Two-time WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart is "The best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be." The Hitman was a tag team competitor with his brother-in-law Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart in the 1980s, but he transitioned into a singles wrestler in the 1990s. Hart rarely had a bad wrestling match, which is why he is widely regarded as the greatest technical wrestler of all time. Moreover, whilst the Hitman has had some fantastic matches at WrestleMania, he's also made a name for himself at the Royal Rumble.
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Hart was generally involved in WWE Championship matches at the Royal Rumble, and he catapulted himself back into the title picture by going far in Royal Rumble matches. Nevertheless, Hart isn't exempt from having some underwhelming matches, but the majority of his clashes at the Rumble were superb affairs.
10 Royal Rumble Match - 1990
Bret Hart competed in his second Royal Rumble match in 1990, and the Hitman joined the fray as the eighth entrant. Hart mixed it up with the likes of Ted DiBiase, Dusty Rhodes, and Haku among others during his time in the Royal Rumble match.
Unfortunately, it wasn't a vintage performance for Hart as he failed to muster a single elimination. He endured 16 minutes, and he was eliminated by the "American Dream" Dusty Rhodes.
9 Royal Rumble Match - 1991
For the second time in four years, Bret Hart was the number one entrant in the Royal Rumble match. In 1991, the Hitman was one-half of the reigning WWE Tag Team Champions and he got the match underway with Dino Bravo.
Hart lasted 20 minutes and 33 seconds which is good going, but for the second Rumble in succession, he failed to eliminate anyone. Hart was eliminated by The Undertaker, which happened to be Undertaker's first elimination in his maiden Royal Rumble match.
8 Royal Rumble Match - 1988
Bret Hart was involved in the inaugural Royal Rumble match in 1988, and the Hitman was the first man to enter a Royal Rumble match as the number one participant. Hart wasn't touted as a favorite to win the only 20-man Royal Rumble match in WWE history.
Hart was also the first Iron Man as he lasted 25 minutes which was longer than any other participant in the Rumble. The Hitman eliminated Tito Santana alongside his brother-in-law Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart for his first elimination in the Royal Rumble. Hart wasn't remotely close to winning the Rumble, and Don Muraco removed him from the equation.
7 The Hart Foundation & Jim Duggan Vs. The Fabulous Rougeaus & Dino Bravo - 1989
Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart teamed up with the 1988 Royal Rumble match winner Hacksaw Jim Duggan to take on the Fabulous Rougeaus and Dino Bravo in a two-out-of-three falls match in the curtain-raiser at the 1989 Royal Rumble. All hell broke loose when all six competitors were in the ring at the same time.
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The Rougeau Brothers hit the Bombe de Rougeau with Raymond pinning Bret to gain the first fall. This was a competitive match, but the Hart Foundation and Duggan bounced back to win two falls in succession with Bret covering Bravo for the win after Duggan hit Bravo in the back with his trademark 2x4.
6 Royal Rumble Match - 1997
Bret Hart was looking to win the Royal Rumble match for the second time in his career when he entered the 1997 Royal Rumble as the 21st participant. The Hitman feuded with Steve Austin during this time frame, and they continued their rivalry when they clashed in the Royal Rumble match.
Hart eliminated his former rival Jerry "The King" Lawler in just four seconds, and Fake Diesel was another person to be eliminated by Hart. However, there was controversy as Hart eliminated Austin from the Rumble, but the referee was distracted by Mankind and Terry Funk fighting on the outside. Austin snuck his way back into the ring, and he eliminated Bret to win the Royal Rumble match for the first time.
5 Bret Hart Vs. The Undertaker - 1996
Bret Hart defended the WWE Championship against The Undertaker at the 1996 Royal Rumble, which began a run of three successive WWE Championship matches to close out the Royal Rumble. Before the match got underway, Undertaker and Diesel clashed in the aisle.
Nevertheless, Hart and Undertaker constructed a decent match that almost went 30 minutes. During the match, Hart ripped off Undertaker's Phantom of the Opera-like mask. Hart was close to dropping the WWE Championship as Undertaker executed the Tombstone, but Diesel interfered and attacked Undertaker with Hart retaining albeit sustaining a loss by DQ.
4 Bret Hart & Owen Hart Vs. The Quebecers - 1994
Fans were in store for a treat when Bret Hart and his younger brother Owen challenged The Quebecers for the WWE Tag Team Championship at the 1994 Royal Rumble. The Hitman was pulling double duty as he was competing in the 1994 Royal Rumble match, but he was fully focused on clinching the Tag Team Titles with Owen.
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Hart sustained a storyline knee injury which The Quebecers focused on throughout the match. Bret was unable to continue with The Quebecers retaining the titles. Afterward, Owen turned heel by assaulting his brother leaving Hart's participation in the Royal Rumble match in doubt.
3 Royal Rumble Match - 1994
Bret Hart managed to compete in the 1994 Royal Rumble match, and he was the 27th entrant in the titular bout. Hart was one of the favorites to triumph as were Lex Luger, Diesel, and Shawn Michaels. Nevertheless, Hart had a steady performance as he eliminated four competitors from the Rumble.
Hart aided three competitors to eliminate Crush from the Rumble. Thurman "Sparky" Plugg was eliminated by both Hart and Michaels. Genichiro Tenryu was eliminated by Hart and Luger. Hart eliminated Fatu for his final elimination. However, history was made as both Hart and Luger were eliminated from the Rumble simultaneously, and both were awarded as co-winners of the 1994 Royal Rumble match.
2 Bret Hart Vs. Razor Ramon - 1993
Bret Hart and Razor Ramon battled over the WWE Championship at the 1993 Royal Rumble. It was unquestionably the best match of the night and easily could have headlined the card. The Bad Guy was still relatively new to WWE, but he contested one of the best singles matches in his WWE career.
Hart and Ramon had a superb wrestling match, and they went back and forth with both enjoying spells of dominance. Despite the Bad Guy's efforts, it wasn't enough as Hart retained the WWE Championship with the Sharpshooter, and he went on to defend his title against Yokozuna at WrestleMania 9, who won the 1993 Royal Rumble match later on in the night.
1 Bret Hart Vs. Diesel - 1995
Diesel's first WWE Championship title defense on pay-per-view was against none other than Bret Hart at the 1995 Royal Rumble. They tore the house down in a magnificent wrestling match, and it was miles better than the underwhelming Royal Rumble match.
Hart applied several submission holds to wear Big Daddy Cool down. There was outside interference from Shawn Michaels, Owen Hart, The Roadie, and Bob Backlund. The fans booed as the match ended as a draw with Diesel retaining the WWE Championship.
