Royal Rumble 2012: WWE Screws Up by Having Raw Outshine the Rumble

While the 2012 Royal Rumble was an entertaining show, it paled in comparison to the Raw that happened less than 24 hours later.

Why on earth would WWE make a normal edition of Raw more entertaining than the Royal Rumble?

I’m positive it’s because the people in control of things have let their egos get in the way of making good judgments.

Let’s start with the Royal Rumble itself.

While Pay-Per-Views in wrestling are supposed to be the culmination of storylines and week and months of crafting, the WWE has turned them into nothing more than a stepping stone.

Despite being the third biggest show on the company’s calendar, the WWE decided that it wanted to save two of its top storylines for a normal two-hour edition of Raw.

Thus, they turned my favorite PPV into a mediocre show.

The Royal Rumble match itself was lackluster, and the ending was not what anyone wanted. While Sheamus winning isn’t a terrible thing, there is no rhyme or reason to it.

If Jericho won and challenged CM Punk, that’s something that makes sense. But, WWE seems to hate ideas like that.

No, instead of doing the right thing at a huge PPV, the WWE teases Triple H’s appearance on Raw more than they ever teased anything to do with the Royal Rumble.

While seeing Jericho screw Punk and Undertaker's return on Raw was great, why couldn’t the WWE have done that on Sunday night?

The fans pay all this money to see these epic shows, and they turn out as mediocre as a live edition of SmackDown. Then, the same fans that spent $45 on the product 24 hours ago watches all the things they wanted to see—free—and they swear that he will never buy another WWE PPV.

I’m certain that I’m not the only one who feels this way.

At this point, it feels like the WWE is swerving the fans just for the fun of it, but it will be the fans with the last laugh.

If WWE keeps burying their own PPVs and doing everything fun on Raw, the already struggling view rates will fall farther and farther down before they are forced to make drastic changes.

I have no doubt that if someone competent running TNA they would pass WWE in ratings within two years because of the garbage WWE has been pulling.

Check back for more on World Wrestling Entertainment as it comes, and check out Bleacher Report’s WWE Page to get your fill of all things wrestling. For more on WWE/TNA, check out Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot topics.

Follow @Donald_Wood