The next pay-per-view (PPV) on the WWE schedule is the Royal Rumble event set to take place on Sun., Jan. 27, 2019, at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, the company’s annual beginning of the year showcase featuring its most popular gimmick match. It will crown the next number one contender to either the Raw (Universal) or SmackDown Live (World) championship for the men, and either the Raw or SmackDown women’s title for the women. We’re just two weeks away from showtime, and the card currently looks like this: Royal Rumble (Men) R-Truth will enter at number 30 thanks to his Mixed Match Challenge win. Others to declare so far: John Cena, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Samoa Joe, Finn Balor, Drew McIntyre, Kofi Kingston, Big E, Xavier Woods, Apollo Crews, Baron Corbin, Elias, Jinder Mahal, Jeff Hardy, Bobby Lashley, Andrade Almas. Royal Rumble (Women) Carmella will enter at number 30 thanks to her Mixed Match Challenge win. Others to declare so far: Natalya, Bayley, Sasha Banks, Ember Moon, Ruby Riott, Sarah Logan, Liv Morgan, Alicia Fox, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, Zelina Vega. Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman (Universal championship) This match was made official when Strowman defeated Baron Corbin at TLC in a match designed entirely to get Corbin out of power and give Strowman some time to heal up from an elbow issue. He was always going to get this match. The latest rumors and reports indicate he still hasn’t been cleared to wrestle, but he is expected to be ready for this match. Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles (WWE championship) AJ Styles won a Fatal 5-Way to earn a rematch for the title here. Ronda Rousey vs. Sasha Banks (Raw women’s championship) Rousey said she wanted a match with Banks, so she got one. They did have Banks beat Nia Jax to become top contender first. Asuka vs. Becky Lynch (SmackDown women’s championship) They did away with automatic rematches but Lynch still won a triple threat against both Charlotte and Carmella to earn her way back to another shot at the title she lost at TLC. The Bar vs. Shane McMahon & The Miz (SmackDown tag team championship) Miz harassed McMahon into being tag partners and then they just sort of fell into a title shot. Because, well, McMahon. Buddy Murphy vs. Kalisto vs. Akira Tozawa vs. Hideo Itami. 205 Live General Manager Drake Maverick put together qualifying matches to determine who would challenge Murphy for his Cruiserweight championship. Kalisto, Tozawa, and Itami all won said matches to set up this Fatal 4-Way. With eight matches already scheduled, including the two Rumble matches, that could end up being the entire card. You in?<doc-sep>WWE WWE's second women's Royal Rumble is now less than a fortnight away (27 January), and it looks like the company are down to two potential winners. Per the Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer, one of Becky Lynch or Charlotte Flair will win the bout, leading to the rumoured WrestleMania 35 Triple Threat main event with Ronda Rousey. Neither Flair nor Lynch has been confirmed for the Rumble yet. Charlotte's announcement could come on SmackDown tomorrow night, as she lost a number one contender's match with Lynch and Carmella the previous week. Becky, meanwhile, is set to challenge for Asuka's SmackDown Women's Championship on the night, so her inclusion would require some reorganisation. Advertisement One rumour is that Asuka will defeat Lynch via Rousey's interference, leading to Becky attacking Carmella (who's set to enter at number 30), taking her spot, then winning the Rumble. If the women's over-the-top battle royal goes last, this would see the show close on a huge crowd-pleasing moment. A Lynch victory followed by her challenging Ronda, then Flair backdooring her way into the WrestleMania 35 makes great sense, and would be in-line with each women's character direction. Still, Vince McMahon's propensity to change his mind at the drop of a hat means nothing is certain.<doc-sep>CHRISTOF STACHE/Getty Images WWE announced Sunday nine entrants in the women's Royal Rumble match at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view on Jan. 27. Charlotte Flair is the headliner, with former Raw women's champion Nia Jax and former SmackDown Live women's champion Naomi included as well. Tamina, The IIconics, Dana Brooke, Lana and Nikki Cross round out the group. Over the past month, WWE has slowly revealed the 30-woman field for the Rumble match. Carmella was the first person added by virtue of winning the Mixed Match Challenge with R-Truth at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs in December. She's guaranteed to enter in the coveted No. 30 slot. At the moment, Flair is arguably the favorite to win the match and earn a title shot at WrestleMania 35. Becky Lynch would seemingly be the obvious choice since it would allow her to finally have her match with Raw women's champion Ronda Rousey. The Irish Lass Kicker was injured and thus had to pull out of her bout with the former UFC star at Survivor Series in November. However, Lynch is challenging Asuka for the SmackDown Live Women's Championship, so it's unclear whether she will be in the Rumble match at all. For the most part, this year's women's Royal Rumble match appears to be up in the air. As much as Flair makes sense to set up a WrestleMania battle with Rousey, WWE could use the event as a launching pad for an up-and-coming star, not unlike Asuka's victory last year. Video Play Button Videos you might like That general feeling of doubt should add to the fun leading up to the Royal Rumble PPV.<doc-sep>
What's the story? We are just under two weeks from one of the most eagerly awaited matches of the year, the Royal Rumble match at the first WWE PPV of 2019. This year, like last year, we will see the women's Royal Rumble match apart from the men's Royal Rumble match. Two favourites for this year's women's Royal Rumble match, as per the Wrestling Observer, are Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch. In case you didn't know... Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch have had an incredible year in the WWE and on SmackDown, especially the latter. The two had a great feud, while both also engaged in a brief feud with RAW Women's Champion Ronda Rousey, which will certainly be revisited later this year. Becky Lynch also held the SmackDown Women's Championship, which she lost to Asuka in a triple threat match with Charlotte Flair, at TLC, thanks to interference from Rousey. The heart of the matter Wrestling Observer is reporting that Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch are the favourites to win the 30-woman Royal Rumble match later this month. The winner of the match, of course, gets a shot at the RAW or the SmackDown Women's Champion at WrestleMania 35. Lynch will face off against Asuka in a singles match for the SmackDown women's championship at Royal Rumble, but the report indicates that she may enter the Rumble even after her match. Flair, meanwhile, is one of the favourites in the Rumble match and will take part in it for the first time, having missed out on last year's first-ever women's Royal Rumble match as she was the SmackDown women's champion then. What's next? The 2019 Royal Rumble will be held on January 27th, 2019 at the Chase Field.