SUMMARY
- WWE Royal Rumble is set to take place on January 27, at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.
- Among all matches at the PLE, the men's Royal Rumble is arguably the most talked-about match.
With each passing minute, the WWE universe is getting closer to Royal Rumble 2024, and the hype for the event is probably the highest in a long time. With fan-favorite stars like CM Punk, and Cody Rhodes advertised for the show, the January 27 PLE is on every pro wrestling enthusiast’s list.
Due to the kind of star power this year’s men’s Royal Rumble is going to have, fans are confused about who’ll win it. In fact, initially, Cody was predicted as the most likely winner due to his past rivalry with Roman Reigns. A lot of people even believed that he’d be going to WrestleMania 40 to challenge The Tribal Chief, and finally finish his story.
“CM Punk and Cody Rhodes are the obvious favourites to win [the Royal Rumble], with Gunther, Knight & Rock following.” – WON. #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/DcvqrkRLzo
— . (@Bub3m16) January 12, 2024
But, as soon as The Straight Edge Superstar announced himself for the match, he replaced Rhodes in the position. When the Best In the World recently returned to WWE, he claimed that he wants to main event this year’s WrestleMania, and that’s why fans feel he might come out victorious.
Even during a segment with Drew McIntyre, Punk made it clear that he’s here to main event WrestleMania 2024. The veteran said that neither Seth Rollins nor Cody can stop him from winning the Royal Rumble, and that was surely a huge statement. With the kind of buzz the event has, it’ll be interesting to see what happens in St. Petersburg, Florida.
CM Punk was previously the favorite to win the Men’s Royal Rumble
It’s obviously true that a lot of people have been uncertain about who’ll go to the main event of WrestleMania 40. But, as per BetOnline.ag, The Straight Edge Superstar was previously the favorite to win the Royal Rumble match.
Moreover, the thing that further decreases Cody Rhodes‘ chance of winning is his own position. While Punk was being considered the most likely star to win the match, The American Nightmare was not even in second place.
CM Punk is the current odds on favorite to win the WWE Royal Rumble, according to @betonline_ag pic.twitter.com/MqIIutiOq8
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) January 11, 2024
What makes Punk’s chances of winning even higher is a WWE poll, in which 76% fans claimed that he will win. This has further declined Rhodes’ chances of being in the main event of this year’s WrestleMania through Royal Rumble. But, still fans are quite uncertain about what the promotion has in store for them.
Gunther is expected to come out on top at Royal Rumble 2024
Rumors since last month have been claiming that CM Punk will be victorious, but things have suddenly changed. In a surprising turn of events, Gunther is now the most likely winner for the men’s match. Due to this, he is expected to come out on top at Royal Rumble 2024.
Moreover, it has been claimed that The Ring General will dethrone Seth Rollins from his WWE title at WrestleMania 40. It must be noted that they were both involved in a segment on RAW. During it, the Intercontinental Champion made his intentions clear to The Visionary, and that’s what makes this a real possibility.
The latest Sports Illustrated report:
“After a month of speculation that CM Punk would challenge world heavyweight champion Seth Rollins at WrestleMania, a new plan is in place. Gunther is the favorite to win the Royal Rumble and then dethrone Rollins on the first night of… pic.twitter.com/Q4dx7iyYcR
— Wrestle Features (@WrestleFeatures) January 24, 2024
If that’s WWE’s plan, then it’ll be interesting to see what the storylines will be for Punk and Cody. Will the two end up fighting each other in a high-profile encounter at this year’s WrestleMania? Only the future knows, but it remains to be seen what happens in the build-up to The Show of Shows.