Why the Royal Rumble Is a More Exciting Event Than WrestleMania

Every year, the WWE kicks things off with the Royal Rumble. It is the beginning of the road to WrestleMania and something that no wrestling fan can miss.

It is also the most exciting event of the year.

There are some things that WrestleMania has over the Rumble.

There have been the matches with Shawn Michaels, "Mr. WrestleMania" himself.

There is the streak of the Undertaker.

There has even been Money in the Bank, which is returning to WrestleMania.

WrestleMania has some of the best moments of the year and is the Super Bowl of wrestling. It is the best event that fans will see from any wrestling organization all year, but it doesn't have the suspense of the Rumble.

The part of WrestleMania that has come closest to matching it is Money in the Bank and that is by virtue of the fact that it is hard for fans to guess which participant will win the briefcase and the title reign that comes with it.

But even then the participants are pre-determined and announced to the fans in advance.

The same can't be said for the Rumble. There is secrecy built around who will really enter the building and what older wrestlers will make cameos. Even the participants themselves are sometimes masked from the public.

When John Cena appeared as the 30th contestant in the 2008 Royal Rumble, there wasn't anyone in the audience who expected it and the noise that his music elicited proved that.

There are so many possible combinations as to who could come out and in what order that every 90 seconds seems to be an eternity. Even the last 10 go on forever as fans wonder who will be next. 

Will it be a theme song that few fans know from a wrestler that is rarely seen on TV?

Will it be a top-tier talent that everyone will cheer?

Maybe it will be a nostalgia trip with a wrestler some fans haven't seen since they were kids?

Anything is possible at the Rumble and many moments live in infamy because of it.

Even in years like 2011 where Alberto Del Rio beat Santino Marella to win the Rumble, it was something to talk about. It may have made fans cringe, but it was unexpected and at least it was a change of pace.

At no other event would that combination have been allowed to happen.

WrestleMania may be the greatest event the WWE has all year. It has the grandeur that few yearly events ever gain and uses it well.

However, many of matches have only one of a few outcomes and some are obvious to the fans who tune in.

The Rumble gives no answers and when fans buy it they can only anticipate what might be and look back on what has been.

In the end, that is what fans pay for.

And the Rumble delivers every single time.

Matthew Hemphill writes for the MMA and professional wrestling portion of Bleacher Report.  He also hosts a blog, elbaexiled.blogspot.com, which focuses on books, music, comic books, video games, film, and generally anything that could be related to the realms of nerdom.