5 WWE stars who deserved to win a Royal Rumble

Out of every gimmick match that WWE has to offer, the Royal Rumble is certainly the most exciting. It is the one match that fans eagerly wait for every year, speculating about possible twists and turns that could happen during the hour-long showcase.

The prize at the end of this 30-man melee is a guaranteed championship match at WrestleMania, making the Rumble a prestigious deal. Only a couple of dozen names can be called Royal Rumble winners, forming an exclusive club of some of the greatest wrestlers of all time.

However, there are quite a few names who should be in that club but aren't. These Superstars were either a clear favorite in a given year or simply deserved to win the Royal Rumble match at least once, looking back at their contributions to the match.

Here are five WWE stars who deserved to win at least one Royal Rumble.

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#5 The Big Show

Big Show was robbed in 2000.

The Royal Rumble should ideally be home to the larger Superstars in WWE, as they are harder to throw over the top rope. Every time the Big Show has entered the Rumble, commentators have stated how he is a favorite in the match simply because of his size.

And yes, his size alone should merit a Royal Rumble victory. The recent RAW returnee has 31 eliminations to his name, across 12 matches. He also has one false elimination, which should have led to a win in 2000.

The Big Show technically won the 2000 Royal Rumble match, after The Rock's feet hit the floor before his. However, the Great One proceeded to eliminate the Giant and win the match.

Since then, Show has come close multiple times, including when he finished second to Chris Benoit in 2004. But it is a shame that a man of his size has not won a single Royal Rumble.

#4 CM Punk

What an awesome performance.

During his illustrious WWE career, some of CM Punk's finest moments of dominance have come in the Royal Rumble Match. After successful stints in 2007 and 2008, the Straight Edge Superstar broke out with his performance at the 2010 Rumble.

Entering at number 3, Punk eliminated Superstars left and right while delivering a sermon about being straight edge in the ring between entrants. His showing the following year was also pretty memorable, entering first in the 40-man Royal Rumble match.

Punk dominated the first half of that match as the leader of the New Nexus and while both, this and his 2010 stints ended up being shorter than hoped, the Second City Saint certainly stole the show on both occassions.

His performances warrant a Royal Rumble victory for sure. Along with not main-eventing WrestleMania, him not winning a Royal Rumble leaves his story to seem incomplete. Who knows, maybe he might show up and win this year? After all, it was after this very match when he decided to quit WWE.

#3 Daniel Bryan

He should have won in 2014.

While Daniel Bryan does not really have any standout Royal Rumble moments, aside from his 75-minute run in Saudi Arabia if that counts, the impact he has had on some past Rumble matches makes him somebody who should have won it at least once.

Bryan's momentum in 2014 called for a no-brainer victory at the Royal Rumble, as he was red hot as a babyface following the final stages of his program against Bray Wyatt.

A victory in the Rumble match that year would have served as vindication after a fall of disappointment at the hands of the Authority. He did not even enter the match, which ruined the final stages of it as well as Batista's eventual victory.

The Bryan effect returned the following year, with his early elimination ruining the entire second half of the 2015 Royal Rumble match. He honestly should have won a Rumble already, but WWE does have the chance to right this wrong in the coming years. Daniel Bryan still is massively over.

#2 Kane

Greatest Royal Rumble performance ever?

Glenn Jacobs has had an illustrious Royal Rumble career. He has entered the match 19 times, with his best efforts obviously coming as Kane. The Big Red Machine has done everything in a Rumble match, except winning it. This is an unfortunate shame, even more so than the Big Show.

Kane has constantly entered the Royal Rumble and cleaned house, being an ever-present threat to the favorites of the match. He even has a record total of 44 eliminations to his name in these matches.

A quarter of those came in Kane's greatest ever Royal Rumble performance in 2001, where he entered at number 6, eliminated 11 Superstars and was the runner-up to 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin. It might just be the greatest individual showing in Rumble history.

Kane has come close on another few occassions but was never able to pull it off. He should have had at least one Royal Rumble to his name, after his contributions to the match. The quote, "Always the bridesmaid, never the bride" has never been so apt.

#1 Chris Jericho

The Royal Rumble's understated MVP.

Despite Kane's accomplishments in Royal Rumble matches, Chris Jericho is the one wrestler who should have won a Royal Rumble. For starters, he is the ultimate iron man in Royal Rumble history after lasting around 5 hours across all of his Rumble stints combined, which is more than anybody.

Jericho has lasted the longest in multiple Royal Rumble matches, including his last one in 2017. He probably should have won that year as well, as his program against Kevin Owens was worthy of a world championship feud at WrestleMania.

However, Jericho's name shouldn't even be on this list, as he was penciled to win the 2012 Royal Rumble match. But probably because they wanted to go with a shocking conclusion, WWE ended up booking Sheamus to win, leaving Jericho without that elusive Rumble win.

His surprise return at number 2, followed by a 50-minute stay, in 2013 was another memorable Royal Rumble moment for Le Champion. But Chris Jericho remains without a victory in this match. For the amount of time he spent on aggregate, WWE should have stuck with Jericho to win the 2012 edition despite it being predictable.

When has that ever stopped WWE in booking recent Rumble winners?