WWE Royal Rumble: 10 Eliminations that kick-started WrestleMania rivalries

Kurt Angle retaliates after Shawn Michaels eliminates him (Royal Rumble 2005)

A pair of eliminations that started a highly contested rivalry.

Royal Rumble 2005 is often considered the start of the rise of John Cena and Batista as the top stars of the company, with the two superstars being the runner-up and winner of the Royal Rumble match. However, that is not the only significant thing that happened on the show as it saw the start of one of the best rivalries of the year.

Despite being a part of the WWE Championship match earlier in the night, Kurt Angle managed to enter the Royal Rumble match by attacking Nunzio and stealing his spot. His stay in the match, however, was limited to just 37 seconds as a superkick from Shawn Michaels caused him to go over the top rope.

Enraged over his elimination, Angle re-entered the ring, attacked HBK, and threw him over the top rope as well, ending his stay in the match in just a little over 3 minutes. What followed was one of the best rivalries of recent times as Michaels and Angle feuded with each other for the better part of the next 6 months.

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Batista's elimination starts a series of brilliant matches (Royal Rumble 2010)

Heel Batista and John Cena feuded for 5 months following Royal Rumble.

While Batista and John Cena had only started climbing the ladder at Royal Rumble 2005, the situation was exactly the opposite five years later. Both Cena and The Animal were bonafide superstars in 2010 and were among the favorites to win the Royal Rumble match that year.

Being the last entrant of the match, Batista was fresh and less tired than the other three superstars. After eliminating Shawn Michaels, he brought it down to himself, Edge, and Cena in the match. However, Batista was himself the first person to be eliminated from the trio, with John Cena being the one eliminating him.

Starting a beef with Cena, Batista attacked him the very next night on Raw and aligned himself with Mr. McMahon in his rivalry against Bret Hart. His allegiance with McMahon was rewarded, as he got an impromptu WWE Title match against John Cena, who had just won the title in an Elimination Chamber match to win the Title.

This was followed by a series of matches, beginning with a marquee match at WrestleMania XXVI, that ended with a clean sweep for John Cena.