| Date: January 23rd, 2000
| Venue: Madison Square Garden | City: New York, New York
| Attendance: 19, 231 | Buyrate: 590, 000

The Road to Wrestlemania begins. And like always, it begins at the Royal Rumble. In the main event tonight WWF Champion Triple H, who beat The Big Show on Raw a few weeks go, will defend against Cactus Jack. Cactus Jack you say? Cactus Jack indeed. On the last Raw of 1999, Triple H made The Rock and Mankind wrestle in a pink slip on a pole match in which the loser would be fired. The Rock won the match but the next week, he and the rest of the roster said that they would walk out of the WWF unless Helmsley, and his wife Stephanie, would bring Mankind back. Triple H had no choice but to accept the demands and accept a challenge from Cactus Jack to a street fight at the Royal Rumble. And that’s exactly what we’re getting. It should be brutal.

As always at this event, we have the annual Royal Rumble match. This year it’s quite obvious who should win. The Rock was the first man to throw his name into the hat and he said that he’d throw 29 other jabroni’s over the top rope to win the match. Big Show took exception to this and has attacked The Rock on numerous occasions since, turning heel in the process. The only other men with a mention are Kane, who beat The Rock and Big Show in a three way over the top Royal Rumble on Smackdown 3 days ago, and X Pac who by beating Test will be the number 30 entrant. Also look out for Rikishi, The Big Boss Man and Test who should all be a big part of this match.

The Intercontinental title will be on the line in a triple threat match as Chris Jericho, Chyna and Hardcore Holly go toe to toe. On Smackdown a few weeks ago, Chris Jericho and Chyna pined each other at the same time and became co-champions. Since then, Hardcore Holly has defeated both men and so a triple threat match has been announced where the winner will become the undisputed Intercontinental champion. The tag team titles will also be on the line as The New Age Outlaws defend against the men that won the battle royal at Armageddon, The Acolytes. The two teams have had run-ins in The Friendly Tap, a pub near a recent arena. Apart from that, there hasn’t been a lot of contact between the two teams.

We’ll get a Miss Rumble swimsuit competition tonight which is basically a who looks the hottest competition with all the divas of the WWF. Also tonight, the Dudley Boyz will take on The Hardy Boyz in a tables match. The Dudley Boyz have made the table matches their speciality and tonight they take on Matt and Jeff. And we’ll also get Kurt Angle taking on a mystery opponent. An orange logo has been filling the screens as various wrestlers have made their entrances recently and so the undefeated Angle will find out who it is, tonight. Let’s get to it.

We kick things off with a stylised video package for Triple H and Cactus Jack. It paints a nice picture of Cactus as a hardcore brawler and Triple H as the outspoken champion. JIm Ross welcomes us to Madison Square Garden he’s joined by Jerry Lawler!

Kurt Angle vs. Tazz

The Unbeaten Kurt Angle was due to face an unannounced opponent tonight. Kurt gets on the mic before the bell and tells us that he’s excited to fight in Madison Square Garden tonight before having some derogatory things to say about the Knicks. There’s a bit of a “We Want Tazz” chant, I don’t think they’ll be disappointed. Tazz gets right into it, back dropping Angle out of the ring and taking the fight to the outside. Angle hits a suplex on Tazz down the entranceway. The crowd are right behind Tazz, who is from Brooklyn, New York. Back in the ring and Angle has the advantage, hitting a belly to belly suplex on Tazz. He then goes to the top bu Tazz knocks him down and hits a belly to belly from the top! He gets a two as Kurt just gets his foot on the rope. Angle hits a belly to back suplex for a near fall of his own.

Tazz hits a couple of beautiful suplex’s. T-bone suplex’s and allsorts! He then locks a choke on Angle and wraps his legs around him which is enough for the win! Tazz beats Angle after he chokes out Angle! Great way to start the night but if anything, the match was a little short. They bring out a stretcher for Angle!

Rating: 6.5/10

Michael Cole is with The Hardy Boyz and Terri. Terri says they are going to tear the roof of Madison Square Garden tonight but Jeff says that Terri won’t be going out there tonight. Matt then says that they will put the Dudleys through tables tonight or they will die trying!

The Hardy Boyz (Matt & Jeff) vs. The Dudley Boyz (D-Von & Bubba Ray) – Tag Team Table Match

This is not only a first time meeting between these two teams on PPV but also the first ever tag team tables match. The Dudleys get on the mic before the match and use more American sports references. The Dudleys meets The Hardys in the entrance way and we’re straight into it. Bubba Ray is the first man to go out and get a table as they look for their first 2 on 2 PPV victory. Bubba goes for an early victory but Matt throws the table out of the way. Jeff hits a beautiful dive to the outside. D-Von then goes for a powerbomb on Matt through a table but Matt slips down. Jeff nails Bubba Ray with a hard chair shot on the outside. Bubba then throws a table at Jeff! This is action packed. Bubba puts Matt on top of a table then goes to the second rope but Matt gets up and he and Jeff hit a double suplex from the second rope on Bubba. D-Von just got the table out of the way there.

Matt Hardy pulls a ladder into the ring and nails both Dudleys with it. Matt then pairs off with Bubba Ray on the outside, hitting him with a chair. Matt then sets up Bubba Ray on a table on the outside and then sets up a ladder next to it. He climbs it and then dives on Bubba Ray through it at the same time as Jeff dives off the ring apron! So now it’s a handicap match against D-Von! They set up a couple of tables on the outside and put D-Von on one of them. Matt then goes to the top and D-Von gets out of the way! Matt goes crashing through it and then Jeff goes crashing through the other! Bubba Ray sticks around to give his half-brother a hand. Bubba then powerbombs Matt through a table! We’re down to just D-Von and Jeff. Bubba Ray clobbers Matt with a chair to take him out of the equation. Bubba then sets up a chair right by the entrance curtain and nother one on top of it. They then put Matt on top of the tables and Bubba takes Jeff above the entrance way! Bubba takes too much time to celebrate and Jeff smashes him with a chair, sending him through all the tables below!

Matt then rolls D-Von on a table and Jeff comes off the top of the balcony with a Swanton Bomb! The Hardy Boyz win the match! I’m a little surprised by this, I thought the Dudleys would win their trademark match. But it’s The Hardy Boyz with the win in a fantastic match.

Rating: 8/10

We get a clip of Kurt Angle regaining consciousness. He seems more concerned over whether he won and whether he was choked out.

Ivory vs. Luna vs. Jacqueline vs. Terri Runnels vs. B.B. vs. The Kat – Miss Rumble Swimsuit Competition

Sgt Slaughter, Tony Garea, Fabulous Moolah, Johnny V and Classy Freddie Blassie are the five judges for this one. All elderly gentlemen which comes across as a little pervy. A reluctant Ivory is first and she looks great. Terris next and makes much more of a go of it. Jacqueline looks good as she bounces up and down. B.B is next and does a bit of a walk. Luna chooses not to take her robe off. The Kat is next and she’s just wearing bubble wrap! Mae Youngs music then hits and out comes the elderly lady in a gown of her own. She says that she is in this competition. She says that all her fans are here to see her puppies. Oh God, off comes the robe. She then takes out her puppies! Luckily there’s a big “Censored” sign and Mark Henty comes out and covers her up. The judges results are then in and unanimously the winner is Mae Young! The other girls can’t believe it. I don’t think anyone can. Jesus.

We get a shot of WWF New York where “The Coach” Jonathan Coachman is there. It’s kept fairly generic which makes me think it’s a pre-record.

Chris Jericho and Chyna are backstage fighting over who gets to take out the Intercontinental title tonight.

Chris Jericho (c) vs. Chyna (c) vs. Hardcore Holly – Intercontinental Title Match

The first fall in this match wins the Intercontinental title. Hardcore Holly definitely deserves his shot, he’s been brilliant for the last 12 months and shown he is more than just a Hardcore guy. I like him but I’m rooting for Jericho in this one. Holly shoves Chyna in he face as this one gets underway. Holly and Jericho then get into a slapping match which Chyna also joins in on. Holly throws Chyna to the outside and we get a back and forth between Hardcore and Jericho which ends in a beautiful dropkick from Hardcore. Jericho hits a flying forearm that Tito Santana would be proud of. Jericho catches Hardcore and locks on the Walls Of Jericho which Chyna breaks up to a chorus of boos. Chyna clotheslines Holly out of the ring and hits him with a baseball slide. Jericho then hits a springboard body press on Hardcore.

Back in the ring and Chyna hits a handspring elbow and a DDT on Jericho. Holly breaks up the cover and manages to send both co-champions to the outside. Hardcore then grabs  chair but Chyna dropkicks it into Holly’s face. Chyna and Jericho both go to the top and hit a splash on Chyna and both pin Holly but bother choose to get up. They don’t want to be co-champions anymore! Chyna hits a low blow on Jericho and then a Pedigree on Holly but Holly kicks out! Holly gets Chyna up on his shoulders and Jericho comes off the top with a body press for a two count. Jericho goes for a superplex on Holly but Chyna pushes both men, crotching both! Chyna then hits a superplex on Hardcore. As Hardcore hammers Jericho, Chyna grabs a chair and leathers Holly with it! She then locks on a Walls Of Jericho on him! Jericho hits a bulldog on her to break it up and follows it up with a moonsault for the win! Chris Jericho is undisputed Intercontinental champion!

Rating: 6.25/10

Michael Cole is backstage with The Rock. Cole asks The Rock who he is concerned with tonight. The Rock is concerned with two men tonight, the first being with Crash Holly and the second is Headbanger Mosh. The Rock then has a few words for The Big Show. Turns out he wipes a monkeys ass with what The Big Show thinks. Rocky is confident that tonight is his night.

Video package next for The Acolytes and The New Age Outlaws.

The New Age Outlaws (Road Dogg & Billy Gunn) (c) vs. The Acolytes (Faarooq & Bradshaw) – Tag Team Title Match

The tag team titles have never changed hands at a Royal Rumble event, could this be the first time? The Acolytes don’t waste any time running to the ring and getting into it. Bradshaw hits a fallaway slam on Billy Gunn and then tags in Faarooq. The Acolytes are former tag team champions after battling last summer over the belts with the likes of Kane and X Pac and Undertaker and Big Show. Faarooq takes down both Outlaws but it’s too much for him and Road Dogg hits his trademark jabs on Faarooq. Bradshaw stops him from doing his shaky legs knee drop and Bradshaw hits the Clothesline From Hell on Billy Gunn! Faarooq then hits Road Dogg with a spinebuster but Gunn pulls the referee out of the ring. Bradshaw then takes out both the referee and Billy Gunn. In the ring and The Acolytes hit a double powerbomb on Road Dogg. X Pac then comes out and hits a spinning heel kick on Bradshaw but Faarooq gets rid of him. Billy Gunn then hits a Fame-asser on Bradshaw and that’s it! It’s over! A pretty quick match for these teams and it’s the Outlaws who retain their tag team titles!

Rating: 4/10

Video package now for Triple H and Cactus Jack. Helmsley won the belt from The Big Show with a low blow and a Pedigree. Triple H then fired Mankind but was forced to re-instate him after the whole roster threatened to walk out. Mankind got his shot at the WWF title at the Rumble but instead of Mankind, it’s going to be Cactus Jack!

Triple H (c) vs. Cactus Jack – Street Fight for WWF Title

This might be the first PPV meeting between Triple H and Cactus Jack but it’s the fifth PPV meeting between Helmsley and Foley. Triple H has won 2 of the previous matches, Mick has won one and the other way a draw. Foley can even up the score and take home the WWF title if he wins tonight. Triple H is joined by his wife Stephanie for his entrance but she then leaves and heads to the back. Foley hasn’t wrestled a PPV match as Cactus Jack since Mayhem In Manchester when he lost to Goldust. Triple H pinned Foley to win his first WWF title the night after Summerslam. The two men slug it out as you’d expect to kick things off. Cactus drops Helmsley to the floor as Jim Ross keeps referring to Cactus as Mankind. Jack hits a neckbreaker on the outside of the ring. Cactus then smashes Helmsleys face into the ring barrier but Triple H hits him back with the ring bell. Triple H rolls into the ring with a chair and Cactus slides in the ring. Triple H lamps him with the chair, taking Cactus down. Cactus doesn’t take long to get back up and he hammers away at Triple H and then sets up a chair on Helmsleys face and hits a legdrop for the first near fall of the match.

Cactus kicks Triple H to the outside where the fight continues. Cactus backdrops Triple H into the crowd where they fight through to the entranceway. Foley hits a suplex through some wooden pallets in the entrance way. He then finds a trash can and smashes that into Triple H’s skull. Lawler corrects Jim Ross, pointing out that it’s Cactus Jack, not Mankind. Triple H hits a belly to back suplex on a trash can which slows the match down. Cactus throws Triple H into the ring steps and gives us the Bang Bang! He then pulls out a 2×4 wrapped in barb wire! He takes his time, too much time as Triple H hits a low blow on him and uses the 2×4 himself! Cactus hits a low blow with the 2×4 and then hits the double armed DDT! Cactus has a cover but the referee was way out of position taking the 2×4 and hiding it behind the Spanish announce table. Cactus Jack isn’t happy, he wants his 2×4 and the Spanish announcer gives it him! The referee tells Cactus not to use it and Triple H runs at him but nails the referee!

Cactus Jack nails Triple H in the face with the barb wire 2×4 and then drops it on his face! He covers the champion but Triple H, who has started bleeding now, kicks out at 2. Cactus hits him again with it. The two fight to the outside where Cactus goes for a piledriver on the announce table but Triple H back body drops him onto the table. The desk doesn’t give way so it’s a hard landing for Jack.Back in the ring and Triple H goes for a Pedigree but Cactus Jack counters it and sends Triple H into the top turnbuckle before hitting a bulldog into the barb wire baseball bat. Triple H kicks out at 2. Triple H hits Cactus with a hip toss into the ring steps and then throws him back into them for good measure. Back in the ring and Triple H hits Cactus’s leg with the 2×4 repeatedly. Triple H grabs a bag off The Fink and it’s handcuffs! What was the Fink doing with them? Triple H puts them on Cactus with his hands tied behind his back, much like last year. Triple H puts the ring steps in the ring before attempting to hit Cactus with them but Cactus hits a drop toe hold and Triple H falls on the steps.

Cactus fights back with his hands tied behind his back, hitting a low blow and biting Triple H’s face. Helmsley gets up and hits a clothesline before smashing the challenger with the steel chair. Cactus heads towards the back but just like last year, he gets nailed with the steel chair, this time courtesy of Triple H. Cactus wants more though! But from nowhere comes The Rock! He runs from the back and nails Triple H with a chair! A police officer then comes out and unlocks Cactus Jacks handcuffs. Cactus fights Triple H to the announce tables before hitting a piledriver on Triple H on the Spanish announce table! Cactus then rolls Triple H into the ring and from beneath the ring he pulls out the biggest bag of thumb tacks I have ever seen. He sprays them all over the ring and Stephanie McMahon runs out! Cactus runs at Triple H but Helmsley hits a back body drop and Cactus Jack goes right into the tacks! Triple H then hits a Pedigree but Cactus kicks out! What a match! A “Foley” chant breaks out but Triple H hits a second Pedigree, this time on the thumb tacks and it’s over! Triple H wins the match and retains his WWF Title in the match of his career. A truly brilliant match. It was a hardcore bloodfest but with the timing of these two men it was near perfect. After the match Triple H goes to the back on a stretcher but Cactus Jack wheels him back out and hits him with the 2×4. What a match.

Rating: 9/10

Jonathan Coachman is still at WWF New York. He’s joined by Lina McMahon who claims to be the CEO of the WWF (I thought she’d given her power to Steve Austin, who in turn lost it to Vince McMahon). She says that things will get better in the WWF.

The 2000 Royal Rumble match

For the first time since 1994, there are no previous winners in this match. It’s only the 5th time in history that this is the case, following 94 and the first 3 Rumbles in 1988, 1989 and 1990. That is unless we have a surprise entrant like Steve Austin. #1 is D-lo Brown who hasn’t been pushed much recently. He did get to the final 4 of last years Rumble though. #2 is Grand Master Sexay who is making his Royal Rumble debut. Jerry Lawler doesn’t seem happy about that. D-lo goes right to work on Grand Master who is a tag team wrestler and won’t be winning this. He hits a dropkick on D-lo and D-lo hits him with one back. There will be a new superstar every 90 seconds. D-lo goes for his running powerbomb but Grand Master Sexay reverses it into a hurricanrana. #3 is Headbanger Mosh who comes out with some massive cones on. The number 3 spot is always a bad one, they’re usually first out. Unless you’re Ric Flair, who won from that spot. Kaientai then storm the ring, they’re not happy that they’re not in the Rumble. They get chucked back out. D-lo hits a big Sky High on Mosh then Grand Master hits a bulldog on D-lo, right on Mosh’s ankle. Mosh looks like he’s in some pain as D-lo hits a suplex on Sexay. #4 is Christian who is making his Rumble debut.

Christian hits a reverse DDT on Mosh. Plenty of tag team wrestlers filling the ring. D-lo has recently been teaming with The Godfather. Sexay hits a suplex on Christian. Christian then attempts to eliminate D-lo. #5 is out next and it’s Rikishi! The big man enters the Rumble. He actually got to the final 4 himself back in 1994. He eliminates Mosh and Christian pretty sharpish. D-lo hits him with a neckbreaker and then his trademark legdrop. But Rikishi is right back up and he hits his sit down piledriver. Rikishi then eliminates D-lo. We’re down to just Rikishi and Grand Master Sexay! These two are buddies and Grand Master stalls long enough for #6 to come out and it’s Scotty Too Hotty! The crowd clap for them to dance and that’s exactly what we get! The three men break out into a dance routine in the middle of the Royal Rumble! But as it comes to a close, Rikishi clotheslines and eliminates both Grand Master Sexay and Scotty Too Hotty. Rikishi is left on his own to dance and the crowd love it.

Rikishi dances on his own until #7 Steve Blackman comes out. Blackman is all business and he takes Rikishi down. A Blackman Sucks chant breaks out and Rikishi hits his piledriver finisher, the Rikishi Driver, on him too. Rikishi then eliminates Blackman from the match. Rikishi who came in at #5 is looking good right now. #8 Viscera is out next. He’s been in his fair share of Royal Rumbles before. He actually got sacrified to The Ministry at last years event. The two big men go at it and Viscera hits a belly to belly suplex and a legdrop. Viscera then hits a big splash and tries for a second but Rikishi gets out of the way and hits three big kicks before throwing Viscera out of the ring, eliminating him! Rikishi is still on his own but not for long as #9 The Big Boss Man comes out. He got to the final 3 last year. The Boss Man made his Royal Rumble debut in 1989 and eliminated Hulk Hogan that year but he’s refusing to get in the ring with Rikishi. #10 is Test who makes his second Rumble appearance. Test throws Boss Man in the ring and it’s not long before all three men are down. Boss Man hits both men with big right hands. #11 is The British Bulldog who was runner up in 1995 and thought he’d won it for a minute. Test has Boss Man hanging on the top rope as Rikishi goes for a Banzai Drop on Bulldog. Bulldog gets up though and hits a low blow. Bulldog returned to the WWF with a lot of momentum but that seems to have died down a lot now. He tries to eliminate Rikishi but with no success.

#12 is Gangrel, he joins Rikishi, The Boss Man, Test and The British Bulldog. Gangrel was in last years event. Kaientai are back but quickly get thrown back out! Gangrel has already lasted longer than the 26 second he survived last year. He lays into The Bulldog. Unlucky for some #13 is Edge who gets a huge cheer. This is his second Rumble appearance. The Bulldog nearly eliminated him early though! Rikishi goes to work on The Boss Man and hits him with the Banzai Drop! We see a replay of The Boss Man throwing Taka out of the ring and the former Light-Heavyweight champion landing right on his face. #14 now and it’s Bob Backlund! He lasted  an hour back in 1993 and manages to avoid a splash from Rikishi. Every man in the ring then team up and eliminate Rikishi! Gangrel has Edge teetering on the top rope but can’t eliminate him. Half way mark and #15 is Chris Jericho the undisputed Intercontinental champion and he gets a huge ovation! He comes in and quickly eliminates Bob Backlund. Gangrel hammers away at The Bulldog whilst Boss Man takes shots at Jericho. Backlund heads into the crowd to campaign!

#16 is Crash Holly who The Rock is weary of. Crash joins The Bulldog, Boss Man, Test, Chris Jericho, Gangrel and Edge. It’s a first time Rumble for both Crash and Jericho. Edge hits a low blow on The Bulldog to survive. Edge then goes to work on Crash as Gangrel hammers Test. #17 is Chyna. Chyna making her second appearance in a Royal Rumble match. She eliminated Mark Henry last year. She goes after Jericho who backdrops her onto the apron. Chyna then suplexes Jericho out of the ring and Boss Man nudges Chyna off the apron to eliminate her too! Jericho and Chyna are out of here. Boss Man chokes Crash whilst Test hammers Gangrel and Edge goes to work on Bulldog. #18 is Faarooq who lost his match earlier. The Mean Street Posse then head from the back. They, like Kaientai are upset for not being in the match. The Posse go right after Faarooq which allows The Boss Man to throw Faarooq over the top and out of here. Once again we’re down to 6 men. Bulldog and Gangrel double team Crash which Boss Man goes to work on Edge. #19 is The Road Dogg who goes after Test. Road Dogg eliminated Gangrel last year, as well as Al Snow and Edge. Edge and Gangrel go at it as Boss Man nearly eliminates Crash.

#20 is Al Snow so all three of the men Road Dogg eliminated last year are now in the ring. Road Dogg eliminates The British Bulldog. Al Snow and Edge go at it. Boss Man stomps away at Gangrel who has no chance of winning, no offence. Boss Man has been in there the longest. Edge hits a cross body on the Boss Man. #21 is Val Venis who gets right into it with Test. Val is looking to eliminate somebody for the first time despite being in his second Rumble. Funaki is back but gets quickly thrown back out. Taka has been taken a local hospital. Road Dogg is now hiding under a bottom rope. Venis and Edge try to eliminate Al Snow. #22 is Prince Albert making his Rumble debut. Val Venis and Al Snow back body drop Edge out of there. Albert and The Boss Man get into it, they’ve recently parted ways from one another. Test stomps at Road Dogg. Val has Al Snow on the top rope. Gangrel and Test go at it. #23 is Hardcore Holly fresh from his Intercontinental title match. Holly made his first Royal Rumble appearance in 1994, replacing the injured 123 Kid. We’ll see the Kid in the number 30 spot. Albert goes to work on Val Venis whilst Snow tries to eliminate Crash. Gangrel has Test on the top rope whilst Boss Man chokes Road Dogg on the bottom rope.

#24 is The Rock who joins Boss Man, Albert, Val Venis, Test, The Holly Cousins, Al Snow, Gangrel and The Road Dogg. The Rock comes in like a house on fire and eliminates The Big Boss Man, making short work of him. Test and Val Venis then go to work on The Rock. Hardcore Holly then hammers away at The Rock. Lots of people have taken offence to The Rock calling them all jabroni’s. The Rock’s best finish previously was in 1998 when he was runner up to Steve Austin. Test hits a powerbomb on Crash. #25 is Billy Gunn who goes after The Rock. They had a match at Summerslam last year. The Rock hits a DDT on Crash Holly and then eliminates him from the match. Gangrel and Test are once again paired up. Al Snow chokes The Road Dogg who is still hugging the bottom rope. #26 is The Big Show and business picks up. The Rock goes right for The Big Show. But Show shoves him away and eliminates both Test and Gangrel. The Road Dogg has now been in there the longest. He came in at #19 but now #27 is Bradshaw. The Posse then come back out but Bradshaw throws all three of then out of there. The Outlaws then eliminate Bradshaw. Faarooq re-appears and The Acolytes fight with The Posse in the entrance way. Al Snow stomps away at The Rock. There are three men to come out and I think I can guess who they are.

#28 is Kane who joins Big Show, The Rock, Val Venis, Albert, Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, Al Snow and Hardcore Holly. Val Venis meets Kane but Kane with one arm throws him out of the ring. The Rock then goes after Kane as Big Shoe goes for Hardcore Holly. #29 is The Godfather who gets a decent pop. And he comes out with his hoes! Kane eliminates Albert. Hardcore takes it to The Rock. And Funaki is back! But Al Snow throws him out again. Funockers as Jim Ross accidentally calls him. He must be paying too much attention to the hoes. Big Show chokes The Godfather as #30 X Pac makes his entrance. Al Snow eliminates Hardcore Holly. Big Show eliminates The Godfather and The Rock eliminates Al Snow. So we’re down to 6. Billy Gunn eliminates The Road Dogg and Kane eliminates Billy Gunn. We’re down to Kane, X Pac, Big Show and The Rock. The Rock eliminates X Pac. But X Pac is back in because the referees didn’t see it. Could we have enough Austin 1997 situation tonight? Kane hits a big boot on The Rock. X Pac hits a spinning heel kick on The Rock. Kane hits an enzeguri on Big Show and then a big powerslam! X Pac then hits a spinning heel kick and eliminates Kane.

X Pac hits a bronco buster on The Rock but then Big Show throws X Pac out of there. We’re down to just The Rock and The Big Show. The Rock hits a spinebuster and the crowd are lapping it up. The Rock then hits the People’s Elbow on Big Show! But Show hits a chokeslam on Rocky. Big Show scoops The Rock up on his shoulder and runs him over to the ropes but The Rock grabs the top rope and Big Show goes flying over the top and The Rock wins! The Rock is going to Wrestlemania! Could we see the most fought match in PPV history, The Rock vs. Triple H, again? The Rock celebrates his first Royal Rumble win. He gets on the mic after the bell and says that finally he is going to Wrestlemania. The Big Show then comes back and throws The Rock over the top.

Rating: 7.5/10

Wow, what a show that was. From top to bottom, the pay per view was really entertaining. Tazz and Kurt Angle’s opener really got the crowd going and the former ECW superstar gave Angle his first loss in the WWF. Although it looks like Angle will dispute the loss because of an “illegal” choke used. It looks like that storyline is set to continue. The crowd were hot for this match, especially because it was in New York, where Tazz is not just from himself but where he has been making a living during his tenure with ECW.

The tables match was fantastic too and vastly under-rated. There were two completely different styles in this match but the pace was fast and it was action packed. I was surprised the Dudley Boyz lost in their trademark match though, maybe a push is in order for Matt and Jeff. I could definitely see them going on to feud with the Outlaws at the next PPV. The Outlaws retained their titles over The Acolytes in a quick, almost rushed match. I’m guessing they were running over time at this point and needed to get through this match quickly. There wasn’t a lot of build so you didn’t feel too robbed. Definitely the weakest match of the night.

Chris Jericho beat Chyna and Hardcore Holly to usher in his first proper reign as Intercontinental champion. Definitely the right result, I look forward to this reign as he’s a perfect fit for the title. Hardcore Holly will bounce back and potentially feud with Jericho going forward but I’m not sure where this leaves Chyna. Triple H beat Cactus Jack to retain his WWF title in a brilliant match. So much better than I remember. There have been a lot of NoDq type matches over the past couple of years and they’ve somewhat saturated them but this was the exception to the rule and it was probably Triple H’s greatest match up to now. Helmsley retains though and looks to go up against The Rock at Wrestlemania 2000.

I’ll gloss over the Miss Rumble competition. It was great to watch as a 15 year old and full of hot women but damn, Mae. The Rock won an entertaining Royal Rumble match. Unsurprisingly, it came down to The Rock, Big Show, Kane and X Pac. They were the only four men in with a shot of winning. X Pac was eliminated but came back in and eliminated Kane, fuelling their feud which I think will go all the way to Wrestlemania. We had a great moment with Rikishi and Too Cool dancing, a moment that will go down in Royal Rumble history. Test and Boss Man also had a great showing in the Rumble, being the two men that lasted the longest. I’m led to believe that The Acolytes, New Age Outlaws, Chyna, Jericho, Hardcore Holly, and Bob Backlund replaced Mark Henry, Kaientai, The Mean Street Posse, Mideon and Thrasher in the match. Overall a brilliant PPV and one that I recommend everybody to go and watch.

Overall Rating: 68.75/100 (ranked 3rd out of 105)

Match Of The Night: Triple H vs. Cactus Jack
Worst Match Of The Night: The New Age Outlaws vs. The Acolytes
Surprise Of The Night: Tazz debuts in the WWF
Worst Booking Of The Night: The Dudley Boyz beat The Hardy Boyz
Superstar Of The Night: The Rock/Triple H
Royal Rumble 2000 Will Be Remembered For: The epic street fight for the WWF title