Widely regarded as the first step on the Road to Wrestlemania, the Royal Rumble has long since been the pinnacle of WWE’s pay per view calendar. With the winner of the Royal Rumble Match receiving either a WWE Championship or World Heavyweight Championship Match at Wrestlemania, it can either be the event that makes a career or shatters it into a million pieces.
As we know former winners such as Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Stone Cold Steve Austin and the Rock have had their careers catapulted into the stratosphere. Shawn Michaels officially arrived in WWE when he won the 1996 Royal Rumble Match and went on to defeat Bret Hart at Wrestlemania 12 for the WWE Championship. Stone Cold Steve Austin rose to real fame when he won the 1998 Royal Rumble Match and defeated Shawn Michaels for the gold at Wrestlemania 14. The match which ushered in the Attitude era and can be credited for the initiation of the Austin / McMahon feud.
As the pay per view rises from the ashes and the balloon goes up on the first pay per view of the year, we, my loyal minions, can garner a flavour of what Vince McMahon and company have in store for us throughout the remainder of 2013. So here we go again. The first pay per view review of the year. With the return of the Rock, C.M Punk’s ever increasing WWE Championship reign and Wrestlemania 29 to come, what a year 2013 looks to be.
30 Man Royal Rumble Match
Possibly the most famous match in wrestling history, can be credited for making numerous stars in WWE. To WWE fans, Ric Flair was just another great wrestler until he won the 1992 Royal Rumble Match and took home the WWE Championship. Shawn Michaels began the step to stardom a whole year before he reigned supreme at Wrestlemania 12, when at the 1995 Royal Rumble he entered number one and outlasted twenty nine other men to win the match followed by Chris Benoit in 2004 doing the exact same thing. Unfortunately Chris Benoit’s victory has been erased from WWE history by those who that what happens outside the ring should never affect what someone does inside it. Who can forget Lex Luger and Bret Hart going over the top rope at the same time in the 1994 Royal Rumble and then the same ending replayed at the 2005 Royal Rumble when John Cena and Batista bungled the finish to the match? Or in other words, a typical John Cena effort.
The whole point of a Royal Rumble match is for thirty men to slug it out until only one remains. Ok, we all get that. Everyone reading this has seen enough Royal Rumble Matches to know the concept which means we can glaze over that. However I do think it’s a joke that WWE book jobbers such as JTG or Zack Ryder as participants in the knowledge that we know no one of that calibre will win. Let’s be honest, if the final four are Randy Orton, Sheamus, John Cena and JTG, who would you put your money on being the one who didn’t come away with a victory?
On the odd occasion WWE do skip this format completely and book an all star Royal Rumble Match. However with the lack of star power on show in WWE at the moment, 2013 will not be the year we see the company do this. Instead WWE’s class system is never more evident than in the Royal Rumble Match. When you see participants such as 3MB go up against Randy Orton and John Cena, then it’s obvious which WWE are putting their money into and which Vince is quite happy to allow slip the net. It’s sad when you see someone as talented as Zack Ryder used as cannon fodder to boost a wrestler such as Kane’s Royal Rumble elimination list.
So onto 2013. Let’s take a look at some of this year’s competitors. To announce who is going to take part in this match strips all the suspense and surprise away for me. I used to love watching the Royal Rumble Match as a child and never knowing who was going to enter next. It was just one of a number of things WWE did well. Now though we have almost a full list of who is going to walk that aisle on the night. And those spaces left will either be filled in by curtain jerker’s, NXT rookies or surprise entrants. Those we will get to in a moment.
Strangely, after booking them as nothing but meat on Raw and Smackdown for months, WWE have seen fit to announce to the world that 3MB will part of the Royal Rumble Match. Now, hands up if this announcement got you even partially excited? Nope, me neither. Vince really has to start getting his priorities right. WWE only just scraped through 2012 with reckless bookings like this, we’re not going sit through it for another year. WWE should be pushing the big name entrants and especially those such as Dolph Ziggler and Antonio Cesaro – who will also be entrants – who need the exposure.
Drew McIntyre has gone from being Vince McMahon’s chosen one to a member of a fake rock band. If that’s what happens to the boss’ chosen ones then what hope is there for the rest of the roster? I mean come on Vince, think these things through before you put them into action. WWE could have easily put McIntyre into the WWE Championship picture had it been serious about the Scotsman. Passing him off as a young Mick Jagger is an insult to both McIntyre and those few who actually brought into him.
Drew’s counterparts, Heath Slater and Jinder Mahal may as well be announced as match fillers. Neither man has a future in WWE and neither will ever get close to winning a Royal Rumble Match or WWE or World Championship. It’s not with an easy tone that I say that because both have skills that WWE could put to good use. Slater and Mahal are very good technical wrestlers who were maybe born too late. In another era, both would have been big stars. They're the type that you could see WCW or ECW making big. After 3MB's defeat to Sheamus and others however, both men, I would have thought, would be close to the top of WWE's Future Endeavour list.
Dolph Ziggler is one of the big names which your writer is crossing his fingers WWE do something with in this match. Since his rise at Survivor Series Ziggler has once again had mixed fortunes in WWE. When it looked like his time had came, WWE once again stuck the spanner in the works and gave Ziggler the one man no up and coming wrestler should be forced to wrestle. John Cena.
Had Ziggler been allowed to defeat Cena at TLC, clean, without the help of A.J Lee and then again the next night on Raw, then Ziggler could have been seen as a real threat to both the Royal Rumble crown and the World Heavyweight Championship. The fact that WWE insisted that Ziggler had help to defeat Cena from Lee and Big. E Langston and then lose to the leader of the Cenation in the new year tells me that WWE do not think Ziggler is good enough to step into Cena’s shoes. The message this sends to the WWE Universe is that Ziggler will be Champion in 2013, but a fluke Champion that instead of having the backing of the company to be the next star WWE need, will be buried similar to the Jack Swagger debacle of 2010.
If WWE had any sense then they would book Ziggler to eliminate Cena in convincing fashion, without the help of Langston or anyone else who WWE may have him side with in the Rumble Match. In fact for Ziggler to really get over and yet again cement a place within the World Heavyweight Championship picture, Dolph needs to eliminate at least two huge names from the match. Cena would be one of them. The other would either be Randy Orton or Sheamus. Seeing as Sheamus is expecting another huge year and he’s Ziggler’s main competition for the World Championship then the ‘Great White’ would be the perfect pick. Dolph Ziggler needs to be in the final four of the rumble match and not hand picked to do a Bushwhacker. That will mean nothing to those who have never seen the old Rumble Matches. Those who have will know exactly what I refer to.
Sheamus is the next candidate to win the Royal Rumble Match. It’s not inconceivable to imagine ‘The Celtic Warrior’ winning the match for a second year in a row. After all both Stone Cold Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels won the match two years in a row with great benefits going towards their careers. After his defeats to Big Sow at Hell in a Cell, Survivor Series and TLC last year, Sheamus is in need of a little rebuild if WWE hope to make him World Heavyweight Champion again after Wrestlemania 29. The problem is that we’ve seen it all before from Sheamus and there’s hardly anything that would shock us.
The old heel turn is one way to go and with the ever building, yet never climaxing rage that Sheamus is busting his balls to portray maybe it would be aided by turn to the dark side. There are more opportunities for Sheamus to make it big in WWE as a heel and with Randy Orton’s imminent turn Smackdown could be the place for heel action. Should WWE then run out storylines for Raw guys, maybe a face Raw faction vs a heel Smackdown faction would be a huge draw and allow those who are constantly in the Championship picture to step aside for those who are just coming through.
Sheamus has to be a huge favourite to win the rumble match, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say that it won’t be the Irishman who goes to Wrestlemania to vie for the gold. At the moment there’s just not enough heat around Sheamus for another victory and if there’s any doubt in WWE headquarters they need only rewind the clock to last year’s Rumble match and take a look at the cold reception Sheamus received when his hand was raised in victory.
Now we come to my pick to win the Royal Rumble Match. Randy Orton. After his suspension in 2012 for violating WWE’s Wellness Policy, Orton has waited too long in the wings for his time to come again. In fact it astounds me that with WWE’s headline scene so scarce Vince would wait so long to bring Orton back into the Championship picture. There were times in the latter parts of 2012 when WWE could have done with Randy Orton challenging for the World Heavyweight Championship. Still, WWE have seen sense now and we were promised that Orton would turn heel and be figured in the top tier of WWE’s elite in 2013.
That promise which came straight from Vince’s mouth can only make me think that Orton will win the Royal Rumble Match, turn heel on Del Rio and challenge him for the World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestlemania 29. There are of course other options WWE could take with Orton regarding his Wrestlemania opponent but I will save them for the Royal Rumble review after the event has taken place.
I get the impression that WWE are either carefully orchestrating Orton’s heel turn to coincide with C.M Punk’s WWE Championship loss so Orton can be the man revealed to be the real mastermind behind the Shield, or they have genuinely ran out of ideas with how to turn ‘the Viper’. Should the latter option be true then allow me to add a string to WWE’s bow. And yes Vince, you are welcome to have this one free of charge. So, Orton enters the Royal Rumble Match at number one. Eliminates several main roster participants and is left in the final two. After a valiant fight for more than an hour Orton is eliminated, rendering his effort all for nothing. The next few weeks in WWE we see Orton brooding about not getting a break in WWE after working so hard. Elimination Chamber rolls around and in the Elimination Chamber Match for the World Heavyweight Championship the encounter comes down to Orton, Del Rio and one other. After Orton RKO’s the third participant Del Rio rolls Orton up and eliminates him. Immediately after, Del Rio pins the third and final competitor who is still down from the RKO and retains the Championship. Orton is furious that Del Rio retained the gold and he did all the work and finally turns on Del Rio, RKO’ing him in the ring and subjecting the Champion to a vicious assault. On the following Smackdown Orton comes to the ring and says that no matter what he did, Vince didn’t listen or notice him. Now he’s taking what it rightfully his.
That would make an impact immediately and see Orton join the dastardly heel ranks and elevate him back into Championship picture. There is a better and more assured way to get Orton back into the main picture but depending on what happens elsewhere at the Royal Rumble, we’ll discuss these in the review. Of course there is a rumour going around that Randy Orton will take time off from WWE in 2013 to handle a personal family issue so maybe his rise back to the top will have to wait that little bit longer.
This was classic Cena. You see in the grand scheme of things in WWE, it doesn’t really matter what we want because Vince will do what he sees fit. We could sell out Ryder merchandise, chant his name through every television show and pay per view and jam the WWE.Com questions page about why Ryder isn’t pushed in the company. In the end if Vince doesn’t want to push him then he won’t. As his friend, John Cena could do more for Ryder than we ever could. As the top star of the company all Cena would have to do is insist to Vince that Ryder be pushed and to keep the peace Vince would cooperate with Cena. John has gotten his way all this time with Vince, now should be no different. By telling us to get behind him suggests that it’s our fault Ryder is getting the treatment he currently receives in WWE, when it’s those closest to him that are keeping him down. Moron.
Moron or not, John Cena is of course maybe the number one choice to win this Rumble with others. His stance in the company suggest he’ll almost certainly be one of the final four in the match and maybe the final two. With the Rock involved in Wrestlemania 29 it would make perfect sense for Cena to win the Rumble match, again, and go to Wrestlemania 29 to challenge the Rock for the WWE Championship should ‘The Great One’ be victorious earlier in the evening. However after their plodding encounter last year would we really want to see another match between the two and more importantly could those whose despise Cena and love the Rock, really put up with the endless bragging that followed? I don’t think so.
Sadly though, whatever the outcome of the WWE Championship Match at Royal Rumble, John Cena will almost certainly be involved in one of the Championship Matches at Wrestlemania 29. Cena hasn’t been Champion for a year and a half and for WWE that’s far too long to have the main poster boy out of the Championship picture. If it’s not the Rock who ends Punk’s WWE Championship reign then it will almost certainly be Cena at Wrestlemania 29, whether we like it or not.
There will of course be a whole host of talent on display in the Royal Rumble Match and even more who could be a surprise winner. Brock Lesnar is almost a certainty to make a surprise appearance as a participant as is Triple H should Lesnar appear. Their feud is due to recommence as we roll into Wrestlemania 29 and the Game eliminating Lesnar from the Rumble would relight the fire perfectly. I would expect to see the tribute acts also make an appearance and maybe even a New Age Outlaws reunion. Kevin Nash is another name being thrown around as is X Pac. If Triple H does enter then yet another DX reunion could be on the cards (even though Nash wasn’t a DX member). Expect to see the return of Christian, Chris Jericho and possibly Jack Swagger at Royal Rumble as WWE prepares fresh feuds for Wrestlemania 29. The Undertaker could make an appearance as WWE looks to his next Wrestlemania opponent. The last surprise entrant, should he lose the WWE Championship Match could be the Rock. Dwayne Johnson will be WWE Champion again in 2013 and if WWE want to prolong C.M Punk’s reign until Wrestlemania 29, the Rock winning the Rumble Match would be a great set up for a rematch between the two – especially if Punk retains via other means.
We can sit here and throw names around all we like. In fact we can predict that Jim Ross will march down the aisle, get in the ring, stick two fingers up at Vince McMahon and power slam John Cena over the top rope and onto the floor to win a Wrestlemania spot. The truth is though in Vince’s mind there are only three men in the frame to win this match. My theory is backed up by the Royal Rumble poll WWE.Com are taking on who needs to win the Rumble match more. With the only three names mentioned being Cena, Orton and Sheamus, we have to believe that one of that trio will be standing with gold over his shoulder when the Road to Wrestlemania ends in New Jersey on Wrestlemania night.
Winners Prediction: Randy Orton
WWE Championship Match
(c) C.M. Punk vs The Rock
As much as the Royal Rumble Match is meant to be the spectacle of its namesake event, no one reading this or no one in the arena on January 27th will be able to deny that C.M Punk vs The Rock for the WWE Championship is by far the match that everyone has paid to see. Not taking anything away from whoever is chosen to fill up the main event spot at Wrestlemania, but I image because of the Rock’s presence Royal Rumble 2013 will draw a significant more pay per view buys than Royal Rumble 2012.
After a rather dull final few months of 2012, C.M Punk has finally come to the great feud of his time and maybe ours as well. Ryback was just awful in his matches with Punk on pay per view and Raw and by the time 2013 kicked its predecessor out of the door, WWE was in dire need of the one man fans seem to keep jeering just because he isn’t a full time roster member. I won’t go into all of that now because my feelings about the Rock and his great contribution to our business have been made clear elsewhere in other blogs. Ever since it was known that the Rock would challenge the WWE Champion at Royal Rumble and ever since Punk’s feud with Daniel Bryan ended in mid 2012, it seems as if both Punk and WWE have been waiting and biding their time in order to push this to its fullest. And my oh my, they haven’t disappointed.
Despite the fact I believe this match would have done millions at the box office had it been booked and built for Wrestlemania 29 instead of the Royal Rumble, the Rock vs C.M Punk, I’m sure, will grab all the headlines on the night. Even in the match doesn’t live up to the standard most of us have hyped it to in our heads. For what it will mean for WWE, Punk, Wrestlemania 29, I can, before both have even laced up their boots, put this match as maybe the most important of the entire year.
C.M Punk badly needed the Rock, even if he won’t admit it. Overcoming John Cena’s stale challenge and Ryback’s sheer selfish performances plus a knee injury which reared its ugly head at completely the wrong time, C.M Punk has been treading a great amount of water in WWE since Money in the Bank 2012. His cracking feud with Daniel Bryan seemed to peak Punk half way through his momentous reign, which wasn’t helped by WWE running out of opponents for ‘The Straight Edge Saviour’. I imagine a cold sweat must have broken out across the forehead of Vince McMahon when he realized that all WWE had was John Cena and a Goldberg lookalike to push into the spot the Rock will now claim.
Matches against John Cena and Big Show at SummerSlam, John Cena at Night of Champions, Ryback at Hell in a Cell, Ryback and John Cena at Survivor Series ranged from dull to acceptable, mostly because of performances from the reigning Champion. Had Punk not been present in said matches then it doesn’t bare thinking about how bad they may have been. Through all the talk Punk has done about the Rock, even before last year’s Wrestlemania 28, he’ll never get a better chance to back it all up than at Royal Rumble. This match may never come around again and unless a rematch is planned for Wrestlemania 29, C.M Punk has less than thirty minutes to prove to the world that the Rock is everything Punk has said and to cement a Championship reign that will now go down in history.
Of course, the question isn’t about how good the match will be. All eyes will fall on the conclusion and what comes after. Should C.M Punk retain the WWE Championship which I believe he will, then it looks very much like he’s either on for a rematch with the Rock at ‘Mania or he’s travelling down a road which will end with the Undertaker at Wrestlemania 29. For Punk, a Wrestlemania 29 match against Undertaker, would perhaps eclipse even his feud with the Rock.
Logically, it seems to be where WWE are heading with Punk. No one can have missed his promos about respect over the past few months. We all know that Undertaker demands a hell of a lot of respect and quite right too. Having C.M Punk finally end the streak, as unlikely as it sounds, would all but demand respect. Then there’s the history between the two men. They feuded over the World Heavyweight Championship in 2009 and Undertaker was behind Punk’s downfall backstage when ‘Taker suggested that Punk dress himself according to the WWE dress code (shirt and tie) when out and about and Punk defied Undertaker’s request, rightly stating that wrestlers such as Cena and Mick Foley were allowed to dodge the rules and as Champion he should be as well. A victory over Undertaker at Wrestlemania 29 would be perfect revenge for Punk on a man who all but kept him subdued with backstage politics in 2009.
The Rock will once again depart WWE after Royal Rumble but not for long. There are rumours abound that he’s slated in for more Raw appearances and to appear at Elimination Chamber in February. Being on the Wrestlemania 29 poster would of course necessitate a high profile match on the grandest stage of them all. We can go into who will oppose the Rock in our Royal Rumble Review after the event has transpired, however I would imagine the Rock will either clash with John Cena in rematch from last year or C.M Punk once again.
This feud has been a fascinating piece of history to watch. It was clear that both would meet on Raw’s 1,000 anniversary episode when Rock rushed to the ring to aid John Cena and was turned on and hit with the GTS by Punk. The smirk on Punk’s face alone, mandated that the two would meet somewhere down the line. It was common knowledge that both Rock and Punk were great talkers but their promos on each other have outdone those of Rock and John Cena one year previous. On January 7th Raw, the Rock delivered maybe one of his most profound and intense pieces on the mic, when he stared C.M Punk down, after calling him, rather hilariously, a 'Cookie' Puss' and stated "Twenty days! Time's up!" If you saw it and it didn’t give you Goosebumps then you have to be cold blooded. Because it’s the firs time in six months that some has stared down Punk, threatened to end his Championship reign and we know that it could actually happen. Knowing Punk was going to defend against the Rock at Royal Rumble made every other WWE Championship defence from July onwards mandatory and predictable.
Days later on the Smackdown that was recorded on January 8th, C.M Punk stood outside the Sun Life Stadium and cut a gripping and wonderful promo in which he stated that the Orangle Bowl is gone and so is the WWE that the Rock used to wrestle for. Punk then chillingly stated "The Rock can never go home!" and at the Royal Rumble he will show him that. It was another intense and heat building speech. It hasn't all been serious in this feud, during the Rock concert in January 14th Raw, Rock took the mic and told Paul Heyman that he had "Twinkie Tits!" Brilliant. The pair soon returned to the serious side of things when Rock stated to Punk “You said that facing you would be like boxing with God. Well you ain’t no God. But as God as my witness, in 13 days I will beat you for the WWE Title at the Royal Rumble. After which one of the most believable pull apart brawls in the last five years took place.
C.M Punk and the Rock have been flawless in theis feud and it's refreshing to see that the comedy has stepped aside for the more stern. Something which didn't happen with the Rock and John Cena, due to Cena's inability to take that infuriating grin off of his face. As for the match itself, even I cannot pin point which way this will go and I doubt WWE will be able to until Janaury 27th. Several plans have been mapped out it’s now a question of which one will be implemented and which will be best for WWE in the long run. Both have a case to have their hand held as victor. The Rock has promised that he will be champion again in 2013 and even WWE wouldn’t make a promise like that to a man of the Rock’s standing and break it. On the other side of the coin C.M Punk has bragged that he’s the best in the world and counting down the days to until 2018, as unlikely as that also sounds, so he can become the longest running WWE Champion in history. To have Punk drop the gold at any other event than Wrestlemania may damage his authenticity. Although saying all this WWE have failed to allow Punk to go over Cena or Ryback clean. Could this be a sign from WWE to Punk that if he’s not good enough in the companies eyes to defeat Cena or Ryback clean, then he has no chance of doing so to the Rock?
When all is said and done though I still believe, as much as I want the Rock to win, that C.M Punk’s Championship reign should only end on a pay per view as prestigious as Wrestlemania. Which is why I will go against all my better judgments and say that Punk will retain against the Rock at the Royal Rumble.
Winners Prediction: C.M Punk
World Heavyweight Championship Match
(c) Alberto Del Rio vs Big Show
Is it just me or does this match seem a little desperate? Everything about it seems so rushed that I doubt many will be bothered about the contest or the eventual winner, even if the match, as was the Championship change, is gripping. For those who don't know what I'm talking about then on January 11th SMackdown, Alberto Del Rio prematurley rose to the top of the blue brand when he defeated Big Show in a great match for the World Heavyweight Championship. It was a very competitive match and one Big Show can be very proud of to end his Championship reign. But come on. This soon for Del Rio?
One could almost jump to the conclusion that with Big Show about to embark on what could be a disastrous feud with Ryback which will culminate at Wrestlemania 29, WWE panicked and found themselves short in the storyline department so to necessitate a different feud for Big Show, they shut their eyes, pointed at a wrestler and put the World Heavyweight Championship around his waist. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against Alberto being Champion, in fact as one of the more able wrestlers in WWE’s locker room, Del Rio, if given the chance could be the answer WWE have been looking for. However after his recent treatment in the dwindling months of 2012, I’m going to have to wait to be convinced.
After his humiliating and degrading feud with Sheamus, Del Rio was buried so far by WWE that it was impossible to see how he could dig himself out. At Hell in a Cell he lost a good match to Randy Orton, was one of the final three men in the Team Foley vs Team Ziggler traditional Survivor Series elimination match and apparently an afterthought at TLC when he was turned face without warning and then put with Miz and Brooklyn Brawler to defeat the already doomed 3MB. When you take into account his treatment in 2012 it does not warrant a World Heavyweight Championship victory so soon after the turn of the new year.
I would also question the integrity of a company that gave away a major Championship change on free television rather than a major pay per view such a Royal Rumble. WWE should have learnt through their mistake making Wade Barrett WWE Intercontinental Champion on Raw rather than saving the Championship change for a pay per view. WWE hoped that Barrett and the Intercontinental Championship change on Raw would spark a rejuvenated interest in the division, Barrett and the Championship. When in fact it did nothing of the sort. WWE may have stood a chance if the Championship change had have happened at TLC or Royal Rumble, but on a free show which gets less viewers than a pay per view event, they were barking up the wrong tree.
For Alberto Del Rio to make a major impact on the World Heavyweight Championship scene WWE should have built it up slowly, through months of preparation. That way we’d have been able to believe that this man who lost on most WWE pay per views he appeared on in 2012 was a contender. Had Big Show come out after Survivor Series, done some bragging about how no one could dethrone him and then Del Rio hit the ring and beat Big Show down, turning face in the process and then been taunted about his failures in WWE by Big Show, it would have warranted a Championship match on Smackdown which Del Rio would have lost either by count out or disqualification. WWE could even have had Ricardo Rodriguez turn on Del Rio. Then at Royal Rumble Del Rio would have been granted a rematch by Booker T and defeated Big Show in a titanic struggle of David vs Goliath. That is the quick and easy way to build someone up. Surely WWE know this by now, they did it so well in the 90’s.
However, Alberto Del Rio could come out of this feud smelling of roses. If Big Show can be bothered to muster the energy to put on a match the likes of his and Sheamus’ at Hell in a Cell 2012, Alberto Del Rio could come out looking stronger than when he entered. Although he really shouldn’t have to. The new World Heavyweight Champion should have been made to look unbeatable before he stepped onto the Road to Wrestlemania and not relied on his first Championship defence to do the job for him.
What can I say about Big Show that hasn’t already been said in the pages of this blog? It’s common knowledge that I believe Big Show is a waste of space in WWE. He takes up a large percentage of the spotlight that is urgently needed to make another star. Does he step aside gracefully and allow someone else to try their luck, just as those in WCW did for him in 1996? Of course not. Big Show clings onto every little speck of that light, almost literally treading on every other wrestler below him.
The good news is that Big Show’s claim to the gold is well and truly over. He will not relieve Del Rio at the Rumble, so soon after Del Rio’s Championship victory. We can all breathe a sigh of relief about that. However the bad news is that Big Show will remain dangerously close to the top of the cared when his feud with Ryback commences after Royal Rumble and in the run in to Wrestlemania 29. Seeing as WWE have become lazy over their booking decisions once again and all their efforts are being taken up by the Rock and C.M Punk higher up the card, it would be a wise decision to begin the feud now. With both Ryback and Big Show’s limited skills on the mic and in the ring, both will need every inch of help they’re granted.
WWE have a ready made feud starter in the Royal Rumble match. Should Big Show enter the Royal Rumble Match after Del Rio defeats him in this match, Ryback could eliminate Show leading to a brooding intensity over Ryback costing him his opportunity of going to Wrestlemania and then a natural feud would grow from that. Or the pair could eliminate each other leading to a game of trying to better the other until Ryback wins when he hits Big Show with ‘Shell Shocked’ at Wrestlemania 29. Still, the feud isn’t a given and the pair may yet go their separate ways and appear at Wrestlemania 29 in entirely different capacities.
The World Heavyweight Championship match at Royal Rumble could be the beginning of something special for Alberto Del Rio. If Big Show can put on another performance like his Hell in the Cell 2012 effort maybe we can start to forgive him for hogging the spotlight as well as the McDonalds. This match has to be given time to develop naturally and not cut short for the Rock and Punk’s outing. Because if Del Rio is going to be a big part of WWE in 2013 his participation at the top of the card and WWE’s immediate future could all rest on January 27th.
Winners Prediction: Alberto Del Rio
WWE Tag Team Championship Match
(c) Team Hell No vs Team Rhodes Scholars
You know, it might just be me but have WWE run out of material with Team Hell No? The whole anger management storyline which saw the genesis of the pairing was great stuff. Now though, almost four months after its inception, Kane and Daniel Bryan are beginning to run out of steam. There doesn’t seem to be enough comedy to sustain the basis the tag team were built on. Of course, part of that is because WWE have no other opponents for the WWE Tag Team Champions other than Team Rhodes Scholars.
New opposition breeds new material. It’s a simple formula. With the apparent disappearance of the WWE tag team scene along with most of its teams, have you seen an abundance of tag team matches with settled or new teams in the last month? I thought not. Kane and Daniel Bryan need a serious challenge. They need two wrestlers like themselves. My suggestion to WWE would be to put another tag team together, consisting of a powerhouse to match Kane and a great technical wrestler to match Daniel Bryan. A heavyweight clash over the doubles Championships would do both the division and belts the power of good.
Team Rhodes Scholars are fine team, we all know that. Cody Rhodes shouldn’t be languishing in tag team obscurity but at the top of the card. With a little effort he could be a fine main event foil for Alberto Del Rio or whoever WWE have pencilled in as the next World Heavyweight Champion. Rhodes’ skills demand that WWE do more with him and yet here he is. Down the pecking order. Wasting his skills on the tag team gold.
The same goes for Damien Sandow. Even though he doesn’t have the backing or support of those higher up the company, it’s clear for all to see that Sandown has the image and skills of a main event star. His pompous and condescending character are made for a spot higher than the one he now occupies. In an age when we’re tragically short on players to push into the headline spots, WWE have turned a blind eye to two of its very finest talents.
Sadly though, as we turn our attention to the Royal Rumble, I cannot see Rhodes and Sandow walking away with the tag gold yet again. For those who have witnessed their appalling treatment since the turn of the year will understand what I mean. If you missed any of it then let me give you the edited highlights which have seen Team Rhodes Scholars stock fall faster than Katie Price’s knickers.
On January 11th Smackdown, Team Rhodes Scholars were hendpicked by WWE to take a pasting from the Rock. After putting the pair down with some really good insults, the Rock beat the duo down like they were from NXT shores. It was an embarrassment to watch. The question of who is at fault here can be bandied around for as long you like, at the end of the day the fault lies with WWE and the Rock. WWE could have handpicked any other talent to take the beating. Two who have no future in the company. It makes absolutely no sense to pick the number one contenders to the WWE Tag Team Championships. The Rock should have learnt from history and allowed Team Rhodes Scholars to beat him down. Had they done so, Rhodes and Sandow would have been in a great place to challenge Kane and Bryan.
The Rock, if you will cast you minds back, gave The Miz and R-Truth the same treatment in the run up to their tag team match against Rock and Cena before Survivor Series 2011 only to harm their image going into the match.
Thinking things couldn't get any worse, Rhodes and Sandow arrived at the January 14th Raw only to be told they'd been chosen as cannon fodder for the WWE Tag Team Champions in singles competition. On the show, Kane defeated Damien Sandow and Daniel Bryan defeated Cody Rhodes with more ease than should have been permitted. Yet again diminishing their challenge on the gold. The thought coming out of Raw was that if WWE aren’t willing to put Rhodes and Sandow over Kane and Bryan in singles competition then it’s highly unlikely they’ll do so at Royal Rumble.
For those hoping Rhodes and Sandow will walk out of the Rumble with the tag team gold around their waste are in for disappointment. I hate to inform you but this isn’t the form of Champions. If I didn’t know any better I would say that WWE are having a laugh at two talented wrestler’s expense. I will refrain for now.
As for Team Hell No, well it’s all come to a bit of a halt as stated above. They’ve been riding a wave that has died away now and they’re left without much to do in a depleted division. It may be better than having Kane in the WWE Championship picture but it’s hardly what’s required. It’s almost like the pair have hit a road block and neither of them or WWE creative know how to swerve around it. All the comedy has been used up.
It’s an obvious fact that Team Hell No will most likely have lost the WWE Tag Team Championship before we roll into Wrestlemania 29, as WWE are planning a split and another feud between the two. So we can expect a singles match on the grand stage. However until then, WWE needs to kick their arse into gear otherwise they’re going to find the feud between Bryan and Kane when it comes, is going to attract very little interest.
Winners Prediction: Team Hell No
Pre-Show
WWE United States Championship Match
(c) Antonio Cesaro vs The Miz
Quite why WWE saw fit to throw this match onto the pre show of the Royal Rumble, I can’t yet fathom. In 2012, it was rumoured that the beginning of the Miz’s rise would start with a feud against WWE United States Champion, Antonio Cesaro. News met with groans by those who staunchly want the Miz back in the headline scene. Not because Cesaro is in anyway a negative influence but because of the state of the United States Championship division.
The Miz needs more than WWE are currently offering him. He’s slipped into the doldrums of WWE since 2013 rolled around and this isn’t the form or treatment of someone WWE sees as a future WWE Champion. The Miz should be feuding against guys like Randy Orton, not plying his trade down the card and worse still on the pre show of a major pay per view event. Very few of the people who but the pay per view events tune into the pre show clashes on You Tube, which is why WWE should have left the Miz out of this mire of burials.
I’m sure that WWE believe this is the correct way to get Miz back on track, but it’s all for nothing if he doesn’t dethrone Cesaro. Even if he does it will be the second consecutive WWE United States Championship change that has done so on the pre show of a pay per view event. That in itself is a major heat and impact killer. Had WWE been bothered about the Miz or Cesaro then they would have found time to book this match on the main body of the show and put something else here. Something which meant we didn’t miss happenings should we miss the pre show.
Should the Miz defeat Cesaro for the United States Championship, which I don’t believe he will, then WWE are going to have to put in a hell of an effort to push him with the Championship of doom strapped around his waist. Instead of giving him a feud which takes place before a pay per view, WWE are going to have to end the Cesaro feud prematurely and give the Miz someone the calibre of Orton to elevate him.
Between you and I and the entire world, I don’t believe that WWE actually know what they’re doing with the Miz. They’re tried everything in the book and failed numerous times with him. One has to wonder how many more times they will try before they concede defeat and either bury him beyond repair or let him go. In reality, WWE should have persevered with Miz’s WWE Intercontinental Championship reign. Holding a Championship this long would have done wonders for the former reality television star, just look at C.M Punk’s WWE Championship reign. Had WWE done this and then had Miz unite the Intercontinental and United States Championships in a high profile feud with Cesaro, it would have benefited all.
As it stands though, there doesn’t seem to be any light at the end of the tunnel for the Miz. Everywhere WWE takes the character seems to end with a bottomless pit. Nothing seems to be working and the Miz looks fed up to the back teeth of it all. So much talent shouldn’t be wasted, yet somehow it has once again passed WWE without a second thought.
If Antonio Cesaro was a train, currently, he’d be sitting in the station waiting for departure. Five months into a very uneventful United States Championship reign, Cesaro has done little to note in WWE. Cesaro can hardly be blamed for his lack of activity in the role of Champion, the fault lies higher up the food chain. The hope was that the U.S Championship would help elevate the former Ring of Honor star. The only fault in WWE’s plan was that they had the whole thing pinned on one Championship, failing to realise that without a decent set of challengers and bereft of storylines completely, Cesaro was going nowhere.
WWE’s attempts to pass him off as some kind of human wrecking machine, by defeating the likes of The Great Khali on The Main Event have been shrugged off by the WWE Universe and what followed was loss of interest in the Championship he’s currently the holder of. I’ve said it before and I can say it until I’m blue in the face, WWE should have given Cesaro a stage on which to propel his run off of the night after SummerSlam. Failing to do so only confirmed our worst fears that they were once again keeping a great talent suppressed, signalling an intention to once again do nothing with him. A pattern began repeating itself, one which had befell former World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus, when he was United States Champion.
The answer? At this present moment, I don’t really know. There is a lack of will in the higher-archy of WWE to do anything truly groundbreaking with Cesaro or the United States Championship. If WWE were willing to build up the division to give Cesaro a string of credible opponents, at least it would be something and show an intention to change things around the bottom of the card. Another way to go would be to give Cesaro an opponent from the upper card to feud with. The association with said wrestler would certainly shed a new light on the United States Championship. If it looked like someone who meant something in the company wanted the U.S Championship then it would automatically garner some interest from elsewhere.
The match on the Royal Rumble pre-show though, I can only see going one way. The Miz’s challenge cannot be taken seriously thanks to the lack of build up the company have put into it and another Championship change on the pre-show would all but doom the gold to limbo before WWE have even given it a shot of flourishing.
Winners Prediction: Antonio Cesaro
With less than handful of matches on the card, one would be inclined to suggest that by the nature of the hype on Rock vs Punk that the WWE Championship Match will dominate the majority of the night. The Royal Rumble Match will come a close second depending on the eventual winner and the World Heavyweight Championship Match and the WWE Tag Team Championship Match will have to make do with whatever they can get hold of.
Should it be any other way though? After so much hype and an abundance of money thrown into the Rock’s return, WWE will naturally be relying on ‘The Great One’ and the WWE Champion to bring the house down and make a return on their investment. The Royal Rumble poster simples bares the Rock’s face and the word ‘Finally...’ should we take this to mean that finally the Rock has come home again, or finally, C.M Punk’s WWE Championship reign is over?
On January 27th, C.M Punk must sieze the day and prove his claims that he is 'The Best in the World' otherwise the Rock's chilling warning will come true. At Royal Rumble, C.M Punk may find that after 430 plus days as WWE Champion; "Time's up!"
Onwards and upwards...
