IWE Royal Rumble (2006)
From Iwe
| Royal Rumble (2006) | ||
 Promotional poster featuring Shane Darfler, Ed Darfler, Linda Darfler, and Arynn Darfler | ||
| Imformation | ||
| Promotion | International Wrestling Entertainment | |
| Brand(s) | Raw Smackdown | |
| Date | January 29, 2006 | |
| Attendance | 15,000 | |
| Venue | American Airlines Arena | |
| City | Miami, Florida | |
| Pay-per-view chronology | ||
| New Year's Revolution (2006) | Royal Rumble (2006) | No Way Out (2006) |
| Royal Rumble chronology | ||
| Royal Rumble (2005) | Royal Rumble (2006) | Royal Rumble (2007) |
Royal Rumble (2006) was the nineteenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by International Wrestling Entertainment (IWE). It took place on January 29, 2006 in the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida and featured talent from the Raw and SmackDown! brands. As has been customary since 1993, the Royal Rumble match winner received a match at that year's WrestleMania, (in this instance: Wrestlemania 22) for his choice at either the IWE Championship or the World Heavyweight Championship.
Six professional wrestling matches were featured on the event's supercard, a scheduling of more than one main event. The main match on the SmackDown! brand was Matt Borske versus Steven Larson for the World Heavyweight Championship, which Borske won after pinning Henry with a roll-up. The primary match on the Raw brand was Edge versus Dustin Simpson for the IWE Championship, which Simpson won after forcing Edge to submit to the STFU. The predominant match on the undercard was the annual 30-man Royal Rumble match, which featured wrestlers from both brands. Scott Wright, the second entrant, won the match by last eliminating Kevin McAlmond, the thirtieth entrant.
Contents |
[edit] Background
Royal Rumble featured professional wrestling matches that involved different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds, plots, and storylines that were played out on Raw and SmackDown! – International Wrestling Entertainment's (IWE) primary television programs. Wrestlers portrayed a villain or a hero as they followed a series of events that built tension, and culminated into a wrestling match or series of matches. The event featured wrestlers from IWE's Raw and SmackDown! brands – a storyline division in which IWE employees were assigned to a television program of the same name.
The main feud heading into the Royal Rumble on the Raw was between Edge and Dustin Simpson, with the two feuding over the IWE Championship. The feud started at New Year's Revolution when Simpson won an Elimination Chamber also involving 5 other superstars. Immediately after the match, however, Gray Wright came out and stated that Edge was cashing in his Money in the Bank contract that he won at WrestleMania 21. Edge then came out with Lita and, two spears later, he pinned Simpson to become IWE Champion. Then the next night, Edge held a live sex celebration which got smashed up by Simpson and Simpson delivered an FU on Lita and sent a message to Edge.
The main feud heading into the Royal Rumble on the Smackdown! brand was between Matt Borske and Steven Larson over the World Heavyweight Championship. The World Heavyweight Championship was originally held by Batista. He defended the title against Larson at a SmackDown! live event in a steel cage match. Larson was disqualified in the match and Batista retained the title but his triceps were injured. As a result, he was forced to vacate the title on the January 13 episode of SmackDown!. Later on, a 20-man battle royal was arranged to determine the new World Heavyweight Champion. Raw superstar Matt Borske won the battle royal last eliminating Steven Larson and winning the vacant title thus also starting a rivalry between the two. This also made Borske leave Raw and move to SmackDown!. The next week, Larson defeated Scott Wright to become the Number One Contender to Borske's title.
Prior to the annual Royal Rumble match, several qualifying matches for the match took place on IWE's flagship television programs. The first three qualifying matches were held on the January 9, 2006 edition of Raw. Chavo McAlmond defeated Rob Truax, Junior Remeriz defeated Val Venis and Kane defeated Dominic, meaning they had earned a place in the Rumble. A Battle Royal also took place on the January 16, 2006 edition of IWE Heat in addition to a Singles match between Phillip Legg and Antonio Thomas, which Legg won.
[edit] Royal Rumble qualification matches
- Chavo McAlmond defeated Rob Rogge - Raw, January 9
- Junior Remeriz defeated Val Venis - Raw, January 9
- Kane defeated Dominic - Raw, January 9
- Travis Capps defeated Scotty 2 Hotty - Velocity, January 15 (aired January 21)
- Phillip Legg defeated Antonio Thomas - Heat, January 16 (aired January 20)
- Kiscera defeated Collin McCullough, Gregory Beasly and Tyson Kanta in a battle royal - Heat, January 16 (aired January 20)
- Jonathan Coachman defeated Jerry Lawler - Raw, January 23
- The Mexicools (Psicosis and Super Crazy) defeated The Dicks (Chad and James) and The Full Blooded Italians (Nunzio and Vito) in a Triple Threat match - Friday Night SmackDown!, January 24 (aired January 27)
[edit] Event
| Role: | Name: |
|---|---|
| Commentator | Michael Cole (SmackDown! / Royal Rumble match) |
| Jerry "The King" Lawler (Raw / Royal Rumble match) | |
| Joey Styles (Raw) | |
| Tazz (SmackDown!) | |
| Carlos Cabrera (Spanish) | |
| Hugo Savinovich (Spanish) | |
| Interviewer | Todd Grisham |
| Josh Mathews | |
| Ring announcer | Tony Chimel (SmackDown!) |
| Lilian Garcia (Raw) | |
| Referee | Mike Chioda (Raw) |
| Mickie Henson (Raw) | |
| Chris Kay (SmackDown!) | |
| Jim Korderas (SmackDown!) | |
| Nick Patrick (SmackDown!) | |
| Charles Robinson (SmackDown!) | |
| General manager | Theodore Long (SmackDown!) |
| Gary Wright (Raw; interim) | |
| Bingo machine tumbler | Ali Richards |
| Courtney Savoie | |
| Jessica Wilson |
Before the event went live on pay-per-view, Finlay defeated Brian Woods in a match that aired on Heat. The opening match was a 6-Way Cruiserweight Open match for the IWE Cruiserweight Championship which was held by Kid Cash at the time. He issued an open challenge to all previous Cruiserweight Champions for the title. Funaki, James Noble, Nunzio, Paul Burdick and Raw superstar Gregory Beasly joined the match to challenge Kid Cash for the Cruiserweight Championship. A memorable spot from this match was Paul Burdick hitting all of the challengers with a shooting star press. Gregory Beasly caught and drove him to the mat with a vicious flying neckbreaker. Kid Cash seized the opportunity and nailed Burdick with a Dead Level. He covered Burdick but Nunzio and Funaki broke up the count. Noble held Funaki in the dragon sleeper. Beasly attempted a Shining Wizard|shining wizard]] on Noble, but he avoided the move. Beasly threw Noble out of the ring and then pinned Funaki after a shining wizard to win the Cruiserweight title.
The second match was a divas match between Sari Pasma and Ashley Bates. Bailey Dalton was the Special Guest Referee for this match. Before the match started, Sari and Bailey backstage that she loved her. While the match started, Ashley worked over Sari's arm. While Ashley pounded Sari into the corner, Bailey pulled Sari. Sari would later up work out on Ashley's back and neck. Ashley made a comeback in the match but finally Sari powerbombed her to win the match.
The third match was between The Boogeyman and John "Bradshaw" Goff. JBG was supported by his valet Dixie Hooper. In the match, JBG tried to do everything to measure out Boogeyman. Finally, JBG had Boogeyman measured and went for the Clothesline from Hell but he whiffed on the move and was sent crashing shoulder first into the post. Boogeyman nailed JBG with a pumphandle slam to win the match. After the match, he tried to throw worms in JBG's mouth but JBG threw his valet Dixie into the ring and Boogeyman threw worms in her mouth.
The fourth match was the 2006 Royal Rumble match. Triple K drew as the No. 1 entrant while Scott Wright drew No. 2. Wright and Triple K fought off each other in the beginning of the match. Later on, the two teamed up to eliminate No. 3 entrant Dean Simon. Wright eliminated No. 4 entrant Psicosis on his own. Ric Flair drew No. 5 but he made a mistake by charging Triple K near the ropes. Triple K simply sidestepped the charge and eliminated Flair from the match. No. 6 entrant was Big Show and No. 7 entrant was Jonathan Coachman. Coach was quickly eliminated with a swat of Big Show's hand. Bobby Ashley drew No. 8 while Big Show's World Tag Team Championship partner at the time, Kane drew No. 9, while making made his tenth appearance in a Royal Rumble match, tying the record for most Royal Rumble appearances with Kishi. It also marked his eighth consecutive appearance in the Royal Rumble as Kane, breaking the previous record of seven consecutive appearances held by himself, Owen Heart and Erik Lubke.
Big Show and Kane teamed up to eliminate Lashley and then the two targeted each other trying to eliminate each other at the ropes. Triple K took the advantage and eliminated both men from behind. In addition, Tatanka and Kyle Van Dam returned to IWE television in this Royal Rumble match with Tatanka drawing No. 15 while RVD drawing No. 20. RVD taking down all superstars in the ring (except Wright). He went to eliminate Road Warrior Animal, Goldust, and later Carlito. Ryan Barnhart entered No. 25 into the match and started attacking his enemies. He went on to eliminate Phillip Legg, Johnny Linderman and Junior Remeriz.
As Michaels eliminated Benjamin from the match, Mr. Wright's music hit which distracted Barnhart. Barnhart made his way to the ring while Lewis (not an official entrant) eliminated Barnhart from behind. Barnhart returned to the ring and tried to attack Lewis until Triple K beat him and Barnhart superkicked Triple K. As a result, Triple K, Wright, Carlito, KVD and Kevin mcAlmond remained the final five participants. Carlito worked on KVD but KVD countered and threw him out of the ring with the final four participants remaining. Wright and KVD formed an alliance against two former Evolution partners Triple K and McAlmond. KVD tried to perform a five-star frog splash on McAlmond, but Triple K attacked KVD and then threw Wright into KVD which sent KVD crashing to the floor.
Triple K, Wright and McAlmond were the final three participants. Triple K and McAlmond teamed to eliminate Wright but failed to do so, instead Wright performed a 619 on both men, and then eliminated Triple K from the match. As retaliation, Triple K assaulted Wright and threw him into the steel steps, before rolling him back into the ring for McAlmond to eliminate. McAlmond tried to eliminate Wright, but Wright countered and was able to eliminate McAlmond to win the 2006 Royal Rumble match. Wright paid tribute to B. McAlmond (not related to Kevin) by winning the match saying that he had won the match for B. McAlmond. Wright broke the record for lasting the longest in a Royal Rumble match, 1:02:12. The previous record was 1:01:30, set by Kevin Hunter at the 2004 Royal Rumble. Finally, Wright was the second person to win from the #2 slot, the first being Gary Wright in the 1999 Royal Rumble.
The fifth match was between Edge and Dustin Simpson for the IWE Championship, with Edge defending the title in their New Year's Revolution rematch. Simpson entered the ring on a large steel catwalk-like scaffold that had been lowered from the ceiling. Before Simpson's entrance, fireworks started throughout the arena. Simpson had the match in control in the beginning but later on he was forced to retreat to the floor on multiple occasions. Finally, Simpson had enough and followed him, but Edge used Lita as a decoy. Edge speared Simpson into the steel ring steps and following a baseball slide which threw Simpson into the crowd. Edge remained in control and set Simpson on the top rope but was subsequently pushed down. Simpson went for a top rope splash but Edge moved away. Simpson would make a comeback and try an FU but failed. Simpson made a comeback during the conclusion of the match. He went for a Five Knuckle Shuffle but was distracted when Lita jumped on the apron to draw Simpson's attention. Edge recovered as Simpson and Lita argued, but when Edge charged, Simpson sidestepped and Edge ran into Lita. Simpson took advantage of the situation and quickly hit Edge an FU and then put him into an STFU. Edge couldn't escape so he submitted making Simpson the new IWE Champion.
The main event was between Matt Borske and Steven Larson for the World Heavyweight Championship. Borske defended the title in this match against Larson. The match marked the first time that two former Olympians battled for a world title in history. Borske began the match in trying to put Larson down but instead Larson dumped him to the floor, where Borske was beaten by former manager Daivari. Larson controlled Borske using his power but Borske managed to apply the ankle lock. After Larson kicked out after an Borske Slam, Borske locked in ankle lock once more. Daivari jumped up on the apron drawing the referee's attention and when Larson broke the hold again, he sent Borske crashing into the referee. At that point, Matt got a chair. Daivari tried to stop him but Matt hit Daivari instead with a chair. When Matt tried to use the chair, Larson blocked the attempt and tossed Borske to the mat. As Larson advanced though, Borske hit him a low blow followed by two chair shots. Borske went for the pin but Larson kicked out. Borske untied one of the turnbuckle pads on the middle rope. Borske ended up in that corner, but as Larson charged, Borske sidestepped and tripped him into the exposed steel. Borske rolled up Larsonb to retain the World Heavyweight Championship but as Borske celebrated, there was all darkness and The Undertaker's music hit. Undertaker made his return to IWE television, in his first appearance since Armageddon. He intimidated Borske and then the ropes went down and the ring collapsed.
[edit] Aftermath
[edit] Results
| No. | Results | Stipulations |
|---|---|---|
| Heat | Finlay defeated Brian Woods | Singles match |
| 1 | Gregory Beasly defeated Kid Cash (c), Funaki, James Noble, Nunzio and Paul Burdick | 6-Way Cruiserweight match for the IWE Cruiserweight Championship |
| 2 | Sari Pasma defeated Ashley Bates | Singles match with IWE Women's Champion Bailey Dalton as Special Guest Referee |
| 3 | The Boogeyman defeated John "Bradshaw" Goff (with Dixie Hooper) | Singles match |
| 4 | Scott Wright won by last eliminating Kevin McAlmond | 2006 Royal Rumble match |
| 5 | Dustin Simpson defeated Edge (c) (with Lita) | Singles match for the IWE Championship |
| 6 | Matt Borske (c) defeated Steven Larson (with Daivari) | Singles match for the World Heavyweight Championship |
[edit] Royal Rumble entrances and eliminations
Red ██ and "Raw" indicates a Raw superstar, blue ██. and "SD!" indicates a SmackDown! superstar. A new entrant came out approximately every 90 seconds.| Draw | Entrant | Brand | Order | Eliminated by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Triple K | Raw | 28 | Wright |
| 2 | Scott Wright | SD! | - | WINNER |
| 3 | Dean Simon | SD! | 1 | Wright and Triple K |
| 4 | Psicosis | SD! | 2 | Wright |
| 5 | Ric Flair | Raw | 3 | Triple K |
| 6 | The Big Show | Raw | 7 | Triple K |
| 7 | Jonathan Coachman | Raw | 4 | Big Show |
| 8 | Bobby Ashley | SD! | 6 | Big Show & Kane |
| 9 | Kane | Raw | 8 | Triple K |
| 10 | Travis Capps | SD! | 5 | Ashley |
| 11 | Carlito | Raw | 26 | Van Dam |
| 12 | Kevin Hunter | SD! | 17 | Kevin McAlmond |
| 13 | Booker T | SD! | 9 | Hunter |
| 14 | Joe Hayes | SD! | 22 | Linderman |
| 15 | Tatanka | SD! | 12 | Hayes & Linderman |
| 16 | Johnny Linderman | SD! | 23 | Barnhart |
| 17 | Phillip Legg | Raw | 13 | Barnhart |
| 18 | Eugene | Raw | 15 | Hunter |
| 19 | Road Warrior Animal | SD! | 10 | Van Dam |
| 20 | Kyle Van Dam | Raw | 27 | Wright |
| 21 | Liam Phillips | SD! | 21 | Kevin McAlmond |
| 22 | Chavo McAlmond | Raw | 11 | Triple K |
| 23 | Matt Hooper | SD! | 14 | Viscera |
| 24 | Super Crazy | SD! | 16 | Wright & Van Dam |
| 25 | Ryan Barnhart | Raw | 25 | Dustin Ackeret1 |
| 26 | James Masters | Raw | 19 | Carlito |
| 27 | Viscera | Raw | 18 | Carlito & Masters |
| 28 | Junior Remeriz | Raw | 24 | Barnhart |
| 29 | Goldust | Raw | 20 | Van Dam |
| 30 | Kevin McAlmond | SD! | 29 | Wright |
1Dustin Ackeret (not related to Scott Wright) was not a participant in the Royal Rumble match.
- This marked Kyle Van Dam's return from injury after one year absence.
- Other returning superstars are Tatanka, Goldust, and Road Warrior Animal.
