5 current favorites to win the 2021 WWE Women's Royal Rumble

The Royal Rumble is one of the biggest events in the calendar for WWE. The next Royal Rumble will be taking place on January 24th, 2021 on the 34th anniversary of the first-ever pay-per-view of its kind.

The women of WWE have occasionally appeared in the Men's Royal Rumble in the past, including Chyna, who was the first woman to do so. Beth Phoenix also took part in the 2010 Royal Rumble, before Nia Jax was briefly involved in 2019 when she became the first-ever WWE Superstar to appear in two rumbles in one night.

In 2018, WWE established the Women's Royal Rumble match. The first match of its kind was won by Asuka, who went on to challenge Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown Women's Championship at WrestleMania 34.

Fans are already speculating which member of the women's division will be victorious in next year's Royal Rumble. So, here are five current favourites to win in 2021.

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#5 Bayley (WWE SmackDown)

Bayley dominated the latter end of 2019 and most of 2020 with her record-breaking reign as WWE SmackDown Women's Champion and rivalry with Sasha Banks. Fans were captivated by Bayley's shock heel turn, after she had spent years as one of the women's division's top babyfaces.

Bayley finally dropped the SmackDown Women's Championship to Sasha Banks at Hell in a Cell, which could be considered as one of the greatest matches of 2020. Since then, Bayley seems to be starting a rivalry with Bianca Belair, following their team's performance at Survivor Series.

However, Bayley is listed as one of the top favorites on multiple betting sites. At the time of writing, she is listed as 8/1 on SkyBet. This could be a hint that her rivalry with Sasha Banks is far from over. She may want to reignite it by challenging for the SmackDown Women's Championship if she does indeed win the Royal Rumble.

Another direction for Bayley if she wins could be that she challenges the RAW Women's Champion for her title. This would shake up the women's division a little more and most likely mean that Bayley would move from SmackDown to RAW.

#4 Ronda Rousey (WWE Free Agent)

Former WWE RAW Women's Champion Ronda Rousey hasn't been seen on WWE programming since WrestleMania 35, where she was pinned by Becky Lynch in the main event.

There has been lots of talk that Vince McMahon is eager for Ronda Rousey to return to WWE for a WrestleMania match with Becky Lynch. A great way to set this up would be to have the former UFC star return at the Royal Rumble in January.

Ronda Rousey is currently listed at 7/1 on the UK's SkyBet, and her name is often one that has cropped up during discussions of the event. If The Baddest Woman on the Planet does indeed return to take part in the 2021 Royal Rumble, it will be the first time she has competed in the event.

If Ronda Rousey ends up winning the match, it would be interesting to see who she would choose to challenge at WrestleMania in the springtime. Ronda Rousey has already proven that she is able to carry a huge WrestleMania feud, so it may not be long until fans see her next one.

#3 Rhea Ripley (WWE NXT)

Rhea Ripley has been a huge part of WWE NXT for quite a while now. The Australian star had massive momentum in late 2019, as she led both her WarGames and Survivor Series teams to victory over the same weekend. She later dethroned Shayna Baszler to become NXT Women's Champion.

Ripley faced Io Shirai for the NXT Women's Championship once more recently. Fans have been speculating that it could mean her farewell to the Black and Gold Brand is near, marked by the pair hugging after their bout.

Triple H has always talked about Rhea Ripley being a huge future star in the company, and the Royal Rumble could be the time of her call up to the main roster in WWE.

Rhea Ripley previously appeared in the 2019 Royal Rumble and recorded three eliminations - Kacy Catanzaro, Dana Brooke and Zelina Vega - before being thrown over the top rope by Bayley. Hopefully, fans will see Ripley be a part of the 2021 Royal Rumble.

If Rhea Ripley does become the next Royal Rumble winner, it would propel her to the top of WWE's women's division. She is currently listed with odds of 7/1 on SkyBet.

Ripley has already proven that she is a performer who is able to carry a big storyline. Seeing this translate to a bigger stage during the Road to WrestleMania would be an exciting prospect.

#2 Bianca Belair (WWE SmackDown)

In the 2020 Royal Rumble, Bianca Belair was a stand-out performer. The EST of WWE entered the match at number two and impressed fans when she eliminated eight Superstars. It was a new record for the Women's Royal Rumble, later matched on the same night by Shayna Baszler.

Belair is supposedly in for a huge push in WWE, and over recent months she has been the subject of vignettes displaying her strength, agility, and knowledge ahead of her move to SmackDown during the WWE Draft in October.

Since moving to SmackDown, Belair has had a series of wins over other members of the roster, including Zelina Vega and Natalya. She also earned the first spot on this year's Survivor Series team.

Currently, Bianca Belair is one of the favorites to win the Royal Rumble on numerous betting sites, including joint-favorite with Alexa Bliss on SkyBet, with odds of 6/1.

This is unsurprising considering her recent performances on SmackDown, combined with her prowess in last year's event, rumored push, and heaps of charisma.

Since moving to the main roster at WrestleMania 36, Bianca Belair still hasn't been involved in a title feud. Could this be part of the plan for the star to have a huge rivalry over a title following her Royal Rumble win?

#1 Alexa Bliss (WWE RAW)

Alexa Bliss has been one of the top stars of WWE for the past few years. Her current character change and alignment with The Fiend has rocketed her to the top of the women's division. Bliss is a former SmackDown and RAW Women's Champion and was the first to win both titles.

Despite not taking a part in many matches on WWE television in recent months, Alexa Bliss is at the top of many favorites lists at the time of writing and is currently listed as 6/1 on the UK's SkyBet.

Alexa Bliss is now a completely different character since she took part in the 2020 Royal Rumble. In the match, she entered as number one and lasted over 26 minutes before getting eliminated by Bianca Belair.

If Alexa Bliss is the winner of this year's Royal Rumble, she would be more than capable of carrying a huge Road to WrestleMania rivalry. Bliss is a captivating performer, and it will be fascinating to see her new persona in a feud of her own, rather than supporting The Fiend.