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A great build up to a big PPV match can really go a long way towards getting fans to care about a potential that match. If the bout is thrown together last minute with very little backstory, it will be hard for viewers to get invested in it. But if we are given layers to a story/feud and weeks of different aspects around an angle, then anticipation for the bout will likely be high.
Usually, the major title feuds and the feuds around the women's titles are done over a period of weeks in order to build to the PPV match. While the Lacey Evans/Bayley feud has been brewing for almost a month, it has been unevenly done. Evans gave a promo on the go-home SmackDown that would have been better served had it been given at the beginning of the feud.
Evans talked about her father's struggles with mental issues as well as her own tough upbringing. Had the Sassy Southern Belle given that promo a month ago, it would have gotten more of the crowd behind her. There are portions that cheer for her, but it's hard to get an entire crowd to avidly root against one of the Four Horsewomen of NXT.
The Royal Rumble event is one of the most anticipated PPVs of the year. Fans love the battle royales and we love it even more so now since both the men and women have an elimination match. But even with those two big matches to look forward too, the entire card is a mix of some feuds with great builds and some with builds that could have been done better. Here are three Royal Rumble matches that have been built well and three that need more behind them.
#3 Lacking build - Sheamus vs. Shorty G
We started to get return vignettes for Sheamus about a month ago. He would talk about how things have changed for the worse on the blue brand and how he was looking to change the status quo. It would be almost another month before we would actually see the Celtic Warrior in a WWE ring, but when his music hit, it was welcomed by the WWE Universe.
He appeared to be hitting the ring to help an outnumbered Shorty G. His presence worked as the Revival hit the bricks once the former WWE Champion entered the ring. But in a quick turnaround, Sheamus would attack the man many thought he came to save.
With that attack, it became apparent that Sheamus was going to go back to being a bully. He's basically claimed the same thing that all of Shorty G's opponents have - he's short and they are better than him. The pairing screams of pre-show and if it had some more rhetoric behind it rather than "pick on the short guy" it would have a better backbone holding it up.
#3 Great Build - Men's Royal Rumble match
While a good portion of the WWE Universe is upset that Brock Lesnar is not defending his WWE Championship, his entrance in the first spot has added plenty of intrigue to the Rumble match. Will the Beast make it until the end? If not, who will eliminate him? Will he have stare-downs with potential future opponents?
Lesnar's involvement is one of the main storylines. There are also several surprises that could show up like Edge (likely), CM Punk (not very likely in my opinion) or any other number of returning Legends or injured stars. Those appearances alone keep the fans wondering as to just who will be in the match.
Regarding stars who have already been announced for the match, there are a lot of people rooting for one corner while others root for someone in another corner. A lot of people would be thrilled to see someone like Kofi Kingston or Drew McIntyre win and get a title shot. In McIntyre's case, it would be his first title shot ever. Kingston has unfinished business after unceremoniously losing the title to Lesnar. Is the favorite Roman Reigns going to win another huge match and does he really need it?
The questions above are just a few that could possibly come up before the the second person joins the men's match. Several WrestleMania storylines will be set up and current angles, like the Miz and John Morrison vs. the New Day, could be furthered along. The build has been one that keeps people intrigued and guessing and those are the types of things that make the match itself special this year.
#2 Lacking Build - Andrade vs. Humberto Carillo
The two Latino sensations have a brief history with each other dating back to the end of 2019. Andrade had lost two matches to the RAW rookie Carillo but put the new star "on the shelf" after a DDT to a space near the ring exposed to concrete.
That is some history to build off of, but it's only something that reemerged on the go-home episode of RAW. The new US Champ was trying to end Rey Mysterio for good by doing the same thing to the former Champ but he was stopped by Carillo.
It's been an on-off feud for the two young stars but the two men have produced in the ring when facing off. The match for this event, however, was merely announced after Carillo returned to RAW rather than having him return last week and challenge him regardless. I understand that the match with Mysterio had to take place. It's just weird that that match was booked for the show while feuds like Miz/Morrison vs. the New Day and Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Braun Strowman weren't booked.
The men will surely deliver in the ring but it's strange to have this be a featured match since the US Championship has been featured in matches for much of January. Nakamura last defended the Intercontinental Championship on TV in October against Reigns. He defended it at Starrcade on December 1st against the Miz, but that was a WWE Network special not seen by everyone. He was a part of Team Flair at Crown Jewel and was in a triple threat match at Survivor Series. It was way past time for the title to be defended at a major PPV but the US title was chosen instead.
#2 Great Build - The Fiend vs. Daniel Bryan
While I'm usually not a fan of two to three-straight title matches between the same combatants - like AJ Styles' defenses against Nakamura and Samoa Joe; and Lacey Evans against Becky Lynch - this feud has been done wonderfully.
It helped propel Bryan back to top-face status and it completely altered his look. The Fiend took a piece of Bryan with him a while ago but the Planet's Champion hasn't bee as deterred as previous opponents of the Fiend.
The former WWE Champion has also continued to pursue Wyatt instead of the latter pursuing a target. Bryan has proven to be the strongest test yet mentally for the Fiend and we've seen weeks of great build. Bryan even managed to take a piece of Wyatt from the Fiend when he pulled off one of his dreadlocks.
Bryan is a master storyteller and Wyatt is masterful at character work. The two men have history that is also being built upon back in 2015 when Wyatt tried to keep Bryan in the Wyatt Family. Christian and the other WWE Backstage panelists always say that storylines need layers to be effective and this angle has had a plethora of layers. The "Strap Match" stipulation is also interesting especially since the American Dragon was the one to bring it up.
#1 Lacking Build - Women's Royal Rumble
Prior to the final SmackDown before the Royal Rumble event, only five women (Charlotte Flair, Sarah Logan, Natalya, Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross) had been announced for the match. After it, three more names were added in Mandy Rose, Carmella and Dana Brooke. The women's divisions on both shows are already really strapped for depth so why wouldn't the known names simply be announced?
Lana, Liv Morgan and Sonya Deville have also been featured in different storylines on both RAW and SmackDown yet none of those women were announced for the match. It's just weird because Sasha Banks may or may not really be hurt and Kairi Sane returned to action on the last RAW.
There are many injured women still off of TV (Ruby Riott, Nia Jax, Ember Moon, Mickie James) or those who just haven't been booked in segments for a while (IIconics, Naomi). The focus hasn't been on the match itself and it looks weird compared to how the men's Rumble bout has been billed. One graphic had 10-20 men while the other had five or now technically eight. The IIconics could have returned a few weeks ago or at least shown up backstage. Some presence is better than no presence. I know that Evans and Asuka weren't announced as they have singles matches prior to the Rumble itself.
It is harder to completely announce more participants in an already shallow field but the names mentioned above that weren't injured could have been been brought up. Instead they'll just show up like we expected them to while others could potentially return from injury or come up from NXT.
#1 Great Build - Asuka vs. Becky Lynch
Becky Lynch is arguably still the top star in the company so it makes sense that her matches are featured heavily on RAW. She's one of the best promos in the company and has done a great job at storytelling in her feuds with Flair, Ronda Rousey and Asuka.
CM Punk said it best, as did Ember Moon a few episodes back on WWE Backstage, that Lynch is only as good as her challengers. She was on fire when she became the Man against Flair two years ago. Fans couldn't wait for her and Rousey to get their hands on each other on the way to WrestleMania 35. Punk recently said that "Asuka is Becky's Joker." Great heroes need great villains. Superman has Lex Luthor, Batman has the Joker and Lynch has the Empress of Tomorrow.
The whole heel turn from the Kabuki Warriors revitalized both women and it gave Lynch the potential to have another great story to tell. That story has been the impetus for the title feud with Asuka as Lynch has never beaten the Empress of Tomorrow. Lynch also caught fire as the Man while Asuka was SmackDown Women's Champion. Challenging the one thorn in her side that she couldn't pick out was a great character moment for the Man.
Lynch's feud with Banks was a step up after she lost a little fuel over the summer due to lackluster feuds with Evans in early summer and Natalya at SummerSlam. Adding Asuka back into the title picture was the right call because she's one of the top three women in the company. She's a serious threat both physically and obviously mentally since Lynch doesn't feel validated as the Man unless she can finally vanquish Asuka. That's great storytelling.
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