WWE Royal Rumble 2015: Power Ranking Likely Rumble Winners After Dec. 15 Raw

Following the Dec. 15 edition of Raw, just one man is officially entered in the marquee match at WWE Royal Rumble 2015—Roman Reigns.

He remains the favorite to win it and likely earn the chance to dethrone Brock Lesnar. There are cases to make for his former stablemates, a powerhouse and a predator, to get that opportunity ahead of him.

WWE still has six weeks to position the Royal Rumble winner, to have them looking worthy of a WrestleMania main event.

Based on their current momentum, spot on the card, how WWE has booked them and how ideal of an opponent they would make for Lesnar, here are the Superstars most likely to outlast 29 other men come Jan. 25. 

Dark Horses and Question Marks

• Bray Wyatt
• Sheamus
• Cesaro 
• Dolph Ziggler

It's not clear when Sheamus will be ready to step into the ring again. WWE announced right before Survivor Series that he suffered multiple injuries.

If he's healthy by the time the Rumble begins, he has an outside chance of coming out on top.

The Celtic Warrior has been a main eventer in the past, would give Brock Lesnar a hellacious fight and the company is obviously comfortable with him winning a Rumble, as it let him do so in 2012.

Daniel Bryan, meanwhile, doesn't appear to be anywhere near healthy enough to compete. He has previously talked about hoping to make it back for WrestleMania, which is some three months after the Rumble.

Ziggler seemed in line for a run at the main event after Survivor Series. After winning the Intercontinental Championship at TLC, though, he's more likely to be in midcard limbo.

The Showoff's first match following that title win was, as is the pattern for midcard champs, a non-title loss.

Both Wyatt and Cesaro would make intriguing options, but WWE hasn't consistently committed to either man.

5. Seth Rollins

WWE is clearly confident placing Seth Rollins in the main event.

After battling John Cena at TLC in a high-profile bout, the company plugged him into Raw's final match against Cena once more. This follows him main eventing Hell in a Cell and playing a prominent role in the Survivor Series marquee bout.

What ups the chance of him eventually clashing with Brock Lesnar is that those two formed an alliance of some kind on Monday's Raw.

Despite Rollins attacking the champ in September, Lesnar didn't pounce on him after entering the cage. Instead, Paul Heyman and Rollins shook hands. 

What holds Rollins' chances back at the Royal Rumble, though, is the fact that he still has the Money in the Bank contract in his possession. He doesn't need the Rumble to get a title shot; that briefcase assures him one at any time he chooses.

Unless some screwy narrative unfolds between now and the Rumble, other Superstars are safer bets to win that 30-man match.

4. Ryback

Since coming off the injured list, Ryback has experienced a surge. For him, it must feel like it's 2011 again, as he's become a babyface on the rise once more.

Per CageMatch.net, The Big Guy has gone 15-1 following his return to the ring in November.

A night after knocking off Kane at TLC, WWE made it clear that his next target is Rusev. The two powerhouses stared each other done during a Highlight Reel segment on Monday's Raw.

If Rusev is the man the company chooses to end Rusev's streak, it's plausible that Brock Lesnar is next on his list. The rivalry with the Russian, however, could just mean he gets crushed in order to further elevate Rusev. 

As hot as Ryback has been, Rusev has been untouchable. If The Bulgarian Brute weren't just in his rookie year and a heel that would make little sense pitting against Lesnar, he'd be in the discussion for the Rumble as well.

3. Randy Orton

Randy Orton's absence from WWE programming continued on Monday's Raw. He didn't pop in for Survivor Series or TLC either.

When he does return, he's expected to make a full face turn. Before Seth Rollins stomped him onto the ring steps, he bucked The Authority, refusing to let his issues with Rollins go.

A babyface Orton makes an intriguing option as the Royal Rumble winner. He's an established main eventer who offers a fresh matchup for Brock Lesnar.

While Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns currently have more momentum, Orton is the safer choice. WWE knows what it has in The Viper; the emerging stars that once made up The Shield are less proven commodities. 

Orton's past accomplishments make him a more likely Rumble winner than Ryback and others. It's the fact that WWE is clearly aiming its compass at the future that puts Ambrose and Reigns ahead of him.

2. Dean Ambrose

Monday's Raw did nothing for Dean Ambrose. He didn't appear until after the show went off the air, as noted by Chris Gabbard of PWInsider.com.

Still, it's obvious that WWE is high on him. He's been a central figure on Raw, SmackDown and pay-per-views for the majority of the year.

If WWE wants to go with someone new to walk out of the Royal Rumble as the victor, Ambrose makes a lot of sense. He's as popular as any of the babyfaces on the roster, earning a loud reaction each time out.

With every extra bit of spotlight he's been given, he has thrived. His matches are consistently entertaining, and the same goes for his mic work. Ambrose has proved himself to the WWE brass, but it may not be ready to crown him just yet.

Since leaving The Shield, The Lunatic Fringe is 0-5 at pay-per-views (not counting a forfeit loss at Battleground), per TheHistoryofWWE.com. That's a sign that he's set to get the Daniel Bryan treatment going forward, offered chances to steal the show but not given a true shot to be the top guy.

Ambrose's track record points to a bout with Brock Lesnar being excellent. The question is if WWE believes in the David-versus-Goliath story that this match would be.

1. Roman Reigns

Despite what Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose have accomplished, WWE has its heart set on Roman Reigns being the man from The Shield to reach the mountaintop first.

At TLC, he became the first man to announce himself as a Royal Rumble entrant. On Monday's Raw, he bowled over Fandango and knocked Big Show in the teeth.

It looks as if WWE is building up Big Show to be a more effective victim for him. The World's Largest Athlete pinned Erick Rowan two nights in a row, the most recent win coming in a tag match on Raw. 

Knocking off Big Show would certainly get Reigns some added momentum leading up to the Rumble. 

Reigns hovered around the main event scene for months until his emergency hernia surgery. Title shots came his way often. 

At last year's Royal Rumble, he eliminated more men than anyone in the event's history, eventually ending up being the last man to go over the top rope.

Reigns is the larger-than-life star whom WWE fell in love with early on. His size makes him a believable foe for Lesnar.

Unless he falls on his face in some obvious way en route to the 30-man match, he's the favorite to win.