WrestleZone Forum Files #4: Who Ya Got in the Rumble? (Get on the Main Page!)

[klunderbunker]

Post in here until the end of Thursday, December 14 for a chance to make the main page.

Today’s Topic: Who Ya Got in the Rumble?

Last night on Raw, Braun Strowman faced Kane for a Universal Title shot at the Royal Rumble. That was the first mention of the pay per view, meaning it's officially in season. Therefore, we can officially discuss the show.

Who do you think wins and goes on to Wrestlemania? Is it time for Raw to get back on the scoreboard or will Smackdown make it back to back years? Who ya got?

 

[Spidey Revivey]

I know Roman Reigns is the favorite to win, but I think we'll get John Cena for his third Rumble victory. The opportunity to break Ric Flair's title record seems too good to pass up on the biggest stage in wrestling.

Sure, they could go with Cena vs. Styles or whatever without Cena winning at the Royal Rumble, but between the option of having Reigns win a second time and get crapped on or having Cena take it and leave fans happy (maybe by eliminating a Runner-Up Reigns), the latter obviously sounds best. Reigns is still young, and has many more Rumbles ahead of him. Cena is on his way out, and it's no secret. It would simply mean more if John took this one, and gave us the program that could leave him with a 17th world title run.

And since John is still technically a free agent, they can play up him teasing a challenge for either title. It doesn't have to be a "win" for Raw or Smackdown.

 

[Dave]

How can it be that the next Raw PPV is the Royal Rumble in 2018?!

The age-old dip in ratings and overall quality is just about to end as WrestleMania season begins in earnest. After the Clash Of Champions PPV this Sunday, the stage will be set for the Rumble in Philadelphia. The Royal Rumble is always the event that gets us WWE fans looking forward. Forward to the most exciting period of time in the entire WWE calendar.

The one question that will be at the forefront of the WWE audience's mind, as always, is which horse Vince McMahon will be backing to entertain the world in the main event of WrestleMania.

This year, more than most, there are a plethora of superstars that could, feasibly, be “the one”.

Or so the WWE would have you believe anyway...

The truth of the matter is that the winner will be someone from Raw. And the even bigger truth is that person will very likely be Roman Reigns. For how long now have we been told about the WWE keeping the title on Lesnar simply to feed him to Reigns at Mania next year? How many times have Roman and Lesnar been purposely kept apart for the drama of the big reveal at WrestleMania? When David will finally slay Goliath and all will be perfect in the WWE world again.

Rather strangely, however, the bookmakers have John Cena as the favourite to outlast 29 other men. But to what end? For Lesnar against Cena again? I think people want to see that EVEN LESS than they want to see Reigns be the one to beat Lesnar.

Would we love to see someone really given a chance to prove their worth from left field? Absolutely. Could you imagine if someone like Shinsuke Nakamura, Bobby Roode, Samoa Joe or Kevin Owens was given the ultimate golden ticket to the main event of WrestleMania? Well, keep imagining.

There is only one way that the the Royal Rumble is headed and it is not going to be a crowd-pleasing moment by any stretch of the imagination. The S.H.I.E.L.D may be helping Roman get over NOW, when he is 100 miles away from Brock Lesnar. But watch how the crowd turn their backs on him immediately when it becomes abundantly clear that the horse Vince McMahon is backing is, in fact, a Big Dog. Again.

 

[#hamler]

John Cena is a pretty safe bet. Roman Reigns is an even safer bet. Both men will have major singles matches at Wrestlemania like they have had in the last couple of years and are probably the top two names signed to a current WWE contract. But it's time to propel someone a bit more interesting into the spotlight. Someone who's trigger needs pulled before it's a bit too late. Someone who will shine in the spotlight if given the opportunity. Shinsuke Nakamura is that someone.

At Money in The Bank 2017, Nakamura and Styles had a fairly quick face off and the crowd reacted with great positivity. It was one of the few highlights of the show and it's one of the very few interactions they've had with one another since being in the WWE which seems odd given how thin the Smackdown roster seems to be at times. They're building to something. They're building to something big between these two.

Nakamura's star has cooled a bit since his debut. He needs something big to remain credible and a Rumble win is perfect for him. He has clean victories over John Cena and Randy Orton so someone in the back obviously sees something in him. While we're stuck with the dreaded Reigns v. Lesnar match on the RAW side, Smackdown Live can steal a bit of the spotlight by having more of a technical masterpiece on their biggest stage. With so much negative reaction to the last five or so Royal Rumble matches, Nakamura is a satisfying choice for hardcore and casual fans alike.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I'm predicting John Cena wins. Think about it for a moment. His first win was in 2008. His next win was 5 years later in 2013. How many years has it been since his last win? Another 5 years. Quite a coincidence. Then there's also the chance to really make significant history here. He's already rumored to break Flair's record of World Championship wins at Wrestlemania. Why not have him join Stone Cold as the only two who had 3 Royal Rumble wins also? It's better than the excruciatingly obvious pick of Roman Reigns. I've hated the idea of Roman VS Brock for the Universal Championship at Wrestlemania 34 ever since those rumors began. It's been an awful year for the red brand. The plans for this match have caused every other main event level wrestler on Raw to just be stuck with nothing to do. Roman winning the Intercontinental Championship made things even worse. Now there are no major prizes for any singles star to win on Raw. That match seems to be happening no matter what anyone else wants. So, why not use this opportunity for someone else?

Whether it ends up being John Cena or someone else, I predict that whoever is challenging the World Heavyweight Champion is who ends up winning the Royal Rumble. If it's not Cena then it simply has to be someone from Smackdown. From 2014 through 2016, and to a lesser extent last year, the Rumble had been a massive disappointment for the past few years. Ironically enough the Rumble this year is in the exact same place where Roman got boo'ed out of the building. I hope that the WWE does not make that mistake again. They need to make the Rumble match itself special again. Having Cena or a Smackdown guy win it would be a step in the right direction. The result wouldn't be predictable or stupid, both of which are exactly what a Reigns win would be.

 

[Bernkastel]

I'd love to see Braun Strowman win this year. Lesnar/Strowman II sounds way more appealing than the long rumored Lesnar/Reigns rematch right now. I really enjoyed the match that those to had at No Mercy. I thought they had great chemistry, and told a good story. It's not often that we get to see Lesnar completely backed into a corner, forcing him to up his game in order to win. Now imagine the Beast against an even more determined and driven Strowman? The feud practically sells itself.

Time will tell though, with Strowman's current feud with Kane. Kane will eventually do the honors for Strowman; like Vader in 1998, that much is predictable. The story is nothing new: new monster will defeat old monster. It's just a matter of when. WWE could draw out this feud past the Royal Rumble.

If Strowman doesn't win the Rumble, then Cena would be my second pick. 2013 was the last time that Big Match John headlined a Wrestlemania. Though with Lesnar defending, that might not happen again this time. If Cena does win, then my guess is that he challenges for the WWE title on SD. Most likely either Jinder or Styles will be champion at that point. Going down this road, WWE might even run a triple threat. Would be a great way to give Cena reign number 17, while preserving either Styles or Jinder for a rematch down the line.

 

[klunderbunker]

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