himself and Edge. Cena countered a spear attempt from Edge and went to eliminate him, but Edge instead eliminated Cena to win the match. In doing so, Edge would gain the new record of spending the least amount of time in the rumble match before winning it. He was in the match for 7 minutes and 37 seconds, besting the previous record set by Cena by 51 seconds (Cena's record had been set two years earlier after also returning from injury in the Rumble match as a late entry - in Cena's case, #30).^[22] This record lasted for 12 years until it was broken byBrock Lesnar in2022.^[23]

The Royal Rumble received generally positive reviews from critics. The event earned 462,000 pay-per-view buys, an increase of 12,000 on the2009 Royal Rumble.^[24]

After failing to win the Royal Rumble match and losing anElimination Chamber qualifying match to Randy Orton,^[25] Shawn Michaels cost The Undertaker the World Heavyweight Championship against Chris Jericho in the SmackDown Elimination Chamber match atElimination Chamber.^[26] As a result, Michaels challenged Undertaker to a rematch of theirWrestleMania XXV match atWrestleMania XXVI. Undertaker agreed on the term that if Michaels lost, he wouldretire from professional wrestling.^[27] A stipulation was added that the match would be contested underno disqualifications andno countouts.^[28] At WrestleMania, Undertaker defeated Michaels to extend his WrestleMania winning streak to 18–0 and Michaels was forced to retire.^[29]

As a result of winning the 2010 Royal Rumble match, Edge earned the opportunity to wrestle for a world championship of his choosing at WrestleMania XXVI. After Chris Jericho won the World Heavyweight Championship from The Undertaker in an Elimination Chamber match at Elimination Chamber,^[26] Edge announced that he would wrestle Jericho, whom Edge had shared the WWE Undisputed Tag Team Championships with at the time of his injury, for the title.^[27] At WrestleMania, Jericho defeated Edge to retain the title. After the match, Edge would be frustrated, spearing Chris Jericho through the barricade in the process at ringside.^[29] The rivalry ended after Edge defeated Jericho in a Steel Cage match atExtreme Rules.^[30]

John Cena eliminated Batista from the Royal Rumble match, which started a conflict between Batista and Cena. On the February 1 episode ofRaw, Cena rescuedBret Hart from an assault by Batista andVince McMahon.^[25] After the show ended, Cena tried to help Hart but was attacked by Batista.^[31] At Elimination Chamber, Cena won the WWE Championship from Sheamus in an Elimination Chamber match. After the match, McMahon ordered Cena to defend the title against Batista. Batista defeated Cena to win the WWE Championship.^[26] At WrestleMania XXVI, Cena defeated Batista to regain the WWE Championship.^[29] Cena would retain the title against Batista in aLast Man Standing match at Extreme Rules^[30] and in an"I Quit" match atOver the Limit,^[32] which forced Batista to quit WWE.^[33]

After the Royal Rumble, Christian and Ezekiel Jackson continued to feud over the ECW Championship. On February 2, however, WWE ChairmanVince McMahon announced thatECW would be going off the air and would air its final episode on February 16.^[34] On the final episode ofECW, Jackson, with the help ofWilliam Regal, defeated Christian in anExtreme Rules match to become thefinal ECW Champion. Afterwards, the ECW brand was discontinued, subsequently retiring the championship.^[35] This would in turn be the last Royal Rumble in which three titles were an option for the Royal Rumble winner (with the one-time exception of2020).^[36][37]

  –Raw

  –SmackDown

  –ECW

  – Winner

• ¹ – MVP was attacked by The Miz during his entrance, but later entered the match shortly after Miz's entry and eliminated both himself and Miz from the match.

The ECW Homecoming Tournament was a tournament held to determineChristian's challenger for theECW Championship at theRoyal Rumble on January 31, 2010.

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