5 Biggest Dark Horses in the WWE Royal Rumble
WWE’s Royal Rumble event is nearly here, and fans are surely speculating on who will be the last man standing. That man will enjoy the best spot in all of professional wrestling; the main event of WrestleMania. Many have their favorites, and it’s hard to bet against those favorites.
Chief among them is The Undertaker. Taker’s magic can be felt every time he appears on WWE programming, and his most recent appearance sent chills through the industry. Could the legendary Deadman actually win the Rumble and then face AJ Styles or John Cena on April 2?
For that to happen, Undertaker may have to get past Goldberg. The former WCW champion is the hottest babyface in WWE right now, and he would go supernova if he wins the Royal Rumble. The man that once couldn’t get any sort of respect from Vince McMahon’s company is now booked as a true top guy.
That top guy still has heat with the man that he beat in 86 seconds, Brock Lesnar. The Beast Incarnate would love to get a measure of revenge, and eliminating Goldberg from the Royal Rumble would be a great place to start.
Randy Orton and Chris Jericho are two proven main event stars, and there’s potential for either one to win the match as well. There will certainly be some shockers in the bout, which means it’s virtually anyone’s guess as to who will come out on top.
But despite how many likely candidates are booked, there are some that are considered to be long-shots. Punching a ticket to WrestleMania may not be an option for these Superstars, but the fact is that anything can happen in WWE.
As long as that’s the case, then no Rumble participants can truly be dismissed.
#5 Sami Zayn
Sami Zayn’s nickname is The Underdog from the Underground, and that’s a very appropriate title considering his chances to win the Rumble are likely very slim. After all, Zayn has not done much in the past few months besides try to stay alive against Braun Strowman. That hardly qualifies him to walk out with a WrestleMania main event spot after January 29.
But Zayn is a Raw Superstar, which means he would face the winner of Kevin Owens versus Roman Reigns. Considering KO had a career-long feud with Zayn, it’s entirely possible that WWE could decide there’s a very good story to be told at Mania.
Zayn and Owens had a great rivalry, and it’s one that WWE fans will likely not forget. The hate between them was palpable, and the desire to win was obvious. Each man felt he was superior, and the only way to prove that was with one five-star match after another.
Fans became more and more emotionally invested in it with each match. Zayn and Owens put on a clinic every time, and it was apparent that they were meant to be rivals. After considering how good they are together, it becomes obvious that WWE could do much worse than Owens versus Zayn at WrestleMania.
The history is there, the conflict is there, and the commitment to excellence is definitely there. Zayn and Owens would surely deliver a match worthy of Mania, and fans would surely be happy when it was over. WrestleMania is typically a card filled with show-stealing matches, and this match could be one for the ages.