WWE Royal Rumble 2017: 5 Elimination Scenarios That Will Boost Current Feuds

The Royal Rumble match serves many different purposes in WWE. Surprise appearances and returns? Check. Nostalgic comfort food? Check. An all-out brawl that mixes and matches strange bedfellows while teasing potential feuds and alliances? Check. Another Shield reunion? God, let's hope not.

But one of the most important devices of the Royal Rumble match is to further existing feuds. Each year, ongoing tensions translate into eliminations, as rivalries are taken to the next level when one individual costs another an opportunity to main-event WrestleMania. This is the unheralded value of the Royal Rumble match that, if done correctly, can set the stage for a successful showcase in April.

Braun Strowman Eliminates Sami Zayn

The feud between Braun Strowman and Sami Zayn is beginning to hit its peak. Zayn has not appeared on television since being destroyed by Strowman during a Last Man Standing match on the first Raw of the year. Zayn's absence could be a blessing in disguise if WWE plays it correctly.

To maximize fan reaction to Zayn and this feud, it would behoove WWE to save his return for the Royal Rumble to confront the mighty Strowman. This would be a great moment that gives this budding feud a big stage to set up a compelling match at WWE Fastlane.

If Zayn's triumphant return occurs at the Royal Rumble, there's an outside chance that he eliminates Strowman. But Strowman has "most eliminations" written all over him for the 2017 event, and the theme of this feud has been the fighting spirit of a lovable loser getting extinguished by a giant.

The Miz Eliminates Dean Ambrose

The Miz has not missed a beat since moving on from his highly successful feud with Dolph Ziggler and even dropping the Intercontinental Championship to de facto top star Dean Ambrose. With Renee Young incorporated into the Ambrose-Miz feud and a thin roster on SmackDown, this feud isn't ending anytime soon and may carry both stars all the way to WrestleMania.

Ambrose has all the momentum in this rivalry, and a cheap elimination by The Miz is the perfect ingredient to keep these two at odds while keeping fans engaged.

Triple H Eliminates Seth Rollins

It would be shocking if WWE held WrestleMania 32-and-a-half inside the Alamodome with over 60,000 people and Triple H didn't show up. The Game hasn't appeared on Raw since costing Seth Rollins the Universal Championship last summer, and since then, Rollins has lacked purpose as everybody waits for this seemingly inevitable WrestleMania program to resume.

A simple cameo, with Triple H either distracting Rollins or eliminating his former protege, would be more than enough to reignite a potentially show-stealing WrestleMania program.

Goldberg Eliminates Brock Lesnar

After getting squashed by Goldberg, WWE seems to be going with the story that Goldberg will be in Brock Lesnar's head. If The Beast Incarnate is on his way to redemption in a potential match against Goldberg at WrestleMania, getting eliminated by the WCW legend would just give Lesnar all the more reason to chase those ghosts.

Lesnar's elimination just feels like one of those moments that will lead to a huge brawl that stops the Royal Rumble in its tracks.

Lesnar and Goldberg will likely be responsible for their own demises in this match, but Goldberg tossing out Lesnar first would capture the zeitgeist of this feud.

Randy Orton Eliminates Luke Harper

After losing back-to-back championship matches to American Alpha, The Wyatt Family seems to be headed for a split, namely from Randy Orton. Apparently on SmackDown, all it takes is two consecutive championship losses to warrant a split, as this was the fate of Rhyno and Heath Slater following their losses.

Orton and Luke Harper have teased tension with one another for a while now, but it is a mistake for the Wyatts to break up this early. Maybe this was the plan all along to enhance a pre-existing feud between Orton and Bray Wyatt, but Orton's character has been reinvigorated by his association with the Wyatts. It's tough to remember Orton being this interesting outside of his in-ring performances, but WWE seems poised to take it all away.

Expect a miscue to lead The Viper to snap, thereby tossing out Luke Harper in a move that will set the stage for a WrestleMania match against The Eater of Worlds.

Alfred Konuwa is a Featured Columnist and on-air host for Bleacher Report and Forbes. Like him on Facebook.