5 early favorites to win the 2025 Men's Royal Rumble Match

The main event scene in WWE is thriving right now. The number of top stars the company has managed to get over with the audience speaks volumes.

As a result, the 2025 Men's Royal Rumble has the potential to be an all-time classic, with numerous superstars who could potentially win the highly anticipated match and go on to main-event WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas.

Here are five early favorites to win the 2025 Men's Royal Rumble Match.

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#5. John Cena

John Cena has announced that 2025 will be his final year as an in-ring competitor. He will be returning for his retirement tour, which is set to kick off at the 2025 Royal Rumble.

The Greatest of All Time will be aiming for a historic 17th world championship win, making him one of the top favorites to win the Men's Rumble and earn a title shot at WrestleMania XLI. Cena has previously won the Rumble match twice, in 2008 and 2013.

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#4. Randy Orton

Randy Orton has been on an unfortunate losing streak at WWE Premium Live Events since his return from a back injury, having yet to secure a victory in 2024. His most recent loss came at Bash in Berlin against Gunther in a bout for the World Heavyweight Championship. However, it seems WWE may have bigger plans in store for The Apex Predator.

All signs point to Orton eventually turning heel. His desperation to capture his 15th world championship could push him to do whatever it takes to reach that goal. A potential win at the 2025 Royal Rumble could perfectly set up a long-awaited feud with Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship, something fans have been clamoring to see for a long time. Orton too is a two-time winner of the Royal Rumble.

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#3. Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns is currently entangled in a feud with Solo Sikoa and the rest of The Bloodline. He has even agreed to team up with his arch-rival Cody Rhodes to take on Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu at WWE Bad Blood.

However, despite this temporary alliance with Rhodes, Reigns hasn't quite abandoned his pursuit of the Undisputed WWE Championship that Rhodes holds. Once his issues with The Bloodline are resolved, Reigns will undoubtedly come after the title. Therefore, he will certainly be one of the top favorites to win the 2025 Royal Rumble. He has won the Rumble match previously in 2015.

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#2. CM Punk

CM Punk has long expressed his dream of main-eventing a WrestleMania. He came close to achieving this last year, as WWE had supposedly planned a program between Punk and Seth Rollins that would culminate in them headlining WrestleMania XL earlier this year.

Unfortunately, an injury suffered during the 2024 Royal Rumble Match derailed those plans. However, Punk is determined to turn things around. He will undoubtedly be one of the major favorites to win the 2025 Royal Rumble and secure a spot in the main event of WrestleMania 41. Interestingly, Punk has never won the Royal Rumble previously and came close this year when he was the last to be eliminated by the eventual winner, Cody Rhodes.

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#1. The Rock

During the RAW episode following WrestleMania 40, The Rock told Cody Rhodes that their story was just beginning. Recent reports indicate that a match between The Rock and Cody Rhodes is one of WWE's plans for WrestleMania 41.

There is a strong possibility that The Rock will return later this year to announce his entry into the 2025 Royal Rumble. If he wins, it would set up a major showdown against Cody Rhodes at The Grandest Stage of Them All. The Rock won the Royal Rumble Match back in 2000 previously.