The road to WrestleMania begins on Sunday at the Royal Rumble.
The winners of the 30-person men’s and women’s Royal Rumble matches will receive an opportunity to challenge for the title of their choosing at WrestleMania 37 in April.
Daniel Bryan and Bianca Belair are the consensus favorites on the betting markets. Edge and Keith Lee are among the other top contenders on the men’s side, and Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss are considered possibilities in the women’s match.
Bryan has long been a fan favorite in WWE and viewers would be delighted to see him as the last man standing after he wasn’t even booked in the 2014 Rumble and had a disappointing showing in the 2015 edition.
Despite not winning, Belair may have been the biggest star of last year’s Rumble. Even though she was still on NXT, Belair recorded an impressive eight eliminations, signaling that she was someone to watch very carefully in the months ahead. Sure enough, she made the move to the main roster after coming to the aid of the Street Profits at WrestleMania 36. She’s been involved in a storyline with Bayley on SmackDown and could be destined for a program with Sasha Banks if she emerges victorious on Sunday.
Full match card
- Universal championship match: Roman Reigns (c) (with Paul Heyman) vs. Kevin Owens (Last Man Standing match)
- WWE championship match: Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Goldberg
- Women’s tag team championship match: Asuka and Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler
- Men’s Royal Rumble match
- Women’s Royal Rumble match
How to watch
Date: Sunday, Jan. 31
Location: Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Fla. (aka WWE ThunderDome)
Start time: 7 p.m. ET
Live stream: WWE Network
