WWE Tag Team Championship: The Rhodes Brothers vs The New Age Outlaws
This title match is scheduled for the Royal Rumble kickoff show. Despite this underwhelming slot, it actually promises to be worth checking out - WWE could very well be about to pull the trigger on setting up a feud between Cody and Goldust. It's been speculated for some time. This allows for a brother vs brother match at Wrestlemania 30.
It could be that WWE has scrapped that idea. However, the WWE Tag Team Champions are probably ready to move from their current spot. Interest in Goldust and Cody is nowhere near the level of their Autumn run. There isn't a lot left that WWE can do with the pair. Cody is a great in ring talent with a ton of potential in the near future, so a split with Goldust has to happen eventually. Despite The New Age Outlaws, they would serve as effective transitional champions. The hottest tag team in WWE right now is the Usos. They are having great matches and deserve the belts. By WWE having The Rhodes Brothers lose to the New Age Outlaws, it sets up the Usos vs Gunn and Dogg at Elimination Chamber. The hot faces can then overcome the transitional heels.
Goldust and Cody can be written out of the tag scene completely later in the night. Expect the brothers to enter the Rumble and Goldust to turn on Cody and dump him out. It makes a lot of logical creative sense, so I am going to predict The New Age Outlaws to win. I won't be surprised if WWE plays safe and have the good guys retain, but I'm going on gut instinct.
Winners and new WWE Tag Team Champions: The New Age Outlaws
Daniel Bryan vs Bray Wyatt
Daniel Bryan vs Bray Wyatt is potentially going to be the match of the night. We all know what a superb in-ring worker Bryan is, and Wyatt holds a lofty reputation for it too. This is Bray's big chance to shine in his first major one on one contest (his bout with Kane was more of an angle). For these reasons, I expect this to be great. The story going in was a bit more hit and miss. Bryan joining the Wyatts didn't really work. However, they have salvaged the creative and this is a compelling conclusion to Wyatt and Bryan's feud. Finally we will get to see Daniel Bryan take down the evil Bray Wyatt.
Bryan seems the obvious winner. He lost at TLC and has been getting buried across the Autumn months. Now is the time with his underdog sympathy fully established to start pushing him to the high spot. Fans are going to love it. However, there are also the possibilities that Bray could go over at the Rumble. If it is true that Wyatt is being considered for a match with John Cena at Wrestlemania 30 then he must look stronger going in. There is also the possibility that Bryan will end up entering the Rumble match to win his redemption in the quest for the WWE title - if that transpires then I expect WWE would have Wyatt win on the undercard. This elevates Bray and further enforce Bryan's underdog ahead of the big Rumble moment. The third reason to envision a Bryan loss is he had the upper hand on TV coming in... WWE usually run that angle if the opposite is happen on the pay per view.
Overall, I am going with Bryan as the Winner here. There is a case for Bray, but on face value, Bryan has to win. We are talking about the most over babyface in the company who has already lost his last PPV match – a win here for the good guy is surely the likely conclusion to the Wyatt v Bryan feud.
Winner: Daniel Bryan
Brock Lesnar vs The Big Show
Easily the most predictable result of the night, Brock Lesnar is going to beat Big Show.
The Giant may have been getting the better of Lesnar on Raw, but nobody will be buying Show winning. The WWE full timer was given the upper hand mainly to set him up for a fall, to make it seem more impressive when Lesnar eventually overcomes him. Brock has a high profile feud with The Undertaker coming up, there is no way that WWE would consider weakening the perception of Brock with a loss here. He needs to have all the fearsome reputation of his UFC days heading into his Taker bout – he needs to be The Beast that drew over a million buys in the UFC.
Just like Royal Rumble 2003, Lesnar is going to go over Big Show here with an F5. Also like 2003, he could end up entering the actual Rumble later in the night. I don’t think there is much chance of Lesnar winning the Rumble (although he has stated his aim for the WWE championship). What is much more likely is Lesnar will enter the Rumble to clash with another contestant, thus setting up his Mania feud. It could be Batista. But surely it will be Undertaker, shockingly returning here to take out Lesnar. Brock is going to be one of the most memorable wrestlers on the night, and it will all start with his win over the Big Show. This will be one night that the WWE absolutely gets their money worth from Brock Lesnar.
Winner: Brock Lesnar
WWE Championship: Randy Orton (c) vs John Cena
Is John Cena really going to lose two pay per views in a row? Is he really going to be outside of the championship at the biggest Wrestlemania ever?
Normally you would think the answers to those questions would be no way. Cena is the franchise player. However, I am leaning toward Randy Orton to retain here. WWE have done such a good job of building up his heel champion role in the last few months. Why waste all that investment just to put Cena back on top. The best creative and commercial performance in this period is always to have a strong heel as champion, who in turn is chased by the popular babyface. The best example of this was in 2005 when Batista won the Rumble, chasing down the dastardly HHH and WWE gold.
Orton is the perfect man to play that bad guy role – allowing WWE to book a hero on a quest over the Mania season. I think this is what the company will be feeling as well. Fans don’t want to see a good guy reigning, they want to see a good guy fighting to reign. Rocky Balboa was loved because he was fighting for the gold, not because he had the gold. When it comes to storytelling, a hated champion holding dictatorship over the title is always best for business. WWE should keep Orton as champ until Wrestlemania.
Winner and still WWE Champion: Randy Orton
30-man Royal Rumble Match
With 30/1 odds, picking a winner here is tricky.
In saying that, the list of realistic winners is much shorter. We can narrow it down to – Batista, Daniel Bryan, CM Punk or Roman Reigns. I can’t really see past those guys. Batista has a very valid case for winning. He is a genuine main event draw who has just gave WWE there highest Raw rating in 10 months. He is money, ultimately what WWE is all about. Orton vs Batista for the championship has a marquee ring to it, with a nice bit of history on the side. It makes a lot of sense for WWE to do that match.
However, with Batista so newly back is he really going to be hot shot into this spot … or is Daniel Bryan going to find his last year of graft rewarded. Bryan is hugely popular in the arenas, but is it just that people like his ring style and chanting his call – will they actually shell out money to watch him in the main event role? The answer was a resounding NO last year. Vince McMahon in particular was upset by the Summerslam buyrate. Then again, Vince is also said to be one of Bryan’s biggest fans right now.
Punk and Reigns are a bit more of the outsider variety. Punk in the number 1 spot could be about to enjoy the HBK / Mysterio ride to become the ultimate achiever. Winning the Rumble sets up Punk vs Orton, authority vs anti-authority. It makes a lot of sense. The rumours of a Punk vs Hunter Mania bout is the only thing that is taking me away from predicting Punk as winner. Roman Reigns would be another great choice. The Rumble should be all about creating a new main event star, so in many ways, Reigns stands to benefit more than any other man with the Rumble win. The Wrestling Observer had the big man as a favourite in a recent newsletter and we know that WWE have big plans for him this year.
However, I am going to play it very safe with the odds against me … Dave Batista is going to win the Royal Rumble. It seems the safest bet for a good Wrestlemania buyrate, so I expect Vince and Co will go with this. They know Batista is a main event star and Dave played this role so well in 2005… The Animal hunting down The Viper to Wrestlemania 30 has money written all over it.
The Royal Rumble Winner: Batista
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It could be that WWE has scrapped that idea. However, the WWE Tag Team Champions are probably ready to move from their current spot. Interest in Goldust and Cody is nowhere near the level of their Autumn run. There isn't a lot left that WWE can do with the pair. Cody is a great in ring talent with a ton of potential in the near future, so a split with Goldust has to happen eventually. Despite The New Age Outlaws, they would serve as effective transitional champions. The hottest tag team in WWE right now is the Usos. They are having great matches and deserve the belts. By WWE having The Rhodes Brothers lose to the New Age Outlaws, it sets up the Usos vs Gunn and Dogg at Elimination Chamber. The hot faces can then overcome the transitional heels.
Goldust and Cody can be written out of the tag scene completely later in the night. Expect the brothers to enter the Rumble and Goldust to turn on Cody and dump him out. It makes a lot of logical creative sense, so I am going to predict The New Age Outlaws to win. I won't be surprised if WWE plays safe and have the good guys retain, but I'm going on gut instinct.
Winners and new WWE Tag Team Champions: The New Age Outlaws
Daniel Bryan vs Bray Wyatt
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Daniel Bryan vs Bray Wyatt is potentially going to be the match of the night. We all know what a superb in-ring worker Bryan is, and Wyatt holds a lofty reputation for it too. This is Bray's big chance to shine in his first major one on one contest (his bout with Kane was more of an angle). For these reasons, I expect this to be great. The story going in was a bit more hit and miss. Bryan joining the Wyatts didn't really work. However, they have salvaged the creative and this is a compelling conclusion to Wyatt and Bryan's feud. Finally we will get to see Daniel Bryan take down the evil Bray Wyatt.
Bryan seems the obvious winner. He lost at TLC and has been getting buried across the Autumn months. Now is the time with his underdog sympathy fully established to start pushing him to the high spot. Fans are going to love it. However, there are also the possibilities that Bray could go over at the Rumble. If it is true that Wyatt is being considered for a match with John Cena at Wrestlemania 30 then he must look stronger going in. There is also the possibility that Bryan will end up entering the Rumble match to win his redemption in the quest for the WWE title - if that transpires then I expect WWE would have Wyatt win on the undercard. This elevates Bray and further enforce Bryan's underdog ahead of the big Rumble moment. The third reason to envision a Bryan loss is he had the upper hand on TV coming in... WWE usually run that angle if the opposite is happen on the pay per view.
Overall, I am going with Bryan as the Winner here. There is a case for Bray, but on face value, Bryan has to win. We are talking about the most over babyface in the company who has already lost his last PPV match – a win here for the good guy is surely the likely conclusion to the Wyatt v Bryan feud.
Winner: Daniel Bryan
Brock Lesnar vs The Big Show
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The Giant may have been getting the better of Lesnar on Raw, but nobody will be buying Show winning. The WWE full timer was given the upper hand mainly to set him up for a fall, to make it seem more impressive when Lesnar eventually overcomes him. Brock has a high profile feud with The Undertaker coming up, there is no way that WWE would consider weakening the perception of Brock with a loss here. He needs to have all the fearsome reputation of his UFC days heading into his Taker bout – he needs to be The Beast that drew over a million buys in the UFC.
Just like Royal Rumble 2003, Lesnar is going to go over Big Show here with an F5. Also like 2003, he could end up entering the actual Rumble later in the night. I don’t think there is much chance of Lesnar winning the Rumble (although he has stated his aim for the WWE championship). What is much more likely is Lesnar will enter the Rumble to clash with another contestant, thus setting up his Mania feud. It could be Batista. But surely it will be Undertaker, shockingly returning here to take out Lesnar. Brock is going to be one of the most memorable wrestlers on the night, and it will all start with his win over the Big Show. This will be one night that the WWE absolutely gets their money worth from Brock Lesnar.
Winner: Brock Lesnar
WWE Championship: Randy Orton (c) vs John Cena
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Normally you would think the answers to those questions would be no way. Cena is the franchise player. However, I am leaning toward Randy Orton to retain here. WWE have done such a good job of building up his heel champion role in the last few months. Why waste all that investment just to put Cena back on top. The best creative and commercial performance in this period is always to have a strong heel as champion, who in turn is chased by the popular babyface. The best example of this was in 2005 when Batista won the Rumble, chasing down the dastardly HHH and WWE gold.
Orton is the perfect man to play that bad guy role – allowing WWE to book a hero on a quest over the Mania season. I think this is what the company will be feeling as well. Fans don’t want to see a good guy reigning, they want to see a good guy fighting to reign. Rocky Balboa was loved because he was fighting for the gold, not because he had the gold. When it comes to storytelling, a hated champion holding dictatorship over the title is always best for business. WWE should keep Orton as champ until Wrestlemania.
Winner and still WWE Champion: Randy Orton
30-man Royal Rumble Match
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With 30/1 odds, picking a winner here is tricky.
In saying that, the list of realistic winners is much shorter. We can narrow it down to – Batista, Daniel Bryan, CM Punk or Roman Reigns. I can’t really see past those guys. Batista has a very valid case for winning. He is a genuine main event draw who has just gave WWE there highest Raw rating in 10 months. He is money, ultimately what WWE is all about. Orton vs Batista for the championship has a marquee ring to it, with a nice bit of history on the side. It makes a lot of sense for WWE to do that match.
However, with Batista so newly back is he really going to be hot shot into this spot … or is Daniel Bryan going to find his last year of graft rewarded. Bryan is hugely popular in the arenas, but is it just that people like his ring style and chanting his call – will they actually shell out money to watch him in the main event role? The answer was a resounding NO last year. Vince McMahon in particular was upset by the Summerslam buyrate. Then again, Vince is also said to be one of Bryan’s biggest fans right now.
Punk and Reigns are a bit more of the outsider variety. Punk in the number 1 spot could be about to enjoy the HBK / Mysterio ride to become the ultimate achiever. Winning the Rumble sets up Punk vs Orton, authority vs anti-authority. It makes a lot of sense. The rumours of a Punk vs Hunter Mania bout is the only thing that is taking me away from predicting Punk as winner. Roman Reigns would be another great choice. The Rumble should be all about creating a new main event star, so in many ways, Reigns stands to benefit more than any other man with the Rumble win. The Wrestling Observer had the big man as a favourite in a recent newsletter and we know that WWE have big plans for him this year.
However, I am going to play it very safe with the odds against me … Dave Batista is going to win the Royal Rumble. It seems the safest bet for a good Wrestlemania buyrate, so I expect Vince and Co will go with this. They know Batista is a main event star and Dave played this role so well in 2005… The Animal hunting down The Viper to Wrestlemania 30 has money written all over it.
The Royal Rumble Winner: Batista