Alberto Del Rio: Most Surprising Winner of the Rumble Ever?

[klunderbunker]

I got to thinking about this earlier. Alberto Del Rio may be the biggest underdog to win the Rumble of all time. Let's take a look back beginning with last year and go through them one by one.

Keep in mind that I'm talking about when this person won the Rumble, so don't take into account what they've done after their win. Also note that when I say not a shocking win at all, I don't mean it wasn't a shocking return. I mean that this person is on the level of someone you would expect to win the Royal Rumble.

2010 - Edge. Multiple time world champion already, not a shocking win at all.

2009 - Randy Orton. Multiple time world champion already, not a shocking win at all.

2008 - John Cena. Multiple time world champion already, not a shocking win at all.

2007 - Undertaker. Multiple time world champion already, not a shocking win at all.

2006 - Rey Mysterio. This is a close one but he had been getting pushes in bigger and bigger storylines and combining that with Eddie's death and his incredibly popularity among kids, this wasn't a huge shock. Also he had been steadily pushed for almost four years at this point.

2005 - Batista. Again this is a possibility but Batista had been pushed to the moon coming into this, knocking people out left and right and had been a tag champion with Flair beforehand. When his music hit, you knew it would be him or Cena winning.

2004 - Chris Benoit. Not a shock. After his epic with Angle the previous Rumble and the fans getting behind him for a year, his win was inevitable despite what HHH would have preferred.

2003 - Brock Lesnar. Not a shock as he was a former world champion and had the biggest rookie year ever that wasn't over yet.

2002 - HHH. Multiple time world champion already, not a shocking win at all.

2001 - Steve Austin. Multiple time world champion already, not a shocking win at all.

2000 - The Rock. Multiple time world champion already, not a shocking win at all.

1999 - Vince McMahon. Ok maybe this one, but at the beginning of the Rumble it was clear it would be him or Austin. This is one I'd consider maybe being more shocking.

1998 - Steve Austin. It wasn't about would he win but how would he win.

1997 - Steve Austin. Indeed surprising but he had been in a huge feud with Bret already and was an underdog, although not a huge one. Again I'd say maybe on this one.

1996 - Shawn Michaels. It wasn't about would he win but how would he win.

1995 - Shawn Michaels. Already a multiple time IC Champion and a rapidly rising star.

1994 - Bret Hart. Multiple time world champion already, not a shocking win at all.

1994 - Lex Luger. Since the idea was he couldn't get another title shot unless he won the Rumble and he had already had a huge feud for the world title, not a shocking win at all.

1993 - Yokozuna. He was the favorite the whole time.

1992 - Ric Flair. Multiple time world champion already, not a shocking win at all. Even though it was in WCW, everyone knew he was one of two people with a chance to win.

1991 - Hulk Hogan. Oh please.

1990 - Hulk Hogan. Oh please.

1989 - Big John Studd. Kind of a surprise but Studd had been a main event level heel for awhile in the 80s and certainly had a reputation as a big name. Again I'd consider this a possiblity for more shocking though.

1988 - Jim Duggan. Surprise to be sure but you could argue he was the third biggest face in the company when he won and Hogan wasn't in the match. Not shocking considering the lineup in the match.

All in all, there are three possible shockers that were more surprising but for the most part Alberto's win could be considered the most surprising in Rumble history. I mean think about it. Del Rio had been around just over 5 months when he won the Rumble. His in ring debut was August 20, 2010 and he won the match on January 30, 2011. That's 5 months and ten days as an in ring competitor and he won the Royal Rumble.

The main person I could see being a bigger shock was Vince, but Vince was the top heel in the company when he won and if you watch that show and the buildup to it, he's one of two possible winners along with Austin. At the very least, Alberto is the biggest surprise since Vince. Mysterio was a well established name with a history of facing big name people. Del Rio more or less came out of nowhere (remember how much we bashed his vignettes?) and is now on his way to Wrestlemania.

Anyone think I'm crazy?

 

[Alastor]

Judging by history and accomplishments yes, he was one of the most shocking winner. He has not won any gold in the WWE before winning the rumble. However the whole Royal Rumble build up was centered on him appearing on Raw and Smackdown frequently to boast about his destiny to win so it was not as big a surprise as it could have been.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

Not as big as Rey Mysterio winning the Rumble. Del Rio's win was more RANDOM than surprising. Mysterio didn't strike me as the kind of wrestler to main event Wrestlemania. Del Rio seems like someone who would fit in very well... and in short order. Del Rio's accomplished very little in-ring wise... which makes it kinda shocking... but he has the LOOK of someone who could main event a Wrestlemania.

Mysterio simply came out of nowhere in my eyes. Even though Eddie had died the year before... it was still shocking that Mysterio would actually win the Royal Rumble. He could have gotten there by winning a number one contender's match on Smackdown if needed, but to have him win the Royal Rumble was flat out shocking. And remains the most surprising Rumble win ever in my eyes.

 

[klunderbunker]

Judging by history and accomplishments yes, he was one of the most shocking winner. He has not won any gold in the WWE before winning the rumble. However the whole Royal Rumble build up was centered on him appearing on Raw and Smackdown frequently to boast about his destiny to win so it was not as big a surprise as it could have been.

Yeah but at the same time, how many people actually believed he had a chance? Everyone was talking about Morrison, Punk or Cena for the most part. In IC's handicapping of the match he had Alberto as a favorite but said he didn't think he'd take it. Alberto has practically no track record coming into the Rumble. He beat Rey once and then lost to him over and over again. He injured Christian but never beat him. Alberto was more or less a guy that snuck in and won the Rumble. That doesn't happen often at all.

 

[CleverName51]

No, I completely agree with you. Leading up to the rumble the people who I had thought would be the best to win this the 2011 Royal Rumble were:

1. John Cena: You can't see him NOT in the main event at 'Mania

2. HHH: He knows how to play the game, and is that damn good (also would fit in with the recent theme of injured superstars returning to win the Rumble match)

3. Sting: Had he signed, showed up and won...I could have bought that.

4. Christian: sentimental favourite of the IWC and a guy who's done a lot even if his TNA stint means he is in VKM's dog house

5. John Morrison: the IWC's man crush and his Spider-Man like moves always entertain.



I had to think long and hard about the 2004 Rumble...I was 15 when it happened and I thought Goldberg was gonna win and challenge Lesnar for the title at Mania 20...little did I realize (was not into reading dirt sheets/spoilers and all then) that they were on their way out. Because of that; Chris Benoit winning the 2004 Royal Rumble surprised me.

 

[klunderbunker]

Not as big as Rey Mysterio winning the Rumble. Del Rio's win was more RANDOM than surprising. Mysterio didn't strike me as the kind of wrestler to main event Wrestlemania. Del Rio seems like someone who would fit in very well... and in short order. Del Rio's accomplished very little in-ring wise... which makes it kinda shocking... but he has the LOOK of someone who could main event a Wrestlemania.

Mysterio simply came out of nowhere in my eyes. Even though Eddie had died the year before... it was still shocking that Mysterio would actually win the Royal Rumble. He could have gotten there by winning a number one contender's match on Smackdown if needed, but to have him win the Royal Rumble was flat out shocking. And remains the most surprising Rumble win ever in my eyes.

I'm not sure about that. Rey at least had won titles and had had some big matches in WWE. It was definitely shocking but at the same time, Mysterio had a reason to actually win it. Also he had actually accomplished something before. Del Rio had more or less nothing on his resume when he won the match and with less than six months in the company, that's saying a lot.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

I'm not sure about that. Rey at least had won titles and had had some big matches in WWE. It was definitely shocking but at the same time, Mysterio had a reason to actually win it. Also he had actually accomplished something before. Del Rio had more or less nothing on his resume when he won the match and with less than six months in the company, that's saying a lot.

Del Rio did, too. It was his DESTINY! But seriously, Mysterio winning the Rumble is still more shocking because it was set up for him to come up short...and have to find another way to get to Wrestlemania. Mysterio had been pushed like crazy and had a great story, but it was very unexpected for Mysterio, as short as he was, to win the Rumble. Del Rio's was unexpected, but he was actually one of my three picks to win it besides Cena and Orton. He was really the most logical choice for Smackdown's title shot due to him never actually having a shot at a major title up to that point... and what better way to get that shot than by winning the Rumble.

When Mysterio won the Rumble, my first reaction was, "WHAT?! He WON THE RUMBLE?!" When Del Rio won... my first reaction was, "That makes a LOT of sense."

 

[klunderbunker]

Del Rio did, too. It was his DESTINY! But seriously, Mysterio winning the Rumble is still more shocking because it was set up for him to come up short...and have to find another way to get to Wrestlemania. Mysterio had been pushed like crazy and had a great story, but it was very unexpected for Mysterio, as short as he was, to win the Rumble. Del Rio's was unexpected, but he was actually one of my three picks to win it besides Cena and Orton. He was really the most logical choice for Smackdown's title shot due to him never actually having a shot at a major title up to that point... and what better way to get that shot than by winning the Rumble.

When Mysterio won the Rumble, my first reaction was, "WHAT?! He WON THE RUMBLE?!" When Del Rio won... my first reaction was, "That makes a LOT of sense."

Making sense and actually doing it are two different things. Rey made sense at the time but if he hadn't won it would have been no shock. Del Rio made perfect sense, but how many times coming up to it did you think to yourself he's really going to win it? Rey is a big shock, but Del Rio goes from nothing to the main event of Wrestlemania in less time than Brock Lesnar did.

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

Surprising? No, not really. When someone like that talks so often about winning the Rumble, there's usually some fire near that smoke. I wasn't convinced he would win, or anything like that, but it wasn't surprising.

Biggest underdog winner? Yeah, I think so. While his star is rising, big time, he wasn't anywhere near a lock to win this thing. I had my money on Cena, but if I had to pick someone else, it was Del Rio. WWE seems to think very highly of this guy, even if I don't, and they haven't made a big secret out of that. When Orton entered, I thought he might take it home. But it was still between him, Cena and Del Rio.

When I think of "surprise," I think of someone I had no clue would even be in the thing (Cena is 2008), or someone who hadn't been booked as though he had a shot (Mysterio in 2006). The signs were there for Del Rio, but he was still an underdog.

 

[Alastor]

Yeah but at the same time, how many people actually believed he had a chance? Everyone was talking about Morrison, Punk or Cena for the most part. In IC's handicapping of the match he had Alberto as a favorite but said he didn't think he'd take it. Alberto has practically no track record coming into the Rumble. He beat Rey once and then lost to him over and over again. He injured Christian but never beat him. Alberto was more or less a guy that snuck in and won the Rumble. That doesn't happen often at all.

He was practically everyone's backup pick for the win because of how much attention the WWE machine was placing on him. I understand he wasn't the favourite with the majority but to say nobody expect a victory out of him would be far from the truth. I would not equate him winning to sneaking in and winning it. That would be similar to Swagger winning the MiTB last year. Now if Kane won the Rumble with little build up he had, I would say he is a more surprising winner.

 

[klunderbunker]

He was practically everyone's backup pick for the win because of how much attention the WWE machine was placing on him. I understand he wasn't the favourite with the majority but to say nobody expect a victory out of him would be far from the truth. I would not equate him winning to sneaking in and winning it. That would be similar to Swagger winning the MiTB last year. Now if Kane won the Rumble with little build up he had, I would say he is a more surprising winner.

Hmm good thing Kane didn't win isn't it then? Try to stick to the point.

Yes, some people thought he could win, but how many people thought he would? Cena, Punk and Morrison got all the hype and all the buildup while you had this guy that's been there for a cup of coffee and is talking about destiny and then he does it? There's a BIG difference between someone like Orton talking about his destiny and a guy like Del Rio doing it.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

Making sense and actually doing it are two different things. Rey made sense at the time but if he hadn't won it would have been no shock. Del Rio made perfect sense, but how many times coming up to it did you think to yourself he's really going to win it? Rey is a big shock, but Del Rio goes from nothing to the main event of Wrestlemania in less time than Brock Lesnar did.

I actually thought that if a Smackdown superstar was going to win the thing, it would be Del Rio. Of course, I didn't expect him to win it... Cena or Orton was my choice. And I see your point... Del Rio hasn't had a real huge build toward anything... other than being rich and hurting people... so I can see where this is surprising, but to me, Rey Mysterio winning was MUCH more surprising.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

Since he was one of my top 5 candidates to win the Rumble, it didn't come up a a major surprise but rather a possible longshot. 2008 Rumble where Cena made a shocking return is still the most legitimate shocker since Cena was expected to be out until after WM.

 

[BASSER911414]

why do ppl hate on rey mysterio so much ???!!!!!!

hes a really good in ring performer, loyal to the company, has an amazing track record, and literally has put mexico and cruiserweights on the map of the wrestling world. ok maybe his winning the rumble was surprising but not shocking. del rios winning was shocking. no title, no name as of such, really good in ring performer but has beaten no top dogs as of yet except mysterio.

i like del rios gimmick, but tht stupid ass grin on his face all the time really irritates me. and hes an excellent wrestler. the best thng i like abt del rio is the fact tht hes promoting the armbar/armbreaker which is one of the most underrated yet one of the most effective moves in wrestling.

this years rumble should have gone to cm punk and orton should have won the chamber for the title. and the miz vs cena without titles grudge match. thts something i would have wanted to see

del rio could have won the next years rumble

 

[Alastor]

Hmm good thing Kane didn't win isn't it then? Try to stick to the point.

Yes, some people thought he could win, but how many people thought he would? Cena, Punk and Morrison got all the hype and all the buildup while you had this guy that's been there for a cup of coffee and is talking about destiny and then he does it? There's a BIG difference between someone like Orton talking about his destiny and a guy like Del Rio doing it.

My point was his win was not something out of nowhere. There was a decent build up. Swagger did not for his victory last year. It was a WTF he won? Del Rio had long promos on both Raw and Smackdown and anyone could see he was a reasonable pick to win. My personal pick to win was Cena, setting up a Cena/Orton match but if I had to pick a Smackdown guy to win it was Del Rio.

The fact that many didn't pick Del Rio over the popular choices is simple, he is still new to them. Marks will hype up their favourite's chances and Del Rio and the other favourites has some of biggest fanbases in the WWE.

 

[klunderbunker]

My point was his win was not something out of nowhere. There was a decent build up. Swagger did not for his victory last year. It was a WTF he won? Del Rio had long promos on both Raw and Smackdown and anyone could see he was a reasonable pick to win. My personal pick to win was Cena, setting up a Cena/Orton match but if I had to pick a Smackdown guy to win it was Del Rio.

The fact that many didn't pick Del Rio over the popular choices is simple, he is still new to them. Marks will hype up their favourite's chances and Del Rio and the other favourites has some of biggest fanbases in the WWE.

Which is the point. He's been here for a cup of coffee, he's won nothing, he came out of nowhere, his vignettes were booed off the planet and now he's the top heel wrestler on SD and is fighting for the title at Mania. That is out of nowhere and shocking.

 

[Alastor]

Which is the point. He's been here for a cup of coffee, he's won nothing, he came out of nowhere, his vignettes were booed off the planet and now he's the top heel wrestler on SD and is fighting for the title at Mania. That is out of nowhere and shocking.

I did say in my first post that in terms of accomplishment, his win was out of nowhere and a major surprise. He won nothing, not even a tag team title, the third tier title in the WWE. But to say his win was the most surprising is not 100% correct as he was built up to win it for a long time. Being the 2nd or 3rd pick by most means he was not that big a surprise winner.

 

[klunderbunker]

I did say in my first post that in terms of accomplishment, his win was out of nowhere and a major surprise. He won nothing, not even a tag team title, the third tier title in the WWE. But to say his win was the most surprising is not 100% correct as he was built up to win it for a long time. Being the 2nd or 3rd pick by most means he was not that big a surprise winner.

Well most people aren't incredibly bright. WHile he may have been the third (it's really 4th) biggesst favorite, he was far away from the leaders. I can't think of anyone that had him ahead of Cena, Punk or Morrison or even in the same discussion with them. Del Rio was the guy that ran around talking about it but showed no real chance of doing it other than maybe a prayer. Then he wins it and it wasn't expected.

 

[Zangash]

In the back of my mind I thought he would win, but the logical thinking part of my brain turned it into a silly fantasy that wouldn't actually happen. Needless to say, I was surprised when he won, but it was still kinda what I was expecting, so it didn't cause any real shock...

I think Mysterio was the most shocking still, though. I saw the beginning of the match, saw Hunter and Mysterio in there, and then my stream got shut down. I read the results later and and seriously could not believe Mysterio had actually won.

 

[shadowmaster9000]

I didn't really think that it was shocking at all. With all the exposure that he was getting before Royal Rumble, it actually kind of made sense for him to win. If you ask me, it was pretty predictable. It would have been more shocking to see Morrison win than Del Rio.

 

[Richard]

I actually thought that if a Smackdown superstar was going to win the thing, it would be Del Rio. Of course, I didn't expect him to win it... Cena or Orton was my choice. And I see your point... Del Rio hasn't had a real huge build toward anything... other than being rich and hurting people... so I can see where this is surprising, but to me, Rey Mysterio winning was MUCH more surprising.

Really?

When Rey came out in the Eddie shirt and I'm pretty sure he came out in a low rider, that wasn't a big enough indication he was getting the nod for Mania?

Anyway, on topic with Alberto Del Rio, I wouldn't say that he was the most Suprising. I would say it would be suprising if he wasn't coming out every week saying it was his destiny to win the rumble, go to mania blah blah. He was one of my outside chance picks with Morrison and Punk with Cena, Orton or a returning Trips as my favourites. They placed a lot of emphasis on Del Rio, I think they placed too much during the lead up to be honest as I think it took a little bit of shock away from the actual moment as people were getting used to the idea of him winning the Rumble. The ending with Santino was anti climatic too, it should have been a bigger Superstar I think.

When he won, I didn't really mark out from shock or anything, I just thought "No way, he was right".

 

[WunNightStan619]

I wasnt that shocked at all by Del Rios win..i mean if u think back, why else was he appearing on both raw and smackdown, claiming that it was his destiny to win the rumble? makes sense to me

 

[Richard]

Although on the other hand, just because there was a lot of emphasis, doesn't necessarily mean they will be picking up the Royal Rumble.

I remember before the 2008 Rumble where Cena won, there was emphasis on Triple H not being able to get into that Royal Rumble and him having to go through matches to get into it and get through Vince to get into the Rumble, only to be the last Superstar eliminated. Atleast I think it was that year. I just remember there was a build up like that for Triple H, only to be eliminated.

Same goes for Shawn Michaels. He cut the whole promo against Undertaker that he was going to win the rumble to challenge him at WrestleMania, but we all know what happened there. I think it was Batista who eliminated him.

 

[brighamosity]

As far as Del Rio, like others have said, he was in my top 3. Honestly, I figured John Cena would win it and challenge Miz. My second choice would have Del Rio about even with John Morrison. But no one was getting the hype like Del Rio was. Twice a week he would give a promo about how it was his destiny. There were only two possibilities for him: either he won it, or Rey Mysterio screwed him out of it. Those are the only two ways it could have gone down.

As others have said, Mysterio is definately one of my picks for most surprising, for obvious reasons.

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Yokozuna. Granted, I had just recently started watching wrestling at the time, so I didn't have the knowledge of the wrestlers to make an accurate prediction, nor do I remember any of the buildup. But according to Wikipedia, he didn't make his WWE debut until October 31st, 1992. That's less than 3 months. While I admit that he was portrayed as a more dominant character than Del Rio, 3 months isn't much, especially back then. I say back then, because Raw didn't debut until January, so all they had to build his character was Survivor Series and their little weekend morning shows, if I remember correctly. All I'm saying is, he hadn't been in any high profile matches at the time, I don't think. Sure, he squashed a bunch of jobbers, but everyone was doing that back then. And he beat Virgil at the Survivor Series, who was probably about the equivalency of R-Truth, if that. All I'm saying is, with the way WWE booked back then, there wasn't any way to tell just how dominant Yokozuna would be, because pretty much everyone on the roster won all their matches, because most all of the non-PPV matches were jobber matches. Again, I was only 9 so if there is someone who recalls it differently, I apologize for sounding like a jackass.

Short answer: I think Del Rio had accomplished more in his 5 months than Yokozuna had in his 3 months. Del Rio had came out on top in feuds with both Christian and Mysterio, and was the leader of the Survivor Series team, among other things. Yokozuna beat Virgil.

 

[Rayne]

It's a surprising win for sure, but I think there are mitigating factors which make it hard to say this was "the" most surprising.

This year, the money seemed to be on Cena or Punk. People didn't even expect Orton to make an appearance, since he had just been in a WWE title match, but I guess you could throw him in there too. The other option was a member of the New New Generation; Sheamus, Barrett, Del Rio, Swagger (giggle) or one of the many, many guys who have been brought in over the past year or so and been pushed hard, and of all the new guys, Del Rio's been getting the strongest push.

If you had asked me before the Rumble to pick a winner, I would not have said Del Rio; while I thought it was a possibility a newer WWE wrestler could win, I (probably foolishly) didn't think it was a serious one. But, if you had asked me to pick a newer guy to win, Del Rio would be the guy I'd pick.

Surprising on the face of it, but overall not a shocker.