Tomorrow night, World Wrestling Entertainment will present the 26th annual WWE Royal Rumble. The winner of the 30 man over the top rope rumble will go on to Wrestlemania 29, where they will wrestle for the championship of their choosing. This year, the Royal Rumble is a little funny. WWE has not announced all 30 participants. They announced just a little over half of their competitors, leaving room for many surprise returns. Regardless, of the announced participants, here are the probabilities of some of the competitors.
John Cena - Probability 99%
All signs point to John Cena winning the WWE Royal Rumble, so he can go on to challenge The Rock at Wrestlemania 29. John Cena is the poster child for WWE, so a win is highly probable. However, in the past, WWE has swerved fans in situations were a winner was so obvious. For example, last year, many fans thought Jericho was going to win the Rumble and go on to face CM Punk at Wrestlemania. In the end, it was Sheamus who won. And he wasn't even on the radar. But a swerve is hard to call, so the probability of Cena walking away the winner is almost a guarantee.
Sheamus - Probability 50%
Although Sheamus is beloved by Triple H, it's hard seeing him being pushed into the "two years in a row" bracket that men like Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan fit into. It's always possible that WWE will go for a dark horse, and change things up at Elimination Chamber, but Sheamus isn't very likely to win this year. But it wouldn't be surprising to see the WWE play up that angle, with Sheamus being one of the last few men in the rumble.
Randy Orton - Probability 80%
Randy Orton is a solid choice, but his win/loss record makes it hard to see him as the winner of the rumble. It seems like Orton will go weeks on a winning streak, and then start losing to mediocre mid card talents. It's been heavily rumored that Orton would be wrestling Sheamus at Wrestlemania, so a win for Orton is unlikely. But he also remains an odds on favorite if the WWE decides to swerve the fans.
Dolph Ziggler - Probability 85%
Dolph Ziggler is considered one of the most underrated talents on the roster, and will likely be the workhorse in the Royal Rumble this year. Ziggler will be entering the match as number one or two, and he will probably be the long man this year. The WWE hasn't had the number one participant became a winner in a long time, and Ziggler would be perfect to be that man. The accolade would launch him into a certifiable main event superstar, which is seems like the WWE has been wanting to do for awhile. Will they pull the trigger and let him win the Rumble this year? It very well could happen.
Bo Dallas - Probability 0%
Bo Dallas, son of WWE legend Mike Rotunda, recently won a battle royal to obtain a chance at entering the Royal Rumble. Although Bo Dallas is a well liked rookie and seen as a potential future superstar, he has zero chance of winning. However, don't be surprised to see Bo Dallas have a Maven moment, where he eliminates a high ranking WWE star.
Antonio Cesaro - Probability 40%
There's always a slight chance that a real dark horse will win the WWE Royal Rumble. That's the fun part of the bout. And Antonio Cesaro fits perfectly into that category. He has had a great run over the last year, he's got a real superstar look, and he's a tremendous talent. That being stated, it's still unlikely that the WWE is ready to push him into the main event scene. Not while he's still the United States Champion and feuding with The Miz. Expect Cesaro to win his match earlier in the evening, and The Miz enacting revenge during the rumble.
Ryback - Probability 90%
John Cena aside, Ryback may be the next best bet as to who will win this year's WWE Royal Rumble. Last year, Ryback was riding a high wave of success. But recently, he's lost a boat full of bouts against CM Punk, and has been relentlessly attacked by The Shield. A Royal Rumble win would thrust Ryback into the top tier once again. Where it goes from Rumble is anyone's guess.
Those seven men are just a small sample of the potential winners of Sunday Night's event. With WWE's lack of promoting who else is in the rumble, it's hard for anybody to really guess who will win the event. Maybe this is all a part of WWE's strategy. Make the viewer tune in to see who the other 15 men will be. You can catch the event live on pay per view tomorrow night at 8 p.m.
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