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WWE has declared the names of almost all prominent superstars for the upcoming 2025 Royal Rumble. However, the Stamford-based promotion doesn’t seem to be taking the participation of a former United States Champion seriously.
Moreover, the Triple H-led creative could have seemingly given up on LA Knight ahead of the Indianapolis premium live event.
LA Knight faces a very obvious snub from WWE
WWE recently released a video advertisement featuring all its stars appearing in the Royal Rumble. Interestingly, a fan pointed out that the footage didn’t carry the graphic of The Megastar.
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This was odd since Knight’s current rival Shinsuke Nakamura’s graphic can be seen early in the video. Moreover, Knight’s image wasn’t featured despite the 42-year-old being one of the 30 wrestlers participating in the Men’s Royal Rumble. While this may seem like a small detail, WWE could be trying to push Knight to the bottom of the ladder.
The sudden downfall of Knight
The Megastar saw the end of his first United States Championship run at the hands of Shinsuke Nakamura at the 2024 Survivor Series. LA Knight was on a dominating run as the champ and defended his title in a grueling Triple Threat match against Carmelo Hayes and Andrade at the 2024 Crown Jewel.
Despite this, his loss to The King of Strong Style was abrupt. Nakamura was away from WWE since April 2024 and returned to SmackDown on November 15, attacking LA Knight. Two weeks later, on November 30, the Japanese Superstar became the US Champ for the third time.
The buildup to Shinsuke Nakamura’s victory showed him defeating Knight in a psychological war, even blinding the latter with mist. Thus, the heel had a clear upper hand over the previous US Champion, and the company is showing fans a hollowed-out version of LA.
LA Knight doesn’t have any direction in WWE right now
The Megastar has been riding a wave of popularity with the WWE Universe for a long time. Owing to his appeal, he has also received title shots for the Undisputed Championship against Roman Reigns at the 2023 Crown Jewel with just a year of main roster career behind him.
Yet he doesn't seem to be getting the same push right now. While LA Knight had a clear direction as the United States Champion, he is currently lost in chaos. WWE spoiled his title rematch against Shinsuke Nakamura by making Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga interfere. These two superstars attacked him despite having no previous links with either Knight or the US Title.
While this has immersed Knight in a feud with The New Bloodline, he seems to be a very small player in this exchange right now. One could argue that LA was stripped of the US Championship to prepare him for a title match against Cody Rhodes. However, SmackDown doesn’t seem to be reflecting this right now.
Lastly, unlike many other superstars, irrespective of their odds to win the Royal Rumble, LA Knight hasn’t shown much confidence in himself to win the Rumble either. He doesn’t seem as focused on winning despite getting a chance to earn a guaranteed ticket to WrestleMania 41. It would be interesting to see what lies ahead for The Megastar.
