Royal Rumble

Card Information:
 Held in: BIRMINGHAM-JEFFERSON CIVIC CENTER
Location: ALABAMA, UNITED STATES
          on January 2004 at 7:30pm

Brian Kendrick pinned Jamie Noble after a rollover in 0:05:36.
Rating: ** 3/4
(Brian Kendrick retained the WWE Cruiserweight Championship.)
Click here to see highlights.

Kendrick initially won the match in a few seconds, but Noble demanded that the
match be restarted.  It was, and then Kendrick picked up another win.


Interview:
Austin confronts Hart...
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a.P.a. defeated Eddie Guerrero and Lance Storm when Bradshaw pinned E. Guerrero
 with the Clothesline From Hell in 0:05:06.
Rating: ** 1/4
(a.P.a. retained the WWE Tag Team Championship.)
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A surprisingly good match, considering the presence of the a.P.a. in it.  The
champs retain the gold, thus making it 2-0 for champions tonight.


X-Pac pinned Ken Shamrock after a triangle choke in 0:04:43.
Rating: ** 3/4
(X-Pac retained the WWE Intercontinental Championship.)
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In a shocking turn of events, Ken Shamrock got himself pinned while holding
X-Pac in a triangle choke.  Obviously upset by this, Shamrock proceeded to
attack the referee afterwards, and then yell that it wasn't over between him
and Pac.


Interview:
The challenger speaks...
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Scott Hall pinned Hulk Hogan with the Outsider Edge in 0:18:34.
Rating: ** 1/2
(Scott Hall won the WWE Championship.)
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Scott Hall managed to make the third time the charm, and he has become the new
WWE Champion, at the expense of Hulk Hogan.


[The Royal Rumble]: 30-Man Battle Royal:
The Ultimate Warrior won a 30-man Royal Rumble:
         x Kane and Flair started out.
         x Kane threw out Flair after a clothesline in 0:00:19
         x Rhyno entered at 0:02:00
         x The Undertaker entered at 0:04:00
         x Kane threw out Undertaker after the Choke Slam in 0:04:46
         x Rhyno threw out Kane in 0:04:57
         x Edge entered at 0:06:00
         x Edge threw out Rhyno in 0:06:34
         x Scott Steiner entered at 0:08:00
         x Edge threw out S. Steiner after a waistlock takedown in 0:08:18
         x Rob Van Dam entered at 0:10:00
         x Edge threw out RVD in 0:10:27
         x Masahiro Chono entered at 0:12:00
         x Jeff Jarrett entered at 0:14:00
         x Edge threw out Chono in 0:14:52
         x Tazz entered at 0:16:00
         x Jarrett threw out Tazz after a flying dropkick in 0:17:02
         x Triple H entered at 0:18:00
         x Randy Savage entered at 0:20:00
         x The Ultimate Warrior entered at 0:22:00
         x Kevin Nash entered at 0:24:00
         x The Rock entered at 0:26:00
         x Steve Austin entered at 0:28:00
         x Chris Benoit entered at 0:30:00
         x Jarrett threw out S. Austin after an inverted atomic drop in 0:30:19
         x Bubba Ray Dudley entered at 0:32:00
         x Bret Hart entered at 0:34:00
         x U. Warrior threw out Jarrett in 0:35:26
         x Sting entered at 0:36:00
         x The Big Show entered at 0:38:00
         x Chris Jericho entered at 0:40:00
         x Kurt Angle entered at 0:42:00
         x Brock Lesnar entered at 0:44:00
         x Nash threw out Benoit after a gutwrench suplex in 0:44:29
         x William Regal entered at 0:46:00
         x Ted DiBiase entered at 0:48:00
         x Bubba threw out Regal in 0:48:02
         x John Cena entered at 0:50:00
         x Mankind entered at 0:52:00
         x Bubba threw out HHH in 0:53:21
         x Booker T entered at 0:54:00
         x Shawn Michaels entered at 0:56:00
         x Cena threw out Y2J in 0:56:41
         x Angle threw out Rock in 1:02:10
         x B. Hart threw out Big Show after a sleeperhold in 1:03:56
         x Sting threw out Savage in 1:06:38
         x Angle threw out Sting in 1:06:43
         x U. Warrior threw out Michaels in 1:09:26
         x U. Warrior threw out Edge after a bodyslam in 1:09:42
         x Lesnar threw out Nash in 1:11:53
         x Bubba threw out Cena in 1:20:02
         x DiBiase threw out Lesnar after a backbreaker in 1:23:47
         x DiBiase threw out Bubba in 1:24:16
         x Mankind threw out DiBiase after a DDT in 1:25:14
         x Mankind threw out Angle after an armdrag takedown in 1:34:14
         x U. Warrior threw out B. Hart in 1:35:29
         x U. Warrior threw out Mankind in 1:35:58
         x U. Warrior threw out Booker T after a roundhouse right in 1:36:35
Rating: ** 1/2
Click here to see highlights.

In an amazing finish, the Ultimate Warrior won the Royal Rumble.  He is now
set to face Scott Hall at Wrestlemania.



Card rating: ** 1/2


Match observations: 

A rather interesting night of action, which saw Scott Hall crowned as the 
new WWE Champion, and the Ultimate Warrior win the Royal Rumble.

X-Pac and Ken Shamrock's feud is far from over, after a controversial finish
in their match.  Shamrock wants X-Pac as soon as possible, in order to make
up for his loss tonight.

Several new and old rivalries will be brewing following the Rumble.  Stone Cold
Steve Austin, who wanted to win so badly, ended up being eliminated by Jeff
Jarrett, the man who pinned him just a few days before.  Kurt Angle, meantime,
stole Mankind's mask and ran off with it, thus eliminating himself from the
Rumble.

Much more will develop following tonight, and surely a lot of it will be 
addressed on the next Raw!

Next Show: Raw