Double winners; Vince McMahon injured- 5 Most controversial moments in WWE Royal Rumble history

WWE Royal Rumble is one of the most anticipated premium live events in professional wrestling. Throughout the years, the show has featured several surprise appearances, debuts, and winners during the 30-person Royal Rumble matches. However, the event has also been marred with its fair share of controversies over the years.

The first-ever WWE Royal Rumble occurred in 1988, with its major attraction being the 30-man over-the-top-rope match. In 2018, the company introduced the 30-person gimmick match for the women's division. Since its inception, the Royal Rumble has become a staple event for the Stamford-based promotion. It also marks the beginning of the exciting Road to WrestleMania.

The marquee 30-person gimmick matches have been the debut of several stars like Jade Cargill and AJ Styles and the returns of performers such as Andrade, Rey Mysterio, Liv Morgan, Cope (FKA Edge), and more over the years. However, there have also been several moments when fans couldn't stop talking about the event for all the wrong reasons.

In this list, we will look at the five most controversial WWE Royal Rumble moments:

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#5. Vince McMahon injures himself at the 2005 Royal Rumble

The 2005 WWE Men's Royal Rumble had one of the most memorable and talked-about finishes in the event's history. The final two stars in the 30-man match were John Cena and Batista, but things quickly turned south when both men were eliminated at the same time.

With the referees arguing over who won, in front of a crowd filled with confusion, Vince McMahon stormed towards the ring angrily. However, while getting into the ring, the former WWE Chairman tore both his quads. Despite the injury, he continued yelling at the referees and the superstars involved, all the while sitting down in the ring. The match was later restarted between John Cena and Batista, with the latter emerging victorious.

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#4. Batista rejected as the winner by fans

After spending four years away from WWE, The Animal returned to the company in 2014. While he initially garnered cheers from fans, his win in that year's Men's Royal Rumble Match was met with boos.

The final two people in the match were Roman Reigns and Batista, with the Marvel actor eventually winning. However, instead of fans cheering him on, they booed The Animal, as they wanted the erstwhile Daniel Bryan (Bryan Danielson) to win instead. What's more notable about it was that The American Dragon wasn't even part of the 30-man match.

Due to the strong backlash from fans, the company was forced to insert Bryan into the WWE World Heavyweight Title match picture at WrestleMania XXX. The original match was supposed to be a singles encounter between Randy Orton and Batista, but it was later turned into a Triple Threat Match after The American Dragon earned his shot by defeating Triple H in the opening match of The Show of Shows.

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#3. Fans turned on Stone Cold Steve Austin for Bret Hart

Stone Cold Steve Austin is one of the most fan-favorite superstars of all time. However, that wasn't the case when he won the 1997 Royal Rumble.

The final five of the 1997 Rumble match were The Undertaker, Vader, Bret Hart, Diesel, and Stone Cold. The Rattlesnake was eliminated by Hart, but referees didn't see his elimination, as they were busy with the outside brawl between Terry Funk and Mankind. As a result, when Bret was celebrating what he thought was his win, Austin blindsided and eliminated him to get the win, upsetting fans in the process.

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#2. The Rock couldn't get Roman Reigns over

Roman Reigns has been one of the most impressive superstars in WWE for the past few years, but that wasn't always the case. Fans witnessed how he struggled to get over after going solo following The Shield's break-up in 2014. The erstwhile Big Dog had a hard time getting over and even his Hollywood star cousin, The Rock, couldn't help him.

All odds were against Roman Reigns at the 2015 Royal Rumble when The Authority did everything to prevent him from winning the 30-man match. After he was outnumbered by the team of Kane, Rusev, and Big Show, The Rock returned and helped his cousin win the Rumble. This led to a chorus of boos from fans, and Dwayne Johnson's bewilderment at the negative reaction was evident.

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#1. The 1994 WWE Royal Rumble featured two winners

As seen from above, the 30-man Royal Rumble matches have featured several unforgettable endings over the years. Still, most of them ended with just one winner, but that wasn't the case in the 1994 edition.

The final two men were Bret Hart and Lex Luger. However, they eliminated each other at the same time. While the referees argued over the true winner, Bret and Luger were later announced as joint winners.