“Stone Cold” Steve Austin won his third Royal Rumble in 2001, kicking off a monumental year in pro wrestling history.

Austin’s record of three Rumble wins still stands today.

Comedian Drew Carey entered the Rumble at No. 5 and ran away when Kane showed up. That appearance earned Carey a spot in the WWE Hall of Fame.

The Honky Tonk Man showed up for the first time in years, and Kane clobbered him with a guitar.

Austin checked in at No. 27, but he was immediately attacked by Triple H. Austin had ruined HHH’s title match against Kurt Angle earlier in the night.

Kane and Austin were the final two men in the Rumble. Austin eliminated Kane after a Stunner and three chair shots.

Austin went on to defeat The Rock for the WWF title after aligning himself with longtime enemy Vince McMahon.

Stone Cold spent most of 2001 as a heel, and he even led the WCW-ECW Alliance. Rock pinned Austin at Survivor Series to put the Alliance out of business.

TRIPLE H WINS IN 2002

Austin and Triple H went to war during the 2002 Royal Rumble. They had been WWF tag team champions in 2001 before HHH suffered a serious leg injury.

They were in the final four along with Kurt Angle and the returning Mr. Perfect. Angle tossed out Austin to prevent a fourth Rumble victory for Stone Cold.

Triple H won by clotheslining Perfect and later Angle out of the ring. Despite his longtime heel status, Triple H earned a huge ovation from the fans.

At WrestleMania X-8, Triple H captured his fourth WWF title with a win over Chris Jericho. After that, the WWF split its giant roster of talent between Raw and Smackdown.