Happy Rumble Sunday! It’s one of the best times of the year as a wrestling fan, and with today, the gas pedal will finally be pressed as we head down the road to Wrestlemania, and tonight’s annual over-the-top-rope bonanza is setting up to be one of the most exciting – and really unpredictable – Royal Rumbles in quite some time.

Taking place at the WWE Thunderdome inside Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida at 7 p.m. ET on the WWE Network, this will be the first time that the historic Rumble won’t have the parameters of a live crowd to draw surprising reactions from. We’re still in the midst of a pandemic that’ll likely keep live shows without fans until WrestleMania this year, at the earliest.

What they say about the Rumble is 100% true – anything that can happen might actually happen whether good or bad and with 30 men (and women) being in the ring, something big is always happening every year. Also, it’s the time for groundbreaking returns no one saw coming, and even without a live audience, a return that rivals Edge’s miraculous comeback this year could possibly be going down tonight.

As is with every pay-per-view, all we can do as fans is kick back, wait and see how the WWE creative team illustrates the stories of one man and one woman outlasting 29 others to challenge the champion of their choice at ‘Mania, but additionally, brainstorm and predict just what extensive storylines which will that conclude in exclamatory fashion at ‘Mania that could be drawn up once the night’s over.

So consider this article an example of that fantasy booking; I’ll be breaking down five potential scenarios in both the men’s and women’s Rumble matches that could happen based on WWE logic, and play out leading up to WrestleMania on April 11. Let’s get down to it.

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Women’s Royal Rumble Scenarios For Both Women’s Titles

1. Bianca Belair Gets The Push Of A Lifetime – 2020 was really good to the EST of WWE. A debut at the Royal Rumble, followed by prime time televised duels with both Rhea Ripley and Charlotte on the USA Network as well as on numerous Takeovers for the Women’s NXT Title, her eventual debut on the main roster at WrestleMania 36 and on Raw and SmackDown, her showstealing masterpiece of a performance she put on in the 2020 Survivor Series Brand vs. Brand 10-woman tag match where she nearly became the sole survivor in her first participation of the event, and her recent victories against Bayley both in the ring and on the obstacle course are reasons enough to believe she is more than over with WWE’s creative crew and target audience.

But, as is with any rookie coming up to the big leagues, the story of Bianca’s career has been an “almost made it” story for a character that has it all together; cite the strong build, innate athleticism, charismatic personality to attract all viewers, but while she’s been involved in some high-profile competitions, she’s never been booked to win the big one. That could change tonight. Vince McMahon and others high up see something in the 31-year-old, and the momentum that she has had in the past two weeks is enough to sell the concept of Belair outlasting 29 other women in the Rumble, as she not only had her own WWE Chronicle documentary on the WWE Network a few weeks ago, but went over clean against Bayley on SmackDown’s go home show this past Friday night.

Logically, the storytelling connection that involves Belair shouldn’t indicate that any swerve should be booked tonight, and if she is to be announced to be headed to WrestleMania, there’s a huge main event involving two all-world talents of Belair and Sasha Banks, the reigning and defending SmackDown Women’s Champion, grand slam champ, and blossoming mega star that’s dabbling in Hollywood as we speak.

Also, it’ll be likely that Sasha returns to her heel character and get some heat to build a believable angle leading up to WrestleMania, where the two will square off for the Women’s title. The challenge remains: since Sasha has never successfully defended a title at WrestleMania and a major emphasis on SmackDown’s writing department is protecting their young stars, who gets over?

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2. Asuka’s Redemption Arc: Charlotte Flair has not had it go her way in the first few weeks of 2021. Barring a questionable storyline featuring her ex-tag team partner Lacey Evans and the heat she’s gotten by having an affair with her dad, who we know as The 16-time world champion Ric Flair, Charlotte’s been the one selected to win most bouts against the tandem of Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler, and, bluntly putting it here, carrying the tag team while Asuka, the current Women’s Champion, has been booked to look significantly inferior to that of the 15-time Women’s champ and daughter of the Nature Boy.

Flair’s segment this past week featuring a backstage spot where Evans attacks her from behind may have worked to tell fans to get behind Flair as she deals with family struggles while simultaneously defending the tag titles against Baszler and Jax during Sunday night’s Rumble. But if we know anything about Charlotte Flair, the genes of the dirtiest player in the game are a part of her code.

When the stress builds in someone, rarely do they ever show it on their faces. Per this storyline and Charlotte’s subtle hints at a heel turn (her pre-match “I’m fine” interviews with Charly Caruso, her “so about that Raw Women’s title” comment toward Asuka during their promo on the first Raw after the TLC pay-per-view for some examples) a loss of the tag titles with Asuka taking the pin from either Jax or Baszler makes sense. Charlotte subesquently raging in anger flips on Asuka and squashes her in the middle of the ring, as artificial booing will emanate from the Thunderdome.

Though there’s not a lot of conceivable resistance to Jax ans Baszler in the women’s tag division, maybe other than Mandy Rose and Dana Brooke, the two are creative enough to keep the tag belts, looking good in the ring while cutting attention-grabbing promos while out of the ring. It’s a plot device that’s been used so many times and while seems a little too predictable, it works.

Charlotte could very well win the Rumble tonight for the second-year in a row, further cementing her Hall of Fame legacy. And should Asuka keep her Raw Women’s title leading up to WrestleMania, which entails her defending it in the Elimination Chamber as well as at FastLane in March, we’re looking at a rematch from 2018’s WrestleMania 34 for the same title.

As we remember, it was Asuka that won the first-ever Women’s Royal Rumble in 2018, and entered ‘Mania in New Orleans with a clean undefeated record, but it was the reigning champion Charlotte that retained her belt and gave Asuka her first-ever loss in WWE. While Asuka’s been kayfabe “underperforming” against the adverse factors of Monday Night Raw’s singles competitors, everyone loves an underdog, and following the dynamic character of Asuka, we know she’s capable in the ring of looking strong against arduous foes as well as telling suspenseful stories leading up to wins.

This could be a battle of two Rumble winners with Asuka holding the belt this time around, and if Raw’s creative team chooses to do so for the first time, The Empress of Tomorrow will go over Charlotte for the biggest win of her career at the Showcase of the Immortals.

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Men’s Royal Rumble Scenarios For Both The WWE and Universal Titles

1. Bobby Out Of Left Field? It’s fantasy booking anyway, so why not throw out some predictions that the common man wouldn’t come to expect? The Rumble is full of surprises, shocks, twists and turns and more often than not, its the big boys that rack up the eliminations in the 30-man over-the-top-rope war. And in regards to the way that the Hurt Business has been booked on an otherwise diasappointing couple of Monday Night Raw programs since October’s Hell in a Cell PPV, they’ve been a sight for sore eyes, and Montell Vontavious Porter’s creative influence on Lashley, Shelton Benjamin, and Cedric Alexander should not go unnoticed or unappreciated.

Winning the tag titles over the New Day at TLC, Bobby Lashley looking dominant against the likes of Matt Riddle and the rest of the mid-card, and with the momentum that the Hurt Business has had, it’s likely that somwhere down the road, Hurt Business CEO Bobby Lashley gets the recongnition necessary to contend for the WWE World Heavyweight Title, so why not at this year’s WrestleMania?

It’s been a while since Lashley has gotten involved in an angle as one of the companies’ most credible-but-hated heel, as 2007 was the last time thay Lashley’s gotten the real chance to challenge the company’s top babyface to win the company’s biggest prize. As said earlier, I could see him winning this year’s rumble with the most eliminations even with the likes of Braun Strowman and (possibly) the Fiend and others trying to stake their claim as WrestleMania headliners. It’s been a while since you’ve had a true heel win the Rumble (Orton in 2017, I mean, if you considered him a heel going against Bray Wyatt at WM33) and this event always showcases good guys winning, therefore switching things up every now and then can’t hurt.

His match against John Cena at The Great American Bash in July of 2007 was revered for its brutish nature, physicality and told story of two big-bodied, war-ready titans willing to risk life and limb to earn the right of calling themselves WWE Champion, and with this strong booking that’s happened in Lashley’s favor, putting one of sports entertainment’s most experienced and well-versed professionals back in a spotlight he’s yearned for since his tenure in WWE started in 2006 and pitting him in a similarly grueling battle against Drew McIntrye (should he retain the title) checks out in the optics department.

Drew’s really improved on the microphone over the course of his first and second title reigns, cutting personal promos with little overexposure as a reliable babyface that fans who’ve followed his pro wrestling career have emotionally connected themselves to. Bobby is believable enough to sound and look like a threat to the Scottish Warrior, and with MVP and the Hurt Business surrounding this potential main event like a pack of rabid wolves, it’d be another story of overcoming overarching odds and another vehicle to push McIntyre to the top of the mountain as the most over babyface in WWE.

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2. One more push for one final ‘Mania event? Yes! Yes! Yes! Someone who isn’t a stranger to the big moment, Daniel Bryan has only been in two rumbles his entire career, but his first one skyrocketed him to superstardom even when he lost via being screwed over by the Authority at the time, since he ended up with both the WWE Championship and World Heavyweight Title in his hands as he stood above 74,295 members of the Yes movement as mardi gras ticker tape fell from the ceiling of the Superdome in 2014.

His return to WWE this full calendar year only says one thing: get that jetpack and strap it to his back, put him into a spot that’s equitable for both Bryan, who wants to enter the Rumble in a rather early spot so he could earn the win tonight, and the fans, who are feening for one final push for the one of the world’s greatest ever performers – and honestly, other than Stone Cold Steve Austin – the company’s most beloved anti-establishment, anti-oppression storyteller and babyface.

One big fact about DB competing in the Rumble: he’s stayed in the ring for the longest time in a Royal Rumble back during the Greatest Royal Rumble in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on January 27, 2018 for a total of 1 hour and 16 minutes. So him really staying in there and earning it is congruent to his character. And though he’s yet to win one, this is the likeliest chance of him winning the only thing that’s eluded him in the 12-year duration of his time in WWE.

SmackDown has done a phenomenal job of protecting him leading up to the Rumble, having him be involved in putting over some noteworthy names like Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura, as well as picking up some big wins against guys like Jey Uso in big ways.

Moreover, it’s the way he’s allowed himself to still be booked as a underdog and babyface going against some of the most dominant foes in the promotion with his promos both in the mic when SmackDown on TV, and recently on Talking Smack, SmackDown’s post show, Daniel Bryan had a significant segment with Paul Heyman, and Heyman alluded to being fearful of Daniel Bryan being the best in the company over Roman Reigns with one final Talking Smack leading up to the Rumble if he were to win at WrestleMania.

You thrust in two of the most believable perfomers in the world in one big feud leading up to the Showcase, and one final emotional Yes movement for Bryan, and you’re looking at the storyline of the year.

Photo Cred: ComicBook.com