Royal Rumble 1991 Royal Rumble 1991 was the fourth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay - per - view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation ( WWF ) . It took place on January 19 , 1991 at the Miami Arena in Miami , Florida . The main event was the 1991 Royal Rumble match won by Hulk Hogan , who last eliminated Earthquake to win the match . Featured matches on the undercard were The Ultimate Warrior versus Sgt . Slaughter for the WWF Championship , Ted DiBiase and Virgil versus Dusty Rhodes and Dustin Rhodes and The Mountie versus Koko B . Ware . Background . Royal Rumble featured professional wrestling matches involving different wrestlers from pre - existing scripted feuds , plots , and storylines that were played out on " Superstars " , " Wrestling Challenge " and " Prime Time Wrestling " — the World Wrestling Federation ' s ( WWF ) 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 pay - per - view featured the annual Royal Rumble match , which has been featured at every Royal Rumble event since its inception . It features 30 wrestlers , and the match ends when one wrestler remains in the ring , after all 29 other wrestlers have been eliminated via being tossed over the top ring rope and having both feet touch the floor . The main feud heading into the Royal Rumble was between WWF World Champion The Ultimate Warrior and Sgt . Slaughter , a heel who used an Iraqi sympathizer heel gimmick . Their feud began building during a time when the United States was engaged in Operation Desert Shield ( which became Operation Desert Storm on January 17 , two days before the Royal Rumble ) . During the build - up to their match , Slaughter and his manager , General Adnan , cut several anti - American promos to build heat for the event ; at one point , Slaughter unwrapped a present and revealed a pair of boots purportedly sent to him by Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussien . In the meantime , Randy " Macho Man " Savage challenged Warrior to his own series of matches , which Warrior successfully answered . Event . Main event matches . The tag team match pitting Ted DiBiase and Virgil against Dusty Rhodes and Rhodes ' son , Dustin Rhodes was most notable for Virgil ' s split from DiBiase . Tensions that had been building between the two in the previous weeks exploded when – after the match – Virgil struck DiBiase in the head with his " Million Dollar Belt " to turn face . DiBiase had verbally abused Virgil throughout the match , and at one point beat him up and threw him from the ring after he was being dominated by the Rhodes ' team . DiBiase went on to pin Dusty Rhodes with a roll - up . Prior to the Warrior - Slaughter match at the Royal Rumble , Sensational Sherri ( Savage ' s valet ) cut a promo with Warrior wherein she attempted to seduce Warrior into granting Savage a title shot . Warrior refused , enraging Savage . During the match itself , Warrior easily fought off a double - team attack by Adnan and Slaughter , running Adnan off before shredding the Iraqi flag and stuffing it into Slaughter ' s mouth . As Warrior was attempting to finish off Slaughter , Sherri interfered by grabbing Warrior ' s leg ; Warrior chased Sherri down the aisle before he was attacked by Savage near the platform area . Savage struck Warrior with a spotlight as Slaughter regained his senses and distracted the referee . After several minutes of Slaughter holding the advantage , Warrior rallied and set up Slaughter for the gorilla press slam ( Warrior ' s finishing move ) . However , Warrior grabbed Sherri ( who had returned to ringside ) and press slammed her onto Savage , who had also appeared at ringside . This gave Slaughter time to hit a knee strike to Warrior ' s back . Savage then struck Warrior in the head with the sceptor , allowing Slaughter to pin the champion . After Warrior came to his senses , he ran backstage to find Savage . The Royal Rumble marked the continuation of an ongoing feud between Hulk Hogan and Earthquake , whose roots dated to the summer of 1990 when Earthquake injured Hogan in a sneak attack during " The Brother Love Show . " Hogan and Earthquake were the final two competitors in the Royal Rumble , and Hogan eliminated Earthquake to win the Royal Rumble . The pay - per - view broadcast also included featured pre - taped comments from fans outside the arena , wishing United States troops a quick and safe return from the Middle East , and an announcement that Hogan would tour military bases across the country to support the troops . Aftermath . Following his WWF World Championship loss , Warrior focused on revenge against Savage , with their first encounter being a steel cage match January 21 at Madison Square Garden in New York City , which Savage won ( with help from Sensational Sherri ) ; Warrior was enraged and – despite being restrained by several referees and other wrestlers – attacked Sherri after the match by slamming her in the ring . Meanwhile , Warrior was unsuccessful in regaining the title , losing a series of steel cage matches to Slaughter , usually thanks to interference from Sensational Sherri . Warrior and Savage eventually agreed to a " career vs . career match " at WrestleMania VII , which Warrior won . Hogan , meanwhile , was named the No . 1 contender for Slaughter ' s WWF World Championship . During a promo that took place right after the Slaughter - Warrior match , " Mean " Gene Okerlund " received word " that Slaughter was defacing the American flag , to which Hogan vowed that Slaughter ' s reign as World Champion would be short - lived . At WrestleMania VII , Hogan defeated Slaughter to become World Champion for the third time . ( Prior to WrestleMania VII , Hogan defeated Earthquake in a series of " stretcher matches " to finish their feud . )