Early WWE WrestleMania 40 Match Card Predictions After Royal Rumble

WWE kicked off its road to WrestleMania 40 Saturday night with the Royal Rumble, the annual January spectacular that sets the stage for The Showcase of the Immortals.

This year was no different, with two victories in the namesake matches propelling workhorse competitors to guaranteed title matches in Philadelphia on Saturday and Sunday, April 6 and 7.

Champions retained, ongoing feuds were intensified, and Superstars showed out in an attempt to ensure their place on the most important card of the year.

Ahead of the ruby anniversary of The Granddaddy of Them All, take a look at these too-early match card predictions, including the two championship clashes that will headline nights one and two in The City of Brotherly Love.

Royal Rumble 2024 Results

Men's Royal Rumble Match:

Cody Rhodes won, last eliminating CM Punk

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United States Championship Match:

Logan Paul defeated Kevin Owens via disqualification to retain his title

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Undisputed WWE Universal Championship Match:

Roman Reigns defeated AJ Styles, Randy Orton, and LA Knight to retain his title

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Women's Royal Rumble Match:

Bayley won, last eliminating Liv Morgan

Intercontinental Championship Match: Jey Uso vs. Gunther

Gunther eliminated Jey Uso Saturday night in the Royal Rumble match and while it may have appeared to be just another elimination in a match literally defined by 29 of them, it was another instance of Triple H hinting at a championship showdown between Main Event Jey and the reigning Intercontinental Champion.

The first hint came weeks earlier, when Uso intervened in a beatdown of Xavier Woods by The Ring General's right-hand man, Ludwig Kaiser. Saturday's elimination brought Uso and the leader of Imperium together for a second time. It is no longer a happy accident or simple coincidence.

Nothing in the Triple H era of WWE Creative is.

Uso has won countless tag team titles during his career but has yet to strike individual gold. A match with Gunther would present him a rare opportunity to accomplish that goal and further establish him as his own man.

Given Gunther's track record between the ropes in WWE, the match would likely rule and based on how well the champion has been booked, a victory would mean even more than a simple title win.

Some will scoff at the idea because it is not the expected showdown between Jey and his brother, Jimmy, but if Triple H had that match in mind, he would not have blown it at the top of this year's Royal Rumble match.

Continuing to establish Jey as his own man rather than looping him back into the Bloodline story is a better option at this point.

United States Championship Match: LA Knight vs. Logan Paul

Logan Paul narrowly retained his United States Championship against Kevin Owens Saturday night in Tampa and while the disqualification finish suggests The Maverick is not finished with The Prizefighter, expect that feud to wrap up sometime around Elimination Chamber and for Paul to transition into his WrestleMania program shortly thereafter.

Against LA Knight.

Like he did with Owens, Paul has history with Knight, dating back to last summer and the Money in the Bank premium live event. The two engaged in a couple verbal battles that led to some tense exchanges in the namesake match itself.

The on-screen chemistry was undeniable and in hindsight, one has to wonder if those back-and-forth altercations were Triple H's way of planting the seeds for a match at The Showcase of the Immortals.

Regardless, Knight was protected in defeat Saturday in the Fatal 4-Way Match for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, and remains immensely popular among the WWE fans.

Giving him a high-profile match on the grand stage, and against a mainstream star, with a shot to win his first title in WWE is an appropriate payoff to his climb from obscurity to his status as one of the company's most over babyfaces.

Bianca Belair vs. Jade Cargill

When was the last time two women squared off on the WrestleMania stage without a championship at stake?

The answer lies all the way back in 2006, when WWE Hall of Famer Torrie Wilson and Candice Michelle battled in a Playboy Pillow Fight.

That should change, beginning in 2024 with a one-on-one battle between Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill.

It is apparent both are stars from the moment they step through the curtain in any arena. Belair has proven as much, excelling in high-stakes, championship clashes in her last three WrestleMania appearances while Cargill succeeded in All Elite Wrestling, commanding attention despite what can best be described as lazy booking.

Their stare down in the middle of the Royal Rumble match Saturday was electrifying, captivating the audience and bringing the fans inside Tropicana Field to their feet. Their strength, raw athleticism, agility, and aura captivate the audience and the mere tease of a showdown between them drew one of the biggest reactions of the night.

Put them in the ring, with nothing at stake but bragging rights, and let them cook. The fans in Philadelphia will react accordingly and WWE will right one of the wrongs in WrestleMania history: the lack of women's matches not centered around gold.

After the reaction their face-off garnered in the Royal Rumble, do not be surprised to see Triple H and Co. do just that.

Women's World Championship Match: Becky Lynch vs. Rhea Ripley

Becky Lynch's loss in Saturday night's Women's Royal Rumble will not deter her from a championship match against Rhea Ripley at WrestleMania 40.

If anything, it further lends credibility to The Man's concerns that she is not as good as The Eradicator, as laid out in a pre-Rumble confrontation on Raw. Losing Saturday when she considered the match a must-win only strengthens the idea she may not be the champion's equal and sets up the competitors with a story to tell.

Ripley has been utterly dominant as champion, successfully defending her Women's World Championship, usually in short order. She has followed up her WrestleMania 39 win over Charlotte Flair by becoming one of the most visible and over Superstars on the WWE roster. She seized an opportunity and is thriving, not unlike Lynch did previously.

Two great in-ring performers whose contributions to the industry and the Showcase of the Immortals are undeniable, a showdown between them would be a star-studded affair and one that could easily headline this year's show were it not for what is setting up to be a jam-packed card of legitimate main events.

WWE Women's Championship Match: Bayley vs. Iyo Sky

Bayley's victory in the Women's Royal Rumble was long overdue and more than deserved.

More importantly, it set The Role Model up for a singles match at WrestleMania, the first of her Hall of Fame-worthy career. While she has been outspoken on TV about her intent to challenge Rhea Ripley for the Women's World Championship in hopes of completing Damage CTRL's takeover of WWE, it is the overarching storyline involving her own teammates that will lead her to the grand stage in Philadelphia.

For months, Damage CTRL methodically separated itself from its leader, often leaving her to take losses or making key decisions for the faction without their leader's input. The attitude and side-eyes dealt to Bayley by her supposed friends have been the stuff of impending ex-communication.

This, despite Bayley remaining loyal to her team, as evidenced by her gutsy performance inside War Games at Survivor Series and in repeated instances of helping Asuka, Kairi Sane, and Iyo Sky in high-stakes matches.

There is an inevitable, upcoming turn by Damage CTRL on Bayley that will result in her babyface turn. That betrayal will give way to the Royal Rumble winner challenging Sky for the WWE Women's Championship on the grand stage and, potentially, the career-defining moment she has long deserved as a workhorse between the ropes and one of the company's best performers.

World Heavyweight Championship Match: CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins

Like Becky Lynch, CM Punk's loss in the Men's Royal Rumble will not affect his road to WrestleMania, nor will it prevent the inevitable showdown between him and World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins, likely in the main event of Night One of this year's Showcase of the Immortals.

There is an intense dislike between Rollins and Punk, as evidenced by the former's angry, profanity-laced rant upon the latter's return at November's Survivor Series. He doubles down on his disdain, bluntly telling Punk, "I hate you" in an in-ring promo weeks later.

The Visionary cites comments made by Punk about him and the interactions they had over a decade ago as the emphasis for his anger toward The Straight Edge Superstar. Punk, on the other hand, mentioned that he can speak of his own career without uttering Rollins' name but the world champ cannot say the same about his career or him.

Personal and professional animosity between the competitors in question enhance a championship feud that is too good to pass up presenting on a stage as grand as WrestleMania.

Best yet, the promo work from both men would be enough to carry the program without forcing the injured Rollins to get physical prior to the event.

If Punk can work a few TV matches between now and then and brush off some of the ring rust that appeared to plague him early in his Rumble appearance, perhaps against someone like Drew McIntyre, the proposed contest could be one of the best matches on either night of this year's show.

Undisputed WWE Universal Championship Match: Cody Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns

At WrestleMania 39 in Los Angeles, Cody Rhodes entered SoFi Stadium as the overwhelming favorite to dethrone Roman Reigns and end a historic run as Undisputed WWE Universal Champion. By the time Night Two of The Showcase of Immortals came to a close, The American Nightmare sat in the center of the ring, in a state of disbelief, as The Tribal Chief celebrated to close out another WrestleMania.

Since then, Rhodes has remained focused on the goal at hand, unwavering in his pursuit of the WWE title that eluded his legendary father, Dusty. He overcame Beast Incarnate-sized hurdles, defeated The Judgment Day inside War Games at Survivor Series, and earned his way back to the grandest stage by eliminating CM Punk and winning Saturday's Royal Rumble.

Moments after the victory, he pointed to a skybox containing Reigns and wise man Paul Heyman and made his intentions clear: he is heading to Philadelphia to dethrone The Head of the Table and finish his story.

Reigns has enjoyed a 3.5-year run as champ, the undisputed Big Dog in WWE. There is no denying that, during that time, Rhodes was the greatest threat to his title. No other challenger pushed The Tribal Chief to the limit and nearly ended his reign like the second-generation Superstar and he would have done just that had it not been for Solo Sikoa.

Look for the renewed rivalry to make several callbacks to that previous match, questions about Reigns' ability to win on his own, more Bloodline drama, and plenty of talk about the conclusion of stories.

This will be the main event of Night Two this year, and rightfully so.