WWE Royal Rumble: Three winners of the main event WWE instantly regretted

WWE Royal Rumble: There have been instances when the WWE management instantly regretted handing the Royal Rumble wins. Let's look at those scenarios.

WWE Royal Rumble: The Royal Rumble main event is one of the most watched compared to the other dozen pay-per-view events. Fans anticipate it with greater excitement. However, there have been instances when WWE management instantly regretted handing the Royal Rumble wins to respective superstars. We look at the top four of them.

#3 Alberto del Rio - 2011

The then-newcomer shocked WWE fans after sending Santino Marella off the rope. The company's management was unsure of projecting the Mexican as the face of the Wrestling Mania main event, but they still went ahead and booked him as the winner of the Rumble. WWE made a swift U-turn with Alberto del Rio, thus giving him a World Heavyweight Championship bout against Edge from the smackdown.

Del Rio was being planned to face the WWE champion Miz in the Wrestlemania. However, in the run up to the main event, Vince McMahon decided to put John Cena against the Miz and the Mexican wrestler against Edge. It was a lost opportunity for WWE to do something better against Edge.

#2 Charlotte Flair - 2025

Imagine marking the return of a wrestler in a main event and instantly giving her the victory, disrespecting other wrestlers who managed to put in months of hard work to reach where they are. Yes, it sounds not so good, right, WWE did that with Charlotte Flair in the latest WWE Royal Rumble, thus ignoring other female wrestlers. All of this for their favorite wrestling child.

#1 Edge - 2021

Edge made a surprising return to the WWE Royal Rumble during the COVID-19 pandemic. It brought a smile to the otherwise worrying faces. The match was set for Edge to take on Roman Reigns and challenge the biggest championship reigns in the history of the business. But in the run-up, WWE betrayed Edge by making the Wrestlemania affair a three-man match where Edge, Roman Reigns, and Daniel Bryan fought. This didn't sit well with the Canadian wrestler, as he eventually left the company for AEW.