2009 Royal Rumble Review

WWE presented the twenty-second installment of the Royal Rumble last Sunday, an event that traditionally marks the beginning of the road to WrestleMania. Featuring two title changes and one of the best rumble matches in recent memory, the Royal Rumble lived up to the hype of being one of the WWE's top events of the year. In the process, the Rumble also set up several potential feuds heading into WrestleMania.

The opening match of the night pitted Matt Hardy against newly crowned ECW champion Jack Swagger. This contest was relatively short, but featured good work by both performers, especially from the newcomer Swagger. Hardy elicited a great reaction from the crowd, which was hot throughout the duration of the match. For the second straight time, Swagger got a clean pinfall victory after hitting a very impressive gutwrench powerbomb. Wrestling in his most important match to date, Swagger proved that he is worthy of holding the ECW title, and this victory may serve as a springboard to greater success in his future. Matt Hardy, on the other hand, appeared stunned and devastated by his defeat, which would come into play later in the evening.

The second title match of the night was the Women's Title bout, as the Glamazon Beth Phoenix defended against Melina. Phoenix, who has been dominant as Women's champion, controlled most of the match, utilizing some impressive and devastating maneuvers. The Glamazon focused her attack on the leg of Melina, and at one point was contorting Melina's leg all the way to the back of her own head. Phoenix then used Melina's own foot to kick herself in the head in one of the most unique moves in WWE history. Melina showed her resolve, however, as she battled back and ultimately scored the victory to become Women's Champion as she countered Phoenix's finisher into a rollup. The defeat ended the dominant five-month reign as Women's Champion for Beth Phoenix, but she'll almost certainly be looking to regain her title from Melina in the weeks to come.

The Raw World Title match was up next, as John Cena defended his gold against JBL. Adding significant interest to the match was the presence of Shawn Michaels in JBL's corner, as JBL promised him a huge payoff if Michaels helped him capture the championship. The first few minutes of the match were slow and basic, as most of the attention was on HBK, who stood stoically outside the ring. His first involvement came as Cena nearly inadvertently clotheslined him, a distraction which enabled JBL to gain the upper hand. Later, Cena took control and had Layfield in his STF submission before Cena once again turned his attention away from his opponent and towards Michaels. JBL again capitalized and hit his trademark clothesline, causing many fans to believe the title was about to change hands. Cena managed to kick out, though, and shortly afterwards, JBL's big boot, intended for Cena, knocked out the official. With both competitors down and the official incapacitated, Michaels finally made his first move of the match, entering the ring and setting up for Sweet Chin Music. Shockingly, Michaels drilled his own employer Layfield with the kick, much to the delight of the crowd. As Cena rejoiced in the decision, HBK turned on him also, knocking him out with the same move. Michaels appeared to be agonizing over his decision at this point, but ultimately pulled JBL's prone body on top of Cena's. A new official came to count the pinfall, but Cena kicked out just in time, and seconds later hit the FU for the victory. Despite the "help" from Michaels, JBL couldn't capture the title, perhaps leading to a feud between employer and employee.

The final title match at Royal Rumble was contested between WWE champion Jeff Hardy and his challenger, the Rated R superstar Edge. Before the bell even rang, Smackdown GM Vickie Guerrero amended the rules, making the match a no-disqualification title bout. Moreover, Chavo Guerrero accompanied Edge to ringside. The match started off slowly, with Edge controlling the offense by utilizing wrestling holds. The pace quickened significantly though, as Hardy gained the upper hand and hit a number of high-spots including a Twist of Fate on the outside ring apron. Taking advantage of the rules, Hardy took the action outside, and hit an amazing splash from the top of the ladder onto Chavo, who was laying prone on the announce table. The match culminated with a furious and dramatic finish, as Edge's spear was countered into a Twist of Fate, followed by Hardy's finisher, the Swanton Bomb. Vickie Guerrero prevented the referee from counting three, causing Matt Hardy to come down and even up the odds. Shockingly, Matt turned on his own brother as he hit Jeff in the head with a chair, enabling Edge to score the pinfall and regain the WWE Title. This will almost certainly set up a confrontation between the Hardy brothers at WrestleMania.

The pay-per-view concluded with, naturally, the Royal Rumble match. This year's Rumble featured a number of top WWE stars, and unlike some past years, also featured periods of great wrestling. The first two entrants, Rey Mysterio and John Morrison, began the match with a fluid series of high-flying maneuvers, which continued when Carlito and MVP entered. Carlito's incredible double-springboard moonsault was just one of many highlights that kept the fans entertained throughout. Not surprisingly, Rey Mysterio was involved in many of these, including walking on top of Morrison and the Miz on the floor to avoid elimination. Mysterio was also a victim of a great move as he was caught in mid-air by an RKO courtesy of Randy Orton. Shelton Benjamin also left his mark on the match when he hit a double Paydirt off the top rope, a move that brought the crowd to its feet. More so than in past events, the vast majority of the competitors had a long stay in the rumble, with most individuals narrowly avoiding elimination on several occasions. Mysterio and CM Punk in particular seemed to be dangling precariously from the ropes or on the apron all night long. As a result, the ring was filled with nearly a dozen superstars for most of the match. In the tradition of the Rumble, this year's event featured a surprise entrant, former ECW Champion Rob Van Dam. Van Dam garnered one of the loudest ovations of all the participants, paralleled only by the reaction to the Undertaker. Van Dam, who was appearing for one night only, hit a number of his signature moves and had a lengthy stay before being eliminated by Chris Jericho. While Van Dam had an impressive showing, Santino Marella had the shortest outing in Royal Rumble history, as he was eliminated by Kane in less than two seconds. The last remaining participants in the Rumble were Triple H and Legacy, the group comprised of Cody Rhodes, Ted Dibiase, and Randy Orton. As Legacy predictably united to attack Triple H, he was able to fend off Rhodes and Dibiase while nearly eliminating Orton. Orton hung on, however, and as Triple H eliminated his two counterparts, Orton capitalized by tossing Triple H to the floor to claim victory. Orton then celebrated his guaranteed title shot at WrestleMania as the show went off the air.

All four of the title matches were well performed, with two new champions being crowned, and a shocking twist as Matt Hardy cost his brother Jeff the WWE Championship. The Rumble match itself was one of the most exciting in recent memory, with the only negative being the predictability of Orton winning. Overall, however, the 2009 Royal Rumble was well above the average WWE pay-per-view, and served as a great kickoff for the road to WrestleMania XXV.