It’s that time of the year. SmallDog Dan is here to give his predictions in the WWE. It’s been a crazy week for the WWE. The Rock was named to the board of TKO. In a total non-shocker, Vince McMahon is a bigger piece of shit than we thought. But the main focus is the Royal Rumble. The Royal Rumble is my favorite PPV of the year. Nothing gets my juices tingling more than this. There is so much suspense the Royal Rumble brings. Most years, you have an idea who the favorite is, but this year is so much different. I genuinely have no idea who’s going to win any of the Royal Rumbles. But that’s what this blog is for. I will give you the correct answers for who will win the Royal Rumble and start their Road to Wrestlemania. With that said, let’s get into the predictions.
Women’s Royal Rumble
Before I get to who I think I can win, I want to give my thoughts on this match. Jade Cargill should debut and be dominant. Have her break the Royal Rumble record for most eliminations, 8, and have her look like the star she is. For the Iron Woman spot, I think Candice LeRae should get it. She’s super talented, and this would be a great spot to showcase that talent. Give her 30-40 minutes so she can make a name for herself, just like her husband Johnny Gargano did last year in the Rumble. The last thing I want to write about before I get to the winner, I hope AJ Lee returns tonight. It’s been so long since we’ve last seen her in WWE, and with Punk back in WWE, it’s a great time for her to make her return. She deserves it and, after this, deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.
In my eyes, there are only two options on who can win the Women’s Royal Rumble: Becky Lynch and Bayley. They will be the two who compete for the two Women’s Championships. On one hand, you have Becky Lynch, who deserves it for all the work she put in the past year. With her fantastic match with Trish Stratus, working NXT, and putting talent over, she has a solid case to win her second Royal Rumble.
But then you have Bayley. Bayley has yet to have a one-on-one match at Wrestlemania. This is her time to shine, and she has the most compelling story going. Bayley can have a similar storyline to Batista’s when he won his first Rumble. She’s been disrespected by her faction, Damage CTRL, which could lead to a great babyface run from Bayley. She wasn’t able to show how good of a face she could be when she originally got called up from NXT, but this could be the time to show the world. NXT Bayley was one of my favorite wrestlers. If she can recreate that magic and challenge Iyo Sky for the Women’s Championship at Wrestlemania, she could go on a long reign on SmackDown as world champ. And with Becky, she could win an opportunity and face Rhea Ripley for her title. But the better story is with Bayley.
Winner: Bayley
Roman Reigns (c) V. A.J. Styles V. L. A. Knight V. Randy Orton for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship Match
This will be a quick one. No one is beating Roman Reigns for this title until Mania. Last year, I had some hope, but if they won’t drop the title to Sami Zayn when he was the most over wrestler since Daniel Bryan, no one is getting that belt unless it’s in the main event of Wrestlemania. It’s also very telling that the match isn’t the main event. The second match on the card means no title will change hand. It will be a good match, though. All four of these guys will be awesome, but Roman will retain. I just wonder how screwy this match will get with Jimmy Uso and Solo.
Winner: Roman Reigns
Logan Paul (c) V. Kevin Owens for the U.S. Championship
The only singles match of the PPV, and I have high expectations for the match. Every match, Logan Paul shows out and proves to everyone he’s a star. He’s made for this business and will have a banger of a match with KO. And what else is there to say about Kevin Owens. Every time Owens steps into a ring, you know it will be a good match. With the news of Logan Paul resigning, he’ll probably retain the title and defend it at Wrestlemania, whomever the opponent will be (maybe face Austin Theory?)
Winner: Logan Paul
Men’s Royal Rumble
Like I did with the Women’s match, I want to talk about what I’d like to see in the men’s match. Right off the back, I don’t think we will get any crazy surprises. No MJF or Okada. From what I’ve read from SRS, they are signed to AEW. No need to get our hopes up for them. But for actual WWE talent, that Sami Zayn pop will be generational. I’ve missed seeing Sami Zayn on television. Tonight will be his return, and he should get the Ironman spot. Have him come in at #3 and let him do his thing. Another generational return would be Big E. I don’t know how likely a Big E return is, but him returning and starting a rivalry with Gunther would be great. Not to mention the tears in my eyes from seeing Big E being able to return to wrestling.
A return of Brock Lesnar would be great, too, but with all the news coming out, WWE may want to hold off on him. Other wrestlers I’d love to see strong performances from are Jimmy and Jey Uso, Carmelo Hayes, Austin Theory, Tyler Bate, and Pete Dunne. Jimmy and Jey Uso can start their Road to Wrestlemania tonight. Have Jey eliminate Jimmy, and Jimmy go back in the ring and eliminate Jey. For the other guys I’ve mentioned, I want to see the young guys have a strong performance to build momentum.
Now, for the winners, there are three choices here. For some reason, Sports Illustrated reported that Gunther will win the Royal Rumble. I love Gunther, but this isn’t his time. Let him continue his dominant Intercontinental title reign into Wrestlemania, and let him face off against Big E, Zayn, or Chad Gable.
The other choice is Cody Rhodes. Rhodes has to finish his story, but winning the Royal Rumble isn’t the only way he can finish his story. Have Cody go on a Shawn Michaels storyline where Shawn had to face the Undertaker. Shawn did uncharacteristic things to face Taker. Have Cody go fully unhinged. He will do anything to face Roman Reigns and win his title. That would be an excellent storyline for Cody in my opinion.
So that leaves C.M. Punk. Punk came back to WWE and has his own story to finish. Having him win the Royal Rumble is the correct move. He’s never done it before, and it will keep Punker happy for a little bit longer. Also, the match between Seth Rollins and Punk at Mania will be match of the year type shit.
Winner: C.M. Punk
I how you’re reading this Triple H. This is the correct way to book the Royal Rumble this year, and I will not see any way else. 8:00 can’t come soon enough. I’m ready for this thing.
SmallDog Sports 
Leave a comment