Watch Pat McAfee eliminate himself from WWE’s Royal Rumble match

Pat McAfee made his return to WWE on Saturday to serve as a guest commentator for the annual Royal Rumble event.

As it turns out, that wasn’t the only surprise the NFL punter-turned-ESPN host had up his sleeve (which he was, in fact, wearing).

For the uninitiated, the 30-man Royal Rumble match starts with two competitors in the ring, with other wrestlers joining the match following 90-second intervals. Wrestlers are eliminated by being thrown over the top rope, with the last competitor standing receiving a championship match in the main event of WWE’s biggest show of the year, WrestleMania.

While the Royal Rumble serves as the official kickoff to WWE’s “road to WrestleMania,” the match itself often contains surprise entrants, including legends from the past and debuting stars of the future. But on Saturday, the men’s Royal Rumble match included a different kind of surprise, with McAfee’s theme song playing when it came time for the No. 22 entrant to make his way to the ring.

Standing up at the announce table, the host of The Pat McAfee acted shocked before ultimately making his way into the ring. But after standing across from the 7-foot-3, 416-pound Omos and fullback-turned-wrestler Bron Breakker, McAfee thought better of it, eliminating himself by climbing over the top rope after spending just 38 seconds in the match.

I’M IN THE RUMBLE MATCH..

WHY DID YOU GUYS LET ME IN THERE#RoyalRumble pic.twitter.com/HW6mcWN9dZ

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) January 28, 2024

“How big is that thing in there?!” McAfee said of Omos as he returned to the commentary desk. “Why’d you guys let me in there?! Seven-foot-three?!”

At that very moment, Breakker — the son of former professional wrestler Rick Steiner of the famed Steiner Brothers — eliminated Omos, prompting McAfee to state, “I should have done that! That could have been me!”

While WWE has certainly leaned into the comedic aspect of McAfee’s presence, it was somewhat disappointing that he didn’t perform any physical spots in the match. As he’s previously shown, the 36-year-old is a capable in-ring performer — although his match against then-WWE chairman Vince McMahon at WrestleMania 38 was named the Wrestling Observer Newsletter‘s worst match of 2022.

Perhaps there was a reason why McAfee wasn’t able or willing to get physical on Saturday. But even without winning the Rumble, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see McAfee have his own WrestleMania moment later this year.

[Pat McAfee on X]