5 Last-minute predictions for the 2024 Men's Royal Rumble: Returns, Eliminations, Winner

The clock is ticking on the 2024 Men's Royal Rumble match. Along with the women's Royal Rumble contest, the card will only feature four official matches.

With Roman Reigns defending the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against three of SmackDown's top stars, three potential favorites are out of the match. AJ Styles, Randy Orton, and LA Knight will try to dethrone The Tribal Chief.

Whoever loses the match may enter the contest, but those chances are lessened if the Fatal 4-Way closes the show. Will The Rock show up? Who will eliminate the most superstars? Here are last-minute predictions for the 2024 Men's Royal Rumble match.

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#5. The first entrants in the match

Jimmy and Jey still have unfinished business with each other

With Rhea Ripley and Gunther both starting last year's match, the eventual winner should not come from the first five entrants. Both The Eradicator and The Ring General were among the final two participants in their respective Rumbles.

If Knight, Orton, and Styles were pulling double duty, it would make sense for those three to be among the first 10 entrants. They could continue their battle from SmackDown, and one could have a long run.

Paul Heyman hyped Jimmy Uso up during SmackDown, claiming he needs to win the Royal Rumble and bring the World Heavyweight title to the Bloodline. When he picked his number later in the night, he did not appear to be happy.

Jimmy and Jey could start the match off and battle throughout most of it. One could eliminate the other to kickstart a match for WrestleMania 40.

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#4. Other potential showdowns

McIntyre and Priest don't like each other.

Due to the face-to-face confrontations on RAW's side, there will be several staredowns during the contest. CM Punk and Cody Rhodes will face off at some point, as will Drew McIntyre and Punk.

McIntyre and Damian Priest will also cross paths after their recent history on RAW. R-Truth picked a number for the match, so he'll resume his Judgment Day shenanigans. He'll probably have a hand in JD McDonagh or Priest being eliminated.

Big Hoss showdowns will likely take place between Bronson Reed, Gunther, Otis, and Bobby Lashley. If Solo Sikoa enters the match, he'll have an encounter with Jey Uso. A lot of potential matches for Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania 40 will take place in the heart of the men's Royal Rumble contest.

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#3. What surprises, returns, or debuts can fans expect?

Brock Lesnar will return as the Royal Rumble is the beginning of The Road To WrestleMania. He won't win the match but could set up a program for The Show of Shows.

Omos will also re-emerge as he will be a special attraction in the specialty match. Sheamus has also been out but with an injury. His return would give him a reset since the Brawling Brutes have disbanded. Sami Zayn will return to active duty as well. He'll be gunning for Drew McIntyre.

NXT will have a few representatives, especially with Ava's presence on the go-home SmackDown. Carmelo Hayes, Axiom, and Bron Breakker would also be logical choices to participate. Breakker is a future World Champion, while Axiom faced Dragon Lee a month ago.

Unless Kazuchika Okada negotiated a deal to have his contract end before the Royal Rumble, he won't be a part. One star who will be, however, is Andrade. He departed AEW at the end of 2023 and was a favorite of Triple H.

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#2. Who will have the most eliminations and be this year's Iron Man?

Gunther wants a title match with Seth Rollins and will eliminate the most men.

Kofi Kingston will have his usual spot to stave off elimination. Ricochet will also return to one-up the former WWE Champion with his own impressive spot. Due to crowd support, Jey Uso will likely have a long run in the match. He makes sense as this year's Iron Man as he's successfully embarked on a singles run.

Gunther may win the whole match. If he doesn't, however, he'll be on a mission to eliminate as many people as possible. He declared that the one person he couldn't eliminate last year, Rhodes, was the only reason he didn't win.

Dominik Mysterio will stave off several elimination attempts, much to the chagrin of the WWE Universe. CM Punk will send him out of the match.

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#1. CM Punk will win the 2024 Men's Royal Rumble match

The list of this year's favorites includes Cody Rhodes, CM Punk, Gunther, Drew McIntyre, and Bobby Lashley. If he wasn't included in the Fatal 4-Way, LA Knight would also be a part of the list.

Lashley told Paul Heyman the only Bloodline business he cared about would involve Roman Reigns. While he's a heavy fan favorite, the Final Testament will probably factor into his ejection from the match.

Rhodes wants to be the first back-to-back winner since Stone Cold Steve Austin, but won't get that honor. CM Punk will make good on his return promise and win the 2024 Royal Rumble match.