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Cody Rhodes eliminated CM Punk to become the fourth superstar in the history of the Royal Rumble to win the men’s match two consecutive times. Previously, Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels, and Stone Cold Steve Austin all won two consecutive Royal Rumble matches.
On the RAW after Royal Rumble, CM Punk announced that he tore his right triceps and won’t be able to compete at WrestleMania 40. Punk's announcement sparked the question of whether WWE changed the Royal Rumble plans on the spot following the injury, and whether it was Punk who was originally supposed to secure the victory.
Well, Dave Meltzer has replied to a post on social media and cleared the air. Meltzer expressed that plans were always for The American Nightmare to secure the victory. The fandom wanting to see Rhodes finish the story wouldn’t have been disappointed had the Second City Saint remained healthy. The injury was unfortunate but had no impact on the original plans.
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WWE had Roman Reigns sitting in the audience with Paul Heyman for the Rumble match. This is an indication that The American Nightmare pointing at The Tribal Chief along with the staredown was always the plan to close the show. This ensured Rhodes was put over as the victor while hinting that he would finish the story against Reigns.
Seth Rollins may have given Cody Rhodes a reason to change plans
On the latest episode of WWE RAW, Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins shared a segment in which The Visionary took shots at Roman Reigns.
After burying Reigns and the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, The Visionary urged Cody Rhodes to challenge for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 40 instead. Rollins emphasized that the World Heavyweight Championship is the only title that actually matters.
It’s unknown what The American Nightmare will do and how WWE plans to move forward with WrestleMania 40. Initially, the top speculation was that Punk would challenge Rollins while Rhodes would go up against Roman Reigns.
