WWF Royal Rumble ‘07
January 28, 2007
San Antonio, Texas
From top to bottom this show just delivered on virtually every level.
Both the ECW Championship match between Bobby Lashley & Test and the World Championship match between Mr. Kennedy & Batista were inoffensive and better than expected. Plus the opening match between The Hardy Boyz and MNM was good fun and harkened back to the days when the company had a real tag team division.
But it was the Last Man Standing match for the WWF Championship between John Cena and Umaga that makes this show so great. The match was voted the best match of 2007 in many circles is considered Umaga’s best match of his career and one of Cena’s top five matches of his career.
This match certainly surprised many people by how good it turned out to be. Umaga had just been put into the main event scene and Cena was facing backlash from fans already tired of Superman-like white bread hero act. With the Last Man Standing stipulation it also meant the rules could be thrown out, which played into both men’s strength as brawlers. They hurled steel steps at each other like nothing, destroyed a ringside announce table and Cena bled buckets. But it was inventive finish of untying the top ring rope and having Cena physically choke out the monster Samoan that put the match over the top. Cena looked like a world-beater by finally “slaying the dragon” and Umaga kept up his credibility by holding out as long as he did before passing out.
As for the Rumble match was hyped as the “most star-studded” ever and while it boasts an incredible roster of talent, it pales to those featured in earlier years. It featured a fun showcase of The Great Khali, who eliminates nearly a third of the participants in short order, and the introduction of ECW Originals into the match, but it is the finale that makes this match so special.
With only Shawn Michaels, Undertaker, Randy Orton and Edge left in the ring it turned into a sort of tag bout as Michaels and Undertaker had to fend off the combined forces of Orton and Edge, who were World Tag Team Champions at the time. Once Orton and Edge were eliminated, the two heroes found themselves both laid out flat on their backs. After simultaneous rises from Undertaker and Michaels, the two legends put on a one-on-one clinic that could have easily seen either man emerge victorious. Their ten-minute finale was the longest final segment in Rumble history and not surprisingly also the most entertaining.
In the end Undertaker was the winner, but it reminded long-time fans of the duo’s past rivalry and set the wheels in motion for the two men’s eventual five star classic at WrestleMania XXV.
Match results:
- JTG beat Lance Cade in match that happened before the pay per view went on the air.
- Matt & Jeff Hardy beat MNM (John Morrison & Joey Mercury).
- ECW Champion Bobby Lashley beat Test by count out.
- World Heavyweight Champion Batista beat Mr. Kennedy.
- WWE Champion John Cena beat Umaga in a Last Man Standing Match.
The Undertaker won the 30-man Royal Rumble match last eliminating Shawn Michaels. Other participants included Finlay, Shelton Benjamin, CM Punk, The Great Khali, Montel Vontavious Porter, The Miz, Chavo Guerrero, Sabu, Kane, John Morrison, Matt Hardy, Edge, Tommy Dreamer, Booker T, Chris Benoit, Rob Van Dam, Kenny Dykstra, Super Crazy, Viscera, Carlito, Jeff Hardy, Chris Masters, The Sandman, Bob Holly, Randy Orton, Gregory Helms, Kevin Thorn and
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