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The 2018 Royal Rumble is just a few days away and the stakes cannot get higher as we officially begin the road to WrestleMania. Speculations are higher than ever as there are various conflicting reports on the outcome of the matches in the PPV.
The focus is primarily on the 30 men battle royal which will decide who will go on to main event WrestleMania 34 by challenging either the WWE Champion or the Universal Champion. The other matches on the card look equally interesting as well, including the first ever Women's Royal Rumble match. The Universal Championship match, which was thought of as an underwhelming bout, has surprisingly succeeded in catching the attention of the fans thanks to the events of the January 9th episode of Raw.
The stage is set and nothing can go wrong unless the WWE messes up big time. The company should learn from the failures of the 2014 & 2015 Rumbles and should do all it can to put on a memorable show for the fans.
With that in mind let's look into the 5 mistakes the WWE should not make in this year's Royal Rumble pay-per-view.
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#5 Keep the tag titles on Seth Rollins and Jason Jordan
Seriously, it's nothing but a shame that the WWE Creative team cannot find a better program for Seth Rollins other than teaming him with Jason Jordan. Not taking anything away from Kurt Angle's storyline son, but Seth deserves better than the tag team championship after establishing himself as a legitimate main event player in the recent past.
WrestleMania is just around the corner and it's about time the WWE Creative team finds a suitable program for Seth going into the grandest stage of them all. WWE previously had some interesting plans for Seth as the plan all along was to have Dean Ambrose turn heel and go on to have a match with his Shield brother at WrestleMania 34. But the plan looks to be out of the equation as Dean got himself injured and will possibly miss WWE's biggest show in April.
It's time for the creative team to get back to the drawing board and chalk up a better plan for Seth Rollins other than having him in any kind of program with Jason Jordan. A move to SmackDown Live might do a great deal of good to The Architect as the blue brand can help to rejuvenate his career.
#4 Break up Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
When the blue brand saw many of its superstars move over to Raw as a result of the superstar shake-up, the fans were upset over the fact that superstars like The Miz and Bray Wyatt were moved to Raw. However the fans got something to cheer for, as Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn found their ways to the blue brand.
Things got even interesting when WWE pulled off a Sami Zayn heel turn when he reunited with his best friend after helping Owens win his Hell in a Cell match against Shane McMahon. SmackDown got even more interesting when they were pitted against the authority figures. The duo now has a big opportunity on their hands as one of them can walk out of Royal Rumble with the WWE Championship when they take on AJ Styles for the Championship.
If the WWE is to break up Zayn and Owens or plant the seeds for a potential break up in the Royal Rumble, it would be nothing but a waste of opportunity as the duo could do very well as a team going forward and it would be too soon to have the duo break up as they have been the focal point of the blue brand in recent weeks.
#3 Have Braun Strowman eat the pin
Braun Strowman was the breakout star of 2017 and he looks to continue the same momentum throughout this year as well. Strowman would've been champion much earlier had it not been for WWE's plan to have Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns as the main event of WrestleMania 34.
WWE are pushing very hard to portray Strowman as an unstoppable monster and it's safe to say that they have succeeded in doing so. But the fact that he has had three opportunities to become the Universal Champion and failed to win the title is a glaring issue in portraying him as a threat to the title in the future. He now has another opportunity to capture his first Championship in the WWE as he is set to face Kane and Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship at the Royal Rumble and it's almost certain that he will not be walking out with the championship.
So, the least WWE can do is protect Strowman by having Kane take the pin in the match because it will affect Strowman's momentum even further if he is the one to eat the pin. It will be extremely difficult for the WWE Universe to see Strowman as the unstoppable force he is portrayed as, if he is pinned yet again in a Championship match.
#2 Make a joke out of the Women's Royal Rumble match
The fans were expecting that the first ever Women's Royal Rumble match would be announced ever since WWE started bringing the whole Women's revolution into the spotlight. The expectation came to fruition when Stephanie McMahon announced that the first ever Women's Royal Rumble match will take place on January 28th.
We all know how the first ever Women's Hell in Cell match and Money in the Bank match ended up as the matches couldn't live up to the hype created. WWE planted the seeds for the Women's Rumble match when 5 NXT superstars were called up to the main roster as a part of the Absolution and Riott Squad storylines.
WWE should not waste this big opportunity as this match has the potential to be one of the main attractions of the show. It was announced that 30 women will be a part of the match and it will be interesting to find out which superstars will be walking out on the ramp when the timer counts down every time.
#1 Have Roman Reigns or John Cena win the Royal Rumble match
We all know that Vince McMahon is set on Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar II to be the main event of WrestleMania 34 and it's highly possible that Reigns may get to the match by winning the Royal Rumble.
Roman Reigns is all set to take John Cena's place as the WWE's top baby face and Vince McMahon would even risk a limb to have Reigns anointed as the next king of the mountain. With Roman Reigns already getting such a huge push, the least WWE can do is give another wrestler an opportunity to emerge as the winner of the Royal Rumble match.
Speaking of another superstar to win the Royal Rumble, another name to come to our mind is John Cena. Big match John is just one World Championship away from beating Ric Flair's record for the most Championship reigns in the WWE. It's possible that WWE might be looking to accomplish this by having him win the 2018 Royal Rumble match, and win his 17th title at WM34.
With Reigns already set to challenge Brock for the championship and John Cena transitioning into a part-time role, it makes zero sense to have either of them win this year's Royal Rumble match. WWE should realize this and have other deserving superstars like Nakamura or Finn Balor win the 30 man battle royal.
