The 2012 Royal Rumble Match: wild moments and amazing facts

From The Miz entering at No. 1 to Sheamus outlasting the field and booking himself in the main event at WrestleMania XXVIII, there was certainly no shortage of excitement throughout the 2012 Royal Rumble Match. (STORY) In fact, as the WWE Universe - and many of the match's participants (WATCH) - buzz about all the shocking returns and eliminations, WWE.com lists some of our other favorite moments and amazing facts from the wild contest. (ALL ROYAL RUMBLE MATCH PHOTOS)

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RICARDO'S ARISTOCRATIC ENTRANCE?
When Alberto Del Rio?s music hit the speakers, the crowd at the Scottrade Center expected The Mexican Aristocrat make his customary entrance in a luxury automobile. But it wasn?t Del Rio in a lavish car; it was his personal ring announcer Ricardo Rodriguez in a 1985 Datsun. Not only did Rodriguez perform a dead-on impression of Del Rio, he helped Mick Foley eliminate Justin Gabriel. Not too shabby for a personal ring announcer.

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Kofi made a (hand)stand
It looked like Kofi Kingston?s time in the Royal Rumble Match was up when The Miz tossed him over the ropes. Yet "The Dreadlocked Dynamo" was able to balance himself on his hands ? keeping his feet off the ground ? and walk to the safety of the steel steps. It was a spectacular, heads-up move from the acrobatic Kingston to keep himself in the contest.

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THE COBRA VS. Mr. Socko
When WWE fan favorites Santino Marella and Mick Foley squared off, chants of ?Cobra!? and ?Socko!? rained down. The two Superstars put on their respective hand puppets for a duel. Before either could strike, one half of the Tag Team Champions, Epico, entered the match and quickly found himself on the receiving end of both a Cobra Strike and a Mandible Claw. Then, to the delight of the WWE Universe, Mr. Socko and The Cobra clashed.

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BAD KHARMA FOR COLE
The 2012 Royal Rumble Match saw not one or two, but three announcers compete. After Booker T and Jerry ?The King? Lawler had been eliminated, Michael Cole was the lone remaining member of the broadcast team. When terrifying Diva Kharma made her return and went right after Cole, he tried to escape outside the ropes. From ringside, Booker and Lawler sent Cole to the floor and back to the announce table - unfortunately for the WWE Universe who had to hear him again.

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Road Dogg's offensive flurry
Oh, you didn?t know?! Anyone can show up in the Royal Rumble Match! Road Dogg entered at No. 23 and immediately went on an offensive rampage, showing Cody Rhodes and The Miz just how this New Age Outlaw rolled. As the D-O Double-G shimmied, the crowd showered him with cheers of, ?You still got it!"

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OH, YOU DIDN'T KNOW?! MORE AMAZING 2012 ROYAL RUMBLE MATCH FACTS:
Sheamus won in only his second Royal Rumble Match appearance. He is also the first Irish-born Royal Rumble Match winner.

This is the second time a WWE Superstar has entered at No. 22 and won the Royal Rumble Match - Triple H did it back in 2002.

The last Royal Rumble Match winner to successfully win their World Championship opportunity was The Undertaker back in 2007. The Phenom defeated Batista for the World Heavyweight Title at WrestleMania 23 - which also happened to fall on April 1.

A different WWE Superstar has won the last 14 consecutive Royal Rumble Matches.

Epico spent the shortest time of any Superstar in the 2012 Royal Rumble Match, lasting only :12.

Lasting 45:39, The Miz spent the most time of any Superstar in the 2012 Royal Rumble Match - and 10 minutes longer than any Superstar who participated in 2011's contest.

The Miz managed to last longer than all three of his former cohorts (Alex Riley, R-Truth, Big Show) combined.

Cody Rhodes had the most eliminations with five, and also lasted more than 40 minutes.

Big Show eliminated three men in a staggering 16 seconds (Cody Rhodes, The Miz, Dolph Ziggler). The World's Largest Athlete has now eliminated 28 competitors in Royal Rumble Match history.

Randy Orton is now tied for the most final four appearances in Royal Rumble Match history with five (HBK, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and Kane).

Three participants didn't last even one minute in the Royal Rumble Match: Jerry Lawler, Hacksaw Jim Duggan and Epico.

Six more couldn't last two minutes: Alex Riley, Primo, Jinder Mahal, Michael Cole, Kharma and Big Show.

The two WWE Hall of Famers in the 2012 Royal Rumble Match both failed to last one minute before elimination.

Only six Superstars were able to last more than 10 minutes in the Royal Rumble Match: The Miz, Cody Rhodes, Kofi Kingston, Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus and Chris Jericho.

Booker T lasted the longest of the three announcers in the Royal Rumble Match. Second longest was Michael Cole, with Jerry Lawler third.

Kofi Kingston had the most impressive move at the Royal Rumble Match, using a walking handstand to get to safety.

Hunico lasted the longest of any Royal Rumble Match rookie at 9:01.

Kharma was the third woman in Royal Rumble Match history.

Dolph Ziggler wrestled for the WWE Championship and lasted nearly 20 minutes in the Royal Rumble Match.

Twelve nationalities were represented in the Royal Rumble Match (USA, Canada, UK, Ireland, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Ghana, Guyana, Italy, South Africa, India, Samoa).

Did WWE.com leave out your favorite Royal Rumble Match moment? Are there more interesting facts and statistics? Discuss with other members of the WWE Universe on Facebook and Twitter. For complete coverage of the 2012 Royal Rumble, CLICK HERE.

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Ricardo's aristocratic entrance

Source: http://www.wwe.com/shows/royalrumble/2012/wild-moments

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