WWE Royal Rumble 2014: New Age Outlaws and Brock Lesnar made waves in Pittsburgh

The 2014 Royal Rumble certainly made headlines.

At last year’s event in Pittsburgh, a veteran tag team struck gold, The Beast Incarnate annihilated The World’s Largest Athlete, and boos boomed out as a bearded favourite was omitted from the 30-man main event.

So before you tune in to the 2015 Royal Rumble on Sunday night – you can watch live on Sky Sports Box Office or follow our interactive blog – read on for a reminder of the best bits from the previous edition…

The New Age Outlaws roll back the years

Road Dogg and Billy Gunn are one of the best tag teams to ever compete in WWE but even their most ardent supporters must have thought their time in the limelight had come and gone. However, the former D-Generation X members proved there was still something in the tank when they defeated Goldust and Cody Rhodes on the Royal Rumble pre-show to become WWE Tag Team Champions for the sixth time, a whopping 14 years after they last held the belts. Gunn’s Famouser on Rhodes secured the win and the Attitude Era veterans went on to carry the twin straps for 36 days before they shipped them to Rikishi’s offspring, The Usos, on Raw. Dogg and Gunn are not yet done in WWE, though, and after dishing out a beating to mouthy tandem The Ascension on Raw Reunion on Monday night, will tackle the face paint-clad twosome at Royal Rumble this weekend.

Wyatt proves he is more than just words

Up until the 2014 Royal Rumble, Bray Wyatt’s cryptic sermons had been more prominent than his in-ring acumen, with the Eater of Worlds often getting his then disciples, Luke Harper and Erick Rowan, to do his donkey work in the squared circle. Yet at January’s pay-per-view, Wyatt not only hung with one of the best wrestlers on the planet in Daniel Bryan but beat him. With Harper and Rowan banished to the back early in the contest, The Man of 1,000 Truths had to go solo and, after wriggling free of Bryan’s “Yes!” Lock, toppled the fan favourite with two Sister Abigails, one onto the ringside barricade and another in the ring. Wyatt’s work was not done for the evening, however, with the backwoods brawler deciding to cost John Cena his WWE World Heavyweight Championship match against Randy Orton, actions that lead to Wyatt and Cena contesting a cracker at WrestleMania 30 the following April.

Boos abound as Bryan no shows

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Bryan would have been a little groggy after his war with Wyatt at the start of the show but both he and his legion of fans were desperate for him to compete in the Royal Rumble Match itself and secure a main-event encounter at WrestleMania. Their hopes were dashed, though, when, as was revealed later on, the Bryan-hating Authority refused to let the submission specialist enter the 30-man melee on “safety grounds”. The fans inside Pittsburgh’s Consol Energy Center were majorly unhappy, chanting for Bryan throughout the hour-long showdown and booing long-time good guy Rey Mysterio when he emerged as the 30th and final entrant and it became apparent that there would be no sight of Bryan. Fast forward a few months, though, to WrestleMania, and Bryan and his zealots had plenty to crow over, with the bearded warrior working his way into the New Orleans main event and pinching the WWE World Heavyweight Title. This year, however, Bryan wants to do that by winning the Royal Rumble.

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Batista wins after Reigns runs riot

With Bryan patching himself up backstage, Batista was left to claim the Royal Rumble win – but only after downing the undoubted 2014 MVP Reigns. Reigns ousted 12 Superstars, beating the previous best record of 11 set by Kane in 2001, but fell at the final hurdle when he was dispatched over the top rope by The Animal following a spinebuster. Other notable things from the 2014 Rumble Match were CM Punk becoming the iron man and lasting over 49 minutes in what would prove to be his final bout – at least for the time being – in WWE; Seth Rollins spending in excess of 48 minutes in the ring; Kofi Kingston using the barricade to continue his tradition of staying in the Rumble in spectacular manner; Kevin Nash, Los Matadores' mascot El Torito and WWE commentator JBL making shock appearances; and Irish star Sheamus returning from a serious shoulder injury to achieve a creditable third-place finish.

Brock batters Big Show in two minutes

Not many people can leave Big Show in a quivering heap on the floor but not many people are Brock Lesnar. The Anomaly creamed The World’s Largest Athlete with a chair before their titanic tussle officially started and then shrugged off the effects of a Knockout Punch to administer an F5 after the bell had rung and wrap up the win in two minutes and two seconds. Lesnar was not content, though, and proceeded to clobber Show with a steel chair over and over again post mstch while producing a guttural scream. It was a truly impressive performance from The Beast Incarnate but it was perhaps topped in April when he stunned the world by shattering The Undertaker’s undefeated streak at The Show of Shows. All that means John Cena and Seth Rollins will have their work cut out trying to rip the WWE World Heavyweight Title from him on Sunday night in Philadelphia.

Watch WWE Royal Rumble, live at 1am on Sunday on Sky Sports Box Office or follow our interactive blog at www.skysports.com/wwe.

Royal Rumble booking details

WWE Royal Rumble will be shown at 1am on Sunday, January 25 (Mon) on Sky Sports Box Office (channel 743) and on Sky Sports HD Box Office (channel 752).

WWE Royal Rumble will be repeated on Sky Sports Box Office (channel 743) BUT NOT Sky Sports HD Box Office (channel 752) until 9pm on Saturday, January 31.

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Repeats showing will last for three hours, with the final showing BEGINNING at 9pm on Saturday, January 31.

The event is priced at £19.95 for UK customers, €24.95 for customers in the Republic of Ireland.

Viewers can call 08442 410 888 from Tuesday, January 13 to book WWE Royal Rumble. (There may be an additional charge for telephone bookings).

You will be able book WWE Royal Rumble online from Tuesday, January 13 by visiting this link: https://my.sky.com/orderboxoffice/

You can also order WWE Royal Rumble at a later date by pressing the Box Office button on your remote. Select 'sports & events' and follow the on-screen instructions.

Cable customers should contact their local cable operator.