The Royal Rumble 2025, which took place earlier this month, gave us some solid moments, but there were a few things I didn’t quite agree with. Let’s start with the matches leading up to the Rumble match itself.
First up was the ladder match between Cody Rhodes and Kevin Owens for the WWE Undisputed Championship. Honestly, this match was a blast. It had me on the edge of my seat, and I gave it some serious praise. The intensity was through the roof, and the involvement of Sami Zayn to check on Owens at the end only added to the drama. It was one of the best bouts of the night, and it’s definitely a match to go back and watch again.
Next, we had the Tag Team Title match between Motor City Machine Guns and DIY (Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa). They did something so clever in the match that it deserves a deeper breakdown. I’ll be dedicating a Tape Study Chatter episode to it soon, so keep an eye out for that.
Now, we get to the Royal Rumble itself.
As much as I enjoy the surprise returns, I wasn’t thrilled about Nikki Bella taking the 30th spot in the Women’s Royal Rumble. Honestly, the current roster of women has surpassed the need for a Bella twin, and Nikki’s return felt like a wasted spot.
Then we had Charlotte Flair win the Women’s Rumble. As a Flair fan, I get the appeal, but I don’t think it was the right call. Charlotte was out with an injury for a while, and in that time, so many of the women on NXT, RAW, and Smackdown have been putting in work, making compelling stories. By having Charlotte return and win, it sort of pushes those other women’s efforts back. It would’ve been nice to see Charlotte fight her way back up to the top and earn a win.
The Men’s Royal Rumble had its moments, too. The final two entrants—Jey Uso and John Cena—were a bit of a head-scratcher for me. Don’t get me wrong, Jey Uso has earned everything he’s getting right now: the YEET movement, his singles run, the IC title, and more. He’s done incredible work. But with Cena announcing his retirement tour, I honestly expected him to take the win here. Cena’s one of the most reliable performers WWE has ever had, and it felt like it should’ve been his moment.
That being said, Jey Uso’s win doesn’t take away from how hard he’s worked for it.
After the show, Cena revealed he’ll be making a movie and then heading to Elimination Chamber, which is great, but it left me feeling deflated. So now, I’m stuck in this middle ground.
In the end, Jey’s win makes the most sense in the long run, though I would’ve loved to see him face Cody Rhodes for the WWE Undisputed Championship instead of going after Gunther, who he lost to clean just recently. But we’ll see where this story goes.
WWE Royal Rumble 2025 had some really great moments, but I’m still processing the decisions made. Time will tell how everything shakes out heading into WrestleMania 2025.
🎙️ Subscribe, Rate & Review! If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe.
Follow me:
Substack: marieshadows.substack.com
Youtube: https://youtube.com/squaredcirclepodcast
Fourthwall: https://marieshadows-shop.fourthwall.com
One More Match Wrestling Planner: https://marieshadows.my.canva.site/wrestlingplanner2025
Share this post