Making the Case for Sami Zayn to Be Iron Man of the 2017 Royal Rumble Match

Come Monday morning, the spotlight following Sunday's WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view will likely be on one man—the winner of the 30-man main event.

However, more often than not, WWE tries to place the attention on a number of stars following that bout, with the Road to WrestleMania kicking off good and proper following the Rumble match every year.

In addition to the winner and the favorites, the iron man—the man who lasts the longest in the bout—is someone who can often receive a big push off the back of the Rumble match. This year, WWE would be wise to hand that role to Sami Zayn.

Guys like Bob Backlund and Triple H have lasted over an hour in the past. Last year, Roman Reigns was 10 seconds shy of joining them. Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio and Dolph Ziggler have all gone in excess of 45 minutes—there's always one guy every year who spends a lengthy period in the match, and for many reasons this year, it has to be Zayn.

To say it has been an easy transition to the main roster for Zayn would be an exaggeration. While lifelong friend and longtime rival Kevin Owens has gone on to become a pivotal part of Raw's main event scene, Zayn has sputtered in the midcard.

He's struggled to make an impact, but recently, Zayn has begun to come out of his shell. His feud with Braun Strowman helped propel him into the minds of fans, and a major victory against Seth Rollins on Raw this past Monday secured his spot in the Rumble match itself. From there, he should be given the chance to continue moving upward.

Spending such a long time in the Royal Rumble match involves nearly being eliminated on at least one or two occasions. You don't go 45 or 50 minutes without coming perilously close to going over the top rope, and as WWE's self-billed underdog, Zayn would make for a great Rumble iron man.

WWE should have Zayn enter the match early—maybe even as the first entrant. Let Strowman think he's eliminated Zayn before the Canadian just barely clings on, living to fight another day. More Superstars can try, too, but they should all fail—at least in the match's opening stages.

This will not only establish his reputation as the plucky underdog—in the mold of Daniel Bryan—but it will also help endear him to WWE fans. To say he's truly over with audiences right now is probably stretching it a bit, but matches like these are what can create stars of the future.

With a strong performance in the Royal Rumble match, Zayn can go anywhere on Raw. If Owens drops the Universal Championship and wins the United States Championship from Chris Jericho at WrestleMania, those two guys can revive their feud with some gold on the line.

Or maybe he could look even higher. If Strowman is trusted with Raw's top prize, a reunion with the big monster could be in his future.

But it all starts this Sunday. For too long, Zayn has been overlooked as a major player on Raw. Lasting longer than anyone else in this year's Royal Rumble match would be a great way to set him up for WrestleMania and beyond.