Royal Rumble Predictions
It looks like Roman Reigns is No. 1 on the list – not the list of Jericho – but the list of Superstars’ to win the 2020 men’s Royal Rumble match and go on to face The Fiend/Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania. As much as fans would love to see either an NXT guy or an up-and-coming superstar on Raw pick up the victory to launch their career into superstardom (someone like Keith Lee, Tommaso Ciampa or Drew McIntyre), it will in all likelihood be an established name in WWE getting the nod to reestablish their push.
That’s why Roman Reigns is the most likely candidate to win the match. Daniel Bryan would be a fantastic choice if he were not currently feuding with Wyatt (the two men will be booked in a Universal Championship match at Royal Rumble). Hopefully fans will embrace Reigns this time around, unlike in 2015, and not be chanting for Bryan or CM Punk.
Bobby/Robert Roode (whichever name he’s currently abiding under) has been suspended for the past couple weeks for violating the WWE wellness policy. This is why he hasn’t appeared on TV. He should be able to return to action by Royal Rumble time and it should not have much overall effect on his career. The last we heard about anything like this was in 2016 when Roman Reigns violated the wellness policy, and the violation had virtually zero effect on his push.
WWE may also want to contemplate doing away with:
- the incessant push of Brock Lesnar, and;
- the Women’s Tag Team Championships.
Less of Lesnar
The WWE universe has been tired of Lesnar as either a dominant champion or a top contender for quite some time now. He is also not nearly as big of a draw as Vince McMahon would like to believe. He does not necessarily move the needle in terms of WWE Network subscriber count, merchandise sales or TV ratings.
Fans would have to anticipate that once Lesnar is out of the title picture (he can still be used as an attraction – just not the focal point as champion) that WWE’s TV ratings amongst other things will actually increase and it will spark renewed interest, much to the surprise of Vince McMahon.
Women’s Tag Team Titles Create a Division Stretch
It would be beneficial for the company to do away with the Women’s Tag Team Championships simply because the Women’s Division would not be stretched so thin. As of now with the tag team titles in existence as well as the women’s championships on WWE’s top two TV programs, it’s unfortunately becoming clear that WWE’s Women’s Division is not deep enough yet to support this many titles. It probably will be one day, just not quite yet.
Vince McMahon launched the creation of the Women’s Tag Team Titles without having a real plan or vision for what to do with them according to Tom Colohue at Sportskedda. The primary goal of these titles should be to elevate the careers of younger women on the roster, very similar to the same titles for the guys. It’s just lacking current depth.
Men’s Division
Some anticipated storyline changes expected to transpire in 2020 are:
- The return of Cain Velasquez at WrestleMania
- A potential WrestleMania rematch between Matt and Jeff Hardy, and
- Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar may split
Probably Most Important: A John Cena return to SmackDown and subsequent heel turn might be in the cards. He could turn on the WWE universe for incessantly booing him throughout the years. This would make perfect sense because turning heel is pretty much the only thing John Cena hasn’t done in his career. He is so over with the crowd that they will love any character change he decides to make at this point.
WWE may be in the process of orchestrating a return for Cain Velasquez at WrestleMania. He could even challenge Brock Lesnar at the following Pay-Per-View. It’s a safe bet this will happen at some point because Cain has already signed a deal with WWE. His match with The Beast at Crown Jewel was reportedly short because he had a pre-existing knee injury and needed surgery. He had to be play it safe.
It’s also a possibility that Tyson Fury could wrestle Lesnar at WrestleMania 36, assuming he beats Deonte Wilder in February.
Speaking of Brock Lesnar, there’s a chance he might part ways with his longtime advocate Paul Heyman. The reason for this change would be so Paul is free to devote full attention to his duties as the Executive Director of Monday Night Raw. Paul is already doing an admirable job running Raw, but perhaps he could do an even better job if he was free to devote his 100% effort to it rather than taking time away from those duties by serving as Lesnar’s advocate. Brock’s a big boy so he can fend for himself since he’s already very much over.
Jeff & Matt Hardy
Jeff Hardy will be returning soon after 2019. The latter half of the year was rather forgettable, including trouble with the law and whatnot. 2020 could set him up to win the Intercontinental Championship, only to be betrayed by his brother Matt (who would also be returning). This could set up a match between the two brothers at WrestleMania 36 that may, or may not, be for the IC Title.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because it is. Matt and Jeff had a match at WrestleMania XXV in Houston in 2009. The only difference is that this one might be for a championship. WWE can take advantage of the fact that there are two brothers in the company with all sorts of history together.
Women’s Division
It’s also a strong possibility Sasha Banks and Bayley will rekindle their NXT rivalry from 2015. However, this time reversing roles: Sasha would be the babyface and Bayley the heel. This would have all sorts of potential because of the degree it invested fans in 2015. This would be extremely logical since it is a feud involving two full-time stars who are not anywhere near the end of their careers.
It’s also almost guaranteed that Ronda Rousey will make a return to the ring at some point in the upcoming year – probably on SmackDown to bring more star power to FOX Network. She may resume her feud with Becky Lynch for a of couple months before the move to SD occurs, most likely after WrestleMania. Ronda has been in constant contact with WWE management and has pitched ideas periodically for her return.
A potential angle for Rousey’s return is for her to return and subsequently win the women’s Royal Rumble.
Side Note: Some other superstars who could receive strong pushes and become major breakout stars in 2020 are: Buddy Murphy, Andrade, Aleister Black, Liv Morgan, and Drew McIntyre. Many fans have been clamoring for McIntyre to get a push to possibly become a world champion since his return to the main roster in 2018. Some think WWE might have missed the boat already. Let’s hope not – Drew would be an absolutely fantastic choice for a future WWE champion.