It’s January 2017, and in the professional wrestling world January means the WWE Royal Rumble . This year the show will take place on Jan. 29 from the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. In a setting of65,000 seats, it is imperative that the WWE deliver a big show and the inclusion of Brock Lesnar and Goldberg into the 30-man Royal Rumble match may help draw an audience in that building.
Even with Goldberg and Lesnar, the Royal Rumble still needs some of the surprises fans have come to expect from the show. Superstars from yesteryear, NXT stars and new signees usually make appearances in the Rumble match. This year it seems that there may be no real surprises on the horizon as the WWE has enough talent on the roster to get to the 30 man number, especially when many of those wrestlers will just be used as fresh meat for Lesnar and Goldberg.
While the WWE appears to not want any surprises in this year’s Royal Rumble, I have three names that I think should make an appearance at the 2017 Royal Rumble. Whether a one-night shot or the beginning of a longer stint with the company, these three names will get fans excited and make fans care about the Royal Rumble, instead of just watching it because it’s what we have been programmed to do. Let’s start with a legendary name.
Jake “The Snake” Roberts
This man has been begging the WWE to allow him to get into the Royal Rumble ever since he started doing DDP Yoga a few years ago. Roberts has done a lot to get clean and sober after years of “hangin and bangin” and that was prevalent in the film The Resurrection of Jake the Snake. After making an appearance on a Throwback Raw in 2014, there is obvious fan support to seeing the 2014 Hall of Famer in the match.
Roberts coming in the middle of the Rumble will break up the monotony when there are a number of guys just killing time to recover from being “blown up” (being tired in a match). One or two DDT’s on a current lower card wrestler would get the crowd up and create a moment that will live in the minds of wrestling fans. And Jake Roberts deserves it for all the work he has done to get his life back on track.
Tye Dillinger
This is not a major name in the world of pro wrestling. He is a guy however who has been in the WWE’s developmental program for years and who deserves to finally get called up to the main roster. “The Perfect 10” has built a following of fans in NXT with his gimmick that seems like a modern version of the Mr. Perfect character from the 80’s and 90’s. With Dillinger, you have a guy who could add a different dimension to either Monday Night Raw or Smackdown Live as a veteran who can talk, wrestle and who has a personality.
Imagine if you will “The Perfect 10” coming in at the tenth position of the Royal Rumble with the crowd chanting “10, 10, 10” as he makes his way to the ring. From now until after WrestleMania is when new blood is injected into the WWE so they should make Dillinger the first blood transfusion into the company.
Kurt Angle
The man that everyone wants to see back in the WWE, Angle has told many independent wrestling promoters that he would not be working the indies anymore because he would be returning to the WWE. Angle has said this in the past and it never came to fruition but this time, it should happen.
Angle can not work a full-time schedule anymore, nor can he take 18 suplexes from Brock Lesnar but he still has a place in the WWE. Angle’s music kicking in at around the 20-24 position of the Royal Rumble and the crowd, in the Alamodome and at home, will react like a crowd hasn’t reacted during a WWE pay-per-view in a long time. “You suck…. you suck” chants going on during Angle’s entrance automatically makes the Royal Rumble a must-see event. Just pull the trigger WWE.
Angle showed during his time in TNA that he has something left in the tank for one more small run and the WWE should begin the Angle Farewell Tour at the Royal Rumble.
Who do you want to see in the 2017 Royal Rumble? Let us know in our comment section.
