Opinion

Steve Cook’s 2012 WWE Royal Rumble Road Trip

Published

6 years ago

January 22, 2019

Steve Cook takes you on a stroll down memory lane as he attends the 2012 WWE Royal Rumble live and in person!

It’s Royal Rumble Week! If you’re anything like me you get nostalgic during these huge events in the wrestling year. We can’t help but think about some of our favorite Royal Rumble memories. Ric Flair winning the WWF Championship in the 1992 Rumble still rates as my favorite match ever. I watch it at least once or twice a year. Stone Cold Steve Austin’s various Rumble victories were a highlight of my teenage years. I think I can mention now that I watched them on a black box of questionable legality.

The one I remember most has to be the 2012 Royal Rumble. Internet experts might not agree with the idea of it being memorable. 2012 wasn’t one of the more well-received editions of the event. I might not remember it either if I wasn’t there. Oddly enough, I still have many fond memories of my trip to St. Louis. Since I was nowhere near sober for most of the weekend, this surprises me.

I thought it would be fun to dip into the archives and take a look back at that trip. The following originally appeared in the 02.01.12 edition of News From Cook’s Corner. If you’d like to read more of my classic writing, or even more of my recent stuff, 411mania.com has plenty of both.

The Royal Rumble has always been one of my favorite events of the year. There’s nothing quite like the Rumble Match, where thirty wrestlers enter in intervals to determine who will challenge for the WWE or the World title at WrestleMania. I’ve always wanted to see it live, but never had the opportunity until this year. The Rumble was in St. Louis, Missouri, which is a couple of states over from where I live and a couple of hours from the home of my Offtheteam.com podcasting partner and best Internet friend, Trent “The Penguin” Howell. I hadn’t seen ol’ Trent in person since we went to a Raw house show back in 2004, so going to the Rumble with him seemed like a darn good idea.

I spent a lot of time before the trip worrying about the weather for the 6+ hour drive to Cape Girardeau. Weather is always an issue in this part of the country this time of year, but I was blessed with clear skies and decent temperatures for the trip. Saturday night in Cape was pretty fun, we hit a couple bars once Trent finally got the headlight on his motor vehicle working after two trips to an auto part store. Trent’s wife joined us later in the evening and she was even cooler than he said she was. If you think AJ’s attractive you’d like her, as they’re the same size. Better-looking face too. Trent did good there.

On Sunday we headed up to St. Louis and set up camp in Harrah’s. I haven’t been to too many casinos in my day, but I might have to make that happen more often because the vibe there was awesome. Even if they rob you blind they’re really nice about it. They’ll give you a bottle of water when they close the bar at 3 AM. (By the way, if you’ve listened to our OTT podcasts and think we’re ridiculous, you should hear us talking sports & politics at 3 AM after a long, long night.) The chicken fingers I had at 2 AM really hit the spot. Making things even better was the fact that they were having a Chinese New Year’s celebration and the place was full of fine Asian chicks. Chinese New Year’s is my new favorite holiday.

But you’re not here to read about my casino adventure with the Penguins, you want some Royal Rumble thoughts! We were joined for the show by Trent’s friend Shawn and Andy Critchell, Larry Csonka’s Monday night 411 on Wrestling co-host. Andy is a very jovial fella and went absolutely crazy for Mark Henry, so he was pretty much what I expected. Good dude. I thought the crowd was really good but apparently it didn’t come across that way on TV for whatever reason. It was a pretty smart crowd, one that started chanting about how Cena sucked before the show started. The people around us were pretty good…there was somebody in front of me that held up a sign early on, but I approved because it said “I Paid To See Daniel Bryan”. If you want to block my view for a couple of minutes during a three-hour show I won’t mind if you have something that’s worth saying. I thought the crowd was a lot better than the crowds I’ve been part of in places like Cincinnati & Lexington, where people actually don’t respond to much of anything. People were reacting to stuff here, and all of us were going crazy at various points in the show.

Dark Match: Yoshi Tatsu d. Heath Slater

This would have fit right in on Superstars for sure. It wasn’t spectacular or anything, but both guys worked hard and it definitely wasn‘t bad. Yoshi was quite popular with the crowd and Heath got a good heel reaction. For all I know this might actually be a feud on NXT. I like Yoshi a lot, and Heath’s going to be around for awhile because he’s good at making other people look good.

Triple Threat Cage Match: World Champion Daniel Bryan d. Big Show & Mark Henry

With Mark Henry hurt and Big Show reportedly hurt, it was on Daniel Bryan to put on a show and he did just that. D-Bry got a hell of a mixed reaction from the St. Louis crowd, as boos dominated his entrance but there were a few loud “DANIEL BRYAN CLAP-CLAP-CLAP-CLAP-CLAP” chants during the match. Like I told Larry (Csonka) people can’t say that he doesn’t get a reaction now. Well, they can say it, but they’re wrong. I question the reports of Big Show being hurt because he looked pretty good here and even got his 450-pound butt on top of the cage. Nice story here, with Bryan constantly trying to get out of the cage early, getting some offense in later, and a great ending sequence with Bryan hanging off the wrist of Big Show. Eventually he fell to the floor and retained the title, and I screamed about how that was my boy D-Bryan. Watching Critchell mark out for Mark Henry in person was quite the experience, and I don’t know what he would have done if Mizark had won.

Beth Phoenix, Natalya & the Bella Twins d. Kelly Kelly, Eve, Alicia Fox & Tamina

Watch the FULL 8-Diva Tag Team Match from the 2012 Royal Rumble! Courtesy of the award-winning @WWENetwork! pic.twitter.com/H2khVWCF7I

— WWE (@WWE) December 31, 2016

I wasn’t sure how they would get the Divas on the show, so we probably should have seen this match coming. This had Kelly Kelly doing a freaking cross-body off the top rope to the floor, so it was better than any Diva match I’d seen in quite awhile. Also, it was nice to see that Beth Phoenix is still alive and they actually had her win the match. Guess it’s time to build her up for her next challenger.

John Cena vs. Kane – Double Countout

I wasn’t feeling this at all going in, and the match & aftermath only made things less interesting. The Cena crowd response was interesting, as they got the LET’S GO CENA/CENA SUCKS chant going a couple of times (For the record, Critchell chanted the former while Penguin and I chanted the latter), but when that wasn’t going on nobody really knew what to do. Match was pretty much what you’d expect, then they went to the back so Kane could drag Zack Ryder out of his locker room and Tombstone him. I had a feeling something would happen to Zack when I saw that he had his own locker room. I guess it was nice that all the people that bought Broski headbands got to see their guy, even if he got Tombstoned.

The stretcher job seemed like a good time to get a t-shirt, but the Royal Rumble XXL shirts sold out. I probably should have seen that one coming. Fortunately I got back in time for the next match…

Funkasaurus d. Drew McIntyre

I was happy when Drew came out, then Funkasaurus came out and I lost my shit. You can’t help it, that song will get stuck in your head for days and how many chances will you have to dance along with a Funkasaurus? Hell yes I did the Dactyl arms. I got my Funkasaurus entrance so I didn’t have to start a riot or anything. Good times. I love the Funkasaurus and I’m so happy I got to see him do his thing live.

There were quite a few people wearing their James Laurinaitis St. Louis Rams jerseys at the show, but that didn’t stop John Laurinaitis from getting booed out of the building when he came out. He had to wear the sleeveless ref shirt so he could show off the guns!

CM Punk d. Dolph Ziggler

Underrated GEM of the day: CM Punk vs. @HEELZiggler – WWE Title match. Royal Rumble 2012. pic.twitter.com/9tEVCFyH4C

— Colt – Wrestling Coverage (@WWEColt) April 20, 2017

This got off to a really great start and most of it was enjoyable, but the overbooking at the end drug it down a bit. Of course that was to be expected with Big Johnny out there as the ringside enforcer, but it seemed kind of blah to me. Some darn good wrestling led up to it, but it didn’t quite live up to the MOTYC potential that most of us thought it had. Punk was rather popular. Ziggler had a solid performance, but as good as he is I don’t think he’s quite ready to carry Raw’s main title yet. He could be very soon, but he doesn’t quite have that connection with the audience.

As somebody who has watched CM Punk & Daniel Bryan compete on ROH shows with about 500 people at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds and at an IWA-MS show in a national guard armory with somewhere around 50 people, it was incredible to see both of them retaining their world championships with 18,120 other people in a huge arena. People often ask me why I bother with that indy wrestling stuff that isn‘t as slickly produced as WWE or Impact Wrestling, and that’s the reason. To see guys like Punk & Bryan go from performing at county fairgrounds & national guard armories to huge arenas…it’s a beautiful thing.

Royal Rumble Match

FULL MATCH: Relive the 2012 #RoyalRumble match in its entirety ahead of next Friday's @WWE Greatest Royal Rumble event! #WWEGRR https://t.co/LAQUsUX2YW

— WWE (@WWE) April 18, 2018

It was 55 minutes, so it’s best if I cover it in the Raw Thoughts format…

-Miz had a long run in the match and was the Iron Man by a couple of minutes over Cody Rhodes, but he didn’t do a whole lot for most of it. He laid on the floor for awhile after R-Truth took him out, then he got back in the ring and laid around most of the time. It’s like most of Miz’s career…he accomplishes stuff like winning the WWE title and headlining WrestleMania, but it doesn’t quite connect the way it should.

-I called Alex Riley being number two, and he lasted about as long as I expected.

-Cody had a much more impressive showing at number four, as he was active most of the time and threw out a pretty good collection of legends. Something tells me he’ll be feuding with a veteran at WrestleMania. It might be his brother Goldust, or perhaps his elimination of Mick Foley will lead to something. Either could work pretty well.

-Ricardo Rodriguez was fantastic. I thought it was actually ADR at first because I didn’t see just how wrecked the car was. I wonder if WWE expected a “RICARDO” chant.

-Socko vs. the Cobra got a tremendous reaction. I guess Santino started wearing the cobra sock just for that spot. Why not?

-Kofi Kingston needs to be doing something since his tag partner‘s having issues, and if Sunday’s Rumble performance & Monday’s victory over The Miz are any indication WWE gets that too. The walking handstand to remain in the Rumble was insane.

-I don’t need to see another Khali/Jinder feud, but at least Khali eliminated Jinder from the match. Speaking of which, WWE has some interesting wrestlers on the sides of their semis:

Khali
Drew McIntyre
Beth Phoenix
Kelly Kelly
Sin Cara
Ezekiel Jackson
Kane (without mask)

There are some more I’m forgetting, but there were some interesting choices. They also have a couple of Rock/Cena WrestleMania semis.

-I know some of you guys didn’t like having all the announcers in, but the crowd went crazy for Lawler & Booker and booed the hell out of Cole. We were glad not to have to listen to them all night, but it would have been interesting to hear how they handled things when they all got back to the announce table.

-Hacksaw & Road Dogg got huge pops (and apparently Road Dogg still has it), but to me the biggest surprise in the Rumble by far was Kharma. We were actually talking about her earlier in the day while explaining the current storylines to Mrs. Penguin, and weren’t sure when she’d be coming back. Good job by her keeping that a secret, and the Implant Buster on Dolph Ziggler was tremendous.

Not a fan of the new Wade Barrett music. He finally had a decent re-mix of his old theme so I guess it was time to change it.

-People in the crowd were getting way too excited over who #30 would be. I told them not to get their hopes up, but no, they were sure that it’d be Batista or Rey Mysterio or somebody else making a big comeback. So they were pretty disappointed when it was Big Show.

-They saved a whole lot of the heavy-hitters for the end of the match, but it made sense to keep Orton’s return appearance a bit brief and it was Jericho’s first real in-ring action since September 2010. Not that you could tell, because the ending sequence with Jericho vs. Sheamus was the best part of the match. I had no idea who was going to win out of those two, and they showed some damn good chemistry. I’m sure we’ll be seeing it again sometime down the road.

-No Hornswoggle. I’m not really complaining, I’m just saying he wasn’t in the match.

-Sheamus won! He was one of the favorites to win and the person I went with on the podcast, and he’s a fine choice to have in one of the title matches at WrestleMania. I’m hoping it ends up being Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan, as it’d be pretty cool to have a match that got bumped off of WrestleMania XXVII be one of the main events for WrestleMania XXVIII. I was one of the people that thought Sheamus was getting pushed too soon a couple of years back, but he’s proven to be a solid wrestler, a good/unique promo, and he always comes off well as a spokesperson for the company whenever he’s doing radio shows & TV appearances. I, for one, will not be hopping off the Sheamus bandwagon anytime soon. Dude does a good job.

-Of course, if he goes against my boy D-Bry I’ll have to root against him at WrestleMania. But I won’t be too broken-hearted if he gets the win.

-I thought the Rumble match was pretty good overall. The comedy went over pretty well, the stretch with Jericho & Sheamus at the end was awesome, and there was a lot of Cody Rhodes. There were a lot of people in the match that didn’t have a chance of winning, I wouldn’t rate it as one of the greatest Rumble fields of all time or anything like that. It was still put together really well and had some good spots. You would think that yelling the countdown numbers over and over again gets old, but it really doesn’t.

#TBT Otters at the 2012 Royal Rumble! @ascrit, @VPenguin, Snowman, & me in St. Louis. pic.twitter.com/SYOc9CWpa8

— Steve Cook (@stevecook84) January 22, 2015

After the show we met up with a gentleman from England that goes by “Snowman” on the OTT Forums and headed to the Sheraton for drinks. Yeah, he flew in from England so he could see the Rumble & Raw. That doesn’t suck. The Penguins and I went back to the casino, and that is pretty much the end of our story. There are more stories, but I think I’ll save them for another time…Trent and I are doing a Super Bowl podcast on Thursday night so I’m sure we’ll be talking about some of the crazy things that happened then.

If I had to rate the weekend on a scale from 1-10, it would come in at about an 11 because I had so much fun. I can officially cross the Royal Rumble off of my wrestling bucket list. And hey, as Trent said, maybe St. Louis will host a WrestleMania after they build another football stadium for the team they get after the Rams leave. So there’s hope I can see one of those too.

——————–

…St. Louis ain’t getting no WrestleMania.

Can you believe I still had a full news column after this? Man, 2012 was great if you liked reading lots & lots of words about wrestling.

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Related Topics:2012 CM Punk Dolph Ziggler Featured Featured Big John Cena Kane Royal Rumble Sheamus

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Opinion

Greg DeMarco’s 2025 WWE Royal Rumble Results, Review & Reaction

We are firmly on the Road to WrestleMania, starting with the Royal Rumble! Greg has his initial thoughts and reactions for everyone’s favorite event!

Published

3 weeks ago

February 2, 2025

Greg DeMarco

We are firmly on the Road to WrestleMania, starting with the Royal Rumble! Greg has his initial thoughts and reactions for everyone’s favorite event!

It’s the first Royal Rumble in an NFL stadium (thanks to the WWE calendar change), and both Rumble matches feature a star-studded line-up that makes it much harder than you’d think to pick a winner. I was lucky enough to attend one Royal Rumble live, 2019, and it’s always the best way to set the stage for WrestleMania.

If @whoislaniee‘s rendition of the Star Spangled Banner is any indication, we are in for one hell of a night with one hell of a crowd!

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 1, 2025

Always great to see Stephanie McMahon kicking off a show–the more Stephanie, the better. Apparently we’ve managed to pack 70,000 fans into Lucas Oil Stadium, and if you didn’t know, Pat McAfee loves him some Indianapolis.

With each match you’ll see my picks, in my traditional “Who Should Win?/Will Will Win?” format. I made them in this week’s solo edition of The Greg DeMarco Show, which you can listen to here:

Women’s WWE Royal Rumble Match

Greg’s predictions from earlier in the week:

Who Should Win: Bianca Belair
Who Will Win: Bianca Belair

Last year’s winner was Bayley, entering at #3, and she went on to defeat Iyo Sky for the WWE Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 40.

Iyo Sky enters #1, and I do love the elevated platform–it’s not really a stage, but it does enhance the overall feel of the show. Old school fans will remember the entrance from Montreal watching Prime Time Wrestling.
I feel like Liv Morgan always enters these matches early. I also didn’t realize she’s been in all 8 Women’s Royal Rumble matches.
I do love the “ticker” across the bottom of the screen with stats and info during the entrances. Very ESPN, very “Wrestling As A Sport” to me.
Gotta say I was hoping for the black canvas (I’m biased), but I’ll always take grey over light blue.

Roxanne Perez has “Iron Woman” written all over her entering at #3. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 1, 2025

We even get “Active” and “Eliminated” in the ticket? I am REALLY digging this.
Lyra Valkyria enters to very little reaction–she’s a fantastic talent but has not connected on the main roster.
Lyra with the early wardrobe malfunction and we are already slightly derailed, kudos to everyone for getting it together.
Interesting to have the secondary champions enter back-to-back, and Indianapolis doesn’t seem to care much about her, either. Maybe I was wrong about this crowd, and maybe my criticism of Lyra was premature.
Chelsea thinking she’s dumped everyone and pointing to the sign is a great piece of business.
B-Fab enters at #6, and I would assume she has the lowest chance of winning of anyone in the field.
Man, B-Fab is still very NOT good.
Ivy Nile enters #7, the 5th straight entrant who has zero chance of winning this thing.
Also, we are still without an elimination, but probably 10 “hanging on the rope” spots already.
Ivy Nile is already more over in Indy than the Intercontinental and United States Champions.
Zoey Stark, complete with Barry Windham’s “Stalker” facepaint, enters eighth to continue our run of women with zero chance of winning.
Lash Legend enters at #9, and I have a feeling she’s about to win this crowd over.
LASH POINTED TO THE SIGN.
“Get her on the Fever” – Pat McAfee.
Chelsea Green gives us our first elimination, of B-Fab.
Bianca Belair enters at #10, really hurting my chances of being right.

And here’s my pick to win the Women’s #RoyalRumble, Bianca Belair. At #10? Doesn’t look good for me!

(Seth Rollins won his from #10, I believe.)

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 1, 2025

The crowd definitely picked up with Bianca being in the match.
BIANCA IS A MACHINE.
Shayna Baszler enters #11, reminding me she works for WWE. Which is sad, I really thought she’d have a hell of a run in WWE.
Bayley is #12, and we still have quite the group in this match. Personally I don’t see Bayley being a back-to-back winner.
Sonya Deville is in at #13 to complete the PFC trio in this match. I’m sure that’ll work out well for them!
Iyo Sky is so good, she saved Sonya’s knee spot and I am sure no one noticed.
Maxxine Dupri in at #14, another non-winner, but to her credit she only keeps getting better.
With 12 women thill in this match, I have a feeling we’re getting Nia Jax or Charlotte Flair soon to give us a bunch of eliminations.
Ivy Nile out, followed by Maxxine Dupri, and the countdown is on!
Naomi brings the halfway point with her, entering at #15.

Naomi is a former women’s champion and had an amazing WrestleMania moment back in Orlando–why does Michael Cole keep saying 2024 was her breakout year? #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 1, 2025

All of PFC is gone, and nothing of value is lost (from this match–they are valuable as people).
Jaida Parker, entering at #16, comes in to a better reaction than half of the field. Miss Parker has a hell of a WWE career ahead of her.
Chelsea Green is so damn good at what she does.
And here comes Piper Niven at #17.
Will Piper somehow eliminate Piper?
Yes – the answer to that question is yes.
Naalya enters at #18, her eighth Royal Rumble. She’s a little over 20 minutes away from 3 cumulative hours in Rumble matches.

If anyone “deserves” a Royal Rumble win, it’s Natalya. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 1, 2025

FANTASTIC reaction for Jordynne Grace–that has to raise some eyebrows among leadership.
JORDYNNE GRACE IS A STAR.
Michin in at #20, as we are up to 10 eliminations.

BUT THE INTERNET TOLD ME ALEXA BLISS WASN’T GONNA COME BACK DUE TO A CONTRACT DISPUTE. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 1, 2025

Wade Barrett, Michael Cole, and Pat McAfee crapping all over the wrestling newz sites is amazing.
And you can tell Alexa Bliss is THRILLED to be back.
Zelina Vega in at #22 to not win the Royal Rumble.
HUGE SPOT for Zelina Vega and Jordynne Grace.
If you happen to rewatch this match, watch Bayley very closely. It’s a look inside the business–she’s basically an agent in the ring.
Candice LeRae enters at #23, and I am reminded that she’s the WWE Women’s Speed Champion. I also wonder if they’ve started piping in crowd noise for these entrances.
Of note, we haven’t closed a Royal Rumble PLE with the Women’s Royal Rumble Match since the first one in 2018.
Of the 10 women eliminated so far, 6 of them entered #4-5-6-7-8-9.

Great reaction for Stephanie Vaquer–Indianapolis seems to be an NXT crowd. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

LET STEPHANIE VAQUER HER WIN YOU COWARDS. (Personal opinion, she’s the best women’s wrestler in the world.)
#25 already–we are trying to make up some time.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaand it’s Trish Stratus.

Honestly, did we need Trish Stratus? #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

Kinda wanted Jordynne Grace to toss Trish Stratus right there.
Piper Niven just kncoked the SH*T outta Trish!
Raquel Rodriguez in at #26, and we have 4 more entrants left.
Nia, Charlotte, and…..Becky? Nikki? (Bella, that is.)
The crowd is NOT HAPPY about Alexa Bliss’ elimination.
#1-3 all still in the match.
Charlotte Flair and her new face at in at #27.

Listen, I’m going to hell, but Charlotte Flair’s entrance reminds me of when JR returned from his stroke. Lay off the plastic surgery. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

Love Wade Barrett pointing out that Charlotte got pyro. I hope Roman gets his, too.
Took Charlotte forever to get her robe off, apparently.
Like I’m supposed to believe Jordynne Grace can’t suplex Charlotte Flair?
Charlotte definitely brought some fire to this match.
Giulia getting almost no reaction is surprising given the reaction of some other NXT talents.
Iyo and Liv approaching an hour in the match, along with Roxanne Perez.

Giulia eliminated Jordynne Grace, which makes me think Jordynne might be spending some time in NXT. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

Nia Jax enters at #29, leaving a surprise for #30? Becky Lynch?
Good for Nikki Bella! And she gave someone in the crowd one hall of a souvenir.
And now it’s time for the “World vs Nia” spot.
Forget Superkick It’s an APRON PARTY.
Roxanne Perez just snuck back in without being eliminated.
Given who is left, it does seem like this is Charlotte’s match to win.
ROXANNE PEREZ IN THE FINAL THREE?

This company obviously believes in Roxanne Perez. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

LOLCHARLOTTEWINS

Winner of the 2025 Women’s Royal Rumble Match: Charlotte Flair

I don’t love the decision to have Charlotte Flair win the Women’s Royal Rumble Match after being gone for over a year, but she IS Charlotte Flair. This should shock nobody. I know Charlotte Flair is a dream match opponent for Tiffany Stratton in the eyes of many, and if she were to put Tiffany Stratton over at WrestleMania, then I will eat my words and say it was worth it.

Hell of a performance for Roxanne Perez, I haven’t seen the tally yet but I do wonder if she broke the record for longest time in one Rumble.

I could go for a Slim Jim meat stick right about now.

Why was Mickie James in the crowd, and not IN THE MATCH??? #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

2 Out of 3 Falls Match for the WWE Tag Team Championships
The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) vs. #DIY (Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano, champions)

Greg’s predictions from earlier in the week:

Who Should Win: DIY (but it doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things)
Who Will Win: DIY (but it doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things)

(I won’t be live tweeting or doing a bulleted list for these two matches, likely just the two Rumbles.)

Had to laugh seeing the drone in front of Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin during their entrance.

DIY wins 2 falls to 1, making my prediction accurate. That is small change, though. I liked the match for what it was, but it’s a reminder of Charlotte Flair vs. Ronda Rousey from WrestleMania 38–great match, wrong setting. This was an arena match, not a football stadium match. Yes, that DOES matter. Setting is a huge part of pro wrestling.

NXT Black and Gold will always hold a place in my heart, but part of what made that what it was was the crowd. This wasn’t the crowd for this match. Plus it got around 15 minutes, which is about right for a 1-fall match featuring these four. On TV, counting commercial breaks, these guys get 25-30 minutes.

The Street Profits got involved, eventually attacking everyone. I fully expect a WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match at WrestleMania, with DIY, MCMG, the Street Profits, and possibly Pretty Deadly and Angel/Humberto. This was really just the beginning–it was just misplaced on this card.

Winners AND STILL WWE Tag Team Champions: DIY

Michael Cole did also inform us that Roxanne Perez is the new record-holder for longest Royal Rumble performance. Score one for the good guy (me, from my tweet above).

Ladder Match for the WWE Championship
Kevin Owens vs. Cody Rhodes (champion)

Greg’s predictions from earlier in the week:

Who Should Win: Kevin Owens
Who Will Win: Cody Rhodes

Love that Kevin Owens took down the Winged Eagle Championship during SmackDown last night, and entered with it. Granted, Cody Rhodes has his, too. But KO has a certain edge to him when carrying that title.

That little ladder is HILARIOUS. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

This match was brutal, and whatever they are paying Kevin Owens isn’t enough. Cody Rhodes was beating on KO as a heel would, but he’s a babyface? I know everyone wants “Homelander” Cody, but really he might be more like “Patrick Bateman” Cody. Either way, as great as Cody is (and he is great), there is one missing element. At this point, it’s obvious to me that Cody is the worst babyface in the company. Look at him: THE MAN IS A HEEL.

While I’m glad Cody is fully out of The Bloodline’s shadow, he just needs to beat John Cena at WrestleMania, turn heel, and truly hit his stride. And I want true heel Cody. Chicken sh*t, goons, the whole thing.

Winner, AND STILL WWE Champion: Cody Rhodes

Cody Rhodes is gonna buy Kevin Owens a lot of cigars, booze, or meat. Whatever that man wants. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

You gotta think Sami Zayn not stopping Cody Rhodes from winning will be a major sticking point for Kevin Owens. Seems like we’ll get Sami vs Kevin at WM41.

Men’s WWE Royal Rumble Match

Greg’s predictions from earlier in the week:

Who Should Win: Jey Uso
Who Will Win: John Cena

Last year’s winner was Cody Rhodes, entering at #15, and he went on to defeat Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 40.

Rey Mysterio (Jr) enters at #2, and it’s obvious that gone are the days where randoms would enter at #1 and #2.
I believe I said on my podcast (if not, I meant to) that Penta would need to enter #1 or #2 so he can have his pyro.

I am so happy for Penta in the WWE. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

I really hope we get a Lucha Underground reference on commentary.
LET PENTA WIN YOU COWARDS! (I know, it didn’t work for Stephanie Vaquer.)
PENTA IS A STAR.
I do appreciate how they didn’t fight on the apron, instead just got right back into the ring.
Chad Gable in at #3, and all we need is for Dominik Mysterio to be #4.
That spot looked NASTY, I hope Chad Gable’s knee is okay.
Carmelo Hayes in at #4, and I am reminded that we likely get Trick in this match.

Trick Williams’ #RoyalRumble entrance is gonna be ICONIC.

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

I know they have a temporary alliance at the moment, but Chad Gable vs. Carmelo Hayes would be an absolute BANGER.
KING CUERNO vs PENTAGON JR! #IYKYK
That spot was far too similar to what we saw in the Women’s Rumble.
Otis in and had some fun.
BRON BREAKKER IS A MACHINE.
The crowd reaction to Bron Breakker tells me the WWE might make even MORE money in the future.
What if Breakker won this match? He won’t, but What If?
If not for WWE, I wouldn’t know who IShowSpeed was.
Honestly, nothing wrong with what they did with IShowSpeed there.
Sheamus enters at #9, and I assume we will see some Beats Of The Bowery.

Gotta play the hits, pal. (Sheamus.) #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

This is the most normal Sheamus’ hair has ever looked.
Crazy that this is only Jimmy Uso’s 3rd Royal Rumble.
Big Jim definitely got a bulk discount on his new gear. I wonder how many color combos he got???
Andrade in at #11, and Wade Barrett points out what I’ve been thinking–why run to the ring?
Jacob Fatu enters at #12 and gets his pyro. The rocket ship has been strapped, pal.
Ludwig Kaiser enters at #13 and no one not named (Greg DeMarco Show co-host) Patrick O’Dowd cares.
Kaiser immediately dumped by Penta, and he’ll probably lose to him on Monday’s Raw, too.

Here comes the most underappreciated wrestler in WWE history, @mikethemiz. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

We lost Michael for a minute there.

The fact that Joe Hendry’s fact on the ticket is “Say His Name And He Appears” is amazing.

Great pop for him, too.

And Michael Cole references Nic Nemeth! #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

I’d actually forgotten that we’d likely get a Joe Hendry appearance, so they got a little pop out of me.
I acknowledge you, my Tribal Chief.

☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️ #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk would be one hell of a match at WrestleMania, just sayin’.
Showdowns like Roman Reigns and Bron Breakker is what the Royal Rumble is all about.
SPEAR TO ROMAN.
That might have been the greatest spear ever.
After Joe Gendry and Roman Reigns, Drew McIntyre gets very little reaction entering at #17.
Drew McIntyre with the very silky smooth hair tonight.
Finn Balor in at #18 and we have our second drone sighting of the night.
Something is wrong with Pat McAfee’s headset. Hell of a showing by Penta, by the way.
Jey Uso in at #20 to a HUGE pop.
LET JE YWIN YOU COWARDS.
Poison Rana by Jey???
Let’s hope AJ Styles can stick around for a bit this time. (Not necessarily in the Rumble, but in general.)

All these megastars, and Jacob Fatu might be the most over guy in the match right now. #ROYALRUMBLE

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

I’d be okay if Braun shaved his head again.
Jacob Fatu can literally do ANYTHING and it makes sense.

JOHN CENA’S SOCKS!
JOHN CENA’S SOCKS!
JOHN CENA’S SOCKS!#RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

CM Punk, John Cena, and Roman Reigns all in the ring all at the same time? YES PLEASE.
Now add in Seth Rollins? This is the greatest Royal Rumble of all time.
The current field: Seth Rollins, CM Punk, John Cena, AJ Styles, Jey Uso, Drew McIntyre, and Roman Reigns. That is ABSURD.
The only man who can follow all that talent is indeed Dominik Mysterio. This is about to be amazing.
Imagine if Dom wins. I mean, just imagine it.
With the addition of Sami Zayn, the storylines in this Rumble right now are insane.
Damian Priest, who is probably challenging Shinsuke Nakamura at WrestleMania, enters at #28.
Two more to go. Any surprises?
LA Knight, who I forgot was in this match, enters next.
I kinda expect him to move to Raw in this transfer window.
Ah yes, Logan Paul. I also forgot he was on this.
We’ve had a Nic Nemeth and now a Ricochet reference tonight. I love when you’re WWE, and you are comfortable talking about (almost) ANYBODY.

If I’m WWE, I have Logan Paul wait until the final two before jumping back into the ring. #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

He didn’t, by the way. Opportunity missed.
Final 6: Roman Reigns, Jey Uso, John Cena, CM Punk, Seth Rollins, Logan Paul… STAR. STUDDED.
Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins – the WrestleMania Main Event we never got.
YESSS!
Brilliant spot to have Logan Paul eliminate CM Punk.
Final 3: John Cena, Jey Uso, and Logan Paul. Two of my picks are left.
The action on the outside between Rollins, Roman, and Punk drives home how important the Rumble is to the competitors.
And then there were 2: my Who Should Win vs. my Who Will Win.
Please God let Jey Uso win this thing.
(And that’s not a slight against John Cena.)
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!

IT’S JUST YOU, UCE! #RoyalRumble

— Big Daddy Greg 🤡 (@gregdemarco44) February 2, 2025

Winner of the 2025 Men’s WWE Royal Rumble Match: Jey Uso

Just like the sign said: EAT. SLEEP. YEET. MANIA. I am so damn happy for Jey Uso. You can tell John Cena was as well, along with Michael Cole. And probably everyone in the entire company. Jey Uso is the success story.

As for the match? Well obviously this is a knee jerk reaction, but eff it–this is the best Royal Rumble Match they have ever put on. The early action was fun and exciting. But from the time Joe Hendry’s music hit to the moment Jey Uso pushed John Cena off of the apron, this match was insane. I think Roman Reigns coming in at 16 was a huge part of that. Once Roman is in the match, you are watching to see a) what he does, and b) if he’ll get eliminated. CM Punk eliminating Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns was beautiful, and then Logan Paul tossing CM Punk was even better. If that leads to Rollins vs. Reigns and Logan vs. Punk at WrestleMania, you can take my money.

My money is a Peacock membership, which is automatically charged. But still. Take it.

If John Cena wins it’s still probably the best Royal Rumble Match of all time. But Jey Uso winning makes that an undisputable fact.

Overall Thoughts on the 2025 WWE Royal Rumble

The Women’s Royal Rumble was decent to good. Loved Roxanne getting the Iron Woman treatment, but in the end it’s another chapter of LOL Charlotte Wins.
I need to rewatch DIY vs MCMG because I was on the phone when my son called. Maybe I will enjoy it more on a second viewing.
The ladder match was brutal but the end result was expected. Cody is still missing something, and I think that something will continue to be missing until he turns heel. He’s just overshadowed by too many of the other babyfaces.
The Men’s Royal Rumble Match was the best Royal Rumble match they have ever put on. Great action in the early half, and from 15 (Joe Hendry) on, it was amazing. The storyline movement with CM Punk, Roman Reigns, and Seth Rollins was (here’s that word) cinema, and having the most over wrestler in the company not named Roman Reigns win, and doing so by eliminating the odds-on favorite, was perfect. I’m biased because Jey Uso was my pick, but it was the perfect ending to what was probably as close to perfect as a Rumble match has been since 1992.

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TheChairshot.com PRESENTS: WWE Crown Jewel Immediate Reactions

Join DJ and Tunney for their immediate reactions to WWE Crown Jewel. For the latest, greatest and up to datest, ALWAYS #UseYourHead and visit THECHAIRSHOT.COM

Published

4 months ago

November 2, 2024

PC Tunney

Join DJ and Tunney for their immediate reactions to WWE Crown Jewel. For the latest, greatest and up to datest, ALWAYS #UseYourHead and visit THECHAIRSHOT.COM