Psyko’s quick WWE Royal Rumble 2026 review

So another Royal Rumble is in the books, and quite frankly, I actually did love most of the show.

First, let’s get the negatives out of the way. I honestly don’t care about all the politics around the event. If they want to take the money and do shows in Saudi Arabia, go for it. It’s not like they’re the only ones doing business with the country anyway. Heck, even Trump is doing business with them, so that tells you all you need to know about how much control the country has right now. All that really matters is whether WWE delivers a great event or not, and overall, I thought they delivered a really strong show.

The other negative that did bother me was the overall presentation. The whole thing with having lights beside every seat really hurts the presentation, as it makes the place seem empty even if they sold out most of the seats.

Now, on to the show itself.

First, let’s start with the women’s Rumble. I thought this year’s women’s Rumble was way better than usual and delivered on multiple levels, as it advanced a lot of stories and also made the younger participants look great.

Having Lash Legend in the monster role was a great way to elevate her and truly make her look like an unstoppable force. Sol Ruca being in the final three was a nice surprise, and it made me think she’s probably the next one to be called up after Mania, once she finishes whatever story she has with Zaria in NXT. Jacy Jayne was another one who benefited greatly from the Rumble and will probably be called up after Mania as well. The Bella Twins reuniting was a really great moment, and the face-to-face they had with Rhea and Iyo made me want to see that match at Mania if that’s the direction they’re going. Finally, having Liv win the Rumble and the way she did it—by eliminating Raquel before winning in the final three—was a nice touch, as it hinted at a possible breakup between the two, which I would be all for. Now it feels like we’re heading toward a Stephanie Vaquer vs. Liv Morgan title match at Mania, which I’m also all for.

Second, we had AJ Styles vs. Gunther in what would be Styles’ retirement match, and I thought this was an awesome match overall. Styles and Gunther created a five-star-worthy match, and I really loved the ending with Styles passing out, which honestly should have been the way Cena’s match ended. This was the perfect send-off for one of the best, and even if it pains me to write this, I really hope this is truly the end of Styles’ career. I hope he doesn’t sign with TNA or AEW to do a retirement tour there, because he got the perfect send-off. Throwing that all away just to have a few matches in the minors would be the same thing Flair did when he came out of retirement to wrestle in TNA.

Third, we had the title match, and quite frankly, this was the low point of the show for me. I was expecting a more back-and-forth type of match, with Drew being in trouble more often to show Zayn as a real threat to Drew’s championship. Instead, Drew was dominant for most of the match, while Zayn barely got any offense in, which made the ending even more lackluster. In the end, this felt like a TV match that did nothing for Zayn, and I feel like he’s never going to be world champion. They had the perfect scenario for him to win the belt, and they didn’t take it.

Finally, the men’s Rumble was also really awesome and started out hot, with Breakker being attacked by what seemed to be Rollins in disguise and being eliminated right away by Oba Femi. That was a real shocker, and now we know not only that Rollins will be cleared in time for Mania, but that he’s likely going to face Breakker at Mania. Speaking of Oba Femi, he had a great debut on the main roster, eliminating five guys and lasting as long as he did. The same goes for Je’Von Evans, who I thought would have a short run in the Rumble but ended up lasting until the end of the match. Powerhouse Hobbs also had a pretty good debut, and now I’m wondering where he goes next. Personally, I’d send him to NXT for a few months just to learn the WWE style before calling him up after Mania. Having Brock and Oba Femi face off made me want to see that match if they ever go for it before Lesnar retires. While I’m not a big fan of having Cody back in the title picture again during Mania season, I do get why they’re continuing to push this triple threat scenario, and I’m curious how they’ll get there. Finally, having Reigns win the Rumble again was the right call, because he’s the biggest draw they have left. Now it feels like we’re heading toward Punk vs. Reigns for the world title at Mania, which is the match everybody has wanted to see ever since Punk came back to WWE. I wouldn’t be surprised if that ends up being the Night 2 main event.

In the end, this was a really strong Rumble show in my opinion and kicked off the road to Mania on the right foot. Am I sad that we didn’t get more surprise entrants, including Jericho? Yeah, I am. But I’m happy with what we got. Both Rumble matches advanced a lot of stories and gave us hints about what to expect for the rest of the season, and the Gunther vs. AJ Styles match overdelivered and served as a great tribute to one of the first modern legends in pro wrestling. Because of that, I can’t be too negative about this show, even if it did happen in Saudi Arabia.