The annual Royal Rumble event, one of the most anticipated annual events on the WWE calendar and a staple of the company in January, takes center stage on Sunday, paving the way for WrestleMania 37. The winners of the men’s and women’s fights Royal Rumble women will, as usual, win world championship opportunities at WrestleMania 37 in April.
In addition to the two Royal Rumble fights, there are two world title fights currently confirmed for the event. Roman Reigns will defend the universal championship against Kevin Owens in a Last Man Standing match, and the legendary Goldberg will return to the ring for the first time since WrestleMania 36 to challenge WWE champion Drew McIntyre.
The Royal Rumble will begin at 7 pm Eastern Time on Sunday, January 31, with an estimated duration of 3 to 4 hours, not counting the initial show, which begins an hour before the main card at 6 pm. be with you all the way on Sunday with live results, highlights and reviews.
For now, let’s take a look at how our experts believe the Royal Rumble will unfold this Sunday.
WWE Royal Rumble predictions for 2021
Women’s Tag Team Championship: Asuka and Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax
It was ridiculous to put the titles on Asuka & Flair first, and given that each is involved in separate singles stories, it makes even less sense to keep them locked up. Baszler and Jax were operating perfectly well as champions and had a good storyline with Mandy Rose and Dana Brooke. With muscle friends now healthy and back in action, it would be hysterical – though depressing – for WWE to turn the titles back on their heels, but I think that’s exactly what they’ll end up doing, completely eliminating any value from the current race for the champions’ title. Choice: Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler win the titles – Adam Silverstein (also Brent Brookhouse)
SmackDown Women’s Championship: Sasha Banks (c) vs. Carmella
Carmella did a good job in her current heel run and there is no denying that she has improved as an artist. That said, Banks is finally enjoying a title reign, where he did manage to defend him. It is difficult to see his race coming to an end against Carmella in what was his first real story after winning the Bayley belt. Banks is an attractive champion going to WrestleMania, and a fight with her in the role of champion looks like a bigger deal than with Carmella. There doesn’t seem to be much mystery to this one. Choice: Sasha Banks keeps the title – Brookhouse (also Silverstein)
Universal Championship: Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens (Last Man Standing match)
As fun as Owens ‘victory could be, it just seems totally unrealistic to expect the WWE to stop Reings’ run ahead of WrestleMania. Reigns has been the company’s best attraction since his return to SummerSlam and Owens has made a big splash in recent months, but he never really seemed like a threat to win Reigns for the title. A Last Man Standing fight gives some eliminations to keep Owens strong (Jey Uso’s interference), but he doesn’t come out as a universal champion. Choice: Roman Reigns keeps title – Brookhouse (also Silverstein)
WWE Championship: Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Goldberg
The fans were furious when Goldberg appeared on Legends Night to challenge McIntyre, especially due to the fact that the plot to create the match made no sense. With McIntyre out of the house for two weeks due to COVID-19, the temperature of the fans’ resentment has cooled, but it has also dampened any real interest in this match. Although Goldberg defeated Heel Kevin Owens and “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt for the universal title twice – and WWE is building this championship as the only world title Goldberg has ever won – it would make absolutely no sense to put him ahead of the top company male babyface who spent the last year building. This must be a short fight with McIntyre overcoming an initial flood of Goldberg offenses to retain the title and keep it at least until WrestleMania. Choice: Drew McIntyre keeps the title – Silverstein (also Brookhouse)
Royal Rumble game for women
There are many viable options for winning the match, but none that do what a victory for Belair would do. She is a great talent who just needs the right storyline to become a main event player. Belair showing his strength and athleticism again at Rumble, while overcoming all the other women immediately establishes her in the title photo much better than her strange rivalry with Bayley. Choice: Bianca Belair wins – Brookhouse (also Silverstein)
Royal Rumble Game for Men
If there’s one thing WWE loves to do, it’s give legends the top events at the biggest PPV events of the year. That’s why Goldberg is up against McIntyre, that’s why Goldberg held a world title at the helm of last year’s WrestleMania, that’s why The Rock’s name was linked to Reigns for WrestleMania before the lack of sold-out live. seemed to undermine that. Edge was not returning to being a full-time talent, but it looked like he was ready to be in great positions throughout the year. If the WWE wants to take a big hit on an underdog to face Reigns at WrestleMania, Edge would mark many of the boxes they are looking for. Daniel Bryan would also fit perfectly, but there is an itch in the back of my mind that Edge gets the time to feel good and the slot Mania. Choice: victories on the edge – Brookhouse
Edge announcing his return to WWE and entering the Royal Rumble on Raw seemed like a moment of wasted surprise, even if it was what we had last year at this same event, but it added a level of intrigue to the game because Edge (as predicted above) would do so much felt as a Royal Rumble winner and McIntyre’s challenging future. However, prior to Edge’s announcement, I believed that WWE would move in its best possible reserve direction, which is putting Bryan in the fight as Roman Reigns’ WrestleMania challenger. There is a ready-made storyline between Bryan and Reigns that dates back to 2014, when Bryan made his long-awaited return at the Royal Rumble only to be unceremoniously eliminated when Reigns won it all. The fans revolted, and that moment was the catalyst for continued dissatisfaction with Reigns as a face.
Seven years later, with Reigns now on the heels, WWE can easily go back and play that story. We saw interactions between Bryan, Reigns and Jey Uso a few months ago, and I believe they were planting the seeds for Road to WrestleMania. There are other legitimate possibilities of winning this match, but Bryan is the one that makes the most sense, by far. He could still win a chance at Reigns through the Elimination Chamber, but why waste the perfect plot? Choice: Daniel Bryan wins – Silverstein