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John Cena announced himself as officially being a participant in the Royal Rumble match via his Twitter handle on January 1, 2018. The 16-time Champion is going to attempt to win the Royal Rumble match and main event Wrestlemania for the 6th time in his career. Cena already has two Royal Rumble wins and is one win away from tying Stone Cold as having the most Royal Rumble wins. "The Face that Runs The Place" is synonymous with breaking records in WWE, and thus it will be no shocker if he actually won the Rumble.
Vince is known to have a soft spot for John, and at 40 years, he still sees much potential in the man who was the face of his company for over a decade. There have been speculations on who John Cena could face at Wrestlemania this year, with some quarters indicating he will challenge for the WWE title for a record 17th championship win whereas there have also been rumours of Cena facing a WWE legend at the show of shows. Whatever direction Cena will take is likely to be determined by his performance at the Rumble.
Here are the 5 things Cena will most likely accomplish at this year's Royal Rumble match;
#5 Most eliminations
Cena has competed in 7 Royal Rumble matches and boasts a total of 22 eliminations which is the 9th most number of eliminations recorded by a wrestler. It was at the 2011 Royal Rumble that he registered the most eliminations despite not winning the match. He eliminated 7 participants that included CM Punk and members of the Nexus.
As we approach the 2018 Royal Rumble, all the momentum is with Cena with betting firms having him among the favourites to win. This past Monday night on Raw, Samoa Joe vowed to eliminate the 16-time World Champion in what could seemingly lead to a Wrestlemania encounter. The obvious prediction is that Cena will eliminate Samoa Joe, and also toss out the most number of participants in the Royal Rumble match. After a 5-year absence from the Royal Rumble match, big match John is set to return with a significant impact.
#4 Longest time in the match
Traditionally, the "Iron-man" in the Rumble is a moniker given to the man who lasts the longest in the match. John Cena was the Iron-man at the 2010 Royal Rumble match when he lasted 27 minutes 11 seconds. Cena eliminated Batista in the match before being tossed over the top rope by the returning Edge. But it was Cena who lasted the longest in the rumble and therefore still ended up being the Iron-man in the contest and at Wrestlemania that year, he defeated Batista to regain the WWE Championship.
This year's Royal Rumble might prove no different as Cena could last the longest. A lot of dream confrontations are also highly expected with the likes of a returning Goldberg, Samoa Joe, Roman Reigns and Fin Balor colliding with Cena. Spending the most time in a Rumble match would be great for Cena as this would be his basis for participating in a big match at Wrestlemania 34.
#3 Eliminate Roman Reigns
On August 21, 2017, on an episode of Raw, John Cena made his return to the Raw brand due to his status as a free agent and called out Roman Reigns, who was the reason Cena came to Raw. The feud is remembered for the epic promo between the two on the August 28th, 2017 Raw. Cena verbally buried Reigns in what was one of the most talked about shoot promos of 2017. In their match, Cena performed four "Attitude Adjustments but that was not enough to defeat "The Big Dog". Reigns executed a Superman Punch and a Spear on Cena to win the match. Cena later endorsed Roman by raising his hand as a sign of passing the torch.
At this year's Royal Rumble match, Reigns is expected to be a participant. He is among the favourites to win the match despite the fan disapproval that may come with his win, reminiscent of the 2105 Rumble match. Cena is the best person to kill Roman's dream by tossing him over the top ropes. This would be sweet revenge for Cena against a man who defeated him clean at No Mercy.
#2 Eliminate The Undertaker
There has been some speculation which has indicated that The Undertaker is not hanging his boots just yet and is expected to set up his next match when he appears at the 25th anniversary of Raw. Rumours of The Undertaker looking to be in good shape has also been rife. John Cena is the only big name The Undertaker is yet to face at Wrestlemania. A match between the two has been teased numerous times with sources indicating that they were initially scheduled to face each other at Wrestlemania 32 before Cena suffered a shoulder injury. "The Dead Man" went to face Shane McMahon instead in a Hell in Cell match.
The match-up between the two icons can be initiated at the 25th anniversary of Raw when The Undertaker returns.The Undertaker could attempt to announce his retirement on the 25th anniversary of Raw only to be interrupted by Cena who would then challenge him for one final match.
However, The "Dead Man" would likely turn down the offer and instead announce his participation at the Royal Rumble. It is at the Royal Rumble that Cena would provoke The Undertaker by quickly eliminating him, similar to what Reigns did at the 2017 Rumble. The Undertaker would then attack Cena on the Raw after the Rumble to set up a big match for Mania for his final dance.
#1 Win the Royal Rumble match
John Cena is synonymous with winning in big events. He returned from injury to enter the 2008 Royal Rumble match at number 30 and eliminated Triple H to win the contest. In 2013, following a disappointing 2012, he won the Royal Rumble after tossing Ryback over the top rope.
Among the favourites listed by betting sites, Cena seems most likely to emerge as the winner. This would enable him to chase history once again in an attempt to break the record he shares with Ric Flair of 16 World Championships. Cena and Styles had an excellent match at the 2017 Royal Rumble in what was named match of the year.
Another clash at the biggest stage will be appreciated by the fans. Cena and Styles have developed good chemistry and their encounter inside the squared circle is always a mouth-watering affair. Upon winning, he might also decide to go after the Universal Championship and would, therefore, face Lesnar, Strowman or Kane. A Cena vs Strowman match in the main event of Wrestlemania has money written all over it and would be a match for the ages.
