Battle Royals

This video is a tribute to battle royals in their various forms over the years in six different countries. Traditional battle royals and gauntlet-style rumbles; competitions for titles and title shots; battles for big purses or glory. The battle royal has a legacy that dates back to before professional wrestling. As pro-wrestling shifted toward being more showy and less realistic, special attraction matches like the battle royal became popular. The match was transformed in the 1960s in Hawaii when it was promoted as having a entry fee which was part of a sizable cash prize. This concept was brought to California with great success in both San Francisco and Los Angeles. Wrestler Pat Patterson took part in many of them and he introduced the concept to the WWF in the 1980s with the Royal Rumble. This match was masterfully booked to debut new talent, bring back former talent, build up monsters, create feuds and establish challengers for the top title. 

The opening part reel is a 1937 battle royal from Florida. 

“Radetzky March Op. 228” by Johan Strauss I 

Gordon Solie*, Bruiser Brody entering the 1980 All Japan battle royal; a World Class battle royal; entrants for All Japan’s New Year’s battle royal; Buddy Rose* BG James comes to the ring; Dirty White Boy*; Bushwackers; Moondog Mayne talks about the upcoming Cow Palace battle royal; a luchadors battle royal in WCW with Juventud Guerrera, Damien 666, Lizmark Jr, Super Calo, Villano IV & V; clip from a Los Angeles Olympic battle royal; a WCW Thunder battle royal; a Portland battle royal; WWC’s Bronca Boricua from 1989; Giant Baba eyes in opponents; the ring fills up for a WWC battle royal; Cibernetico rushes in for a Pena Cup battle royal; Andre dumps Chris Taylor in a Detroit 2-ring battle royal; Jacques Rougeau tries to eliminate Kamala; a battle royal for the AWA title; WWC battle royal; Tony Atlas with the classic corner non-elimination; Jim Duggan low bridges the One Man Gang to win the first Royal Rumble; Baron Von Raschke eye pokes Road Warrior Animal; Demolition goes to war; Billy Robinson and company pin Baba

“An der schönen, blauen Donau” (Blue Danube) by Johan Strauss II 

clip of the LA battle royal; Hector Garza dropkicks Silver King out; Ricky Steamboat and Rick Rude eliminate one another; Gorgeous George Jr. jumps and dumps Ron Fuller; Jerry Blackwell & King Kong Bundy send Nick Bockwinkel & Masa Saito out in an AWA tag team battle royal; Larry Zbyszko sends out Tom Zenk to win the AWA title; David Von Erich high knees Jimmy Garvin; Andre the Giant flings John Tolos over the top; Rey Mysterio head scissors Psychosis out; The Giant does a one-handed toss of Mystery; Bret Hart and Lex Luger’s double elimination Rumble finale; Ric Flair uses a bat to eliminate Shane Douglas; Silver King sends La Parka (Jr.) out; Hulk Hogan chases Bobby Heenan out of the ring; Steve Grey backdrops Bobby Barnes out; Yokozuna sends Owen Hart out; Tatsumi Fujinami moves a Dick Murdoch wipes out Andre in a New Japan battle royal; Lanny Poffo in his suit of armor; Andre fends off Ken Patera, Bobby Duncum & Nick Bockwinkel; Chris Jericho’s nosedive 

“Requiem Dies Irae” by Giuseppe Verdi 

All Japan battle royal intro; Goldberg-Undertaker staredown, Sting eliminates Luger in the first Battlebowl; AAA’s masked time keeper; Jeff Jarrett starts off the “Gauntlet for the Gold” by interrupting Toby Keith; AJ Styles’ WWE debut; Hulk Hogan boots Knobs out; Curt Hennig eliminates Jerry Lawler; Rock launches X-Pac; El Dandy goes out; Bad News Browns pulls out Roddy Piper (Jesse Ventura*); Jimmy Valiant decks Danny Davis; Brock Lesnar F-5s Matt Hardy out; Luger presses Syxx onto Scott Hall; the first showdown between Hogan and the Warrior; Mysterio head scissors Randy Orton out; Kane chokeslams Sabu through a table; Akira Taue & Yoshinari Ogawa crotch Masa Fuchi; Randy Savage sends Jeff Jarrett out; Scott Anthony (Raven) bodyblocks Scott Irwin; Kane heaves Road Dogg; Undertaker chokeslam Goldust out; Jeff Hardy’s Poetry in Motion on the Undertaker backfires; Batista ambushes Shawn Michaels; Stan Hansen & Giant Baba team up on Abdullah the Butcher; Andre jumps out as Jake Roberts brings out Damian as Michaels, Butch, Greg Valentine, Ron Bass & Hennig look on; Brute Bernard goes out to avoid Bobo Brazil; Hogan eliminates both the Brainbusters; the Big Show KOs CM Punk; Andre defeats Bugsy McGraw in a Bodyslam Battle Royal; Jeff Jarrett awaits his next opponent; Hogan catapults Hennig out; the Mountie backdrops Koko B. Ware; the LOD double clothesline the Undertaker 

“Auf Dem Wasser Zu Singen D. 774” by Franz Schubert (arranged for piano by Franz Liszt) 

John Cena sends out Punk; Ken Shamrock wins the NWA title; the Killer Bees use their Mask Confusion and dropkick Bret Hart out; Ed Wiskowski returns to help Buddy Rose against the Sheepherders; Edge goes out; Psychosis sends Damien out; Mankind uses the Mandible Claw against Rocky Maivia; Steve Williams saves Johnny Ace and suplexes Misawa; the Hart Foundation eliminates Rick Martel; Hall decks Steven Regal; Junkyard Dog ; Cesaro slams Big Show out; Ron Starr backdrops Harley Race; Blackjack Mulligan wins Bunkhouse Battle Royal; Giant Haystacks wins; Andre the Giant wins; Bret Hart smashes Bad News’ trophy; Ric Flair* wins the 1992 Rumble and the WWF title