WWE Royal Rumble 2015: Royal Rumble Match

[Jack-Hammer]

Another article at wrestlinginc.com states that Triple H held a talent meeting before Monday's Raw and told the talents that they're currently not sure who'll win the Royal Rumble match and main event WrestleMania XXXI. Reportedly, Trips challenged all talents to step up in the next few weeks and, allegedly, talents will be evaluated and a decision will be made in the next few weeks.

The article also says that there's a pretty big divide backstage as to who the right person is to win the Royal Rumble. While no names have been mentioned, this further adds to the reports that there's a good deal of uncertainty regarding Roman Reigns at this point in time.

So if all this is legit, then it's, comparatively speaking, anybody's ball game. This suggests that John Cena probably isn't in serious consideration to win the Royal Rumble, though that could change IF someone doesn't "step up" in the eyes of company officials. As a result, that leaves only a handful of believable guys at this point in Bryan, Rollins, Ambrose, Reigns, Orton and Wyatt.

 

[InZayn]

If Reigns wins people are gonna boo him, specially now that Bryan's in the match. If they wanna push Reigns now is the wrong time. Bryan should win for Reigns' sake, simple as that Reigns should be the last person to win.

 

[Aeon Mathix]

Like I have stated before I am ALL for Ambrose winning the Rumble. He has basically been a punching bag to elevate guys like Wyatt and Rollins since the Shield broke up. He needs SOMETHING. Reigns simply isn't ready, Bryan had his moment last year, and nobody else could be believable. Why not Ambrose? Have the clock countdown and an ambulance sounds and Ambrose drives it in for his entrance.

Reigns and Rollins do not need a Rumble win right now, we can see they are both being groomed for huge things which pisses me off about Ambrose the most talented of the 3 being just tossed to the side for whatever reason. He can easily be built up to be a believable threat to Lesnar. If Punk could do it and everyone is watering at the mouth for Bryan vs Lesnar I am not sure why Ambrose would be any different. The promos between Heyman and him and the Brawls with Lesnar would be some outstanding stuff.

 

[L@RISANO]

Don't know why it should be such an issue,tbh.

Once Bryan is fit, I can't see past him at all in the Main Event. The fact that he has been out for almost the entire year means that he is a still a 'fresh' option as well. The only thing against him is possible fitness/health issues, but beyond that, I can't see a reason for a possible divide as it is clear he is far ahead of the rest.


As for Reigns, I am a known vocal supporter of the guy, and am still very much a huge fan of him, but the WWE has done nothing to prepare him for winning the Rumble far less Main Eventing WrestleMania. It is better to slowly push the guy over the next year and then try again next year if he can get the required momentum because he does have potential as a Main Eventer, if not rushed.

 

[Punk_Aries_Daniels_Bryan]

Firstly, let's all pray Vince doesn't just say "Screw this, let's have Cena win the Rumble!"

No, but in all honesty, its good that they're uncertain. Sometimes, just sometimes, taking a leap of faith is needed to have a big impact. Reigns should win the Rumble ... Just not this year. Have him work his way for next year's rumble. His disappearance off television killed his momentum as well, and he needs work both in ring and on the mic. I don't hate the guy, but the current situation works against him.
Think about it:
- Reigns has not had a long or established singles run. He struck out in the shield because of Rollins and Ambrose (both of whom are much better candidates to win it over Reigns)
- Reigns has not faced or beat anybody credible ... And the current champion is BROCK LESNAR. Now I may be biased, because Undertaker is my favorite of all time. Brock lesnar is the guy who beat this legend at Wrestlemania. I think having reigns beat Lesnar is a huge spit in the face to Undertaker and his fans, and all fans in general. Compare Reigns to Undertaker. He is a nobody.

As far as other possible candidates go ... I am not sure who they're evaluating. I wonder if it may be Wyatt, who has been putting on good matches and I like his gimmick. On the other hand, I'm cheering for Ziggler. I don't believe or want it to be Daniel Bryan, just because I don't like any wrestler consecutively headlining Wrestlemania. It should always be somebody different every year. I think Bryan is a serious candidate though.

It should not be Reigns.

It should be either Orton, Bryan, or Ziggler.

 

[Boxhead333]

To be honest I feel like Bryan doesn't need a rumble win, he's already super over and is considered a main event talent (by the fans at least) so I don't think he needs it right now. I'd've liked Reigns to win, but with Bryan in the rumble and the general worry that he isn't ready I think he shouldn't. If he won I think the fans would turn on him, like Batista last year. It'd kill his push before it'd got off the ground. I think the best two options are either Ziggler or Ambrose. Both are crazy over, to the point that people wouldn't boo them if they won over Bryan. Ziggler is having a great run at the moment, but it seems that management aren't ready to commit to him as a main event talent. I think Ambrose is the best choice. He's insanely over, despite having been booked very weak since the Shield split. They could keep him off TV following the ambulance match with Bray, have him as a surprise entrant late in the match, have him win and watch the place explode. I think it would be a good surprise. Plus Rollins with the money in the bank briefcase, and Reigns already circling the title picture, they could finally do the Shield triple threat match at the grandest stage of them all for the most prestigious title of all. That could be an iconic wrestling moment, and a defining chapter in the next generation of WWE.

 

[GooN3rs4LIFE]

Reigns should win next years wrestlemania, as they haven't built him up to win the rumble even though I am a huge fan and think he will be the next cena.

We are still not sure if the undertaker will be wrestling at mania so unless he will defo make it, I would certainly wanna see Bray wyatt win the rumble and go on to win the championship at mania.

I really would like to see the card like this:

Bray Wyatt vs Daniel Bryan (WWE World Heavyweight Championship)
Sting vs Triple H
Rollins vs Orton
Reigns vs Rusev
Cena vs Undertaker(if he makes it, in a Career vs Career match)

 

[JDHale]

If this is true then that's pretty spectacular. If Triple H did indeed tell all talent to step up in the next few weeks then I find it ironic how Ziggler and Ryback, two of the only guys to have stepped up in WWE in a big way, have now been wrote off, giving them no chance at showing they should main event Wrestlemania unless they are brought back. I've even gone as far to say Ziggler was grabbing the brass ring Vince was going on about a few weeks back. So I take it that's them two gone from consideration, even though Ziggler deserves a shot at it. I guess you can take Ambrose and Wyatt off the list for the time being also, I thought their feud was one of the worst I've seen in terms of not living up to the hype and potential, but then again that could have been the storyline and not the wrestlers. They still have time to recover though because they haven't been wrote off tv... Orton is out for a few weeks judging by his surgery recovery time, so you would assume that rules him out. Then that just leaves Bryan, Rollins or Reigns. If Bryan makes his in-ring return at the Rumble then you would assume that means he won't win, and then Rollins likely won't enter the match as he now has two confirmed title matches anyways. And that leaves Reigns, who is improving definitely but I still don't think he's ready. Maybe if he goes after the Authority he'll get support from a much larger amount of the crowd and then I will say he could be ready to win, but I would remember that he got that support at Ziggler (mostly) and Ryback's expense. It seems like a very manipulative company to me if what I'm only guessing is true, but we won't know so yeah...
Just so you all know, I am biased towards Ziggler as he is my favourite wrestler, but in terms of stepping up there is arguably no one that has done so more than him since the podcast. I'm open to people convincing me otherwise but if this is the case and that the Rumble winner has to earn it this year then why the hell is Ziggler not gonna be on Raw? Anyways I'm still holding out for a Ziggler Rumble win that he damn well deserves, but if what you said is true and he doesn't return to the WWE before the Rumble then I say it's Reigns to lose contrary to what I thought a few weeks back.

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

According to Paglino and that reddit user who is supposedly WWE insider it all comes down to 2 names: Reigns and Bryan

Cena is involved with Brock and Rollins so it makes no sense to be him, plus he can be added later even without RR match. Rollins has briefcase and dont think he would win anything before he cashes in(or just try and lose it), Ambrose comed out on losing side far too much in last few months to be considered serious, Wyatt seems to be building for Taker and Orton is still not considered ready to compete due to injury and was pulled till Rumble. Logicly its just Reigns and Bryan. Guess we will see in next few weeks how much they have trust in Reigns and wheather he will be heavyly included in Authority angle. So far main focal point of that angle is Cena, we will see how other people are included in that one because it seems to be focal point of Wrestlemania yet again...

 

[George Steele's Barber]

HHH may have said it but it is bullshit. They know who is winning The Rumble. They know who is expected to face who at Mania. It may not be who you want or who you expect but it is set. Card subject to change but as of now Vince has things in place. As shitty as WWE programming has been lately, one thing that is nice is that a report like this has come out and we can even question whether or not it is legitimate. It means they've done a good job making The Rumble less predictable.

And it is not Fandango.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Of course the problem in all this is the one I've said for years... it's the concept of the Mania challenger being a prize at the Rumble every year that is the biggest issue. It was a bad idea in 1993 and it's never been a strong way... what was for a short time a "fast track way" to elevate certain types of guy, it's now a chore and completely hamstrings the "Road to Wrestlemania" and the show... Last year proved it, the booking of Mania was a shambolic process that actually didn't have a full card till one week from the show. Mainly due to the Batista situation.... Could the Rumble now survive without this "prize" sure, it did before.. the title match can be moved to Fast Lane or just not have the prize... make the Rumble again it's own entity like when Hogan had it, even have the champion enter/win it.

If a meeting was held and that "offer" was made...It's interesting cos the one guy who HAS stepped up recently is Barrett.. he's been back barely 2 weeks and is not only back to his best in the ring but is getting over better as a heel than pretty much any of the others right now. Sure he just won the IC title but that's not to say he's not going to be in the thinking as a "dark horse"... In reality, he'll likely get MITB instead.

The "firing" is going somewhere, personally I see it being a way back in for Ric Flair with a "Horsemen" group with Rowan, Ryback, Dolph and potentially either Sting or Orton. Sting is more likely the guy who comes in when Flair is attacked/curbstomped etc...

Ziggler's improved, but not enough to go to Mania without fixing the other problems... his name is a massive block to a major push... it screams "Phoney Wrestler Name" to casual fans and that's not what Mania is about... Could they pull the old "masked" gimmick and have him win the Rumble, sure.

But lets face it here are the real contenders, with BNB just outside these...

Bryan: "Safe Hands" in that they know he'll be over enough to carry whatever match at Mania, be it Brock or Rollins. Sure they're worried about injury, but that's no different for Ziggler, Barrett, Ryback or Orton... all of them have had severe injury issues recently and are "risks".

Cena: It'll still sell Mania but it would probably kill him off as "the golden goose" there would be a big backlash and it might do more harm than good. If of course they are willing to make him heel off it, then why not? But we all know they don't want that.

Rollins: Let's face it, as MITB holder he has double jeopardy anyway now in the same way Barrett could win the RR or MITB as IC champ and invoke the "IC champ is #1 contender" rule. I could see the Rumble closing the night this year with Rollins having lost the match with Cena and Brock and NOT cashing in for the title but entering and winning the Rumble from 30 or something... after all the case is a contract for a title match opportunity, which the Rumble is...

Bray: Like him or not, Bray HAS improved perhaps the most in recent times...if they are truly evaluating then he is part of the conversation.

Ambrose: My pick and most likely, he has the tools, the "underdog" thing over his recent losses and the ready made story line to go to Mania and come out a superstar. Rollins wins the title without needing to cash in, loses to Reigns at Fast Lane and cashes in immediately to get it back... Ambrose as Rumble winner sets up that Triple Threat for Mania...

Orrton is kind of ruled out if they are genuinely looking at guys on the roster... if he's not on the road in the next 2 weeks (as he's not likely to return to the Rumble) it would negate the "meeting" and arguably be a slap to the other guys.

Reigns has slipped badly in recent weeks, I'd say he's further away than ever right now, his absence didn't "make the heart grow fonder" for the fans and it's clear he's struggling with some elements of the scripting he's being given. They can still "force it through" but like with Cena it'd just be a bad move all round... you can give him a win over Brock at Fast Lane as long as he's cashed in on immediately, it does the same job and the next year can be built around him getting it back... he doesn't need to go to Mania yet..

 

[BuriedByCena]

Roman is not ready. This will be the worst selling WM of all time if he is main eventing. At least with Bryan or Ziggler, the core fan will pay to see it. Even Ambrose, Orton or Ryback would be much better choices to fight Lesnar at Mania.

 

[Aquaman6686]

Roman Reigns isn't anywhere close to being ready. It needs to be Daniel Bryan or Dolph Ziggler, or even Randy Orton. Casual fans aren't going to watch a WrestleMania headlined by someone they don't care about, and the majority of fans don't care about Roman Reigns yet, or Dean Ambrose, or Bray Wyatt, or Seth Rollins. Even a second Rumble victory for Sheamus would be a better option than Reigns/Ambrose/Rollins/Wyatt.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I ant Reigns to win. Why? The same reason I wanted the main event of Mania last year to just be Orton vs. Batista. The crowd would shit on it and it would create a genuinely fascinating match. The rest of he card will deliver so I don't mind a match that's sabotaged. Also, surely if you don't want Reigns to succeed then him against Lesnar should be exactly what you want.

 

[RockShouldMainEventWm32]

Who should win the Royal Rumble? Daniel Bryan.

Who will win the Royal Rumble? Roman Reigns.


Hope to see a repeat of last year's Rumble ending.

 

[the_peoples_adam]

Who would you like to see as a surprise entrant at WWE ROYAL RUMBLE..
I would personally love to see Adrain Neville as the surprise entrant..

Would like to know your opinions and why.

 

[gazzalfc]

I'm saying Sting as the surprise entrant.

HHH takes him out and kicks off his storyline going into Mania

 

[XXJJ]

Look at the rumored WM matches...
Rollin vs Orton already have a great backstory. So it doesn't make sense to add the title to this feud.

Triple H vs Sting doesn't need the title

Cena vs Rusev doesn't need the title

Wyatt vs Taker doesn't need the title

So it will come down to Reigns and Bryan. It's very possible we end up with another triple threat title match at WM. Philly is a very smarky town. It might be smarter to give DB the rumble win and let Reigns get thrown in a title picture at Fastlane. If the crowd turns on Reigns like they did with Batista that could really set back his career. Batista was already established star it wasn't that big of a deal like it would be with Reigns.

 

[AceofSpades]

Who should win the Royal Rumble? Daniel Bryan.

Who will win the Royal Rumble? Roman Reigns.


Hope to see a repeat of last year's Rumble ending.

I hate fans like this. You can't just enjoy the product. You have to crap on it. Do you go to the movies or live plays and just stand up and throw tantrums? Ridiculous. God forbid we don't have an indie darling for you people to slurp up. No wonder we never get any new stars. When we finally get someone being pushed, we get you crybabies freaking out about it and nitpicking it to death.

Grow up.

 

[Terry Gyimah]

Royal Rumble Final Four superstars I am calling it, Final Four are Bryan, Reigns, Rusev and Ziggler now that is what I call a final four but as for who gets eliminated here I would have it be Rusev who ends up being eliminated by Reigns setting up your Final Three of Bryan, Reigns and Ziggler with Ziggler being eliminated by Bryan

Final Two ends up being Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns, the 2 heavily guarded favorites and you let these 2 men just fight it out

 

[MartialHorror]

If Reigns wins, I think Big Show might stick in there until the end...although they might have him unceremoniously eliminated like Kane was at the last one.

I wouldn;t be surprised if Reigns is this years 'screwed' entry, when Big Show- having just been taken out- decides to pull Reigns out.

 

[Elchicano15]

I'd be all for a Reigns victory but I to, don't think he's ready just yet and I'm afraid the Philly crowd would crap all over it. Daniel Bryan winning would make a lot of people happy (including me) For him to have a RR victory under his belt would be nice. I just hope he doesn't get injured anytime soon. DZ winning would tell another great story especially since he's been on fire. If Rollins ends up becoming champion by Mania those two would put together a great match.

Overall I think it will, and should be Randy Orton. Coming in as a surprise entrant, and he has a good story going into Mania. He really never lost the title. Him and Rollins had a nice feud going on before Orton left, and I'm sure they can pick right back up where they left off. There's still a feud he needs to resolve and end with the authority as well. Even if Lesnar still has the belt Orton vs Lesnar for the championship looks great on paper as the WM 31 main event. Mania will most likely be Lesnar's last match in WWE, he might as well go out with someone like Orton.

 

[LoveReignsO'erMe]

Based on last night's ending to Smackdown, it's clear they're promoting 5 faces as possible main eventers.

Ryback.
Dean Ambrose.
Dolph Ziggler.
Daniel Bryan.
Roman Reigns.

They were all left standing in the ring in a face-off, with Big Show and Kane standing on the apron.

I think we can safely eliminate Ryback. He's challenged for the world title before, he's been a Royal Rumble runner-up, and he against Lesnar would actually be an interesting match. However, it's just not Wrestlemania main event quality right now.

I doubt they're going with Dean Ambrose, but if they do, the best match-up would be with Seth Rollins. Ambrose/Lesnar just doesn't have a story to tell. I think Ambrose can put on a hell of a match, but I'm not sure if he has enough name recognition for the casual fan to be put into a WM main event yet.

Dolph Ziggler is an interesting consideration. He's actually the person I want to see win. The best matchup for him would be Seth Rollins, and it would be a great story to tell with the Authority, Sting, and that Survivor Series finish. Ziggler has almost enough name recognition to pull off a WM main event for the casual fan, but it's going to take great writing and a strong build-up. I think it can be done and should be done.

Daniel Bryan is a favorite for many people. He's already main evented and won the title at WM, so he brings instant name recognition and star power. His matchup makes sense against any one of the 3 possibilities. A Cena SummerSlam rematch with a mirror finish (Rollins cashes in) would be crazy. Bryan/Lesnar would be the ultimate David/Goliath match. Bryan/Rollins would be the best wrestling match out of all 3 choices, as those 2 would absolutely bring the house down. Bryan's matchups are the most interesting and provide the best stories/wrestling matches.

Roman Reigns has long been rumored to get the push into the main event at WM, despite many people's concern that he is not ready. While he is not my personal favorite, I do understand where WWE is coming from. He has interesting matchups as well, as I wouldn't mind seeing him against any of the 3 possiblities (although all 3 of the stories fall a bit short of what Bryan's stories with those same 3 people would be). The most obvious storyline of course is a match with Rollins, former Shield brothers, etc etc. I'm just not sure if Rollins can carry Reigns to build that story up, as Reigns just can't do anything on the mic or with emotions. He just doesn't interest me. His stories always fall flat. Unless you gave him a mouthpiece like Heyman, I just don't see Reigns being able to build up the kind of story like Bryan or even Ziggler could.

Some people are also going with a darkhorse Orton win. If he even is in the rumble (no guarantee), I think he's a final 4 candidate, but ultimately something happens where Rollins costs him his chance (or vice versa...Orton makes his reappearance in main event, and costs Rollins). I could see a Rollins/Orton match at Fast Lane for the title (assuming they put it on Rollins at RR), or just a grudge match instead.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I'll make a bold prediction that we'll have duel winners in Bryan and Reigns. It makes Reigns a Rumble winner whilst not alienating the majority of fans who want Bryan to win.

They can then face off against each other in a match that would enhance Reigns if it's of a high standard. He can get screwed out of a victory by Lesnar meaning he get's a huge Mania match whilst Bryan can be where people want him to be. In the world title match.

Won't happen, but it'd be interesting if that's how they went.

 

[MartialHorror]

I have sort of a side topic for the Rumble. When it comes to who will win, we know the answer will probably be either Reigns or Bryan, but who will come out 1st (and 2nd?)

I initially thought it would be one of the Authority members, but as they weren't shown picking on Smackdown (that I remember), it wouldn't surprise me if they got rigged draws. I figure Fandango will be among the first, possibly facing off against either Ryback or Ziggler.