On April 27th the WWE will take one of its most significant events and make it even bigger in Saudi Arabia. The usual 30-man format that we have come to know in the Royal Rumble will now be a 50-man mega match at the Greatest Royal Rumble event. We will see a litany of superstars entering the ring to try and come out on top by sending 49 other men over the top rope to deliver themselves pride and glory. It’s usually a feat to try and guess who could win the regular Royal Rumble match so the Greatest Royal Rumble must be a near impossible task– well that’s not going to stop me from trying. Here are five possible winners of The Greatest Royal Rumble.
Daniel Bryan
Daniel Bryan is back, and the WWE Universe is ecstatic. After making his in-ring comeback at Wrestlemania 34 and already getting back to action on SmackDown Live against AJ Styles, Bryan hasn’t even scratched the surface on what he can do in his monumental return. After the Superstar Shake-Up, it seems he is cruising to a monstrous clash with The Miz, finally delivering on the all-time great promo Miz cut on him while injured. So why not send him into an already hot feud with the momentum of a 50-man Royal Rumble win behind him? The fans would love to see him win and he deserves a big moment like this in his comeback.
Braun Stroman
The Monster Among Men is coming off a somewhat strange Wrestlemania. After showing up, walking into the crowd, and choosing a 10-year-old named Nicholas with whom he proceeded to take the Raw Tag Team Titles from The Bar we are left here wanting more for Stroman. It was a sweet moment but didn’t exactly boost Stroman and effectively buried The Bar. Stroman was almost definitely cruising for the top spot but seems a little lost at sea at the moment. No better way to get that back on track then winning The Greatest Royal Rumble. He is consistently billed as the hardest man in the company to beat, so why not have him defeat everyone?
Elias
Elias has been somewhat of an enigma so far with the main roster. He seems to be incredibly popular with fans. Every time he is on the show the entire arena is ready with a loud “Walk With Elias!” Though his booking has been inconsistent. One day he is getting buried by legends, and other days he is seen as a contender. He is put in the main event at The Elimination Chamber but gets destroyed by John Cena at Wrestlemania 34. If WWE can give him a victory at the Greatest Royal Rumble, maybe we can begin to believe he is a superstar to keep an eye on. Have him win dirty over a superstar who should have been able to beat him easily and you give him the big win he needs and the heat to build him as a definitive heel.
Big Cass
As we saw on the April 17th edition of SmackDown, Big Cass is back and ready to make a statement. He set his sight on everyone’s favorite Babyface, Daniel Bryan. Big Cass left the company in less than ideal circumstances. He went down with a significant injury while embroiled in a feud with former tag team partner and now ex-superstar, Enzo Amore. Big Cass seemed destined for big things–no pun intended– when he was derailed and now needs a new direction coming back in. Nothing can get the 7-foot behemoth back on track faster than winning the Greatest Royal Rumble.
Rusev
No one’s future holds as much uncertainty with the WWE as Rusev’s. Even when he is booked to play the bad guy against the companies top talent’s the crowd cheers for him. They seemingly keep feeding him to people without giving him a major win. How long will WWE not capitalize on the popularity of “Rusev Day?” Rusev was initially set to face the Undertaker in a Casket Match only to be taken out of it and replaced by Chris Jericho– just to be put back in the match again a few days later. A story surfaced about Lana not wanting him to do it, then suddenly changing her mind and wanting her husband to be in the match. Was that really it? Or does WWE now realize the commodity it has? They need to start giving Rusev wins, or the fan base is going to go ravenous. But will they give him the win over the legend that is the Undertaker? What if he loses a hard-fought match with the Phenom and then later comes out in a later spot, like number 48, in the Greatest Royal Rumble. He then overcomes injuries and fellow wrestlers to gets a huge win and gives the fans a real reason to celebrate Rusev Day.
Winning a 50 man Royal Rumble would make even the meekest of superstars look like a force to be reckoned with. But would they let just anyone win such an event? One of the drawing points of the Royal Rumble is that fact that anything can happen. With this monster version of the classic bout, anything will.