5 WWE Superstars who stole Royal Rumble spots

Modified Jan 03, 2021 08:22 GMT

Nia Jax & R-Truth; Ric Flair and Eddie Guerrero

#2 Kurt Angle steals Nunzio's Royal Rumble spot

Here's another robbery from the 2005 Royal Rumble. Kurt Angle had lost the WWE title Triple Threat match earlier in the night, which also involved JBL and Big Show. He was desperate to win the big one and decided to take matters into his own hands. Angle saw Nunzio bouncing the entrance ball in a hallway, and caught hold of the same. Angle dared Nunzio to take it back from him, and the latter decided against it.

Angle didn't last long in the Royal Rumble match

Angle entered the Royal Rumble match and began destroying everyone in his path. In a surprising turn of events, Shawn Michaels eliminated him from the match, with Angle lasting for 37 seconds. Angle was enraged beyond belief and brutally attacked Michaels over the next few minutes. This led to one of the best rivalries of that era, with the first match taking place at WrestleMania 21. Angle and Michaels had a classic showdown at 'Mania, with the Olympic gold medalist winning the match by making Michaels submit at The Grandest Stage Of Them All.

About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

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Edited by Kaushik Das