Eyes On Royal Rumble: 2018 Royal Rumble Preview

By @Phranchize19

With the Royal Rumble kicking off the Road to Wrestlemania, its only right the fine people at Eyes On The Ring give you predictions for the beginning of the year big event in WWE. Who will be victorious at the Rumble? Let's take a look.

Kalisto, Lince Dorado, Gran Metalik vs TJP, Jack Gallagher and Drew Gulak
Kickoff Show

-The Cruiserweight division was thrown for a loop upon the firing of its most charismatic star Enzo Amore. With the brand in even more of a struggle finding its footing than it already was, this match isn’t exactly a step in the right direction. No Cedric Alexander, no Hideo Itami or anything. This spot should’ve been used to either start a tournament or a match with Cedric (the rightful number 1 contender) and someone else (could’ve been a fatal four way to decide this) to decide who will be the champion. The point is, expect the heels to go over here especially with Gulak being the most popular guy in this match.

*The Revival vs Balor Club
Kickoff Show 

-This one is a bit sketchy seeing as Gallows and Anderson have revived Bullet Club lite with Finn Balor and The Revival are desperately needing signature wins after what happened on Raw. I expect Revival to pick up the win here but this will not be the last time they fight. This could go either way though.

*US Title Open Challenge
Kickoff Show

-Bobby Roode being US Champ is the right choice. However with Rusev as over as he is, he would be a great option here to answer the challenge. I expect Tye Dillinger or Aiden English to answer the call however and Roode retains the title. Perhaps we see Ziggler appear with the belt and they start a feud once again.

*The Usos vs Gable and Benjamin
2 Out Of 3 Falls
Smackdown Live Tag Team Championship 

-This rivalry should come to a head after this and even with the recent arrest of an USO, I expect them to retain here. They’re one of the best if not the best team in wrestling and it potentially sets up the red hot Rusev Day to get a title shot, but I do expect this to possibly steal the show and be a match of the night candidate.

*Jason Jordan and Seth Rollins vs The Bar
-RAW Tag Team Championship

Part of me wants to pick The Bar, but I don’t think WWE is ready to pull the trigger on the Jordan heel turn. I believe The Revival will take the belts from these two so I expect Jordan and Rollins to retain here in a great match. Honestly, it's time to move on from a Seth Rollins led tag team against The Bar. They've faced each other consistently since July. It's almost February of a new year. Put that feud to rest.

*AJ Styles vs Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens
Handicap Match
WWE Championship

-There’s no way WWE is pulling the trigger on a Co-WWE Champion especially considering how poorly the Co-Intercontinental Championship reign went. I do not see Zayn or Owens winning here since AJ hasn’t stood tall against these two as of yet. AJ retains the title and starts his Road to Wrestlemania.

*Brock Lesnar vs Braun Strowman vs Kane
WWE Universal Championship Match

-Some people think Brock is the biggest draw and that he will headline Wrestlemania. In reality, Braun is the most over and deserves to win this match so we can avoid the inevitable Brock vs Roman at Mania. However, WWE won't do that, so Brock retains by pinning Kane, who is only in the match to take the fall. Nothing to see here.

*Women’s Royal Rumble Match

-History will be made as the first ever Women’s Rumble match will take place. I honestly feel it would be a shame to waste this on a Ronda Rousey victory, as it would be an insult to all the other women who worked hard to have a Women's Revolution in the first place. If Rousey is to face Charlotte at Mania, that bout doesn’t need a Rumble victory to get to it, especially since Rousey isn’t experienced as of yet. I’m going with Asuka here.

*Men’s Royal Rumble Match

-I see this playing out only two ways. Roman Reigns or Shinsuke Nakamura. One would hope that since Reigns has already won in Philly and it backfired, that they would try and avoid that here. So, let's hope Nakamura wins this. 

-Phranchize

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Eyes on the Ring 12:04 PM  No comment

Eyes On Royal Rumble: 5 Bad Matches At The Event

By @TrueGodImmortal

The Royal Rumble has seen a number of great moments and top tier matches, but it's also seen a few bad moments and matches as well. Looking back at  it now, it seems as if there were a lot of bad matches that took place at the January event (30 Man Rumble match aside), so today, I wanted to look at 5 of those matches that were underwhelming at the PPV. Let's take a look.

*Ken Shamrock vs Billy Gunn
Royal Rumble 1999

-The IC Title was on the line, but honestly, this was just a bad idea from the start. Shamrock was not a good wrestler and neither was Billy Gunn, so this match was doomed anyways. The pacing, the storytelling, and everything in between here feels rushed, and honestly, this match could have been at least cut down by 3 to 4 minutes. Shamrock wins the bout, but this match was nothing special at all. There were other bad matches on this card too, but this one sticks out to me.

 

*Scott Steiner vs Triple H
Royal Rumble 2003

-Of course. This match makes the list. Steiner. Triple H. What a match. What a classic. What a..... bunch of bullshit. This was a match that I never wanted to see and as we got to the very end of the contest, I realized why even more. The fact was, Triple H wasn't the man anymore in the ring and he was subpar in most of his matches against lesser talents (Nash, Steiner, Goldberg come to mind), while Steiner was just horrible all around. This match went nearly 20 minutes and it just dragged on and on, until the DQ finish somewhat saved the day. Honestly, I still can't believe this match and feud exists because it's so terrible. I have tried to block the memory out of this slow, boring contest, but as you see.... that changes nothing.

*Brock Lesnar vs Hardcode Holly
Royal Rumble 2004

-I remember this match and thinking "damn that was a bit short", and then I saw the official match time and felt like I was watching a Brock title match today. This match is less than 7 minutes long and it is a glorified squash match. Truthfully, Hardcore Holly deserved a bit more. Honestly, the thing that surprised me the most was that Brock didn't have much of a challenge here and that this was mostly just a filler match that served no purpose. After Holly get in minimal offense, Brock makes quick work of him and moves on. I wish this would have went at least 10 minutes to give the appearance that Hardcore would have won, but that wasn't the case. Simply put, this match is awful.

*The Undertaker vs Heidenreich
Royal Rumble 2005

-A casket match. At the Rumble. What could go wrong? Everything. Taker wasn't his usual self and his competition was a poet. A poet who might assault people in his spare time. Well, add in some interference from Snitsky and Kane, and you get one big clusterfuck of a match that really has aged much worse than even I remembered. Taker couldn't carry him to a good match, and the ending couldn't come soon enough. Taker wins this match, and Heidenreich ends up on a different path (What A Rush...), and their forgettable feud finishes without much fanfare or care.

*Kurt Angle vs Mark Henry
Royal Rumble 2006

-Why did this close the show? I'll never understand. Sure, Undertaker comes back in this match, but this is a horrible way to end the PPV. This match is the main event of a pivotal PPV and I'll be honest, I'm a fan of Mark Henry. However, there was no reason and no point to ever put Mark in the title picture or main event at this time. Angle couldn't make Henry look good in this one, and the match was over in less than 10 minutes, but for all this, you could have just had the Angle vs Taker match at the show and everyone would have been satisfied. Of all the matches on this list, this is one of those that leave me scratching my head at why this CLOSED the show.

-True

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Eyes on the Ring 2:25 AM  No comment

Eyes On Royal Rumble: Ranking The Last 5 Rumble PPVs

By @TrueGodImmortal

The last 5 Royal Rumbles have been underwhelming on every end. Truthfully, the last six or seven Rumbles have been pretty uneventful, and that's a whole, not just the Royal Rumble match itself. With that being said, I wanted to take a look at the most recent Royal Rumble events and rank them from best to worst. We are foregoing our usual Tag Team Tuesdays article in favor of talking more Royal Rumble talk as the event approaches. Which of the 5 most recent Rumble events are the best? You might be shocked at the rankings. Let's take a look.

5. Royal Rumble 2015

-Have you ever witnessed an event that had everything going for it, yet it still feel short of everything you expected? Well, that's the 2015 Royal Rumble. It has one good thing on the card and that's the WWE Title match. Otherwise? It's the most embarrassing show in recent years for the event, but only for the ending and the lackluster card aside from one of the worst Rumble matches I've ever seen. The 2015 Royal Rumble might be the worst match of all time in the Rumble history, and that's saying a lot. It was set up to be a big crowning of their new golden boy Roman Reigns, but instead it was one of the most cringe worthy moments in recent Rumble history. The Rock couldn't save it. No one could. It was terrible. Daniel Bryan got eliminated early and the crowd would end up booing the hell out of Reigns winning, as they should. This is the worst of the worst, and that's saying something. The one highlight? Brock vs Seth Rollins vs Cena. That's a classic, but the rest of the event is absolutely horrid to watch. This is the worst of the last 5 years.

4. Royal Rumble 2013

-So, I don't hate this event. However, if you need any proof that the WWE had no idea what the hell they were doing in 2013... look no further than this. This event is the prime example of a show that is predictable, but you still hope for the best.... and they disappoint you even more. Aside from a surprisingly fun Big Show vs Del Rio match, the rest of the card fell a bit flat, including the Team Hell No against Rhodes Scholars match. The Royal Rumble Match was terrible, aside from Chris Jericho making a big return, nothing substantial really occurred. Well, something did occur.... the last three men in the Rumble are Sheamus, Ryback, and John Cena.... three choices that no one wanted at all. The crowd was dead because we knew what was coming. Cena wins. Of course. Then, The Rock vs CM Punk had a horrible ending and gave The Rock the WWE Title... for nothing. Honestly, this was so horribly executed that the event is a big stain on the year 2013, which wasn't anything special in terms of the WWE, but it was a rough way to kick it off.

3. Royal Rumble 2016

-It wasn't easy ranking this one a bit higher than I even expected (though they are all ranked low on an all time list), but it fits. Honestly, this was one of the more surprising shows of the last few years, as everything that could have went wrong, absolutely did, BUT it wasn't as bad as it could have been at least. After a pretty good opening match between Dean Ambrose and Kevin Owens for the IC Title, the show was all downhill from there as usually is the case with most WWE shows that start off on fire. With the rest of the show mostly being centered around the Rumble match which was for the WWE Title, the other matches felt very unimportant, but... were solid. Whether it was the tag title match between the New Day and The Usos, the solid but uneventful Kalisto vs Del Rio match, or Charlotte vs Becky Lynch, this show just seemed to be filler before the main course, but let me point out that the reason I have this ranked at 3 is because it was an All around decent card aside from the final event. The Rumble Match itself wasn't anything special, but we did get the debut of AJ Styles, which made this all worth it. Still, overall, this event was just a standard Rumble PPV with nothing special to speak of, except a pretty pointless Triple H title win, but... it was still solid enough to be ranked middle of the road.

2. Royal Rumble 2014

- Now, I know this Rumble isn't remembered very well due to the ending and that's fair. It's very fair. Truthfully, this Rumble is actually a decent event, but the Rumble match itself is where it falters a bit. The opening match featured The New Age Outlaws against Cody Rhodes and Goldust (Pre-Show match) while Bray Wyatt vs Daniel Bryan is a classic singles match at the Rumble. It's the best match of the night and the biggest highlight. In the rebuilding of Brock Lesnar, he would squash Big Show in a match similar to their battle at the 2003 Rumble. Then, a shocker, the Cena vs Orton match wasn't bad at all surprised. The Rumble Match had CM Punk, Batista, The Shield, Kevin Nash, and JBL, but it would be disappointing as Batista won and there was no Daniel Bryan in the Rumble, and the crowd hated it all. Despite that, it was still a fun overall event that just ended horribly.

1. Royal Rumble 2017

-So, the most recent Rumble is the best of the last 5 years? Yes. It is. It would featured a solid match on the Pre-Show, but the main card was really enjoyable, from the opening match between Charlotte and Bayley, to the excellent title match between Kevin Owens and Roman Reigns, as well as the match of the year candidate between John Cena and AJ Styles. Aside from this, the Royal Rumble Match was somewhat interesting, but they ruined it yet again with Roman Reigns as no. 30, which ruined the momentum that having names like Goldberg, Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, Bray Wyatt, and more in it. Despite the Rumble match, the rest of the card features the best of the choices through the last 5 years, so it's no shock that it ranks at the top. Though the Rumble events haven't been as fun the last 5 years, there have been some bright spots at the PPVs.

-True

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Eyes on the Ring 1:59 AM  No comment

Eyes On Royal Rumble: 5 Best Surprise Entrants

By @TrueGodImmortal

The Royal Rumble is coming up and this year, there are no rumored surprise entrants on tap for the company. However, in the past, there have been plenty of surprise entrants and huge returns at the Royal Rumble that catches everyone's attention and today, I wanted to take a look at the 5 best surprise entrants in over the long history of the Rumble.

5. Rob Van Dam
(2009 Royal Rumble)

-With the Rumble set in Michigan,  the home state of Van Dam, this was a surprise that some expected, but for the most part, it was a true surprise. RVD came out to a nice ovation and would last around 15 minutes in the match. No one expected him to win of course, but it was really fun to see RVD back in a WWE ring. I would have liked to see that surprise return lead to a long term return and a big feud, but it wasn't to be at the time. Still, this was a great return for the Rumble and a nice moment for all the fans of RVD.

4. Mick Foley
(2004 Royal Rumble)

-Foley was flirting with getting back into the ring and after being embarrassed by Randy Orton, it would lead him to getting back to where he was most comfortable: the squared circle. After taking out an entrant in the Rumble, Foley walks out to the surprise of the crowd, and the ovation is thunderous. Orton looked completely shocked at the return of Foley, and when Foley got into the ring, he had no motivation besides eliminating Orton and stopping him from reaching the Mania main event. Foley would end up eliminating himself while taking Orton out, but his mission was complete.

3. Booker T
(2011 Royal Rumble)

-Diesel was a big entrant, but for me, Booker T was a bigger entrant. Diesel was expected by many, but Booker T didn't seem possible at the time. He was a part of TNA for years prior and seemingly left the WWE on less than great terms, but when his music hit, the crowd went absolutely nuts and Booker returned triumphantly. He didn't last very long in the Rumble, but his impact was felt and we got to see everything from Booker that we loved in his prime.

2. Edge
(2010 Royal Rumble)

-We saw this coming a mile away. Edge had been injured for months and he would be ready to make his return as the Rumble got closer and many people saw this one before it happened. Still, it was a great moment to see Edge get this type of push fresh off a serious injury, and he had his sights set on one man: Chris Jericho. Edge would manage to do that and then some, as he would walk away with Chris Jericho not winning the Rumble.... but as the winner himself. Edge would make the most triumphant return at the Rumble and cash a ticket on the Road To Wrestlemania to become the no. 1 contender.

1. John Cena
(2008 Royal Rumble)

-The biggest surprise entrant ever. Cena was injured. He was gone. No one saw this coming. Most thought he would end up missing Wrestlemania or was in danger of missing it at least, however, that wasn't the case at all. As the clock hits 0, the crowd is silent waiting with hushed excitement to see how is the last entrant. As Cena's music hits, the crowd goes wild for a moment, before realizing who the final entrant actually is (they would boo Cena some more after it settled), but the truth is, the shock of seeing Cena months before he was due back set a huge ripple through the wrestling world. To make it even more special, Cena wins the Rumble, giving him the most shocking win in the Rumble and making him the best surprise entrant in the history of the event.

-True

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Eyes on the Ring 1:42 AM  No comment

Eyes On Royal Rumble: The 5 Worst Rumble Wins

By @TrueGodImmortal

The Royal Rumble is creeping up on us. It's just about two weeks away and of course, it would be Royal Rumble month without having a look at some of the horrible moments in the history of the show. Today, we take a look at the 5 worst Royal Rumble wins and why. You may not agree with some of these choices, but each pick is valid. Let's take a look at the 5 worst Rumble wins.

5. Alberto Del Rio 
Royal Rumble 2011

-This could have been ranked higher. It really could have. However, the fact that this is one of the final times that the WWE attempted to actually go out and put over an upcoming guy with a Rumble win has it right at the end of the list. The truth is, Del Rio wasn't that good at the time, but he had the momentum slowly starting to build. Despite this, Del Rio walked into the first ever 40 man Rumble match and won it. While I have some thoughts on that idea as a whole, Del Rio winning wasn't the right call. I would have preferred to see CM Punk win and move on to face John Cena or at least become a part of the WWE Title match after all of the attention he would receive due to the New Nexus. Still, whoever you would give the Rumble to, Del Rio had a very anti climatic win.

4. Roman Reigns
Royal Rumble 2015

-This would be at the very top if it wasn't for the fact that the top 3 are actually just a little worse. Reigns was not the guy. Shit, he still isn't. However, in the beginning, I don't think it was set to be that bad. I think many of us expected Reigns to get the win and while we weren't excited about that, the biggest thing that sticks out to me in this situation is the fact that the WWE attempted to pull out all of the stops for Reigns..... AND IT STILL DIDN'T WORK. That is probably the most surprising part of this. First, Daniel Bryan was coming back and essentially, he was seen as the biggest threat to Reigns winning and being the GUY that they were trying to force. So, with that, they would end up eliminating Bryan early while forcing Reigns over Kane and The Big Show to the boos of the crowd. Not even an appearance by The Rock to get him cheers worked and essentially backfired, as it should have. In reality, this was one of the most ridiculous scenes to watch in WWE history, as Reigns definitely didn't deserve the win or the amount of effort they put in to force it. This Rumble win has haunted Reigns ever since.

3.  John Cena
Royal Rumble 2013

-The truth is, Cena won in 2008 and I still don't know if that was the right idea. However, I can for sure say the idea to make him win in 2013 was the worst call possible. Honestly, I have no idea what the hell WWE was thinking in 2013.... or now for that matter, but the point still stands. Regardless, Cena winning the Rumble at a time when you could have given it to anyone else is criminal. The WWE roster wasn't stacked like you'd expect, and the worst part about that is the fact that they really had no one ready to take the next step due to investing way too much into Cena. No one wanted Cena vs Rock 2 and no one wanted to see Cena win the Rumble AGAIN, thus.... It shouldn't have happened. But, good old WWE booking.

2. Batista
Royal Rumble 2014

-Another example of Vince McMahon ruining what should have been and could have been. The story was perfectly set up. Bryan enters the Rumble, wins it, and the Corporation go out of their way to deprive him of the title shot. They could have went with Daniel Bryan to win like everyone wanted... yet for some reason, they decided to go an entirely different route. Vince wanted Batista vs Randy Orton which... I'm not quite sure why. Regardless, there was no Daniel Bryan, there was no one left in the final 4 that even made sense to utilize in this instance as a replacement for Batista. All in all, this is one of the most confusing decisions ever.

1. Vince McMahon
Royal Rumble 1999

-Do I even need to explain this one? I mean let's be serious here. Let's be serious. Vince didn't deserve to win anything, let alone the fucking Rumble. Why? What was the point? To stop Austin from winning the Rumble a third straight time even though he probably should have. I don't even need to go into detail about this. It was ill advised and one of the worst decisions I've ever witnessed in WWE history. I have nothing left to say here. It was essentially one of the worst moments in WWE PPV history and quite possibly the worst Rumble moment ever. It did make for some good comedy however, and there's the silver lining.

-True 

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Eyes on the Ring 12:54 AM  No comment