WWE Royal Rumble 2012: Why Chris Jericho Can Still "End the World as We Know It"

The 2012 edition of WWE's Royal Rumble is over and we are left with many questions after the pay-per-view.

The biggest question seems to be: "Why didn't Jericho win the rumble?"

Sure, after the big build up to his return and a few weeks of him saying little to nothing after his return, his loss at the Royal Rumble seems like a disappointment, but maybe he was never meant to win the Rumble in the first place like so many of us believed. 

Jericho is so firmly entrenched in the lore of wrestling, he does not need a Royal Rumble win to validate his career. He put on a decent showing in what was a somewhat lackluster Royal Rumble event. He entered at No. 29 and had a pretty entertaining exchange with Sheamus in the closing moments of the Rumble match until he was eliminated with a Brogue Kick.

Everybody wants to see Jericho vs. Punk at WrestleMania and I would love to see that match too. However, Jericho winning that match would not be "The End of the World as We Know It," although many in the IWC might think it is the end of the world if Punk loses (kidding).

I think the way Jericho could end the the world as we know it, is by facing The Undertaker at WrestleMania. Jericho is the one legitimate threat to the Streak that 'Taker has yet to face in a WrestleMania setting.

While I don't see Jericho ending the Streak, he is one of the few that fans could see being able to do so. He was the first Undisputed Champion in WWE by winning the WWE Championship from Steve Austin and the World Championship from The Rock on the same night. Quite an accomplishment considering who he won them from.

Many have speculated that WrestleMania 28 will be the last match in the legendary career of the Undertaker. If the WWE was confident enough to have Jericho be the first Undisputed Champion, they are probably comfortable with him being The Undertaker's last opponent.

I'm putting words in people's mouths here, but The Undertaker would probably be fine with facing someone the caliber of Chris Jericho in his final match as well. 

People still talk to this day about the feud that Jericho and Shawn Michaels had. This feud could be on the same level of that, if not greater due to the circumstances surrounding the importance of the match.

Just imagine if Chris Jericho was the superstar to cause the retirement of the legendary Undertaker. That would certainly be "The End of the World as We Know It", wouldn't it?

Thanks for reading.