"He was eliminated" – Ex-WWE star on major Royal Rumble botch

Jey Uso outlasted 29 competitors to surprisingly win the Men's Royal Rumble 2025. Former WWE star Stevie Richards believes another standout performer in the match, Penta, should have been eliminated earlier.

Penta was the second entrant in the 30-man contest. The new WWE star lasted 42 minutes before being eliminated by Finn Balor. However, many felt his participation should have ended when Rey Mysterio sent him over the top rope, causing both his feet to touch the floor.

On The Stevie Richards Show, Richards replayed the footage in slow motion and said the botch should have seen Penta thrown out of the match:

"You can see that toe make contact and that boot folds a little bit right there. He was eliminated. This is a dangerous thing no matter what. I'll say this, too, as the match goes on, I wonder how many accidental eliminations [occur]. For somebody that spends time [in the match], you get tired." [2:18 – 2:40]

Royal Rumble rules state that wrestlers are eliminated when both feet touch the floor at ringside. Penta tried to make it look as though only one foot touched, but replays showed both his feet touched at the same time.

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Stevie Richards on WWE's RAW and Royal Rumble booking of Penta

On the January 13 episode of RAW, Penta defeated Chad Gable in his WWE debut. Since then, he has beaten Pete Dunne and Ludwig Kaiser in competitive matches on the red brand.

Stevie Richards applauded WWE for beginning the Royal Rumble with Rey Mysterio and Penta as the first two entrants. He also appeared to question whether the latter's opponents should be allowed so much offense against him:

"I love what WWE was trying to do, and the fact that Penta continues to have, even though I don't agree with 50/50 booking his first three matches on RAW, this here [Royal Rumble appearance] is a great way," Richards said. "And, dare I say it, what if Penta debuted at the Royal Rumble after vignettes and stuff like that and we got to see him and Rey right off the bat? That would have been cool." [0:48 – 1:12]

Penta wrestled for several major companies before joining WWE, including AAA, AEW, MLW, and TNA. He also appeared in Lucha Underground between 2014 and 2018.

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Please credit The Stevie Richards Show and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.