page_title: Royal Rumble (2005)
section_title: Event
hierarchical_section_title: Royal Rumble (2005) / Event
caption_attribution_description: English: Dave Bautista at Smackdown!, in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 2006. Nederlands: Dave Bautista op Smackdown! in 2006 in Cincinnati, Ohio.
context_page_description: Royal Rumble (2005) was the eighteenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment. It took place on January 30, 2005, at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California and featured talent from both the Raw and SmackDown! brands. As has been customary since 1993, the Royal Rumble match winner received a match at that year's WrestleMania, for his choice at either the WWE Championship or the World Heavyweight Championship.
  Five professional wrestling matches were featured on the event's supercard, a scheduling of more than one main event. The main event was the annual 30-man Royal Rumble match, which featured wrestlers from both brands. Batista, the twenty-eighth entrant, won the match by last eliminating John Cena, the twenty-fifth entrant. The primary match on the Raw brand was Triple H versus Randy Orton for the World Heavyweight Championship, which Triple H won by pinfall after performing a Pedigree. The primary match on the SmackDown!
context_section_description: Before the event went live on pay-per-view, Maven defeated Rhyno in a match taped for Sunday Night Heat.
  The first match was between Edge and Shawn Michaels. Edge mocked Michaels by performing some of Michaels' signature taunts. Edge gained the advantage after an Edge-O-Matic on the floor. Edge performed a spear on the floor on Michaels; in the ring, Edge executed another spear on Michaels for a near-fall. After countering Edge, Michaels executed a diving elbow drop on Edge. Edge countered Sweet Chin Music into an electric chair drop for a near-fall. Edge applied the Edgecator on Michaels, but Michaels broke the hold. Michaels attempted a roll-up, but Edge pinned Michaels with a roll-up using the ropes to win the match.
  The second match was a Casket match between The Undertaker and Heidenreich. The match started back and forth until Heidenreich sent Undertaker into the casket. Undertaker applied the triangle choke until Gene Snitsky interfered and attacked Undertaker. Snitsky and Heidenreich attacked The Undertaker and called for the casket to be opened but Kane was revealed to be inside the casket. He attacked Snitsky and Heidenreich and fought Snitsky throughout the arena. Heidenreich sent Undertaker into the steel steps and pushed the casket into him. Heidenreich put Undertaker in the casket after applying the cobra clutch but Undertaker stopped the lid from closing. Heidenreich put Undertaker in the casket again but Undertaker countered. Undertaker executed a chokeslam and a Tombstone Piledriver and put Heidenreich in the casket to win the match.
  The third match was a Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship between John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL), The Big Show, and Kurt Angle. Angle stayed on the outside of the ring as Big Show and JBL fought. After Angle broke up a pinfall attempt, Big Show attacked both men. Angle hit Big Show with a television monitor, causing him to fall through a broadcast announce table. Later, Big Show executed a chokeslam on JBL but JBL placed his foot on the ropes to void the pinfall. Big Show tackled JBL through the barricade and performed a flapjack to Angle onto a chair. Luther Reigns, Mark Jindrak and Doug and Danny Basham attacked Big Show as Orlando Jordan helped JBL back into the ring. JBL executed a Clothesline from Hell on Angle to retain the title.
  The fourth match was between Triple H and Randy Orton for the World Heavyweight Championship. Before the match, Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff banned Evolution (Batista and Ric Flair) from ringside. Orton had the advantage until Triple H countered an RKO by throwing Orton out of the ring. Triple H kept the advantage and targeted Orton's left knee until Orton knocked him into a broadcast table. Orton kept the advantage until he missed a DDT. Triple H knocked both Orton and the referee down with a clothesline and tried to hit Orton with a sledgehammer but Orton pulled him into the ringpost. Triple H performed another clothesline and a Pedigree to retain the title.
  The main event was the Royal Rumble match. Before the match, Kurt Angle stole Nunzio's entrance number and replaced him in the match. The participants divided into their brands and fought against each other, working together to eliminate Muhammad Hassan, the thirteen entrant. Scotty 2 Hotty, the fifteenth entrant, was attacked by Hassan during his entrance and never entered the match. Angle, the twentieth entrant, dominated upon entering until Shawn Michaels eliminated him. Angle came back to eliminate Michaels and attacked him. The final four participants remaining were Batista, John Cena, Edge, and Rey Mysterio. Edge fought with Mysterio, executing a spear to eliminate Mysterio. Cena and Batista then eliminated Edge as he was attacking them. Cena tried to perform an FU on Batista but Batista countered. Batista then attempted a Batista Bomb, but was countered with a headscissors takedown by Cena, sending both over the top rope and touching the floor at the same time. The referees for the Raw brand believed Batista to be the winner while the SmackDown! referees believed Ce
caption: Batista eliminated John Cena to win the 2005 Royal Rumble match
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