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History was made at tonight's Royal Rumble, as the road to WrestleMania 35 begins now. New Superstars have stepped up and entered the championship picture. Legends of the past returned but were overshadowed by a bright future. There were surprises aplenty in a pay-per-view that lived up to and even surpassed its 'big four' billing.
Becky Lynch wasn't even scheduled to compete in the Women's Royal Rumble Match, but through a sheer act of will earned a world championship opportunity at WrestleMania 35. This is despite the fact that Lynch tapped out to SmackDown Women's Champion Asuka earlier in the evening.
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On the men's side of things, Seth Rollins did not disappoint. Despite a brutal attack by Bobby Lashley that left him incapacitated outside the ring and then having to single handily oust Braun Strowman, Rollins stamped his ticket to WrestleMania in thrilling fashion.
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Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles lived up to their build wrestled in an exquisite technical masterpiece. Finn Balor's efforts were valiant, but despite giving him all came up short in his quest to dethrone The Beast.
Join us as we take a look at the best, worst, and downright ugliest moments of the 2019 Royal Rumble in this special edition of The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly.
The Good - Daniel Bryan vs AJ Styles
Perhaps no match had a more difficult task than Daniel Bryan vs AJ Styles. The match came directly after the Women's Royal Rumble, arguably one of the greatest and most dramatic Royal Rumbles in history. After Becky Lynch won the Royal Rumble in an emotional victory, the last thing the Chase Field crowd desired was to emotionally invest themselves in another contest so soon. Despite this fact, the two Superstars wrestled in a classic for the ages.
Bryan and Styles have great chemistry and the feud featured a solid build that saw Daniel Bryan take AJ Styles to task for everything from eating hot dogs to the inevitable environmental annihilation of planet Earth.
Their in-match execution was stellar and the two put on a technical masterpiece, along with a strong style brawl. Styles' execution of a reverse DDT outside the ring was masterful and so was Bryan's ability to sell.
After suffering from numerous concussions, Daniel Bryan is arguably one severe blow to the head away from a career-ending injury. It's not something anyone ever wants to happen, but it does add to the drama of any match he is in especially with his impeccable ability to sell.
After taking a brutal bump to the ring post, AJ Styles was bloodied early on and suffered a possible broken nose. As blood spilled, Styles attempted to maneuver his nose to his liking. Such maneuvering would cause most to wince in agony, but it's all a day in the life of o of the all-time great wrestlers.
Ultimately, it was Erick Rowan who cost AJ Styles the victory and ended a long match that would have been fine going much longer. As Styles hit the Styles Clash on Daniel Bryan, the referee was caught in the melee. While the official was down and out, the returning Erick Rowan came into the ring to hit a devastating chokeslam on Styles. Bryan capitalized for the pinfall victory and walked out with his former Wyatt Family comrade and the WWE Championship.
Despite the finish, the match was still one of Bryan's best and one of Styles' best. That alone says a whole lot.
The Good - Becky Lynch Wins The Women's Royal Rumble
Becky Lynch is the hottest WWE superstar in all of professional wrestling, not that it should mean anything. WWE has made it a routine to fail to capitalize on superstars that are clearly over with their massive fan base. The company has so often lulled us to sleep with pushing their golden calves that it's now shocking and unexpected when the company's most deserving performers are given the platform to achieve the success they've worked so hard for.
Lynch was not slated to be in the Women's Royal Rumble. Instead, she was scheduled to face Asuka for the SmackDown Women's Champion. Early in the match, Lynch screamed at Asuka, "Come on, fight!" Asuka obliged and brought the fight to Lynch-like never before, eventually submitting 'The Irish Lass Kicker.'
Vince McMahon once said that the superstars of today's era often fail at grabbing the proverbial brass ring. Becky Lynch is not your typical WWE Superstar. At last year's WrestleMania, Lynch was relegated to the kickoff show, but this year, she did everything within her power to get to the main event.
As the Royal Rumble clock ran down to zero, a hobbled Lana attempted to make her way to the ring but was in pain from the injury she suffered earlier in the night during the United States Championship Match between Shinsuke Nakamura and her husband Rusev. To make matter worse, Nia Jax attacked Lana rendering the Rumble's 28th entrant unable to compete. That's when the impossible happened. Becky Lynch made her way to the ramp and after a quick conversation with Fit Finlay and Lana, Lynch made her way to the ring officially taking Lana' place in the Royal Rumble match.
Jax would soon come to regret her decision to target Lana, as she would be eliminated at the hands of Becky Lynch. Ever the sore loser, Jax would target Lynch's knee, rendering her hobbled for the remainder of the match. The injury didn't stop Lynch. In fact, it only seemed to further empower her. Limping, she stood toe to toe with Charlotte Flair. Things were as they always were. Both Charlotte and Becky were in each other's way.
The two greatest female wrestlers in professional wrestling tangled at the end of a match that would decide wrestling history. Ultimately, Lynch bested Flair to win the Royal Rumble. As the Phoenix, Arizona crowd celebrated with Becky Lynch at Chase Field, her hometown pubs in Ireland cheered along, as well. As fans celebrated all around the world, the hard working wrestler with the big heart was heading to WrestleMania and all was right in the world of professional wrestling.
The Good - WWE Relied On The Stars Of Tomorrow, Not Legends
Yes, there was the Jeff Jarrett spot in the Men's Royal Rumble and the Kurt Angle appearance, as well. Maria Kanellis made a forgettable appearance in the Women's Royal Rumble, but WWE made a significant departure this year. For the first time in years, the company overwhelmingly relied on their future and not their past.
Nine legends participated in last year's inaugural Women's Royal Rumble Match. Appearing were; Lita, Torrie Wilson, Molly Holly, Michelle McCool, Vickie Guerrero, Kelly Kelly, Jacqueline, Beth Phoenix, and Trish Stratus. Those women made up 30% of the field and they didn't just show up either. They were a legitimate part of the match and made some of the evening's most memorable contributions. Michelle McCool, for example, had the most eliminations of the evening and ousted young stars like Sonya Deville and Liv Morgan in the process.
This year's Women's Royal Rumble featured one returning legend in Maria Kanellis (more on that later) and six stars from NXT or NXT UK. These included; Xia Lee, Candice LeRae, Kairi Sane, Kacey Catanzaro, Rhea Ripley, and Io Shirai. The men's Royal Rumble featured three stars from NXT or NXT UK including; Aleister Black, Johnny Gargano, and Pete Dunne. All of these young stars made significant contributions to the match, as did stars of tomorrow like; Mustafa Ali, Andrade Almas, Lacey Evans, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, Ember Moon, and Nikki Cross.
There was no Undertaker appearance. There was no John Cena. The message was loud and clear. The WWE of yesteryear has come and gone. It had its time to shine, but this is a new era of professional wrestling and the future is blindingly bright.
The Bad - Nikki Cross' Royal Rumble Elimination
With everything the WWE has gotten right with Becky Lynch in recent months, they may be missing the boat entirely on Nikki Cross. Cross is obviously over with wrestling fans and received one of the biggest pops of the night when she made her way to the Women's Royal Rumble from the number 8 spot.
Cross took to the ring like a whirling dervish and instantly began attacking the field. Sure, WWE let Nikki play and the audience loved it, but Cross' elimination was so meaningless and uneventful that her Royal Rumble debut is in danger of being altogether forgettable.
While Cross went on the offensive against every single woman in the ring, she eliminated no one and then was eliminated by the IIconics, of all people. The Australian duo are SmackDown performers, so they won't likely be feuding with Cross anytime soon. There will be no payoff for the elimination. Furthermore, the duo themselves have been underwhelming the past year, to say the least. They followed suit with an underwhelming performance in the Royal Rumble and were quickly eliminated by RAW newcomer Lacey Evans.
WWE has something special in Cross and the audience is already solidly behind her. She is unlike any woman the WWE has ever seen, unkempt and overflowing with pure, utter, madness. They would be foolish to capitalize on Cross, especially when they may already have lighting in a bottle.
If WWE doesn't take Cross seriously; however, she may end up being a Bushwacker, a childish character with no real championship aspirations instead of the mega stardom she is clearly capable of achieving.
The Ugly - The Alicia Fox & Maria Kanellis Fiasco
It was great to see Maria Kanellis back in action after taking a hiatus from wrestling to have a child and tend to her husband Mike Kanellis, who struggles with substance abuse issues. Kanellis clearly deserves the opportunity, but should have been better served by WWE.
Kanellis should could have come away from this match looking a lot better than she did. Instead of being give a matriarchal role as a returning legend, she was relegated to a poorly written comedy bit with Alicia Fox.
Inexplicably, Maria attempted to create a friendship with Fox and slowly spoke to the WWE Superstar, "You. Me. Friends." The line would have been more apt for a rendition of Tarzan than the Royal Rumble. Kanellis attempted to use body language to get her point across. She had suddenly turned into George 'The Animal' Steele and no one really knows why.
In an era of female empowerment, Fox and Kanellis fought over a hat, an item of clothing. Their athletic skills and past accomplishments were relegated to the back burner as Kanellis' ultimate insult wasn't a roundhouse right or a well executed savate kick. Instead, in a throwback to the Diva's Era, Kanellis' ultimate insult was the destruction of Fox's accessory.
It was pure silliness and poorly done at that. Inevitably, Kanellis was eliminated by Fox, who was incensed that Maria had ruthlessly stomped on her hat. Mercifully Ruby Riott then eliminated Fox ending the whole charade.
The schtick was, by far, the worst moment of the 2019 Royal Rumble and perhaps the only blemish on what was a stellar show.
