Royal Rumble Final Card & Predictions

1/29/2017
WWE Royal Rumble
San Antonio, TX

FINAL CARD & PREDICTIONS

WWE Cruiserweight Champion Rich Swann vs Neville
Rich Swann has held the Cruiserweight Championship for a couple of months now, after two disappointing reigns by both the Cruiserweight Classic Champion T.J. Perkins and veteran Brian Kendrick. Perkins fizzled out as champion after a miraculous Cruiserweight Classic victory which saw him become a household name among wrestling fans. Perkins simply didn't lift off and become the star the WWE hoped he would be after the Classic and therefore decided to go in another direction. This change of plans ultimately led to Swann becoming Champion; however, this has also coincided with the Cruiserweight Division becoming ordinary, bland, and filler material for the RAW brand. Neville can definitely relate. He took the main roster by storm after a 2015 call up from NXT; but, despite high hopes from those in the WWE front office, fizzled to insignificance in a matter of months. Neville never captured gold in his WWE main roster run, disappointing both the front office and fans. After returning from injury, Neville came back as an evil bearded heel. The WWE hopes that a familiar face gone bad can inject some much needed life in a Cruiserweight Division that is becoming increasingly significant under Swann's reign. Look for the heel Neville to get the victory via pinfall and capture the gold that has eluded his WWE main roster career and look for the WWE to use the heel Neville's championship run to re-legitimize T.J. Perkins as the Cruiserweight Division's top babyface.

WWE RAW Womens Champion Charlotte Flair vs Bayley
Charlotte has been a beacon of hope for women's wrestling, far exceeding the high expectations that come with the last name "Flair." She has transcended sports entertainment to become one of the greatest athletes and champions in the history of womens wrestling. Charlotte has a remarkable PPV win streak and is 15-0 in PPV Championship matches since being called up to the WWE main roster as part of the Women's Revolution in 2015. Charlotte's career trajectory has been nothing if not meteoric since that call up. Bayley is WWE's girl next door. She is the every woman, built like a teen girl with the heart of Dusty Rhodes, her NXT mentor. In NXT she often got the better of Charlotte, often besting her in in-ring competition. Bayley has done the same since coming to the main roster, especially in recent weeks, having pinned Charlotte several times on RAW. Still, it is very clear that Charlotte is the superior athlete and the superior competitor. She has the champion's advantage and can, at her own choosing, utilize her slightly obsessed protégé Dana Brooke, to attain an even further advantage over Bayley, not that she needs to. Bayley is simply no longer in Charlotte's league. She is the kid sister, challenging the older one despite the fact that the older sister is clearly dominant. Yes, Bayley has recently bested Charlotte on RAW and give her credit for that; however, those were non-Title matches, not on PPV. Charlotte shines brightest when she defends her crown on PPV. Bayley is at a clear disadvantage here. Look for a good match, as both women are phenomenal in-ring talents; but, look for a dominant performance by Charlotte for the pinfall victory.

WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens vs Roman Reigns in a No DQ, Chris Jericho Suspended Above the Ring in a Shark Cage Match
This match is a gimmick match and one that may make wrestling purists grimace at the thought. What was once only a "Chris Jericho Suspended Above the Ring in a Shark Cage Match," became a No DQ Match this Monday on RAW further adding ridiculousness to the feud between the two rivals. Owens should be lacking his best friend, who often comes to his assistance in key bouts. The more powerful Roman Reigns will use the No DQ rules to his advantage, at least at first. Expect him to put Owens through a table and also have spots where he brutally bludgeons the Universal Champion with chair shots that will likely make fans in the back row hide their faces in fear. Still, if Owens has proved anything during his Universal Championship run, it's that he is a survivor. Look for Jericho to get involved somehow someway. We suspect that he will have something in his pants (brass knuckles) and drop it down to Kevin Owens, who will surprise Reigns with the foreign object and the pinfall victory.

WWE World Champion A.J. Styles vs John Cena
When these two last met at SummerSlam, they put on a Match of the Year candidate. In fact, the match was declared Match of the Year by the prestigious Pro Wrestling Illustrated. As the two locked up, it had a similar feel to Ultimate Warrior vs Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania VI, as if two unlikely worlds were colliding exclusively for the fans benefit. Styles bested Cena in that classic, leaving Cena frustrated after the match; however, Cena is back and has performed at his customary elite level to put himself back into championship contention. Both competitors strive to put on their very best time in and time out. Look for them to best their SummerSlam classic; but, look for the result to differ this time, heading into WrestleMania. John Cena will score the pinfall victory over A.J. Styles and become a record tying 16-time world champion.

Royal Rumble Match
There are many ways this one can go; but, one thing is very clear, the winner of the match will receive a WrestleMania title match of his choosing and be an integral component of WWE's annual March to WrestleMania, arguably the most important time in wrestling. There are several favorites in this one. First, the obvious, Goldberg. Goldberg's return match against Brock Lesnar was supposed to be a one off, where the former WCW legend had an opportunity for one more match to say goodbye; however, the match went so well (Goldberg flattened the Beast in seconds) that Goldberg decided to stick around to compete for a final chance at a WWE world championship. After Goldberg annihilated Lesnar, he must be considered a clear favorite; however, don't count the Beast out. Lesnar is motivated after the embarrassing loss to Goldberg and a motivated Lesnar is a truly terrifying thing. He can, just as easily, win the Royal Rumble. Then there's the elephant in the room. No wrestler, not Goldberg, not Brock Lesnar: no one is a more intimidating force than Braun Strowman, who has run roughshod over the entire WWE roster. The menacing Strowman stands at nearly seven feet tall and weighs nearly 400 pounds. He wrestles with a brutality that mirrors his gargantuan girth. There is another huge name returning for the match: the Undertaker. The Dead Man has had an illustrious three decade WWE career; but, he obviously has less days as a wrestler in front of him, than in his rear view mirror. This could be his last opportunity at WWE gold, so a motivated Undertaker certainly makes things interesting. Vegas odds for the match also had a recent shift as some gambling sites  now have Randy Orton as the odds on favorite to win the Royal Rumble. In a crowded field its easy to forget the future WWE Hall of Famer; but, don't. Randy Orton, especially with the assistance of his newfound mentor Bray Wyatt, is more than capable of winning this match. With all that stated, none of the aforementioned are Cheap Heat Wrestling's pick to win the big match. CHW is going with Chris Jericho. Yes, Chris Jericho the future WWE Hall of Famer will outlast the other 29 competitors. He will use his crafty in-ring savvy to outsmart and out hustle some of the favorites that dwarf him in size. Jericho will put on a Shawn Michaels-esque performance as before HBK and his hometown audience of San Antonio, Texas. In a match where literally anything can happen, you may want to mark it down in pencil; but, after tonight our first WrestleMania 33 match will be official: Chris Jericho vs his best friend, Kevin Owens, for the Universal Championship.

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