WWE TLC 2015: Feuds That Will Continue Through Royal Rumble

After several weeks of lousy build, WWE TLC 2015 ultimately exceeded expectations on Sunday night. The WWE Tag Team Championship ladder match, Dean Ambrose's surprising intercontinental title win and Roman Reigns annihilating Triple H were among the many highlights the show had to offer.

As seen on Monday's Raw, however, TLC was far from the end of the line for several storylines. In fact, it might have been just the beginning for a few of them as the Royal Rumble pay-per-view quickly approaches.

With the January classic six weeks away, look for these feuds from TLC to continue going into 2016.

Dean Ambrose vs. Kevin Owens

Credit: WWE.com

Originally, Ambrose and Owens were set to clash at Survivor Series for the Intercontinental Championship, but the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament took them off track. They ended up facing off at the event anyway in a non-title match that was won by Ambrose.

In the weeks that followed, very little was said about the Intercontinental Championship rematch that was scheduled to take place at TLC. WWE didn't bother to put heat on the match until the last possible minute by having Ambrose throw his popcorn and soda at Owens on the Dec. 7 edition of Raw.

Despite that, the two contested an exciting affair at the event. The crowd bought into each of the near-falls and popped huge for Ambrose scoring the three-count and his first intercontinental title.

Owens is arguably more dangerous now that he is no longer champion than when he was. On the next night's Raw, he annihilated Ambrose and potential challenger Dolph Ziggler.

It's apparent that the former NXT champion will stop at nothing until he has the prestigious prize back in his possession. Even if he has to go through Ziggler to get his rightful rematch, look for the next chapter in the ongoing Owens vs. Ambrose feud to go down at the Royal Rumble.

The New Day vs. The Usos vs. The Lucha Dragons

Credit: WWE.com

New Day proved just why they are the hottest thing going in WWE right now with their blockbuster victory at TLC. They've survived Fatal 4-Ways, 2-out-of-3 Falls matches and even Elimination Chambers, but never before had they endured a ladder match quite like the one they took place in Sunday evening.

Even with the odds stacked against them, New Day prevailed in an incredible effort where not one of the six Superstars involved walked away unscathed. It was arguably the greatest ladder match in the history of the event that set a precedent for future ones to come.

Although New Day emerged victorious, The Lucha Dragons and The Usos remain in hot pursuit of their twin titles. They faced off on Raw and showed their adversaries respect before laying them out.

Technically, the WWE tag team champions never did anything to deserve the beating they received, but that's neither here nor there. What's important is that New Day still have their work cut out for them in the form of their challengers, who won't stay down for long.

It remains to be seen whether anything will top their insane ladder match at TLC, but the three teams will continue to vie over the belts for the foreseeable future if Monday night was any indication.

Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus

Credit: WWE.com

There hadn't been much debate that prior to this week's Raw, fans viewed the Reigns-Sheamus feud as an albatross dragging down the quality of TLC in the weeks leading up to the pay-per-view. They dominated a majority of the program, yet they didn't have the chemistry in the ring or on the mic to show for it.

Even their TLC matchup didn't measure up to past main events at the December staple. They put forth a commendable effort, but the crowd couldn't have cared less who won, and Sheamus retaining the title was deflating, to say the least.

Thankfully, that all changed on Monday night. With his job on the line, WWE gave Reigns one final opportunity to contend for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Sheamus, and he made the most of it.

Vince McMahon attempted to interfere from ringside, but to no avail, as Reigns knocked both him and Sheamus out to prevail as the new champion. But if you think that is the end of the road for this rivalry, you're sorely mistaken.

Of course, Sheamus still has his rematch clause, and while it would be wise for WWE to blow off the feud in the next few weeks, there's a chance the company holds off until the Royal Rumble and drags it out as long as possible.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, is a journalism major at Endicott College. Visit his website, Next Era Wrestling, and "like" his official Facebook page to continue the conversation on all things wrestling.

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