If the Royal Rumble is the road to WrestleMania, then it’s going to be a bumpy ride.

The Rumble kicked off WWE’s build to WrestleMania, and the publicly owned company listened to its fan base when Shinsuke Nakamura claimed victory in the men’s Rumble and challenged AJ Styles for the WWE championship at WrestleMania 34 in New Orleans.

WWE made the right call to close the card with the women’s Royal Rumble, as Asuka dominated and became the first-ever women’s winner. Cheers quickly turned to confusion as Ronda Rousey arrived right before Asuka chose her ‘Mania opponent, and the pay-per-view went off the air with the announcing team discussing Rousey’s arrival and conveniently dismissing Asuka’s victory.

An otherwise rushed men’s Rumble, which was highlighted by the return of Rey Mysterio, came together perfectly during its final 25 minutes. The ring was filled with the likes of John Cena, Finn Balor, Nakamura, Randy Orton and Roman Reigns, until Nakamura and Reigns had a showdown to finish the match.

WWE will have some explaining to do regarding the finish of the women’s Rumble that somehow allowed Stephanie McMahon and Ronda Rousey to replace Asuka and both women’s champions as the central figures of the show.

Here are my notes from the Rumble:

1. Did it feel cheap to anyone else when the show opened with the WWE championship match? SmackDown is clearly positioned as the company’s secondary show, well behind Raw, and placing the world title in the opening match was only further confirmation.

2. Wrestling is constantly criticized for its modern-day lack of selling injuries, but Kevin Owens reinjuring his ankle following Styles doing a number on Owens’s ankle on SmackDown was a nice touch. While I was impressed by the storyline continuity, Owens’s ankle was somehow perfectly fine for the remainder of the match—though he was selling the injury in the backstage segment post-match.

3. The finish to the show-opening title match was well-designed, as the tag wasn’t made between Zayn and Owens so Styles pinned an opponent who was not the legal man. The finish protects Owens and Zayn, as two top heels should not be defeated by one opponent, no matter how phenomenal he may be.

4. Styles has earned the right to main event WrestleMania 34. Although that slot appears to already be filled by the Roman Reigns-Brock Lesnar rematch, the wrestling diehards deserve a wrestling match between two full-time talents to close out the biggest show of the year. If the same philosophy was used in WWE history, where part-timers were brought in to main event the show, then Steve Austin and The Rock would have never closed out WrestleMania 15, which was a major turning point in the stardom of The Rock and helped cement Austin as the top draw in the world.

5. The backstage segment between Owens, Zayn and Shane McMahon is building perfectly to a tag-team match at WrestleMania 34. McMahon’s partner, of course, has to be Daniel Bryan. The decibel level at the Superdome in New Orleans will be deafening when McMahon starts the match… and then finally tags Bryan into the match.

6. The Usos opened the match by proclaiming they had nothing to lose, which, of course, is far from the truth in a company that scripts its finishes. TMZ reported that Jey Uso was arrested two weeks ago for driving while impaired. It’s worth noting that Vince McMahon claimed players in the XFL—which he announced will return in 2020—will not allow anyone on the field with criminal records.

7. Chad Gable’s sky-high moonsault was another peek at Gable’s talent. He feels like a Jim Ross hire from the early 2000s as he was a successful college athlete with a legitimate amateur wrestling background, and someone comfortable working with other alpha males in a locker room. Gable’s breakout in WWE is inevitable, and I reached out to Jim Ross during the show for a comment.

“Chad Gable reminds me at times of the great Kurt Angle with his fundamental wrestling soundness and attention to detail,” Ross said, who took a break from his one-man tour and book signings of Slobberknocker to connect with Sports Illustrated. “Athletic entertainers such as Angle, Brock Lesnar, and others like Jack Brisco have always been significant pieces to the foundation of the genre. Chad Gable is no exception. I expect greatness from Chad.”

8. WWE shocked tag teams around the world when The Usos claimed the first two falls to win a best-of-three falls match without going to the third fall. The match was just picking up momentum, and the finish was flat. Considering WWE desperately needs to build new tag teams, choosing to keep the belts on The Usos feels like a missed opportunity.

9. The Usos are tremendous heels. Are we ready for Roman Reigns to go full-out heel and work with Jimmy and Jey Uso? Reigns turning on his Shield partners, especially with a chair shot to the back of Seth Rollins, would be a great way to jumpstart their control of the company.

10. WWE’s “All About the Numbers” video for the Royal Rumble was fantastic, but the company has remained steadfast in its decision not to highlight Hulk Hogan. Although Hogan was briefly in a montage video during Raw 25, he was never specifically mentioned during the Rumble video, despite the fact that Hogan’s wins–and even his loss at the 1992 Rumble–firmly established the pay per view as a must-see attraction.

11. Jerry Lawler returned to broadcast the Rumble, ending any speculation that his “puppies” comment on Raw was not pre-approved.

12. Despite the rules of the Royal Rumble, where a new competitor enters every two minutes, there were only 78 seconds separating Rhyno and Baron Corbin’s entries in the Rumble. There were 100 seconds in between Corbin and Heath Slater, so clearly WWE is going to play by its own rules when it comes to when a new competitor enters the Rumble. Elias Sampson came to the ring only a minute and twenty-two seconds after Slater. For those keeping track, the first entry to come out two minutes after the buzzer was Sheamus at number eleven.

13. The addition of NXT champion Andrade “Cien” Almas into the Rumble was a welcome addition. Almas wrestled Johnny Gargano at the previous night’s NXT Takeover: Philadelphia in arguably the match of the year, including matches from New Japan’s Wrestle Kingdom on January 4.

14. Would anyone object to Big E winning the Rumble? He is cast as a comedy player in the SmackDown tag-team division. But Big E is the rare babyface who is beloved by the crowd, has the ability to speak confidently on the microphone and can work fantastic matches. Of course, Big E was eliminated by Jinder Mahal.

15. There had to be a better way to explain Zayn’s entrance at no. 10. Zayn and Owens ambushed Tyler Dillinger in the back, and Zayn then claimed the spot and entered the match. It was a moot point when Shinsuke Nakamura eliminated Zayn.

16. Slater’s moment at the Rumble, which saw him eliminate Sheamus, served as a quick reminder that WWE has a hidden gem who can connect with their audience in Slater. Personally, I would be thrilled to watch a Slater-Miz program for the Intercontinental title.

17. If Nakamura does not win the Rumble, then throw ice all over his WWE future. It’s now or never for “The Artist,” who is more likely to return to New Japan than become WWE champion if he does not win the Rumble.

18. Seth Rollins entered at no. 18, and this Rumble is flying. The entries have averaged just under 90 seconds, and WWE is clearly worried about the timing of the show.

19. Kofi Kingston’s “power of the pancakes” spot was creative, but ultimately lost its meaning with Kingston’s elimination only moments later.

Kingston has claimed the athletic spots that were formerly performed in the Rumble by Johnny Morrison, who now wrestles with Impact, AAA, and Lucha Underground.

“One of the reasons I watch the Royal Rumble is because I’m looking forward to seeing what Kofi Kingston is going to do and how he will top what he did the year before,” Morrison said. “There is no end to Kofi’s creativity and athleticism, and he’s one of my favorite performers in the entire business.”

Morrison noted that many of his own athletic spots inspired his stunts during his action film, Boone: The Bounty Hunter, which is now available on iTunes and Amazon.

“Kofi’s spot got a huge pop at our house this year,” Morrison said. “I’m amazed that he can deliver every year. My only regret is that I wish he stayed in the Rumble longer to allow the fans in the crowd and in their homes all over the world more time to appreciate what he did.”

20. To allow for Kingston’s acrobats, there were two minutes and fifty-four seconds after Seth Rollins entered until Matt Hardy’s entry.

21. How great was the stare down between John Cena and Shane “Hurricane” Helms? Helms would be a welcome addition to the cruiserweight division, and provide an additional reason to watch 205 Live every Tuesday.

22. With Randy Orton’s entry into the Royal Rumble, the ring was filled with a three-time Ring of Honor champion in Cole, a 16-time WWE champion in Cena, a 13-time champion in Orton, the current NXT champion in Almas, as well as a three-time IWGP champion in Nakamura and former Bullet Club leader Finn Balor.

23. The return of Rey Mysterio was arguably the most memorable moment of this year’s Rumble. It is no coincidence that Mysterio was just mentioned as a future possible opponent for Kenny Omega in New Japan, so this was a great chance for WWE to highlight Mysterio’s return and remind the wrestling world—particularly New Japan, who had something of a coup with their signing of Chris Jericho—that pro wrestling, I mean sports entertainment, is WWE’s yard.

24. WWE has done a tremendous job of weaving in the newer talent (Almas, Cole) with returning stars (Mysterio) and its top talent (Reigns, Cena, Balor). And, instead of a returning star at No. 30, it was much better to see Dolph Ziggler claim that spot. WWE should do everything in its power to highlight the talent who work year round, instead of continually placing that spotlight on those who return for ‘Mania. Ziggler, for what it’s worth, was eliminated by the time I finished typing that last sentence.

25. The sight of Randy Orton and John Cena in the ring together brings back instant nightmares. The 2014 Rumble title match between Cena and Orton still occasionally haunts my dreams; I’m perfectly fine never seeing another main event between those two.

26. Balor eliminating Mysterio was another perfect call. Every chance to build Balor should be capitalized.

27. The Rumble was rushed to highlight the final four of Cena, Reigns, Balor and Nakamura. The moment climaxed when Cena eliminated Balor, which would be an incredible match, and passing of the torch, at WrestleMania from Cena to Balor.

28. Roman Reigns is an entirely different performer than the one we saw win the Rumble in 2015. In addition to a vast improvement in the ring, there is no doubt he is the most polarizing figure in professional wrestling.

29. Nakamura eliminating Reigns concluded one of the most compelling Royal Rumble events of all-time. Reigns’s moment will still come against Lesnar at ‘Mania, but this was an opportunity—and WWE took full advantage—to use Reigns to make Nakamura to the WWE audience. The vast majority of WWE fans do not watch New Japan Pro Wrestling, so giving Nakamura his chance to shine over Reigns was the right call, and we now have a Nakamura-Styles match to look forward to at WrestleMania.

30. Why is there no animosity between Raw stars and their counterparts from SmackDown? That entire angle for the Survivor Series, where the two sides allegedly hated each other, continues to age poorly.

31. Ric Flair’s “KFC Rumble” was a quick commercial, but man, that contained some real emotion. Flair was given less than a 20% chance of survival this past summer, so to see him recreate the finish of the 1992 Rumble—where he eliminated Sid Justice, who had just tossed Hulk Hogan—was a perfect moment.

32. The worst spot on this card was the match following the men’s Royal Rumble, which was given to the Raw tag-title match featuring Seth Rollins and Jason Jordan against Cesaro and Sheamus.

The titles changed hands, as Cesaro continues to emerge as a modern-day tag-team specialist, but the titles felt like an afterthought to the storyline between Jordan and Rollins.

33. Fascinating to see the depths in which WWE has de-valued Brock Lesnar in his battles with Braun Strowman. Wrestling is a business that revolves entirely around commodities, and the performers are just that, so it’s easy to watch with considerable interest as WWE allows Strowman to destroy Lesnar. As Michael Cole noted at the end of the match, Lesnar “survived” the match after pinning Kane. The end of Lesnar’s WWE run is coming, which appears to be this August at SummerSlam before his inevitable return to the UFC heavyweight division.

34. Imagine UFC telling Bruce Buffer to step aside during the biggest match of a pay-per-view so someone else could be the ring announcer? No, I can’t either, but that’s exactly what WWE did by bringing in Maria Menounos to guest ring announce before the women’s Rumble.

Why does @mariamenounos announce everyone like she's a ghost on the Disney Haunted Mansion ride? #RoyalRumble — WWE Creative Humor (@WWECreative_ish) January 29, 2018

35. The bell rang for the women’s Royal Rumble at 10:08 p.m. ET. If you thought the entry times for the men’s Rumble were squeezed together, you ain’t seen nothing yet.

36. WWE Hall of Famer Lita returned to the Royal Rumble, and wore a #TIMESUP shirt, which is fairly controversial in the world of WWE.

It’s worth mentioning that the Daily Beast reported Vince McMahon allegedly sexually assaulted a woman in a tanning booth.

No mention was made of Lita’s shirt by the broadcast team of Michael Cole, Corey Graves and Stephanie McMahon.

37. The women’s Rumble would have been greatly enhanced with the presence of SmackDown champion Charlotte and Raw champion Alexa Bliss. Considering WWE creates the rules—as evidenced by the time clock—why not just add a provision to include the champions?

38. Molly Holly’s flip onto Sasha Banks looked incredibly unsafe. Even attempting a move with that much risk and such little reward makes no sense, but it was a clear reminder how the Rumble is such a dangerous match.

39. Michelle McCool’s return—and strong spots—further indicates that her husband, The Undertaker, is returning for this year’s WrestleMania.

40. Stephanie McMahon added a calm presence on the broadcast, and she is incredibly well-spoken. But… isn’t she supposed to be a heel?

41. Just like the men’s Rumble, WWE did a nice job presenting former stars while still showcasing the current roster. Out of all the returners, I was surprised Torrie Wilson did not last longer.

42. Sasha Banks continues to slip outside the ring any time there could physical contact. The spot from Holly appeared to injure her, in what appeared to be her shoulders.

43. The Naomi spot—where she climbed from the barricade back to the ring with the help of an office chair, only to be quickly eliminated by Nia Jax—mirrored the same sequence from Kofi Kingston’s pancakes spot during the men’s Rumble.

44. Beth Phoenix would be a fantastic addition to the women’s division. Mickie James has not been booked as a legend, but Phoenix, who is a WWE Hall of Famer, could serve as a great opponent to further enhance Nia Jax as a heel once she is champion.

45. The Philadelphia crowd delivered a loud “John Cena sucks!” chant after Nikki Bella returned to the ring, in what was the first card Cena and Bella both worked since last year’s WrestleMania.

46. Bayley’s stock has dropped over the past six months in WWE. Unfortunately, there is less and less of a buzz during her entrances, and she wasn’t even considered a possibility to win the Rumble.

47. Trish Stratus was reportedly upset with her appearance this past Monday on Raw 25, as she was only a part of one segment where she was introduced and waved to the crowd, but her entrance was a perfect way to allow her to shine. Instead of Ronda Rousey, the crowd was thrilled to see Stratus at no. 30.

48. If Banks was injured, she did a tremendous job of working through the pain. Her elimination deflated the crowd, who much preferred to see a Banks-Asuka standoff instead of Asuka vs. the Bella sisters.

49. The Rumble is an emotionally draining event, let alone two, but the crowd remained invested in the finish because of its attachment to and interest in Asuka. Even though Nikki Bella had no chance of winning, it was worth watching to see Asuka celebrate her moment as the first-ever winner of the women’s Royal Rumble.

50. The finish of the pay-per-view—which saw Ronda Rousey interrupt Asuka’s moment, before she could even choose whether she would wrestle Charlotte or Alexa Bliss at WrestleMania—was extremely poorly done.

Unfortunately, the Rumble ended on a sour note. Just like Nakamura’s win earlier in the night, the show should have finished by celebrating the winner of the women’s Rumble. Instead, we were treated to the Ronda Rousey show. Asuka never announced her opponent for ‘Mania, Rousey pointed again and again to the WrestleMania sign, and the show ended on a Rousey-Stephanie McMahon handshake. Somehow, on a night that had highlighted the women’s division, the show ended by teasing a McMahon-Rousey feud. A show that ran for over four hours did not provide enough time to complete the story of Asuka and her ‘Mania opponent.

The Rock is currently scheduled to team with Rousey against Triple H and Stephanie McMahon at WrestleMania, but the build to that match should have started on Raw. The Rumble was supposed to Asuka’s moment, but instead ended with her as an afterthought.

Justin Barrasso can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.</s>Share this article with Google Plus

WWE Royal Rumble will go down as one of the most newsworthy shows of the year after a four hour show which produced plenty of talking points.

Two Japanese stars won big at the event, as Shinsuke Nakamura won the men’s Royal Rumble, and Asuka claimed victory in the first ever women’s Rumble.

But it was the debut of former UFC Champion Ronda Rousey which got the world talking, as the longtime wrestling fan strolled down to the ring after Asuka’s victory.

Rousey pointed at the Wrestlemania sign and shook Stephanie McMahon’s hand at ringside, before it was revealed on social media that she had signed a full time WWE contract.

Many had expected Rousey to take part in the Rumble itself, and when the men’s version went on first, the expectation was that she would win the match.

Instead it was the undefeated Asuka who emerged victorious, and she refused Rousey’s offer of a handshake in the post-match antics.

A potential Wrestlemania match between the two would be a sight to behold, but both Raw women’s champion Alexa Bliss and SmackDown champion Charlotte Flair are expected to be involved as well.

Trish Stratus, Lita and The Bella Twins all returned for the women’s Rumble, while NXT champion Ember Moon also made an appearance.

It was a night of success for Japan as Shinsuke Nakamura won the men’s Royal Rumble after eliminating 2015 winner Roman Reigns.

Previous stars including Rey Mysterio and The Hurricane competed in the match, as well as NXT champion Andrade Cien Almas and former Ring of Honor champion Adam Cole.

The final six consisted of an all-star cast including John Cena, Randy Orton, Roman Reigns, Rey Mysterio, Finn Balor and Shinsuke Nakamura, who eliminated both John Cena and Roman Reigns to win the match.

Nakamura’s win was hugely popular, and he immediately challenged WWE Champion AJ Styles for a title match at Wrestlemania.

Styles defeated Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn earlier in the show, while Brock Lesnar retained his Universal title against Braun Strowman and Kane.

Lesnar pinned Kane after an F5 onto a steel chair, and he is expected to face Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania 34 in April.

Sheamus and Cesaro regained their Raw tag-team titles over Seth Rollins and Jason Jordan, while The Usos retained against Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin.

With WWE’s flagship Monday Night Raw show taking place tonight, expect plenty of news from the Royal Rumble to be developed in more depth.</s>WWE Royal Rumble 2018 ended with Asuka winning the first-ever women's Royal Rumble match, but not to be outdone, Ronda Rousey also made her highly anticipated WWE debut.

Asuka and Ronda Rousey entered the match as the top two betting favorites, but with Rousey not actually participating in the match, it was Asuka who outlasted 29 other competitors and earned herself the monumental victory. Now that WWE has pulled the trigger on another marquee win for the unstoppable Asuka on the same night Rousey came to WWE, the next step is quite apparent: Rousey must face Asuka at WrestleMania 34.

In a WWE world where its female audience is the largest it has ever been, Rousey vs. Asuka is the "money match" that the women's division has never had. On one hand, you've got Asuka, who has never been been pinned or submitted in WWE and is arguably the most must-see attraction in the women's division in recent memory. On the other hand, there is Rousey, the most successful female MMA fighter of all-time and someone who helped ignite the women's evolution in WWE, whether fans realized it or not, by forcing WWE to put a spotlight on women's wrestling.

Rousey was recently listed by ESPN as the 16th most famous athlete in the world and No. 1 among female athletes, even outranking well-known names like Tom Brady, Conor McGregor, Maria Sharapova and James Harden. Rousey's celebrity has expanded well beyond the world of MMA into Hollywood and now the world of sports entertainment, where she brings with her a huge fan base the likes of which WWE's women's division has never seen.

Rousey is one of the biggest draws in UFC history, so it stands to reason that, even after enduring a rollercoaster ride of an MMA career in recent years, that drawing ability will translate to the world of pro wrestling. Although recent data indicates that stars like Alexa Bliss and the Bella Twins are surprisingly good draws (especially the former), the women's division, at least in modern history, has never had the massive mainstream star who could catapult it to new heights beyond the scope of WWE.

That's exactly what Rousey can do, and it's why her expected presence in the women's division will benefit everyone in WWE. Male or female.

The former UFC star equals more exposure for WWE and its women's division, which means more exposure, and ideally, more money for every female performer in WWE. The effect that Rousey could have on WWE's women's division should be similar to that of Brock Lesnar, WWE's most notable crossover star, who is also one of UFC's biggest draws ever and has been given that same moniker as WWE's biggest current draw.</s>: I’ve enjoyed the series between these teams. Sure, Benjamin and Gable have the least amount of personality in a division featuring the Usos, New Day, Rusev Day, etc., but they’re very good in between the ropes. The 2 Out of 3 Falls stipulation should allow this to have the time to really get going, and it’ll most likely be on the Kickoff Show. I’m saying the Usos retain, at least until WrestleMania.

Jake Chambers: Everything wrong with the WWE these days can be summed up in this one match:

 1. Bloated roster – They’ve poached so many great wrestlers from around the world but have little idea what to do with many of them, whether veterans like Benjamin, up-and-comers like Gable or stars in their prime like The Usos.

 2. Pointless titles – To be Smackdown Tag Team Champions in a universe where there are three tag team titles is pointless, especially with no distinction between divisions other than just being arbitrarily put on certain shows. There’s no ranking, no earning title shots by climbing a ladder – it’s all just one belty gold blur.

 3. Great wrestling doesn’t matter – All these guys are capable of having great matches (well, that’s a bit of a stretch for Benjamin), but this match will unlikely be indecipherable to the bland matches they book all week on TV.

 4. Too much stuff – Much like their slate of weekly television that often exceeds 8 hours a week, jamming a 2/3 Falls Match onto a PPV that has 2 one-hour Royal Rumble matches for the first time in history is so disorganized.

 5. Winning is meaningless – Sure, the Usos are likely to win here… or not. It honestly has no creative consequence. The losers will just get a rematch on TV next week or something, and no one will care.

Mike Chin: This is as likely of a candidate as any for match of the night. Originally, I assumed the Usos would keep rolling, but with Jey’s recent DUI, I anticipate the brothers, at minimum, dropping the titles here.

Paul Leazar: The Usos have been wonderful as the tag champs. Honestly, this might be their best run yet with the championships, and that’s great. That’s wonderful even! I think you look around the tag team landscape over on Smackdown, and you have to think it’s time for a change in scenery. The Uso’s are quickly running out of credible challengers, and I think a switch here to the very entertaining Gable & Benjamin tandem would do the trick. It might have taken these guys a while to gel, but it’s happened before our eyes over the last month. My choice here also might be colored by Jey Uso’s recent activities outside of the WWE getting him into some trouble, but I think if you look at it either way, the title change would certainly help things over on the blue brand. I’m taking Gable and Benjamin here by cheating their way into winning the last fall.

Mitch Nickelson: I haven’t put too much thought into this match because most everything not being the Rumble has a tendency to get overshadowed, but this is a potentially show-stealing bout. Both teams are phenomenal and have been putting in good work in one of the consistently best divisions in regards to match quality. And this 2 out of 3 Falls stipulation should ensure that this one is a banger. I don’t think the swerve title win from a few weeks back was the last time Gable & Benjamin would hold those straps. I’m calling that they get a proper reign and it will begin Sunday night.

JUSTIN WATRY: Tough call. What would I like to see? The Usos winning and continuing their great heel run. Who do I think takes it? Eh, Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin kinda have to win or they have nowhere else to go. The duo can only lose so many times before getting shoved to the side for the next challengers. I don’t know. This tag bout is surely going to be really good, so quality won’t be the problem. The problem will be who is next in line for a championship story line. Rusev and Aiden English? The Old Day? The Ascension? The Bludgeon Brothers? Breezango? Play it safe and go with The Usos.

BRANDON EWING: This is gonna be a classic that I am very excited to see take place at the Royal Rumble. I’m gonna go with Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin winning the tag titles. The Usos have proven to be amazing Tag Team Champions and arguably the best tag team on the entire WWE roster. The timing is right for them to drop the titles.

Rob Stewart: Oh, this is going to be good. The Usos absolutely killed it in 2017, and Gable and Benjamin both have potential to do the same throughout 2018 if they are kept at prominence. Surprisingly good booking and storytelling has seen Benjamin and the plucky underdog Gable playing a ‘tweener role with some heel-ish tendencies, and they are sliding effectively into “will do anything to win” territory. This shift for them has been handled with a deftness I wouldn’t normally give WWE Creative credit for, and it’s nice to see they have it in them to change up the formula for some guys. I think the Usos should retain here; it just seems too early to have them lose the straps right now. Gable and Benjamin should get to stick around in the title scene as the program segues into featuring another team or two (the Fashion Police, Rusev Day, the Bludgeon Brothers, and Kevin & Sami all are options), but I don’t want to see the belts start getting throw on every new challenger that comes along. Gable and Benjamin are a great unit with which to build momentum for Jimmy and Jey.

: I like how the Raw tag division has been The Bar against someone for about a year. The Club, The Hardys, The Shield, and now Jason Jordan and Seth Rollins. It hasn’t been a bad idea at all. The WWE has done a very good job building to this Jordan heel turn. I’m thinking it takes a big step forward at the Royal Rumble. Jordan either loses and gets frustrated, or he makes a mistake that costs Seth to take the loss.

Jake Chambers: I never pick against Sheamus. I want to encourage everyone to find that wrestler you love with irrational passion. This is pro-wrestling and if they’re pretending to be competing then shouldn’t we sometimes have an obligation to pretend to be real fans? That’s what I do with my man Sheamus. I just want him to win every time, and I believe he can. Because he wins a lot. Because he’s amazing!

Mike Chin: WWE easily could pull the trigger on the title change and Jordan’s full-fledged heel turn at the Rumble, but I suspect we’re in for at least a few more weeks of Rollins and Jordan having a reason to coexist before that goes down. They retain this weekend.

Paul Leazar: This one is interesting to me. How quickly are we going to have Rollins & Jordan turn on each other? It’s certainly been building very nicely for Jordan for the last couple of weeks, but I think we need more fuel to the fire before we pull the trigger. Especially with the way WWE books nowadays, where you don’t want to do something to early before they run it into the ground. I say wait until Fast Lane for the turn, keep it as fresh as possible, and let that take us in WrestleMania. For that to happen, Jordan needs to somehow pull out the win here against The Bar, and it needs to be as douchy a win as a heel can get.

Mitch Nickelson: The internet tells me that Sheamus has a bad injury and will be packing up his wrestling boots soon. If all of that’s true, then I’m rooting for he & Cesaro to pull out the win here. Give him the chance to walk into WrestleMania holding a title one last time. Also, I foresee Seth Rollins in a singles match at Mania far more than in a tag match, so why not start building for whoever that’ll be against? I guess he’ll be entering into a program against Jason Jordan, but I’m not necessarily rooting for that matchup. Maybe a loss here will somehow lead to a Rollins vs. Kurt Angle match instead, which I’d be totally on board with.

JUSTIN WATRY: Tag team wrestling has a good shot at stealing the show on Sunday. The WWE Title match is probably going to be more of a story than an actual bell to bell fight. The Universal Title triple threat is just a slugfest with a predictable outcome. With the tag bouts, not only are they both unpredictable, all four teams are more than ready to answer the bell. I am going to pick Seth Rollins and Jason Jordan to retain only because going to THE BAR once again just feels like a repeat. I have the same thoughts on The Miz with the IC Title. Yes, it had to get far away from Roman Reigns but back to The Miz? AGAIN? Fine. Back to the RAW Tag Team Titles, I don’t know where this is all headed, except that WWE has played the fans to perfection with Jordan. Well done.

BRANDON EWING: It’s time to setup for the enviable Seth Rollins vs. Jason Jordan match for WrestleMania 34. Easy prediction here. The Bar (Sheamus & Cesaro) become the new WWE RAW Tag Team Champions. Rollins and Jordan officially split up, with Jason Jordan turning “heel” officially (not that he already is seen as a heel in the eyes of many within’ the WWE Universe). Love him or hate em, Jason Jordan is over like rover as one of the most hated and annoying talents on the RAW roster (aside from the typical Roman Reigns banter from the IWC, obviously).

Rob Stewart: Jason Jordan’s story is becoming one of my favorite aspects of Raw, honestly. He’s clearly transitioned to heel but is playing it so damn earnestly that I can’t help but dig it. The crowd is all over him, but he’s brushing it off and just continuing to be so damn smarmy. Coincidentally, he and Seth are now sitting in the role of hated heel & popular face which Cesaro and Sheamus used to occupy so well. It’s both too obvious and too soon for Seth and Jason to drop the belts here; their story still feels like it has places to go. We’ve just barely scraped the surface of their discomfort with each other. I believe these belts next find their way onto the waists of Gallows and Anderson, meaning The Bar is unfortunately just here to build the saga of Rollins and Jordan.

: A Triple Threat match probably would’ve been better. It could’ve still worked like a handicap match, but had some intrigue. As much as I’d love to see Sami and Kevin LayCool the titles together, I just don’t think it happens. Owens and Styles have been the best performers on Smackdown for the past year, though aren’t great against each other. Their best stuff was when Jericho got added, and I feel Sami will have a similar effect. AJ retains and hopefully enters Mania with the title.

Jake Chambers: Oh fine, why not, let’s give the most important wrestling championship BELT to a tag team. It’s clear the WWE doesn’t care anymore about the figurative zygote that evolved 50 years later into a multi-billion dollar global corporate merchandizing and live event entertainment promotion company. 2017 was the lowest year in the history of the WWE Championship – easily. They had the belt defended in an embarrassing special effect match at WrestleMania that made Papa Shango cringe. Then they gave it to a career-jobber for over six months who no one bought as championship caliber, only to knee-jerk the title off him on TV to a lame-duck AJ Styles, who proceeded to lose clean one week later to “champion of the universe” Brock Lesnar. So go ahead WWE, make the symbol of your entire heritage a prop for a bad comedy bit. Bruno, Backlund, Hogan, Savage, Hart, HBK, Austin, Undertaker, Rock, Cena, Edge, Punk, Bryan – KAMI – RAW 25, XFL, Ronda Rousey, Network subscriptions, stock prices, the tsunami of TV recap podcasts, blogs, reddit threads, tweets, comment sections… me! Argggh!

Mike Chin: I’m a big fan of Zayn and Owen’s efforts since teaming up and would love to see Sami capture a main roster title. Heck, Owens and Zayn are that rate tandem I’d be OK with seeing break tradition to hold the WWE Championship together for a short spell. That’s a little convoluted for a world title, though, and while the handicap rules should theoretically give the heels a big advantage, I suspect Shane McMahon will end up costing them this one.

Paul Leazar: You know, I look this match up and down, and I love everything about the guys in the ring. AJ Styles has been playing second fiddle in this feud, which kinda stinks, but he’s sorta the guy caught in the middle of the whole Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens/Daniel Bryan/Shane McMahon feud that has been dominating the Smackdown air waves since Hell in a Cell. So, with all of that said, I think you already know how this plays out. You’re gonna have some good wrestling, you’re gonna have both Shane & D-Bry finding themselves getting involved somehow, and we’ll get some weird non-finish that leaves AJ Styles still as the champion with not a whole lot being solved. I think I just summed up the Smackdown Live main event scene for the last four months.

Mitch Nickelson: I do like the obnoxious duo act of Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens. However, I really do not want a co-WWE Championship reign. Maybe it can work because those two are super talented but it’s just a dumb premise. The first example of a stunt like this that comes to my mind is when Chris Jericho and Chyna were co-Intercontinental Champions. I thought that was really stupid at the time and now there’s a chance that a similar reign could happen with an even more important belt. Please don’t do it, Vince. Simply have them lose and turn on each other in the following weeks. Then, give us a straight up Zayn vs. Owens singles match at WrestleMania. As for AJ, he’ll keep the title and go on to face the guy I’m picking to win the 30-man Rumble contest.

JUSTIN WATRY: I’m not feeling it. The Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn versus AJ Styles has been stuck in neutral for a month now. Ever since it started, things just never got going. The feud has basically been them wrestling on Tuesday nights…and Zayn prancing around Owens. Cool and all but not what I consider to be a WWE Championship level feud. The Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon dynamic adds some intrigue but not enough to save the “Co-Champions” BS. Styles will keep the gold to WrestleMania 34, where he hopefully faces off against Shinsuke Namaura – something I have been predicting since last year. It needs to happen. Really, there are no other options for the blue brand…

BRANDON EWING: AJ Styles defies the odds with the deck stacked against him to retain the WWE Championship and will remain champion heading into WrestleMania 34. Nuff said!

Rob Stewart: With the rumors of Kevin Owens being injured and the ease with which AJ dispatched of him on Smackdown, it will be curious to see what kind of load he bears here. Luckily, this match is perfect for him to have a starring role without overly exerting himself, leaving the heavy lifting in the more-than-capable hands of Sami and AJ. There’s the potential for this match to become overburdened with Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan, but I’d hope it doesn’t… I’d much rather see these guys get the time to tell their own story. But yeah, that’s a pipe dream. We are definitely getting more of the Bryan/Shane build here with this match serving as little more than a vehicle for their ongoing frustrations with each other. As long as the payoff is good there, I suppose everything will be all right. It is long-form story-telling, I guess. In the meantime, I can’t figure AJ to not retain here; this is a perfect “overcoming adversity” story for him.

: Remember when Braun, Brock, Reigns, and Joe had an incredible war of the beasts at SummerSlam? Well, this is far from that. Brock/Braun underwhelmed badly at No Mercy, and Kane is not the guy to make anything better in 2018. Brock retains so he can drop the title to the BIG DOG. Moving on.

Jake Chambers: Oh, here we go. WWE is just poking me in the ribs with a splintery stick now. Let’s see, you’ve got the WWE’s favourite non-wrestling wrestler, a 50-year-old guy they want us to pretend is 20 years younger and has supernatural powers, and a young phenom they literally want to show us as having super-human strength but still gets pinned after one Lesnar F5 in an 8-minute match. Such a deserving trio to be fighting over what is now apparently the most important championship in the WWE. And if they have Lesnar lose here it will be one of the dopiest things ever, so knowing the WWE these days that almost makes it possible.

Mike Chin: Even though I would be into Braun Strowman winning the Universal Championship, there’s not really a WrestleMania story set up for him. Lesnar defending against Roman Reigns at ‘Mania seems like the road WWE is dead set on. Kane is here to take the fall and protect Strowman so he can circle back to the title picture after New Orleans.

Paul Leazar: I have absolutely zero interest in this match. I love watching Braun killing fools as much as the next guy (and I think a feud with Roman over the Universal Title with Strowman at the helm much more interesting then Roman trying to avenge his “loss” to Brock from WM 31), but that’s just not in the cards it seems like. Kane is here to take the fall, Braun kicks some ass, Brock wins. Woo…

Mitch Nickelson: I’m sticking with predictability for this contest. Brock is supposed to lose the title to Roman at WrestleMania, so expect him to retain. He’ll pin Kane, who’s only in this match to keep Braun from taking a loss. As for Strowman, he’ll probably eat an Amtrak or something equally monstrous. As long as it’s booked to be a solid ten minutes or so of gigantic dudes wrecking each other while also destroying some hardware along the way, I’ll be entertained. If I’m wrong and Braun wins the title, I’ll happily accept that I picked wrong.

BRANDON EWING: In my heart, I would LOVE for Braun Strowman to become the new WWE Universal Champion. He’s ready. He’s over. People love him and pop for him. However, knowing how the WWE mind works behind the scenes with their “logic”, it seems as if we will see Brock Lesnar retain the Universal title and move on to face Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 34.

Rob Stewart: What is WWE even doing with Braun Strowman? They keep building him up and then immediately throwing his momentum away on nothing, go-nowhere match losses at shitshows like No Mercy and Fastlane. I can not, for the life of me, figure out what their endgame here is. We’ve already seen Braun lose to Brock… why are we telling this story again? Kane being here to eat the pin doesn’t soften the blow; it honestly makes everything feel worse because this match is so predictable that it makes Strowman an afterthought. Brock’s going to win, probably after he takes some huge spot halfway through the match that makes it look like he’s out of it until he steals victory from Braun’s fingertips. Okay, great. I’m not excited for this match… it’s just a gimme lay-up on the road to WrestleMania. They might as well have kept Braun out of it and had Brock vs. Kane. It would be just as relevant and exciting.

: Originally, I pegged Ronda Rousey for this. She could still win if she appears, but I really feel like WWE would’ve advertised her ahead of time, because she’s box office. So, I’m sticking with the current crop of women. Becky Lynch was an enticing pick, because she’s so goddamn good and deserves it, but I think we know where this goes. Nobody is ready for Asuka.

Jake Chambers: I predicted Bayley a few weeks ago in a Fact or Fiction column, and I’m sticking with it. The WWE is gonna want a real conservative winner for this match, someone who will likely be with the company for a very long time so Michael Cole can tag-line her as the “first ever women’s Royal Rumble winner” over and over, as he tends to have to do. They had Charlotte and Sasha in the #firstever women’s Hell in a Cell, and Carmella of all people was the #firstever women’s Money in the Bank winner, Alexa Bliss is the #firstever to hold both the new RAW and Smackdown women’s titles; all four of them being heel-ish and/or brash. Winning a women’s Royal Rumble is easily a bigger #firstever accomplishment than all those others and I’m predicting they give it to a humble and natural babyface who still resonates fondly with smart fans, mainstream audiences and kids, and likely will for many years.

Mike Chin: The smart money is on Asuka to kick start the legacy of the women’s Rumble by traveling as traditional of a road as possible, and using this big win to set her up to relieve Alexa Bliss of the title at ‘Mania. I’m going to go out on a limb here, though, and suggest the rumors and social media posts suggesting Rousey won’t be at the Rumble and isn’t officially signed yet are all smoke and mirrors and she will show up to take this match. Rousey is major star to put the first women’s Rumble on the map, and there’s the added bonus that it offers a logical reason to set up a match between her and Charlotte Flair in the otherwise murky SmackDown Women’s Championship picture. Add in that in entering around 30 and last eliminating Asuka, Rousey will be setting up another dream match for down the road with the Empress of Tomorrow.

Paul Leazar: I really hope there isn’t going to be a whole ton of argument over this one. Maybe there should be because I’d just wanna see other people try to justify somebody else besides Asuka. Let her come out sometime after 25, get all the legends such out of the way. Celebrate whatever you want (because that’s what this match is about more so than any other story they have going on within either side of the WWE’s women’s divisions.), and just let Asuka come in a wreck shop. Job done.

Mitch Nickelson: My safe pick would’ve been either Asuka or maybe even Nia Jax, but I’m going with the mega star power instead. It’s pretty much a guarantee that Ronda Rousey will imminently be on a WWE screen, so why not have her win here to earn a title shot at WrestleMania? The media exposure will be INSANE following this and leading up to the biggest show of the year, so I don’t see how WWE doesn’t have her win. And another way to look at this is what if Ronda sucks at wrestling? I’m optimistic she’ll do fine but maybe she’s terrible in the ring and no matter who she works with in 2018, she only puts on mediocre matches at best. If she’s pushed now while nobody has any clue what her potential in wrestling is, they’ll still get the crazy amounts of buzz without having to worry about smart fans complaining about the spot she’s taking from another wrestler who has way more talent that deserves it much more.

Justin Watry: In some late breaking news, Stephanie McMahon is now going to be on commentary for this historic event. I don’t have any issues with that. However, I do wonder what that means for the outcome – if anything. It could be just as simple as raising the arm of the winner afterwards…or something more. Time will tell I suppose. That is the beauty of watching a television show, right? You never know. In being realistic, there are only three possibilities for WWE. Either Becky Lynch to battle Charlotte, Asuka wins to battle Alexa Bliss, or Ronda Rousey wins to battle Charlotte. As I have been writing about for awhile now (on another website), I am ALL IN on Rousey to WWE. That is instant money and is a surefire WrestleMania headline. Whether she debuts on Sunday or even appears for the blue brand (still perceived as the B Show), the timing is there. I am 100% convinced that the MMA star will show up sooner rather than later. Since Steph is going to be ringside, my spidey senses really are telling me it goes down in Philly. To play it safe though, my head is saying pick Asuka and be done with it. Undefeated, unbeatable, and the clear favorite. As for surprises, I’ll go with Molly Holly and Lita as the legends – exactly why they were held off Raw 25 on Monday. Then let’s say Ember Moon and Iconic Duo from NXT. Throw in Kharma and others, and you have one heck of a night.

BRANDON EWING: I’m more excited to see which former WWE Divas and/or Legends will appear in the match versus the outcome. I love Asuka but its a foregone conclusion that she’s winning the first ever Women’s Royal Rumble match. I think, as a twist, she should face Charlotte for the SD Live Women’s Championship. After all, if I can recall during the first brand extension, wrestlers CAN go after EITHER RAW or SmackDown’s major championship. Chris Benoit did it in 2004 when he jumped to RAW to face Triple H and subsequently Shawn Michaels so why not have Asuka jump ship to SmackDown to face Charlotte? All due respect to Alexa Bliss, but that match has been done and over with before on RAW. Good match, but we didn’t see the caliber of a fight that we have the most potential to witness if it were Asuka vs. Charlotte Flair. That would be something worth buying at WrestleMania in my opinion.

Rob Stewart: I really, truly, and desperately do not want Ronda Rousey anywhere near this match. I mean… I guess she can enter it and build a story and look dominant, but she can’t win it. She just can’t. As little as we all needed a man to win the first women’s Money In The Bank ladder match… that’s how little we need a non-wrestler to stroll in and win the first women’s Royal Rumble. It just. Shouldn’t. Happen. There’s a direction to go here, and hear me out on this: Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns is set in stone, right? We know we’re getting that at ‘Mania no matter how little anyone wants it. Roman is going to go over this time, and the fans are going to boo the main event out of the building for the third year in a row. But… what if Roman/Brock ISN’T the main event? WWE has toyed with the whole “Do you think a women’s match will ever main event WrestleMania” enough ever since Stephanie McMahon invented female wrestlers two years ago, and honestly… this may be the year to do it. WWE has positioned Charlotte as THE face in women’s wrestling. She has won everything there is to win, and she’s beaten everyone there is to beat. Except for the one woman whom no one has defeated. Except for Asuka. The Empress of Tomorrow wins the first ever women’s Rumble and sets her sights on the gold standard of WWE women’s wrestling. Give it three months to build and develop, and there you have it: Asuka vs. Charlotte, the first ever female WrestleMania main event. Freeing Roman up to go over in the undercard (or “co-main event”or whatever they prefer to call it).

WINNER: Asuka. Or, hell, ANYONE that isn’t Ronda Rousey.

: It’s kind of tough to pick this year. On one hand, we all know where the Universal Title match at Mania is headed. Roman Reigns. They could go a few different ways about that, with him winning the Rumble being the least interesting choice. On the Smackdown side, I could see a guy like Shinsuke Nakamura winning. Though Nakamura hasn’t been any good on the main roster, a Mania title match with Styles would be a good contrast to Brock/Roman. I think I’ll go with that.

Mike Chin: It’s very good sign for this year’s Rumble that there are truly multiple viable potential winners. My heart says Shinsuke Nakamura takes this to set up the WrestleMania dream match a lot of fans have been clamoring for two years, between him and AJ Styles at WrestleMania. My head says Vince McMahon doesn’t see Nakamura as over enough for that push. There are plenty of dark horse contenders, including Styles himself, Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, or Braun Strowman–whoever among them doesn’t leave their respective world title matches with a belt. Then there’s John Cena. It’s believable enough WWE would let him join Steve Austin a three time Rumble winner, and he has proven chemistry with AJ Styles (if the Cena- Undertaker rumors aren’t substantiated). Then there’s Roman Reigns. Occam’s Razor tells us the simplest solution is the most likely. If WWE is going to insist on redoing Reigns challenging Lesnar for a world title at ‘Mania, redoing the Rumble push is logical enough, and it’s not like Reigns winning the Rumble would be any worse received this go round.

Paul Leazar: This one would be a bit harder to pick out if it we didn’t already know for sure that Roman was going to be challenging for the Universal Title come WrestleMania time. So, let’s hope WWE uses this opportunity to put somebody else over. Why not use this to make the dream match people have been wanting to see again if you follow New Japan? You could argue the field is much more open then what I’m making it out to be (and it is!) just because WWE hasn’t really telegraphed it at all on screen. But why not let Shinsuke have the moment? Let him pull it out against Roman at the end, let Philly have the big pop of it not being Roman like last time around, and let’s ride that all the way to WrestleMania.

Mitch Nickelson: At this moment, Brock is the champ on Raw and AJ Styles is the champ on SmackDown. Assuming there’s no title changes at the Rumble (and I’m not calling for any), then the most logical winners for the 30-man contest are either Roman Reigns or Shinsuke Nakamura. Roman’s way more of a lock that he’ll be challenging for his respective title, but I still think Nakamura is a safe bet. I’d prefer Nakamura to win over Roman, although that’s probably silly of me to think WWE will give him the nod. Still, I’m sticking with him.

@JustinWatry: Shockingly enough, I don’t have a lot to say here. The Royal Rumble is my most anticipated match every year, so my excitement is a 10 out of 10. The buzz in the air, the countdown clock, the importance, etc. Perfect way to kick off the Road to WM. I write about it more in this week’s Fact or Fiction, so head on over there to read my full thoughts. Here are my quick two cents: Raw has barely hyped up the bout. Seriously, does anybody from Monday nights even care? The main focus has come Smackdown LIVE. Either that is a red herring or a clear indicator that for the second year in a row, the blue brand takes the Rumble. Sorry Roman Reigns. Sorry free agent John Cena. Your path to WM goes a different route. This road belongs to just one man. To the surprise of nobody, I am going with Nakamura. Been saying it for awhile and will stand behind it: AJ vs. Shinsuke at Mania is the easiest AND best showdown to promote. First Asuka, then Nakamura – come on WWE. Do right by these two. The women’s Royal Rumble match has some flexibility when it comes to a winner. Becky, Asuka, and Ronda all make sense. With the male participants though, it has to be Nakamura, right? Right?

BRANDON EWING: Shinsuke Nakamura gets the win here. May seem like a surprising pick but I feel like this is a good way to setup for AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for WrestleMania 34. After all, RAW has the Elimination Chamber event in February and that would be the time for RAW to setup their Lesnar-Reigns match by having Reigns win the Elimination Chamber match to become the new #1 contender to face Lesnar. We’ve seen the matches that Styles and Nakamura can put on from NJPW. Therefore, if they can even come close to pulling off even half the match those two men have had in the past we will be in for a treat.

Rob Stewart: YES. I love me some Rumbles. I mean, obviously, I wrote a daily article here last January reviewing every single one leading up to the 2017 edition. And don’t worry… I’ll get the 2018 edition added to that series after this is all said and done. Here we have another fairly up-in-the-air Rumble, and those always have an air of excitement to them. Even when you think “Oh man, ANYONE can win this!” and then Randy friggin’ Orton wins it last year. But what can you do? There’s always the possibility that WWE takes the most direct path to WrestleMania possible and puts Roman Reigns as the last man standing here, but whoof, man. Roman winning ANOTHER Rumble? In PHILLY again? That would require masochism on a level that makes me physically erect just thinking about. So, nah… I think we’re going off the board on this one. That leaves the remaining favorites as… who? I’ve seen Shinsuke Nakamura’s nam bandied around a lot, and the idea of Nak/Styles at WrestleMania does hold promise. Randy Orton again? God, please save us from Orton winning Rumbles. John Cena? Well, hell, I’d certainly prefer that over the notion of the much-rumored Cena/Undertaker match at WrestleMania. But I don’t see it happening, and we have already had so many Cena/Styles matches. Braun Strowman pulling double duty? Why, so he can wrestle Brock Lesnar AGAIN? None of this is doing it for me, so I’m looking for a guy WWE desperately needs to pull the trigger on… and they showed that maybe they know it on Raw 25. I’m looking at Finn Balor. I’m liking the idea of Finn winning the match here and using his opportunity to target AJ Styles, who he justifiably already knows he can beat for a three-count. Finn, along with Gallows and Anderson, vs. AJ Styles at WrestleMania? That feels big to me. It even gets to be lower on the card while Roman fights Brock and Charlotte meets Asuka.

Jake Chambers: Professional wrestling pulls at my nerves with a pair of tweezers. I lay like a Operation game board as the shaky hand of an omniscient old producer tries to thread through tight creative borders to pluck the elusive prize that I’ve constructed in my bones for what excellent professional wrestling means. But that metal keeps hitting the electrified sides and jolting me with pain; salvation now only in my mind’s eye, floating further away from my outstretched arm like flower petals in a stream. Is it selfish to want everything to be your way? Or is that but the survival instinct of an animal raised in the wild who knows only one thing: to be a fan. When your primal, fandom soul is tied to a decaying structure so vast that there is nothing you can do to fix it all, you lash out in frustration. “No one understand this product like me,” “Everyone is a troll or an idiot,” and, “Oh, how easily I could solve all the problems of the WWE.” Ah yes, the WWE – Enter the Dragon turned Rumble in the Bronx turned Fate of the Furious: the independent and artistic vision of one man risen to the most gross successes capitalism can promise. The arc of the WWE is ingrained into all of our personal desires; if only we too could do a creative thing we love to the extent of global domination. But we are not McMahons, this is not our child, and for us to want the WWE to be profound art is like hoping futile that Walmart will sell original Monets and Basquiats beside Oreos and underwear. The contradictions are confusing, the art is worn, the sky is purple and WWE wrestling feels like it can never be what we all want it to be again. But there IS one chance left. One man who defied it all once before. A wrestler who stood up to the obelisk and molded its marble like clay. They said he was too small, too boring, too indie, and too ugly, yet he adapted to all his criticisms and did it with a smile. This aberration of positivity forced the rusty railroad switch of an entertainment economy to change lanes. He would not be a cog in the machine; he would not be a frustrated fan. Yet his successes melted on our finger tips like perfect snowflakes in early spring. Injuries, contracts, doctors and lawyers tornado swirl around him now, the WWE laughing in the middle like a super villain who can control the weather. However, this moment – this weekend – this Rumble – feels like his last chance to thrash Mjolnir to the ground, call the Valkyries to his side, and return to stop Ragnarok. There is only one wrestler left with the power to give us – to give me – what we all want again: great professional wrestling, all the time, everywhere, from the house shows to the TV shows to the stadiums to the stars. And that man will be the winner of the Royal Rumble this year.

JOIN 411 SUNDAY AT 5PM ET FOR OUR LIVE COVERAGE OF THE SHOW</s>At the end of the night on Sunday, the first-ever women’s Royal Rumble winner stood in the ring with the two WWE champions, but something even bigger was coming. Thirty women stepped into the ring and 29 of them were eliminated with only Asuka standing tall as the winner of the huge match, but the world stood in shock at what happened next. Some strange music filled the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia and Ronda Rousey made her WWE debut.

Asuka put on an incredibly impressive performance and stood tall as the overall winner, but she had a big decision to make. Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss and SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair entered the ring so Asuka could select who she would face at WrestleMania 34.

The Royal Rumble winner looked back and forth at the two champions and looked at the sign for the iconic event. Before she could actually reveal her decision, she was interrupted by some strange entrance music and a TitanTron video showcasing the name of none other than Ronda Rousey.

Yes, the former MMA legend had entered a WWE arena yet again, but it didn’t look like she was there just for an appearance this time around.

As reported by ESPN, Ronda Rousey has now signed a full-time contract with WWE which means the years of rumors have finally come true.

Rousey was sporting a T-shirt honoring the late Rowdy Roddy Piper, and she entered the ring to face off with three of the best women in wrestling today. She looked at the two champions and Asuka before extending her hand to shake that of the Royal Rumble winner.

As Asuka reaches out, she just slaps Rousey’s hand away and receives a smile from the former MMA fighter. Ronda Rousey then points to the WrestleMania sign as her music starts up, and she leaves the ring with a big smile on her face.

Asuka didn’t get to make her selection as to who she wanted to face at WrestleMania 34, but that will come soon enough. The world was shocked by all that transpired tonight at the Royal Rumble, but WWE knew how to take it one step past all of that. The rumors have finally come true and Ronda Rousey is now a full-time superstar, but who will she go after first?</s>PHILADELPHIA >> Ronda Rousey’s next bout in the ring won’t come in mixed martial arts but in the world of professional wrestling.

The biggest superstar in women’s MMA officially made the jump to WWE on Sunday night with a surprise appearance at the Royal Rumble in Philadelphia.

The former UFC bantamweight champion also told ESPN that she’s fully committed to wrestling and not just planning cameos at WWE’s biggest events.

“This is my life now. Yeah, they have first priority on my time for the next several years,” she said. “This is not a smash and grab, this is not a publicity stunt.”

Rousey appeared to roaring fans Sunday night after the women’s Royal Rumble in Philadelphia, challenging winner Asuka to fight at Wrestlemania — scheduled for New Orleans in April — by pointing to a sign as Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation” blared through the arena.

Rousey fed into the surprise with a little misdirection before one of wrestling’s biggest pay-per-view events of the year. Before getting in the ring, she had ruled out an appearance at the Royal Rumble in an interview and even posted an Instagram video over the weekend of herself in Colombia enjoying a night out with the crew filming her latest movie, the action thriller “Mile 22” with Mark Wahlberg and John Malkovich.

Still, she had frequently met with WWE executive Paul Levesque, better known as wrestling superstar Triple H, to discuss her interest in a deal that finally came to fruition.

She has not fought since she suffered a 48-second loss to Amanda Nunes at UFC 207 in December 2016. Rousey (12-2) lost two straight bouts in 13 months and took a break to extend her entertainment credits, including a stint as team coach in the reboot of “Battle of the Network Stars.”

WWE fans have been clamoring for Rousey to make the move and speculation (correctly) ran wild on a Royal Rumble appearance at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. Rousey has made cameo appearances on WWE programming the last few years and even trained at the company’s performance center in Orlando, Florida.

It’s unclear whether Rousey plans to fully give up on the UFC and mixed martial arts, and she would not commit to saying she’s retired when asked directly by ESPN.

“That’s what everybody else seems to say — I mean, I never retired from judo. So that’s what you guys want to think,” she said. “All I know is I really want to devote 100 percent of my time to wrestling right now and whatever people want to call that they can call it.”

UFC President Dana White said Rousey will never fight again for the company, and Rousey said she hasn’t followed MMA in the past year.

Rousey adopted the “Rowdy” nickname from WWE Hall of Famer “Rowdy” Roddy Piper. She notably stood side-by-side with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as they fought off the villainous Triple H and his wife and fellow executive, Stephanie McMahon, in a segment at WrestleMania in 2015.

Rousey also appeared at WWE’s Mae Young Classic. Rousey and fellow MMA fighters Marina Shafir, Shayna Baszler and Jessamyn Duke were known as the Four Horsewomen — a tribute to the nefarious Ric Flair-led Four Horsemen stable of the 1980s and ‘90s. Baszler now wrestles for WWE, and the rest of the Horsewomen stable confronted WWE stars Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch and Bayley at the female wrestling tournament.

“Name the time. Name the place,” Rousey told the WWE stars in a tense standoff.

Rousey could lead her Horsewomen against a WWE faction at WrestleMania on April 8.

“I think with her main eventing in UFC, she obviously opened the door for us to be taken more serious as superstars,” said Flair, daughter of WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair. “It’s one thing to show up one night. It’s another be a WWE superstar. I’m on the road with all the other girls, all the men and women who are on the road 270 days a year. We bust our butts to be called WWE superstars.

“She’ll have to put in the work if she wants to be a part of what we do.”

The best scenario for WWE could be Rousey being used sparingly and steamrolling every opponent, much like she did early in her MMA career to earn the reputation as the Baddest Woman on the Planet.

“Ronda Rousey should go out there and just smash everybody. Ronda Rousey’s matches should look like her early UFC career where she was out there for a minute, 2 minutes, just submitting everybody,” UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier said.</s>Ronda Rousey’s crossover into professional wrestling is official.

The former UFC women’s bantamweight champion has signed with WWE and made a surprise appearance at tonight’s Royal Rumble in Philadelphia.

“This is my life now,” Rousey told ESPN.com of her decision to join WWE. “First priority on my timeline for the next several years. This is not a smash-and-grab; this is not a publicity stunt. When I first met with Triple H, I told him, ‘There are other things I can do with my time that’ll make way more money, but I won’t enjoy nearly as much.'”

Rousey, 30, had her last UFC fight on Dec. 30, 2016, when she lost in 48 seconds via TKO to current champion Amanda Nunes. It was the second consecutive stoppage loss of Rousey’s career after opening 12-0 to help put women’s MMA on the map. She joined the UFC in February 2013 and reeled off six consecutive title defenses as her popularity transcended into the mainstream.

Ever since the loss to Nunes, Rousey (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) remained quiet on her future, never officially announcing her retirement from MMA. UFC President Dana White has said repeatedly in the past 13 months that he didn’t believe Rousey would return to the octagon.

A career in pro wrestling has been rumored for months, given Rousey’s life-long fandom. Her nickname, “Rowdy,” is an homage to late WWE Hall of Famer “Rowdy” Roddy Piper.

But even though there was speculation, nothing seemed certain until recently when it was widely reported that Rousey began meeting with WWE executives Paul “Triple H” Levesque and Stephanie McMahon. Rousey even showed up to WWE events to support friend and former MMA fighter Shayna Baszler, which only ramped up speculation.

Rousey tried to keep her Royal Rumble debut a secret this week, but many believed she was just doing her part to swerve fans. That turned out to be the case.

In her first appearance, Rousey came out after the first-ever women’s Royal Rumble match. She had a face-off of sorts with winner Asuka, Smackdown women’s champion Charlotte Flair and Raw women’s champion Alexa Bliss. Seemingly declared her intention to be part of April’s Wrestlemania pay-per-view when she gestured toward the sign hanging at Wells Fargo Center.

Here’s what went down (via WWE Twitter):</s>Ronda Rousey made a surprise entry into the WWE arena on Sunday night after the conclusion of women’s Royal Rumble 2018 match. Rousey confronted the Rumble winner Asuka, Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss, and SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte. Rousey pointed to the WrestleMania sign and then offered to shake hands with Asuka who denied the offer.

Ronda Rousey again pointed at the WrestleMania sign hanging in the rafters before walking out of the ring. She then went on to shake hands with Stephanie McMahon before exiting the arena. The Ronda Rousey’s debut in WWE at the Royal Rumble 2018 was one of the most shocking moments of the night. While earlier rumors did hint her participation in the Rumble, no one expected her to walk in the ring after the match concluded.

New reports suggest the Ronda Rousey has signed a contract with WWE. As reported by the ESPN, Ronda Rousey has signed a contract with WWE as a full-time professional wrestler. Rousey clarified that this was not a publicity stunt or a one-time thing and WWE would be her first priority for the next several years. This does suggest the Ronda Rousey and WWE have finally agreed on mutual terms.

The rumors of Ronda Rousey joining WWE have been doing rounds for quite some time. Rousey first had a brush with WWE during WrestleMania 31 when Rock pulled her from the crowd into the ring, and she tossed Triple H as well as Stephanie McMahon out of the ring. She was later spotted at a couple of other WWE events.

During the Mae Young Classic, Ronda Rousey was seen with fellow MMA fighter Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke being confronted by Bayley, Charlotte Flair, and Becky Lynch. This incident triggered rumors of “Four Horsewomen” match with the addition of Sasha Banks and Shayna Baszler to the mix. Rousey was also seen in the audience in Las Vegas supporting fellow MMA veteran Baszler.

Ronda Rousey is an iconic name in the world of MMA with some unbelievable wins under her belt. She won her first three amateur MMA fights in under a minute and her first 12 professional fights were also one-sided. She eventually went on to become the women’s bantamweight champion. Rousey is considered as one of the most renowned MMA fighters.

With Ronda Rousey debuting on the Royal Rumble 2018 and becoming a full-time wrestler with WWE, it would be interesting to see who will be her first target. The WWE women’s division has come a long way, addition of Rousey will only consolidate the fan base and result in more exciting matches.</s>“Rowdy” Ronda Rousey can now add professional wrestler to her résumé.

Rousey, 30, made a surprise appearance after the World Wrestling Entertainment’s women’s Royal Rumble match Sunday. She signed a full-time contract with the WWE, ESPN reported during her appearance.

“This is my life now. First priority on my timeline for the next several years. This is not a smash-and-grab; this is not a publicity stunt,” she said to ESPN.

As Asuka celebrated her Royal Rumble victory next to Raw women’s champion Alexa Bliss and SmackDown women’s champion Charlotte Flair, Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation” blasted across the speakers. Rousey came out wearing a shirt with “Rousey” printed on it, in the same style of the “Hot Rod” shirts that former WWE pro wrestler “Rowdy” Roddy Piper wore. Fitting as Rousey earned her nickname from Piper.

The former UFC women’s bantamweight champion was reportedly close to signing a deal with the WWE last December. Her last mixed martial arts fight was in December 2016 when she lost via knockout to Amanda Nunes at UFC 207.

Rousey first appeared in the WWE in March 2015 when she made an appearance at WrestleMania 31 alongside Dwyane “The Rock” Johnson to confront Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. She also in the audience of the WWE’s Mae Young Classic in September 2017 — a 32-women tournament featuring wrestlers from the company’s developmental brand, NXT, and the independent circuit. There she faced off against the WWE’s “Four Horsewomen” of Bayley, Sasha Banks, Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch.

“Now that I realize I really do have this opportunity, I feel like my 6-year-old self would totally kick my (butt) if I didn’t take it,” she said to ESPN.

Many MMA fighters have made the leap to the world of pro wrestling over the years, including UFC Hall of Famers Dan Severn and Ken Shamrock. Current WWE Universal titleholder Brock Lesnar is a former UFC heavyweight champion.</s>Above is video of Ronda Rousey talking to the WWE cameras after coming back out to greet fans after the Royal Rumble went off the air in Philadelphia on Sunday. As noted, Rousey made her debut by interrupting a post-Rumble segment with winner Asuka, SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair and RAW Women's Champion Alexa Bliss. Rousey pointed at the WrestleMania 34 sign, took a look at both titles and tried to shake Asuka's hand but Asuka slapped it away. Rousey also shook Stephanie McMahon's hand at ringside to squash their storyline beef.

Rousey says she really doesn't know how to process everything but this is not something she does every day and is something very different from fighting. Rousey says it was a real pleasure being able to soak everything up and she's very aware of how lucky she is. Rousey says coming to WWE has been her dream since before she could talk. She talks about asking late WWE Hall of Famer Roddy Piper if she could use the "Rowdy" nickname when she got into MMA. Rousey says no matter what else she did in life, pro wrestling kept following her around and it was time to take a hint from the WWE Universe.

Rousey also reveals that the leather jacket she wore at the Rumble was brought to her by Piper's son Colt, who flew the jacket in from Las Vegas to Philadelphia. Rousey says she wants people to remember Piper every time she's out there and says she wouldn't be here or had her run in UFC if it weren't for Piper. Rousey says Piper taught her so much from afar and showed her that she can also touch people from afar. Rousey says she is a better person because Piper lived.

Regarding the first-ever women's Royal Rumble match, Rousey says she was thinking about how a women's Rumble would have been laughed at before and how she's been laughed out of gyms in the past. Rousey says women have been brushed aside in combat sports for so long but to see everyone give a standing ovation to the women's Rumble was big, and how fans were really invested in the match, and how it was well-accepted by the fans, not forced on them. Rousey says she didn't even know about women's wrestlers when she was a kid but she wants to make sure there's not another generation that doesn't know about women's wrestlers when they're little.

When asked about pointing to the WrestleMania 34 sign, Rousey says she thinks it's a big fat hint that she's going to be there in New Orleans at the big event.
In professional wrestling, Shinsuke Nakamura wins the 31st Royal Rumble match. Asuka wins the 32nd, the first all-woman version. Both receive championship matches at WrestleMania 34. Former UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey returns to WWE.