Royal Rumble 2012: Why Chris Jericho Shouldn't Win the Rumble

Ever since making his return to WWE, Chris Jericho has been shrouded in an aura of mystery. Conventional wisdom will tell you that he is going to breakout at the Royal Rumble and head into WrestleMania with all the momentum in the world.

However, conventional wisdom doesn't always prevail. 

Jericho uttered one sentence on Raw last week that changed everything leading up to the Rumble. All he said was, "This Sunday at the Royal Rumble, it will be the end of the world as you know it."

As disappointed as I was to not hear him finish the line by saying "...and I feel fine," it is telling that he gave the world a glimpse into his master plan before this pay-per-view. 

Instead of winning the Rumble, all Jericho has to do is turn heel by attacking CM Punk and everything will be golden heading into the Elimination Chamber and, subsequently, WrestleMania. 

The Rumble does not have the same aura that it used to, but WWE can get back to the essence of what it is supposed to be. In the past, it was designed as a way to get an upper midcard worker into the main event. 

Now, it has become a way of keeping main eventers at the top. That changed a bit last year with Alberto Del Rio winning the match, but the follow-up to his win turned out to be so bad that it meant nothing. 

Therefore, Jericho does not have to win the Rumble in order to get his match with CM Punk. In fact, it would make for a more compelling story if he didn't win that match and just did something to screw Punk during his WWE Championship match against Dolph Ziggler. 

WWE will be set up to provide the fans with the epic battle of the Best In the World taking on the Best In the World at What He Does. 

This year's Rumble has a different vibe to it than the others because there is no clear winner. Jericho and Randy Orton are the safest bets, but with the tease of everyone—including champions—eligible for this year's match, something special is going to happen. 

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