The Royal Rumble is rightfully famous for the Royal Rumble match, but WWE has produced some sensational WWE Championship bouts in the 2010s.
Whilst, the Royal Rumble match is the match that sells tickets for the Royal Rumble PPV itself, there have been some classic WWE Championship matches to have taken place in the 2010s.
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The picture on the road to WrestleMania becomes clearer with the Royal Rumble winner and WWE Champions decided. History was made in WWE Championship matches in this decade, and for the first time in 24 years, the WWE Championship was at stake in the Royal Rumble match. Without further ado, let's revisit every match with the biggest prize in the industry at stake in this decade, ranked from worst to best.
10 Sheamus Vs. Randy Orton - 2010
At TLC 2009, Sheamus upset John Cena in a tables match to become the new WWE Champion. The Celtic Warrior's first PPV title defense was against Randy Orton at the 2010 Royal Rumble.
The match lacked the quality required for a top-level WWE Championship match. Sheamus' title reign fell flat right from the start and not beating Orton cleanly to retain the title did not help matters either. The Viper was screwed by former Legacy stablemate Cody Rhodes, who assaulted Sheamus, which meant Sheamus retained the title by disqualification.
9 The Miz Vs. Randy Orton - 2011
The rivalry between The Miz and Randy Orton heated up when Miz cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase on Orton on the Raw after Survivor Series 2010 to become the WWE Champion for the first time. Miz wasn't booked strongly as WWE Champion but he managed to score some huge wins.
At the 2011 Royal Rumble, Miz's championship was at stake and Orton's performance was much better than his match with Sheamus the year prior. Unfortunately, Orton was screwed for the second year in succession as New Nexus leader CM Punk nailed the Viper with a GTS. The Awesome One took advantage and escaped with his title intact.
8 AJ Styles Vs. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn - 2018
For the first time in Royal Rumble history, the WWE Championship opened up proceedings at the 2018 Royal Rumble. AJ Styles had a stern challenge against Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn in a handicap match.
Sadly this match failed to live up to the expectations and Owens and Zayn had to tag in and out. While the Canadians dominated the affair, the Phenomenal One managed to hold his own. Nevertheless, Styles who was easily the standout superstar of 2018, retained the WWE Championship with a roll-up on Owens.
7 Randy Orton Vs. John Cena - 2014
The WWE World Heavyweight Championship clash between Randy Orton and John Cena at the 2014 Royal Rumble was a competitive affair but fans were disinterested. Fans were sick to the death of this match, and they chanted, "Daniel Bryan", and "Let's go Cena!, Cena sucks!"
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Orton saw the funny side of it by having a bit of banter with the crowd by reacting to them. Both men failed to defeat the other with their own finishing maneuvers and had to resort to using each others'. Nevertheless, Big Match John was closing in on another world title reign but the Wyatt Family emerged by standing on the ring apron. Therefore, the Viper capitalized by planting Cena with a devastating RKO to retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
6 CM Punk Vs. Dolph Ziggler - 2012
CM Punk's popularity was sky-high going into his WWE Championship encounter with Dolph Ziggler at the 2012 Royal Rumble. The Showoff earned some wins over Punk in non-title matches in the lead-up to the Royal Rumble.
Punk and Ziggler put on a solid match but it was overshadowed as the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and the interim Raw General Manager John Laurinaitis' job was under review. Therefore, Ziggler had to go alone as Vickie Guerrero and Jack Swagger were banned from ringside. Ultimately, the Second City Saint retained the WWE Championship in a fascinating contest with a GTS.
5 Daniel Bryan Vs. AJ Styles - 2019
On the Smackdown before Survivor Series 2018, Daniel Bryan ended AJ Styles' 371-day reign as WWE Champion to become a five-time World Champion. Bryan unexpectedly turned heel and Styles was hellbent on regaining the WWE Championship at the 2019 Royal Rumble.
Styles and Bryan displayed mat-based wrestling at the highest order in their encounter at the Rumble. They have great in-ring psychology which makes their matches exciting to watch. However, the Phenomenal One was closing in on his third WWE Championship until a returning Rowan interfered and flattened Styles. The "New" Daniel Bryan took advantage and pinned Styles in an outstanding match.
4 Royal Rumble Match - 2016
For the first time since the 1992 Royal Rumble, the WWE World Heavyweight Championship was on the line in a Royal Rumble match. That was the case at the 2016 Royal Rumble when Roman Reigns had to go the distance to retain his championship as the number one entrant.
RELATED: 10 Men's Royal Rumble Matches Of The 2010s, Ranked
It was an exciting Rumble match with AJ Styles making his WWE debut at number three. However, Triple H returned after Reigns beat up the Game badly a month prior, as the surprising 30th entrant. The roof was almost blown off the building when Triple H eliminated Reigns. A crestfallen Reigns looked in despair but a new champion was guaranteed. The Game and Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose went toe-to-toe with fans going crazy for Ambrose. Nonetheless, Triple H silenced the crowd by winning his 14th World Championship and second Royal Rumble match in the process.
3 CM Punk Vs. The Rock - 2013
CM Punk's historic 434-day reign as WWE Champion was under siege at the 2013 Royal Rumble. The Straight Edge Savior defended the title against The Rock, who warned the WWE Champion that he would challenge the champion at the Rumble. The People's Champion contested his first WWE Championship since SummerSlam 2002 when he lost the title to Brock Lesnar and was booed on his way to Hollywood.
It was not the greatest WWE Championship match by any stretch of the imagination but it had huge importance on deciding the WrestleMania 29 event. Nevertheless, Punk was unable to continue his lengthy reign as WWE Champion as The Rock became a 10-time World Champion, which was his first WWE Championship reign in over a decade.
2 Brock Lesnar Vs. John Cena Vs. Seth Rollins - 2015
Triple threat matches usually can become cluttered with too much going on. However, this encounter at the 2015 Royal Rumble pitted Brock Lesnar against John Cena and Seth Rollins it was unbelievably good. The Beast Incarnate's WWE World Heavyweight Championship was at stake, and he dominated the early proceedings of the match.
Rollins was Mr. Money in the Bank and he put Lesnar through the announce table, which ruled Lesnar out. Rollins and Cena went head-to-head and the Architect managed to kick out of Cena's Attitude Adjustment. Moreover, the match was faced-paced and Lesnar recovered by hitting a devastating F-5 on Rollins to remain as champion.
1 AJ Styles Vs. John Cena - 2017
Undoubtedly, the best WWE Championship match in the 2010s came at the 2017 Royal Rumble between AJ Styles and John Cena at the Alamodome. History was on the line as Big Match was bidding to join Ric Flair as a 16-time World Champion.
Styles had the upper hand on Cena with two huge victories at Money in the Bank and SummerSlam 2016. Furthermore, Styles and Cena had a hard-hitting back-and-forth contest with numerous kick-outs. The Cenation leader is not called Big Match John for nothing, and he pulled out tricks he had under his sleeve. Cena delivered a scintillating AA from the top rope which Styles somehow kicked out. Ultimately, Cena etched his name in wrestling legendary folklore as he planted two more AAs on Styles to become a 16-time World Champion.
