WWE: Top 3 Moments of the 2021 Royal Rumble

For years, the Royal Rumble has signified the start of the “Road to WrestleMania”. It signals what to look forward to in the weeks between the Rumble and “The Greatest Spectacle in Sports Entertainment”.

Every year, there are many moments that stand out from the Royal Rumble matches. Some moments are still talked about annually, like when Kofi Kingston used a rolling chair to hop himself back to the ring.

Since the show is named for the match, the other bouts often get overshadowed. Despite that, some of the best non-Rumble matches include John Cena vs. AJ Styles, Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels, and Triple H vs. Cactus Jack.

The women’s Royal Rumble match was added in 2018. Arguably, it has been the best Rumble match every year since, and 2021 was no exception. We saw exciting returns like Victoria, Alicia Fox, and Jillian Hall. In the men’s Royal Rumble, we got the surprise returns of Carlito and Hurricane Helms.

As for the non-Rumble match highlights, Sasha Banks retained the SmackDown Women’s Championship after a great match with Carmella and Roman Reigns and Kevin Owens told another excellent story.

Here are the Top 3 Moments of the 2021 Royal Rumble.

Edge wins the Men’s Royal Rumble

Eleven years to the day of his first win, Edge won the Royal Rumble for the second time in his Hall of Fame career. In between his two wins, Edge was forced to retire due to a neck injury because he never expected to be medically cleared to wrestle again.

At last year’s Rumble, Edge made his relatively shocking return (it wasn’t a complete surprise, as it had been rumored for several months that he was returning, but no one was sure whether he had really been cleared). It was one of the biggest moments of his career and in Rumble history.

Since his return, Edge has wrestled periodically, mainly as part of a feud with his former Rated RKO tag team partner, Randy Orton, before Edge got injured again during their “The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever” at Backlash. He sustained a torn bicep and missed over seven months before he made his in-ring return at this year’s Rumble.

Fans were treated to another bonus moment in that Rumble: Edge’s former tag team partner, Christian made his surprise return! The two embraced in the ring and Christian later sacrificed himself to ensure Edge the opportunity to win.

Kevin Owens jumps off of a forklift

Kevin Owens has a penchant for jumping off high things. Last year, he scouted the pirate ship at Raymond James Stadium, where WrestleMania 36 was supposed to take place last year, as a potential leaping spot. With Mania taking place in Tampa this year, there’s still hope that he’ll do it.

As Owens and Roman Reigns fought throughout the Thunderdome, I started wondering when KO would jump from something. After they made their way backstage, Owens indeed found something to jump off. He climbed atop equipment boxes and landed on the table below where Reigns (and someone’s takeout box) was laying.

That was just a tease. Owens later found a forklift, raised the platform to its highest level, and jumped onto The Tribal Chief. This nearly put both of them out for a 10-count.

Bianca Belair wins the Women’s Royal Rumble

There was no better moment than Bianca Belair winning the Royal Rumble. She came in at the third spot and made history: the first Black woman to win a Rumble match and longest women’s Rumble match time.

Belair bESTed NXT rival Rhea Ripley after the duo eliminated “The Queen” Charlotte Flair. Following the win, “The EST” broke down in tears and gave a beautiful, heartfelt promo. Then, she climbed atop the turnbuckle, pointed to the WrestleMania sign, and whipped her ponytail around in excitement.

Belair was clearly the MVP of the 2021 Women’s Royal Rumble. No matter who she faces, she’ll certainly give us a ‘Mania Moment.