The 1993 Royal Rumble started a tradition that continues to this day: the winner gets a title shot at WrestleMania.

Since WrestleMania IX was scheduled for Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, actors portraying Caesar and Cleopatra appeared before the Rumble match.

They invited everyone to see the Rumble winner compete for the title at WrestleMania.

RISING STAR

That winner was Yokozuna. I first saw him live at Survivor Series 92 in Richfield, Ohio.

During his win over Virgil, Yokozuna showed surprising speed and crushing power for a 500-pounder in a sumo outfit.

Yoko won the Rumble when Randy Savage hit him with the top rope elbow and then covered him for the pin.

(Excuse me, Mr. Savage, but this is the Royal Rumble, and you don’t pin people in the Rumble.)

Yokozuna pushed Savage off, and the Macho Man flew over the top rope to the floor.

At WrestleMania IX, Yoko defeated Bret Hart for the WWF title. Unfortunately, his title reign lasted less than three minutes, as Hulk Hogan came out and won the belt in an impromptu challenge.

I saw Yokozuna live again at the first King of the Ring pay-per-view in 1993. He surprisingly won the title back from Hogan after a “ringside photographer” blasted Hulk with a fireball to the face.

ROYAL RUMBLE 1994

Yokozuna embarked on a dominant run as WWF champion, and he beat The Undertaker in a casket match at Royal Rumble 94.

He had help from 10 other guys who beat up Taker and stuffed him into the casket.

Meanwhile, Bret Hart and Lex Luger tumbled out of the Rumble at the same time and were declared co-winners.

So which one of them gets the title shot?

Lex Luger got the first crack at Yokozuna, but special referee Mr. Perfect disqualified him. Perfect held a grudge for a year after Luger beat him at WM IX with the steel plate in his forearm.

Bret Hart had to wrestle an extra match to be fair, and he lost the opener to his brother, Owen. This is my favorite match of all time. The little brother wins!

“The Hitman” bounced back to defeat the exhausted Yoko in the second title match to regain the championship he had lost one year earlier.

The Rumble winner getting a title shot was a game changer, and it still signifies that the Rumble kicks off the road to WrestleMania.