WWE
Of all the events that WWE promoted in the coronavirus era, Sunday Royal Rumble can be the most challenging. The live crowd’s electricity, its countdown to the next competitor entering the arena, is one of the most fun parts. WWE pulled some rabbits out of the hat – “rabbits”, in this case, meaning strong pay-per-view events – and hopes to do so again on Sunday.
It is a strong start. Randy Orton and Edge’s return were announced as participants one and two in the men’s match Royal Rumble, rekindling their rivalry in 2020. Kevin Owens will surely lose his Universal Championship Last Man Standing fight against Roman Reigns, but he will also be excellent. Finally, there is the intrigue of the Goldberg fight against Drew McIntyre WWE Championship.
And hey, the Royal Rumble is all about surprises. You never know who you will see, or who you cannot see. Continue updating this page from the beginning of the main program, 4 pm PT / 7 pm ET, as we will be updating with results and analysis.
Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns
The Last Man Standing fight for the Universal Championship is next.
Bianca Belair wins women’s Royal Rumble
After entering 3rd place, Bianca Belair won the women’s Royal Rumble. The three finalists were Charlotte Flair, Rhea Ripley and Bianca Belair. Ripley and Belair teamed up to eliminate Charlotte. So they fought back and forth in the final minutes, which were excellent. No big surprises – no Ronda Rousey, no Becky Lynch – but overall a pretty good Rumble, despite a few moments on the face.
The first part of the game was about Billie Kay, of all people. When her number was called, she entered the arena, but not the ring, spending time at the announcer’s table and handing over her 8×10 to Jerry Lawler. While the ring was packed with participants, like Shayna Baszler and Toni Storm, Kay tried to convince them to join her, without success. Finally, surprise contestant Jillian Hall agreed to be his partner and the two cleared the ring.
The partnership ended about 7 minutes later, when Kay eliminated Hall. That was only the second elimination of the match, with 13 participants so far. Kay was then eliminated while rejoicing. Things improved with participants 14 and 15, Rhea Ripley and Charlotte Flair. Lacey Evans then came in wearing Charlotte Flair’s cloak – although she was later eliminated by Baszler, defeating the point of this heat somewhat.
Rumble then saw a title change. Alicia Fox entered No. 21, and was followed to the ring by the 24/7 Champion R-Truth. The Title 24/7 guys ran into the ring, and Truth and Fox fought them. With his back turned, Fox then rolled Truth to win the title. After being eliminated by Mandy Rose moments later, Truth rolled Fox up to win her championship back.
The Rumble also almost derailed with crazy things from Fiend, when Alexa Bliss entered and, after being defeated by everyone, began to transform into her invincible and evil alter ego. But while she was transforming, which looked as stupid as it looks, she was eliminated by Ripley. Ufa.
Surprise entrants so far: Jillian Hall, Victoria, Torrie Wilson.
Rating: 3.25 stars. Decent, pretty good considering there was no live crowd to work with. There were clumsy and sloppy spots, and the Alexa Bliss segment was so mushy. But the final minutes between Ripley and Belair were fantastic, raising the bar even more.
Sasha Banks defeats Carmella
Carmella had the best match of her career on the December TLC pay-per-view with Sasha Banks, but this accompaniment was not so good. After a medium correspondence, Sasha Banks presented Carmella with the bank statement.
These women were put in a difficult situation after the fight for the WWE championship, which, although light in action, was heavy in star power. In the first half, Carmella hit Banks, but her attack was not very convincing. It increased when the fight changed to more comings and goings, but even so, little was noticeable.
Perhaps the most fun was how Reginald, Carmella’s manager, got involved, with Carmella using him as a launch pad at one point. He also accidentally caught Sasha when she fell from the ring, inadvertently saving her from a fall, only for Sasha to work on a hurricane over him. Carmella then took a knotty suicide dive, falling face first and luckily not killing herself.
Banks also won the match with a nice shoulder blade transition for his Banks Statement, if you like MMA being integrated into your WWE.
Rating: 2.5 stars.
Drew McIntyre wins Goldberg
It was exactly as you expected. The fight was short and consisted of three moves: several Spears, several Claymore Kicks and a Jackhammer.
It all started with McIntyre hitting Goldberg with a header and then a spear, copying Goldberg’s movement. Goldberg then rolled outside and launched McIntyre through a baricada. Once inside the ring, the referee rang the bell. From there, it was simply an exchange of Claymore spears and kicks, and Goldberg at one point hit a jackhammer for two.
After a series of near misses, Goldberg missed a spear, McIntyre’s Claymore connected and victory came with it. They hugged each other after the match.
Rating: 1 star. It might have been fun if there was a live crowd interested in the exchanges, but as it was, it was sterile and boring. Goldberg’s limitations – the fact that he can only basically do one thing, a spear – are so bare that it’s really hard to get into action.
Pre-presentation results
The Royal Rumble Preshow saw the titles change when Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler defeated Asuka and Charlotte. Charlotte was immobilized after Lacey Evans interfered with the game and hit her with English punches. Jax then landed a leg drop and got the pin.