WWE Royal Rumble 2003: Top 5 Moments from a Historic Event

WWE presents the Royal Rumble in three weeks. The WWE universe is sure to be excited for the once-a-year event in St. Louis. The rest of the wrestling fans all around the world will be equally excited.

In doing so, I will take yet another stroll down memory lane. This time, we go back only nine years to a Rumble event that I actually enjoyed. It was nothing special, but it entertained me. Here are the top five moments!

Remember, it is just my opinion.

5. Two Matches in One Night

Brock Lesnar vs. Big Show began the evening. The winner entered the Royal Rumble match later on.

First of all, who even remembers this match taking place? Everybody remembers their match two months earlier, but this one? No thanks.

Lesnar finally got his win back and headed for the main event.

Yes, it told a story. Yes, it was cool to see Brock exact his only loss (at the time). Yes, both men worked hard. However, I still did not like it.

What if Lesnar got injured here? How would the Rumble go then? What if the crowd reacted poorly to Lesnar? Would any plans be changed quickly? What if something else happened to either man here? I just do not wish to see any man work twice in one night. Too many things can go wrong.

Thankfully, everything was fine in the end.

4. Look at Al

"Look at Al!"

"Look at DAWN!"

"LOOK AT AL!!!"

Torrie Wilson was feuding with Dawn Marie here. The reason? Dawn married Al Wilson, Torrie's father. Yes, this story was a trainwreck from the beginning.

Sadly, I loved the commentary on Smackdown so much that they made this entertaining. It is a shame that Tazz has never been as good as he was in 2003. Same could be said about Michael Cole...

Torrie defeated Dawn, as expected.

3. Dudleyz Win Tag Titles

This was a very underrated match. William Regal and Lance Storm defended their tag straps against the Dudleyz. It was not a "dream match" by any means, but I found myself interested.

The two teams had a nice back-and-forth battle, but the winner was never in doubt. The Dudleyz were going to win here no matter what.

They did. Their title reign may not have been very long, but this was a nice moment.

2. Scott Steiner in WWE?

Honestly, this match summed up Scott Steiner's time in WWE from 2002 through 2004.

It was tough to sit through.

Triple H is one of the all-time greats, but their match at the Royal Rumble was very rough. Most of the blame falls right on the big shoulders of Steiner. It is just my opinion, but his solo run in WWE was all but over before it even began.

Yes, he got a few more title matches. Yes, he stayed with WWE for another year, but he was never the same after this night. The fans saw right through him. Triple H and countless others just "outworked" him in every area each week.

From promos to wrestling skills to fan reaction to interest, Steiner was great in all of those places...until the Royal Rumble 2003.

1. Next Big Thing Arrives

Brock Lesnar had already been WWE Champion, but this was a major moment for him. A lot of men win the WWE title, but very few can claim to be a Royal Rumble winner.

Lesnar officially "arrived" with his win here. On the same night Undertaker returned, Lesnar shined in the 30-man Rumble match. On that subject, this was a very enjoyable main event.

It was nice to see Raw and Smackdown talent interact on this special occasion. Edge and Christian fought. Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy fought. Batista had a great showing. Even Maven tried to eliminate Undertaker (like he did in 2002).

However, the best past of this match was Chris Jericho and Shawn Michaels feuding. Shawn did not last long, but him and Jericho nearly stole the show. I highly recommend watching this match, as it was never dull and told quite a few stories.

In the end, this night belonged to Brock Lesnar. He won the match and went to Seattle for a guaranteed WrestleMania WWE Championship match.

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