Tonight officially begins WrestleMania season with the Royal Rumble and it’s simply this – one man and one woman will win their Royal Rumble match and punch their ticket to WrestleMania. So let’s a take one final look at what’s at stake for tonight.
Pitch Black Match: Bray Wyatt vs. LA Knight
Ever since Bray Wyatt returned last November everyone has wondered just which Bray has returned. Was it The Eater of Worlds, The Fiend, The Firefly Funhouse Bray or the mysterious Uncle Howdy. As it turns out we’ve seen all versions of The New Face of Fear… and so has LA Knight. Give credit to LA Knight for being able to hold his own with the mysterious Wyatt but Knight may have bitten off more than he can chew. Adding even more fuel to this feud was the return of The Undertaker at the RAW 30 show this past Monday who cut Knight’s promo short and was about to chokeslam LA Knight when he suddenly threw him to Bray who hit Sister Abigail. As Undertaker was leaving the ring The Phenom & The Eater of Worlds came face to face and Undertaker whispered in Bray’s ear seemingly passing the torch of mystical powers to Wyatt. This match has the potential to be very interesting.
Who wins: Bray Wyatt
RAW Women’s Championship: Bianca Belair(c) vs. Alexa Bliss
Bianca Belair has enjoyed an historic type run usually reserved for the likes of Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch or Bayley. That Bianca has surpassed 300 days as RAW Women’s Champion speaks to her star power and ability to put on great matches. Her match with Becky Lynch at last year’s WrestleMania was one of the highlights of that weekend. She now goes up against a seemingly unhinged Alexa Bliss. Once allies, Bliss has been drawing closer & closer to her dark side since Bray Wyatt’s return. Each time his logo has appeared Bliss has gone off the deep end & attacked Belair. Now completely embracing the darkness, Alexa is taking dead aim at Belair. This should be a fun match that will test the champion’s resolve. She will need to keep her head on a swivel.
Who wins: Bianca Belair retains.
Undisputed WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns(c) vs. Kevin Owens
Two years ago at The Royal Rumble these two men went to war over the Universal Championship and thanks to the help of Paul Heyman, the Tribal Chief was able to retain a championship(now combined with the WWE title) he has now held for over 880 days. Owens has been a thorn in the Bloodline’s side for months and has caused a fracture in the supergroup. It’s clear that Reigns & Heyman don’t trust the Honorary Uce Sami Zayn while The Usos seem to be all in on making Zayn a permanent member of The Bloodline. Owens will do anything and everything to end Reigns’ dominant run. Something tells me The Tribal Chief will have a plan to ensure he remains at the head of the table.
Who wins: Roman Reigns retains.
Women’s Royal Rumble Match
Confirmed participants: Bayley, Liv Morgan, Raquel Rodriguez, Rhea Ripley, Candice LaRae, Shayna Baszler, Zelina Vega, Emma, Lacy Evans, Dakota Kai, Iyo Sky, Xia Li
One can look at the fact there are only 12 confirmed participants in two ways – it either sets the stage for a lot of surprises or it shows how ineffective creative has been in building up the women’s division. I would expect to see Becky Lynch make an appearance despite suffering a beatdown at the hands of Damage Control on Monday. There could be the usual ‘surprises’ of returning legends like Molly Holly & Beth Phoenix. There’s the ever hopeful rumor of Naomi’s return to WWE tonight. There’s even the rumor of her return and winning it all and challenging Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown’s women’s title at WrestleMania. Whatever the case there just doesn’t seem to be enough feuds out there to make the stories within the story that interesting. This all may be leading to what many people expect which is a clear front runner winning & punching her ticket to WrestleMania. That woman? Rhea Ripley. She’s been on fire since joining the Judgment Day. She’s become the de-facto leader of the group and has been on a really good run.
Who wins: Rhea Ripley
Men’s Royal Rumble Match
Confirmed participants: Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, Brock Lesnar, Bobby Lashley, Gunther, Austin Theory, Kofi Kingston, Ricochet, Drew McIntyre, Sheamus, Omos, Braun Strowman, Baron Corbin, Santos Escobar, Rey Mysterio, Karrion Kross, The Miz & Xavier Woods
There are plenty of back stories at play in tonight’s men’s match. Bobby Lashley is at war with Brock Lesnar. Austin Theory has been at war with Lashley and Seth Rollins. Rey Mysterio and Karrion Kross are locked in a feud right now. There’s plenty of history with Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins. Let’s not forget the hellacious war between Sheamus’ group The Brawling Brutes and Gunther’s group Imperium. All of this should make for good theater along with whatever surprises WWE has planned.
Who wins: Cody Rhodes
Other Musings
Tuesday Wrestling Tuesday host Jonathan Hood offered his thoughts on this past Monday’s RAW 30 show. Take a listen:
The good folks over at Good Karma Wrestling offered their thoughts and predictions of the Royal Rumble, AEW and talk with Matt Cardona:
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