11 WWE Champions that never won the Royal Rumble match

#9. AJ Styles

The man from Impact Wrestling (Pic Source: WWE)

One of the biggest success stories of the last few years, AJ Styles was, before coming to WWE, a modern-day journeyman in his own right. One of the TNA originals, he spent two years in NJPW crafting his character and really creating a niche for himself. The hard work paid off as he was offered a WWE contract and made his actual debut at the 2016 Royal Rumble.

How time flies as in a few years, he has already been a 2-time WWE Champion and ironically, never had to win the Rumble match itself to get over.

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#8. The Miz

The Miz is now truly a WWE Superstar (Pic Source: WWE)

The Miz actually won his WWE Championship after cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase and then went onto WrestleMania 27 to defend the WWE Championship against John Cena.

While The Miz may never win the Royal Rumble, he certainly one of the best WWE Superstars in the last decade, having also been a 9-time Intercontinental Champion. It doesn't get better than that.