 Although he was advised not to compete by doctors, Animal rested through the first few weeks of the year while the Outlaws ran roughshod through the tag division before this pay-per-view.The buildup to the Royal Rumble match itself focused almost entirely on Stone Cold Steve Austin.He declared that before the match he would be living by the motto "Do unto others, before they do unto me" interfering in matches regularly on "Raw is War", or appearing just as matches finished, delivering the stunner to anyone in sight as well leaving other wrestlers back stage buried under tables and chairs.