Royal Rumble 1996: Shawn Michaels Wins Again, Steve Austin Slips Out, and WWF Starts Changing

Ahmed Johnson and Jeff Jarrett begin with enough energy to suggest the opener might escape the limitations of their program. Ahmed throws Jarrett around, hits a surprisingly athletic dive over the top rope and keeps the Fresno crowd invested through sheer force. Jarrett wisely changes the pace once Ahmed misses from the top and starts attacking the leg.

That leg work gives the match its only real structure. Jarrett uses the Figure Four and repeatedly returns to the knee, while Ahmed sells just enough to make a comeback plausible without making Jarrett look harmless. Then Jarrett grabs the guitar, comes off the top and smashes it over Ahmed's head directly in front of the referee.

D- / 4.4 reflects a weak match with a loud ending rather than a complete contest. TJR gives it 1.25 stars and Leighty gives it 1.5, both criticizing the disqualification. The audience likes Ahmed and Jarrett understands how to work around his power, but six minutes is not enough time to make the leg story matter before the finish abandons it.

The guitar shot becomes more historically interesting than the match because Jarrett will eventually turn that image into a defining part of his wrestling identity. Here it is still a shortcut. The company wants Ahmed protected and Jarrett protected, so the guitar protects neither the match nor the audience from another disqualification.

The Smoking Gunns and Bodydonnas have the kind of match that earns respect without inspiring a rewatch. Skip and Zip work like an actual team, using blind tags, quick double-team offense and Sunny's distractions to isolate Billy Gunn. Billy and Bart answer with power and several unexpectedly athletic floor sequences. The ingredients are good enough that the division briefly looks deeper than its reputation.

Sunny is used constantly but usually with purpose. Her distraction helps the Bodydonnas take control, and Billy checking on her after an accidental collision adds another wrinkle that will matter later. The champions eventually reach the hot tag and the match accelerates into the familiar four-man scramble.

The finish is the weakest part. Billy breaks up a double suplex and Bart falls into an inside cradle for the pin, but the execution looks awkward enough that the conclusion feels accidental even though it is planned. Both TJR and Leighty make essentially the same complaint.

C / 6.2 reflects competent tag wrestling with some good teamwork and a flat ending. TJR gives it 2.5 stars, Leighty gives it two, and neither treats it as a hidden classic. WrestleFile lands slightly above pure mediocrity because the Bodydonnas' teamwork is useful and the match maintains a coherent pace.

There is no major historical consequence beyond the champions retaining and Sunny continuing to become the most noticeable person in the act. Sometimes a pay-per-view needs a competent tag match. This is one, and little more.

Goldust against Razor Ramon is more successful as character advancement than as wrestling. The early minutes are devoted almost entirely to Goldust making Razor uncomfortable, retreating behind Marlena and provoking him into increasingly angry responses. The material establishes exactly what makes Goldust unusual in 1996, but it also stops the match from developing rhythm.

Once the wrestling becomes more conventional, the quality improves. Goldust works the back after sending Razor into the steps, hits the slingshot suplex and neckbreaker, and Razor's comeback brings the crowd back into the match. Razor lands the chokeslam and fallaway slam, then catches Goldust on the top rope for a big belly-to-back superplex.

The finish extends two programs at once. Marlena distracts the referee, 1-2-3 Kid arrives from the crowd and nails Razor with a spinning heel kick, and Goldust gets the pin to become Intercontinental Champion. The title change is correct for Goldust's momentum and also gives Razor another reason to chase Kid.

C+ / 6.5 reflects an important title change inside an uneven match. TJR gives it two stars and Leighty 2.25, while both acknowledge that moving the championship to Goldust makes sense. WrestleFile is more generous because the character work has a clear purpose and the closing wrestling is competent, but the first half remains too dependent on stalling.

Marlena's presentation also matters. Goldust is no longer just a strange singles act wandering through the midcard. The entrance, director's chair, cigar and championship create an entire visual world around him. The match is average. The act is becoming major.

The 1996 Royal Rumble has a star-power problem that becomes obvious long before Shawn Michaels enters. Hunter Hearst Helmsley begins at No. 1 and lasts more than forty-eight minutes, but the early stretch fills with Bob Backlund, Jerry Lawler, Bob Holly, Mabel, Dory Funk Jr. and other wrestlers who are not plausible WrestleMania title challengers. The ring fills faster than the eliminations arrive, leaving too many men leaning on ropes and waiting for something important to happen.

Vader finally changes the match at No. 13. He attacks with urgency, throws out multiple wrestlers and creates an immediate confrontation with Yokozuna. Michaels arrives at No. 18, eliminates both giants during their fight and then dumps 1-2-3 Kid. Vader responds by returning to the ring and attacking everyone after his own elimination, which is the strongest debut presentation on the show.

The middle contains several historical curiosities. Jerry Lawler hides under the ring for nearly half an hour. Jake Roberts returns and gets a genuine reaction with the snake. The Ringmaster Steve Austin enters at No. 24, eliminates Bob Holly, brawls with Diesel and mocks Michaels. Austin then unexpectedly falls to the floor during a spot with Fatu. Austin later explained that he was intended to remain until roughly the final four but slipped because the ropes were slick with baby oil.

The ending is efficient to the point of disappointment. Shawn, Diesel, British Bulldog and Kama become the final four, then Shawn dumps Bulldog, Diesel eliminates Kama and Michaels superkicks Diesel over the top almost immediately. Michaels wins back-to-back Rumbles, but the final stage never gets enough time to create doubt.

C+ / 6.9 reflects an average Rumble with exceptional historical density. TJR gives it 2.5 stars, Leighty 2.25, and Cagematch audience voting sits near 5.4 out of 10. Historical Observer lists are more generous around 3.25 stars. WrestleFile lands between those positions because the match is slow and predictable while still containing Vader, Austin, Hunter's endurance run and the Shawn-Diesel finish.

The result is unquestionably correct. The journey is the issue. WWF has thirty positions to fill and perhaps five wrestlers the audience can seriously imagine winning. Michaels survives the clutter, but the match never transforms inevitability into suspense.

Bret Hart and Undertaker need nearly ten minutes to discover the match they should have been wrestling from the start. Undertaker controls the opening with slow strikes, chokes and a smothering claw that drains energy from the crowd. Bret eventually sends him outside, and the match changes when Undertaker crashes knee-first into the steps.

Bret immediately becomes the technician rather than the friendly champion. He kicks the damaged leg, wraps it around the post, applies the Figure Four and repeatedly returns to the knee whenever Undertaker tries to stand. The crowd begins splitting between them, with Undertaker supporters booing Bret's increasingly ruthless strategy. That reaction is more interesting than anything in the opening minutes because both men finally have something to fight over besides general respect.

Undertaker responds with his own shortcuts. He chokes Bret with a camera cable while Paul Bearer occupies the referee and uses a chair on the injured area. Bret still returns to the leg, which later causes Undertaker's knee to buckle during a Tombstone attempt. The match has become a genuinely smart struggle by this point, with each man's signature offense altered by the damage already done.

The final stretch is excellent until the finish. Bret removes the turnbuckle pad and Undertaker's protective mask, drives him into the exposed steel and gets caught attempting another attack. Undertaker hits the Tombstone and appears to have the championship won. Diesel runs down and pulls Earl Hebner out of the ring, forcing the disqualification.

B / 7.8 makes this WrestleFile's Match of the Night. TJR is harsher at 2.5 stars, Leighty gives it three, Rated R Reviews gives it 3.5 and argues that the styles complement each other better than the match's reputation suggests. Historical Observer lists commonly show four stars. The range makes sense because the match depends heavily on tolerance for the slow opening and the non-finish.

The disqualification keeps Bret champion, gives Undertaker an official victory and turns Diesel fully against a beloved opponent. It also means twenty-eight minutes end without either wrestler proving he can defeat the other. The match is good enough to survive that decision. The show is not good enough to make the audience forgive it.