It's January and that means it's time for the annual WWE Royal Rum-- wait, it's not in January this year? What the hell?? Yes, for the first time ever WWE's equivalent of the All-Star Game is in February for some reason. Fortunately the lineup this year actually looks pretty good, with the men's Rumble boasting several credible combatants with a chance of winning, plus the two undercard bouts look great on paper. The women's Rumble not quite so much. Then again only 1/3 of the field has been announced for that one.
But let's take a look....
Women's Royal Rumble
Yeah, not much star power going on here. You have Bayley, Iyo, Liv, Bianca and a returning Charlotte Flair, plus five other names, Nia Jax, Naomi, Raquel Rodriguez, Lyra Valkyria and Ivy Nile. I assume the newly signed Jordynn Grace will join the fun, maybe Jade Cargill will return from injury, and rumors abound that Becky Lynch will be back after a several-month hiatus. But this match looks on paper to be yet another sequence of entrances without much in the way of story advancement, until someone wins. And aside from the 2023 men's Rumble that approach has plagued these events for the last several years. I think either Charlotte or Becky wins this to set up either Tiffany vs. Charlotte (so Flair can squash yet another up-and-comer's push at 'Mania), or maybe a Becky vs. Rhea rematch from last year. I'll go with Charlotte though.
Pick: Charlotte Flair, so she can pad her World Title wins
2/3 Falls WWE Tag Team Championship: DIY vs. Motor City Machine Guns
This could steal the show if given proper time. WWE has notoriously shortchanged 2/3 Falls matches in the past but hopefully that won't be the case here. Give these guys 25 minutes and get out of their way. I think the MCMG probably end up taking the titles and may go through another round or two of trading them with DIY.
Pick: MCMG
WWE Championship Ladder Match: Cody Rhodes vs. Kevin Owens
This one could also steal the show and will be given ample time, in the grand tradition of World Title matches that upstage the Rumble (Bret vs. Razor, Diesel vs. Bret, Shawn vs. Undertaker, Mankind vs. Rock, Triple H vs. Cactus Jack, Angle vs. Benoit, Brock-Cena-Seth, AJ vs. Cena). Owens still has zero chance of dethroning Cody, and it would've been nice if they'd actually built the guy up to make him a legit threat (instead of having the 59-year-old Shawn Michaels knock him out with a superkick). But the match itself should be WWE's first real Match of the Year contender.
Pick: Cody retains
Men's Royal Rumble
So we have half the field announced and of those I'd say five could be considered viable choices to win: Roman Reigns, CM Punk, Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre and John Cena. There are rumors that The Rock could be in it, in which case he's likely a mortal lock. It's quite telling though that the odds-on favorites (Cena, Punk or The Rock) are all old guys; not a lot of star-building going on in this field, with the exception of maybe Bron Breakker, who will hopefully get an actual run as the world-beater who clears the ring at some point. Then whoever eliminates him can be his next challenger. These things are simple and easy to book, and they make the Rumble match memorable. The 2024 men's Rumble was essentially devoid of any of these touches and therefore was a slog to sit through. Anyway, this match will set up a challenger for either Cody or Gunther, and I'd guess it's the former. Which means it's either Cena, Roman, Punk or The Rock if he shows up. I'd honestly be surprised if Dwayne agreed to be in this match unannounced, so he's a longshot, and Cody-Roman has already headlined the last two 'Manias, which leaves either Cena or Punk. Cody vs. Punk could be a great main event but there isn't a terribly compelling story there, just two babyfaces who both jumped over from AEW and had no interactions on that roster. Also they're on opposite shows. Cody vs. Cena is a massive dream match of sorts but won't exactly be an in-ring classic unless John shakes off A LOT of ring rust. But it would be big enough to headline WrestleMania. I guess I'll go with Cena on his retirement tour, which would make John only the second-ever three-timer.
Pick: John Cena
So yeah, on paper this show should be solid and both undercard matches should overshadow the two Rumbles. Doesn't look like any new stars are going to break out this year, which tends to make the Rumble matches less exciting than if they featured some younger stars. Aside from Punk all the guys who have a legit shot to win the men's Rumble have already won a Rumble before. But that one at least has some star power to go around and will hopefully set up multiple 'Mania feuds. And there's some unpredictability which is always a good thing in a Royal Rumble.
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