WWE Royal Rumble 2019: 7 Greatest Superstars Never to Win Battle Royal

Only 25 male wrestlers can call themselves a winner of the WWE Royal Rumble match, making it a pretty exclusive list.

Some of the greatest stars of all-time are in that select club, including the likes of John Cena, Hulk Hogan and The Rock.

However, despite so many legendary stars winning the biggest bout of the year, an alarming number of big names have failed to achieve what several others have.

In fact, when you look through the list of wrestlers who have failed to secure a Rumble victory during their careers, it makes for startling reading.

Here's a look at seven of the biggest names in WWE history never to have won the Rumble match.

Roddy Piper

One of the most charismatic, influential and important wrestlers of his generation, the concept of the Royal Rumble match perhaps came too late for Roddy Piper.

By the time the event debuted in 1988, he was halfway through his time with the company and had already headlined the first WrestleMania some years ago. Had the two shows arrived at the same time, it's easy to imagine someone of Piper's relevance getting the nod to win at least one Rumble match.

Some of the biggest wrestlers of the modern era were heavily influenced by Piper, as well as cross-promotional talent like Ronda Rousey, who has made no secret of the fact she was inspired by him growing up.

Who knows, had Piper not crossed the border into WCW in the latter years of his career, he may have increased his shot at a Rumble victory, too. 

However, that shouldn't detract from one of the greatest WWE careers of all time, even if a Rumble victory escaped him.

Big Show

In recent years, Big Show has been a part-time talent on WWE programming.

However, it's incredible to look back over his illustrious career with the company and find that a Royal Rumble victory escaped him.

Paul Wight has accomplished almost everything else there is to achieve in WWE. He's won the WWE Championship, ECW Championship, World Heavyweight Championship, United States Championship and Intercontinental Championship throughout his career, as well as multiple reigns as a tag champion.

The 46-year-old is tied with three other men with two runner-up placings in Royal Rumble matches, in 2000 and 2004. The other men on that list have all gone on to win the match at some point, though, making Big Show the exception.

It's now almost certain he will retire without a Rumble victory to his name. And for those who remember the impact he made during his early years with WWE, that seems a real shame.

Mick Foley

Mick Foley has a place in Royal Rumble history, given how the 1998 match featured just 28 men for the first and only time, as he entered all three of his personas, Mankind, Cactus Jack and Dude Love, in the bout.

Despite that, one of the greatest WWE performers of all time does not have a Rumble victory to his name, which is difficult to believe given how often Foley put his body on the line.

Of course, some of his most memorable matches have taken place at the Rumble but not in the traditional 30-man bout itself. In 1999, there was his iconic "I Quit" match with The Rock for the WWE Championship, while the following year, he went to war with Triple H at the same show.

So with that in mind, it's perhaps no surprise a Rumble victory never actually transpired for Foley.

But it's still a big hole in his resume that some people feel should have been filled at some stage.

Eddie Guerrero

Much like Roddy Piper earlier in the list, it's almost impossible to imagine another of the most charismatic and influential wrestlers of his generation never scored a Royal Rumble victory.

Perhaps one thing that went against Eddie Guerrero in that regard is that he was wrestling for WWE in one of the most popular periods of the company's history. That's illustrated by the fact Hall of Famers such as Mick Foley and Big Show also failed to win the match during their careers.

However, given how the narrative of the Rumble can so often be about an underdog defying the odds, beating the numbers and outlasting the field, it's the kind of match that was tailor-made for Guerrero to win at some point.

But it will never take away the fact Guerrero remains one of the most popular wrestlers in WWE history.

Kane

One of the first wrestlers you're inclined to think of when it comes to the Royal Rumble match is the legendary Kane, not least because of the numbers involved.

For years, his record of 11 eliminations in one Rumble match stood as the greatest of all time, before Roman Reigns broke it in 2014 with 12 eliminations.

Furthermore, only four wrestlers have spent more cumulative time in the Rumble match than Kane: Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio, Shawn Michaels and Triple H. Yet despite all of that, The Big Red Machine never managed to secure victory in the match itself.

And much like Big Show, it looks like Kane's chances of winning the bout have now passed for good, given how he's restricted to a part-time role with the company.

Kurt Angle

Kurt Angle has done it all in WWE: He's headlined WrestleMania, won countless world titles and has established a reputation few will be able to eclipse inside the squared circle.

Yet despite all that, he has somehow never managed to win the Royal Rumble match.

Like Mankind, The Olympian spent key periods during his career with WWE wrestling for world titles around the time of the Rumble, which inevitably ruled him out of winning the main match itself.

Despite all that, though, it's still hard to fathom that Angle never claimed a Rumble victory at some stage.

Chris Jericho

There's no bigger WWE star to have missed out on a Royal Rumble victory than the great Chris Jericho.

His wrestling resume is one of the strongest in the company's history, yet a Rumble victory never managed to find its way to him.

Y2J has done pretty much everything there is to do inside a WWE ring, as well as plenty outside of it, too.

Bizarrely, though, it's difficult to believe he has never outlasted the field in a Rumble match, despite coming desperately close on a couple of occasions.

With Jericho signing for All Elite Wrestling, it means this particular goal is likely to remain unachieved.

And that is a real shame.