The Daily DDT staff broke down who they think will win the 2017 Royal Rumble match.
On Sunday night, the WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view will take place from the Alamodome in San Antonio, TX. This will see five matches on the main show and three on the pre-show to fill up what should be a six-hour event.
The highlight of the PPV will be the traditional Royal Rumble match. Below are the Daily DDT staff predictions for who we think will win:
Adam O’Brien: Even with huge names like Goldberg, Lesnar and The Undertaker in the mix, I still think there’d be no better result from a storyline perspective than The Miz. For months, it’s seemed like everyone on Team Blue has been against him – including non-wrestlers like Renee Young and the referees, not to mention Daniel Bryan, whom The Miz has been involved in some spectacular promos with on Talking Smack. What better way would there be to shove it in their faces and force his way into the main event at WrestleMania all by himself, than to win the Royal Rumble match?
Prediction: The Miz
Alex Podgorski: As much as I don’t like this idea personally, going with Braun Strowman. 2017 will be the year Vince sticks with his own vision no matter what anyone else says, and that vision involves a Reigns coronation spectacle in the main event. And since he plans on building Reigns as an underdog, there’s no better way of doing that than putting him against a monster like Strowman.
Prediction: Braun Strowman
Brandon Carney: Finn Balor. Going with the gut here since we don’t even know if he’s healthy enough to return, but if he is then he should jump right back into the main event scene. Plus, it would be one of the best surprise returns/victories of all time.
Prediction: Finn Balor
Bryan Heaton: The thing separating the 2017 Rumble from 2014-16 is unpredictability. There’s no Batista, Reigns, or Triple H looming this year. It really depends on how the world title matches go, but my out of left field prediction is a debuting Samoa Joe. It would make a hell of an impact and fit in with the theme of “who’d a thunk it” that started in 2016.
Prediction: Samoa Joe
Carlos Garcia: Finn Balor. He’s said on multiple occasions that his target return is March for WrestleMania. This may be true but given Balor’s history of trolling fans when it came to his NXT call up, he very well could be doing this again. Balor has a history with both Reigns and Owens that could help the WrestleMania build regardless of opponent.
Prediction: Finn Balor
Dean Siemon: Finn Balor. The story will write itself. The first ever WWE Universal Champion returns from a shoulder injury to seek what he never lost. Regardless of who wins between Kevin Owens and Roman Reigns, the championship at WrestleMania 33 will likely be the quality main event we expect on the grandest stage in sports entertainment.
Prediction: Finn Balor
Grant Mannis: Undertaker. Brock Lesnar and Goldberg are on a collision course for WrestleMania, Rollins is awaiting the return of Triple H, Ambrose has the IC title and Owens (who’s probably losing to Reigns) and Jericho are set to implode. Personally, I think that Braun Strowman observing the Dead Man’s promo on RAW just signifies a potential encounter at the Royal Rumble. The two could have a match at Fastlane seeing as how Undertaker doesn’t want WrestleMania to define his legacy. After that it’s either Cena or Styles facing him at Mania, but my gut tells me WWE knows the big money match is with Cena. That result would definitely be up in the air, assuming that Undertaker is going to stay around after the Show of Shows.
Prediction: Undertaker
John Carroll: Nakamura will be in the Rumble. Yes, he is the NXT Champion, but I see him appearing and then going back to NXT. As for winner… If Cena beats AJ which I am afraid to see… it’ll be Taker. They want their Taker-Cena match for the main event.
Prediction: Undertaker
Joshua Gibbs: This is a tough one to predict, which is a good thing for fans. The WWE is advertising Elimination Chamber as a SmackDown event, which tells me that someone from RAW might win the Rumble. My fear is that WWE will have Reigns beat Owens and then have Strowman win the Rumble. This is a recipe for disaster and I don’t think Strowman should be given the biggest match on the grandest stage just yet.
As for Goldberg and Lesnar, I envision either Goldberg eliminating Lesnar (with Brock returning later to screw Goldberg) or they eliminate each other at the same time thus setting up their match for WrestleMania 33. A lot of rumors have Jericho as a favorite to win the Rumble but I don’t like it. I’m still holding out hope for a Jericho/Owens match for the Universal Championship. I’ve heard that Cena vs. Undertaker was scrapped for The Granddaddy of Them All which tells me that AJ Styles will likely retain this Sunday and thus face the winner of the 2017 Royal Rumble: The Undertaker. I know this is the popular pick, but as of right now, it’s hard to
bet against the Dead Man.
Prediction: Undertaker
Juan Herrera: The Undertaker. It’s hard to root against the deadman. Even though we’re being led to believe that Taker and Braun Strowman are going to square off at some point, I still think Taker wins the rumble this year. Cena v. Taker probably won’t happen but I do think Styles will retain against Cena at the Rumble, setting up the storyline heading to Mania between Taker and Styles for the WWE title.
Prediction: Undertaker
Marcey Papandrea: I know my prediction is unlikely but a girl can dream right? I would love to see Samoa Joe debut in the Rumble match and actually win! I really would love to see Samoa Joe vs. A.J. Styles at Wrestlemania. Hell if John Cena wins at the Rumble, give me Cena vs. Joe because we know there would be an epic match waiting to happen there as well. I want this Rumble to be unpredictable so let’s hope something amazing happens.
Prediction: Samoa Joe
Rob Wolkenbrod: Braun Strowman should be the pick here. He has the momentum from Raw, and makes more sense over the likes of Undertaker, Brock Lesnar, Goldberg, and even Chris Jericho, all of whom may likely be set up for something else. Samoa Joe would be my next choice after Strowman to potentially challenge John Cena at WrestleMania 33. But with the push Strowman has received, I would think all signs point toward him winning the Royal Rumble.
Prediction: Braun Strowman
Sarah Hirsch: Samoa Joe. My original pick was Finn Balor because everyone loves a return and redemption story going into Mania. Believe me, I wrestled with who I really wanted to go with. No one has ever won the Rumble upon their debut, and I believe Samoa Joe is the man that could very well do it. The Rumble is billed as one to remember to which a surprise winner should take it regardless. If Samoa Joe wins, then that idea will have maximum impact.
Prediction: Samoa Joe
Tim Sherry: From a storyline perspective, Goldberg, Lesnar, The Undertaker winning makes absolutely no sense. I’m not saying that means it won’t happen, we’ve all seen plenty of questionable or even downright dumb decisions from the WWE. But I’m going to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume they do the right thing. That right thing is Finn Balor. A couple of reports that have come out saying he’s not ready I believe is a ruse. He’ll return and win the Rumble. Fingers crossed!
Prediction: Finn Balor
Tom Thomas: The Miz. Goldberg and lesnar will have their own issues and undertaker might have a run-in with Strowman. Since Cena or Reigns are not yet confirmed Miz makes the most sense. This will be his reward for his great performance since last Wrestlemania.
Prediction: The Miz
Here is how many votes each Superstar received:
There are plenty of options to win the Royal Rumble match, but only one can win. Who will move on to a WrestleMania title match?
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