In Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, WWE hosted the biggest Royal Rumble in history on Friday evening with 50 participants, including big names such as Daniel Bryan, Rey Mysterio, Chris Jericho and the later winner Braun Strowman. They also had a huge card to offer, including The Undertaker vs. Rusev in a Casket match and John Cena vs. Triple H and seven title matches.
Winner: John Cena after two attitude adjustments in series. A well chosen opener, where the atmosphere was really boiling up due to the big names. The match offered decent wrestling, but at a very slow speed. Long-term significance of the result: zero.
Winner and still WWE Cruiserweight Champion: Cedric Alexander per Lumbar Check as counter against the Salida del Sol. Kalisto was used as a transitional opponent to further build the champion, while Murphy’s title shot will have to wait until later, presumably in a regular PPV, due to his “weight problems”. The action was fast and high-classic with a few vats, but there were hardly any reactions from the audience.
Winners and new Raw Tag Team Champions: Bray Wyatt & Woken Matt Hardy by Wheelbarrow/Twist of Fate combination. Even if rumours recently arose that those responsible would regret having pushed The Bar to SmackDown and could take the opportunity to bring Sheamus & Cesaro back to the red brand – this result was absolutely predictable. The current Odd Couple is now built up over the titles before sooner or later Bray will turn against Matt again and reignite the feud. A sensible decision, provided that the rest of the newly established raw tag division is also built up in parallel.
Winner: Jeff Hardy per Swanton Bomb. A short, weak match with the only logical winner Jeff Hardy, whose way should go in perspective towards the WWE Championship. Mahal, on the other hand, has accumulated some defeats in the last few weeks and urgently needs some success if Raw is to have serious plans with him. Unfortunately, his performance in this match is once again not recommended. Sad lowlight was Hardy’s Whisper in the Wind, where Jinder stood too far away, whereupon Jeff jumped beside him and Mahal dropped himself a few seconds later. An embarrassing vat that can happen, but that simply fits into his overall very unhappy overall picture.
Winner and still SmackDown Tag Team Champions: The Bludgeon Brothers by The Bludgeoning. Another short match in which the reign of the champions never seemed in danger. While this makes sense to finally present the two giants in a credible way, it is also surprising how unspectacular the Usos have lost here. It would make sense to take Jimmy & Jey out of the title race for now and ideally put them in a feud with The Bar, as both teams need to rebuild momentum while Harper & Rowan might miss New Day.
Winner and Intercontinental Champion: Seth Rollins. In one of the two best matches of the evening all four men were well represented and had their moments. The highlight came with the finish after Bálor had eliminated Samoa Joe and climbed to the title. As he was already stretching his hands towards the belt, Seth jumped onto the ladder on a springboard, jumped up the few remaining steps and tore the title out of its holder at record speed before falling onto the ring mat. Not a completely unusual finish, but it felt new.
Before the Main Events, the four Saudi Arabian talents from the Performance Center were introduced, before Shawn and Arya Daivari came to the ring, including the Iranian flag, and insulted them under expected booing. As expected, there was a strong beating and the feel-good moment for the audience.
Double Countout, after Styles threw Nakamura over the Saudi desk outside and then continued to beat him up. It was a strong match without a winner and it was much more important that nobody lost in the end. The feud can go on, Shinsuke once again landed a low blow and thus sprinkled additional salt into the wound. A change of title has not yet taken place, but still seems conceivable for the future, which is most important for the standing of the Japanese as well as for the feud.
Page 1: John Cena vs. Triple H, The Usos and AJ Styles
Page 2: Undertaker vs. Rusev, Royal Rumble Match and Conclusion