Friday, January 23, 2009

5 Possible Royal Rumble Winners


The Royal Rumble makes for one of the exciting Pay-Per-Views of the year because at this event 30 men compete for the chance to headline Wrestlemania in a title match. There's a great surprise factor involved as potentially (at least on paper) a less talented wrestler such as Santino Marella has a shot to win it. Here at WWE Characters the Blog we'll take a look at 5 possible winners for this Sunday's big match. First up, let's narrow it down by who won't win the 2009 Royal Rumble.

Who Won't Win Royal Rumble 2009

Let's shorten the list of possible winners by naming who won't win: Santino Marella, Kane, Rey Mysterio, CM Punk, Kofi Kingston, The Brian Kendrick, R-Truth, Cody Rhodes, Ted Dibiase, The Miz, John Morrison, Finlay, Mark Henry. No disrespect to fans of these superstars, but they don't seem like they'll be in a WWE or World Heavyweight title match at Wrestlemania. Of these names, Rey Mysterio is a slight possibility but seems to have his feud with Mike Knox going on.

Five Possible Royal Rumble Winners

We all know that the winner headlines Wrestlemania and WWE clearly wants that to be a big name wrestler. The following 5 are capable of headlining a title match at WM25 and it would tie in with current storylines.

1) Shawn Michaels - Why Shawn Michaels? Because he's Mr. Wrestlemania, the Showstopper. Right now he's caught up in being JBL's personal lackey employee, doing JBL's bidding to help him win Cena's title. If the JBL vs. Cena match precedes the Rumble, and something goes down between Michaels and JBL, just maybe we see Michaels a surprise last minute entrant on Sunday. It could open up all sorts of possibilities, such as JBL claiming Michaels is still under contract and owes him the title match now. But from there we can easily lead into a potential WM25 main event involving Michaels vs. Cena vs. JBL (Triple Threat), or Michaels vs. JBL. It would be strange for the WWE to make another Cena vs. Michaels match since they fought at Wrestlemania just a few short years ago.

Why he'll win - Michaels has been treated second-rate by JBL, defeated Cena which makes him a contender, and still wants a piece of the Wrestlemania action. He's also a 2-time Rumble winner and Wrestlemania will be in his home state of Texas.

Why he won't - As of right now he's not a particpant and JBL has claimed Michaels will only function as his corner man at Royal Rumble, nothing more.




2) Batista - One of the biggest questions lately is will Batista participate in and rule the 2009 Royal Rumble? We haven't heard much about Batista lately and that could be the making of a surprise entry being kept under wraps. Recall last year how John Cena did this, supposedly injured yet surprised everyone by entering at #30 and winning it all. Batista stated he wants a piece of Orton when he gets back, so possibly it's Batista entering and eliminating Orton to win. It would be the Animal's 2nd Royal Rumble win in about 5 years time, and possibly set up a title main event between Cena and Batista at Wrestlemania.

Why he'll win - It would make another big surprise return just like last year's Rumble. Ironically it was Cena last year, and these two were both supposedly injured in the same match.

Why he won't win - Batista's been on the shelf due to surgery and rehab. There's been no indication given by WWE that he's ready to compete.




3) Christian Cage - This could tie in with the whole Jeff Hardy accident plot where it's been Christian behind the hotel attack, hit and run car accident and recent fireworks incident. Christian is a former TNA World Champion, giving him some credibility in a major WWE title push. It would rekindle the whole Christian vs. a Hardy feud as well, a bit of a blast from the past. The question is, does Christian make a headliner for Wrestlemania?

Why he'll win - It would give a surprising jolt to the WWE title picture with the return of Christian, a major TNA title holder.

Why he won't win - Possibly his WWE deal is not signed and sealed, or WWE doesn't want him headlining Wrestlemania.




4) Randy Orton - Orton is definitely a marked man in the WWE right now. After his vicious rampage on Mr. McMahon, Orton hasn't made any allies in the upper management. Nonetheless, he showed on last Monday's Raw how his Legacy stable backs him up, helping him win the mini 6 man Battle Royal. Orton's poised for another title shot against John Cena at Wrestlemania.

Why he'll win - He's got two other wrestlers in the Rumble who have his back, with Legacy members Rhodes and Dibiase. They displayed this past Monday just what their team is capable of in a 6 man over-the-top-rope Battle Royal.

Why he won't win - He may have 2 others on his side, but he has the wrath of the McMahons working against him. Will we see a Shane or Stephanie appearance or entrance to thwart Orton's attempt at victory? Will Orton even be allowed to participate?




5) Triple H - The Game is in yet another power struggle scenario, this time with Smackdown GM Vickie Guerrero. HHH had to put in a lot of work just to get here, and that may be the set up for his victory. With Jeff Hardy as WWE Champ, will WWE want another HHH vs. Hardy main event match at a PPV?

Why he'll win - Triple H is not only the Chairman's son-in-law but also a major headliner for PPV's. A 16 time World Champion at that, ready for another reign.

Why he won't win - He may have Smackdown's team including Vickie, Edge and Big Show working against him.





3 more to consider:
The Undertaker, Chris Jericho, and possibly Matt Hardy. Hardy just dropped the ECW title to Jack Swagger and will be in a rematch at the Rumble, but don't count him out. Many fans might hate this sort of angle, but could Matt be jealous of Jeff's success and be behind the recent incidents? While it would make Matt a lot less popular, don't count out WWE for a good ol' surprise heel turn leading up to a brother vs. brother title match at Wrestlemania 25. Jericho was embarassed out of the arena after having to publicly apologize on Raw. A win would give him something to berate the fans about yet again, but he doesn't seem like he'll be in the title picture. Undertaker is always someone who can headline Wrestlemania, but is WWE going to put him in yet another title match?

The Rumble's always fun to watch, as they just might have a big surprise or trick up their sleeve for us this Sunday. Feel free to leave your own comments on who you believe will win the 2009 Royal Rumble!

More Royal Rumble blog entries:

Royal Rumble Winners 2005-2008

2009 Rumble Favorites?

2009 Royal Rumble Participants

2009 Royal Rumble Matches

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