Royal Rumble 2012: 7 Wrestlers Who Could Win the Royal Rumble Match

The WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view is the second most important on the WWE calendar. Featuring the Royal Rumble match, the PPV sets the stage for the biggest night of the year: WrestleMania.

Some years, the Royal Rumble can be a boring, drawn-out process that leads to another John Cena championship match at WrestleMania. (Note: John Cena has been involved in a World or WWE Championship match at WM every year since WrestleMania 21. Food for thought.)

Others, the WWE can create a new superstar and take a risk. Last year was a great example of this as Alberto Del Rio won the match. Many members of the IWC didn't think Del Rio was ready for a push, but in my opinion he has filled in admirably in a company that is lacking stars.

That's why I believe the WWE will go with the latter option this year as it continues to rely on part-time stars such as The Undertaker, The Rock, Kane, Rey Mysterio, etc.

The question remains, who could win the 2012 Royal Rumble match?

John Cena

You can never rule out John Cena for a title opportunity. The draw that he receives when he's mearly mentioned in a main event is too big of a cash cow for Vince McMahon to pass up. It would seem like Cena winning the Royal Rumble wouldn't pan out, but there's a way to get it done.

Back in 2008, Cena suffered a severe shoulder injury that was projected to keep him out past WrestleMania 24. The WWE started to lay the seeds for a Triple H/Randy Orton main event, but Cena recovered quicker than expected. Knowing that the WWE couldn't keep Cena out of the main event of Wrestlemania (as the original plan had been Cena vs. Orton), the WWE entered him as the 30th entrant in the Royal Rumble.

Cena would go onto win that match, but in order not to block out Triple H, the WWE decided to have Cena cash in his title shot a month early, and then be thrown into a triple threat at WrestleMania.

With Cena already booked to face The Rock at WrestleMania 28, the WWE could have Cena win the Rumble, then cash in a month early and win. This would fufill Cena's declaration from last April where he said that the main event for WrestleMania 28 would be Rock vs. Cena for the WWE Championship.

It's not people want to hear, but I wouldn't be shocked if the WWE went this route.

Randy Orton

In Captain Obvious scenario B, the WWE could decide to give Randy Orton another Royal Rumble victory. Orton has spent the past month fueding with Wade Barrett, and the WWE may decide to have this rivalry go gold if Orton doesn't bury Barrett at the upcoming Tables, Ladders, Chairs pay-per-view.

Orton would be an interesting choice, but the Royal Rumble is in St. Louis this year. Orton obviously is the second biggest face in the company, so it wouldn't be shocking at all to see him walk out with the WrestleMania title shot.

The only hangup would be if Daniel Bryan still has the Money In The Bank briefcase at the time of the Rumble. If Bryan still has it, the WWE might have an odd situation on their hands if Barrett is the champion with Bryan and Orton having the title shot. A triple threat main event wouldn't be a bad thing for WrestleMania, but it might not be the draw that the WWE wants.

Wade Barrett

If there needs to be evidence that Wade Barett is getting a push, look no further than my fantasy wrestling league. (Yeah, they exist...) An undrafted free agent, Barrett currently leads the league in scoring. To say he's been getting a push is an understatement.

The WWE had buried Barrett in the Nexus/Corre storylines for far too long, and we're finally seeing what Barrett can do with a prolonged singles run. Barrett is the kind of wrestler that could carry the company into its next era as a top heel, and a title shot at WrestleMania would go a long way in doing so.

The scenario I can see playing out here is that Barrett wins the Royal Rumble match and Randy Orton wins the WWE Championship at the Elimination Chamber PPV. Again, while a triple threat between Orton, Barrett, and Bryan could be potentially entertaining I don't see it happening. So perhaps Orton wins the belt and while he's shaking off the cobwebs, Bryan cashes in the briefcase...and walks right into a RKO.

Bryan would become the first Money In The Bank winner to lose the title opportunity and Barrett would face Orton at WrestleMania for the World Heavyweight Championship.

Dolph Ziggler

I am screaming for this to happen more than any other superstar who could win, but it has to start with Ziggler dropping the United States title to Zack Ryder at the TLC pay-per-view.

Ziggler may be the biggest breakout star in the company right now. His matches have gotten better and better every week. He's progressively getting better on the mic too. It would make perfect sense to have Dolph's push come at the Royal Rumble.

Could you imagine how much trash talk Ziggler could spew out if he won the Royal Rumble? There could be some good promos to be had for the "Show Off" of the WWE in that situation.

Ziggler's time is going to come sooner or later. Will it come at one of the company's biggest PPVs?

Cody Rhodes

This could be another darkhorse to win the Royal Rumble match. Rhodes is another guy that, if he won the match, I would have no problem with it.

Rhodes recently abondoned his stupid "Phantom of the Opera" gimmick and instead has put together a bit where he's combined his old style with his new style. The result has been a much more entertaining product.

The problem is that the WWE doesn't feel that Cody Rhodes is "over" as a top heel. After he was buried by Randy Orton at Vengeance, the creative team decided to put him in a fued with Booker T. It's not like it's a bad thing that Booker is out from behind the announcer table, but like Edge being paired with Mick Foley at WrestleMania 23 it seems like Rhodes deserves better. Hence this is why he could win the Royal Rumble.

I'm going to say that I might be a year early on this for Rhodes. He may be a candidate to win the 2013 Royal Rumble, but stranger things have happened.

Kane

I have to get this off my chest first. What the hell is Kane wearing on the left? It looks like Darth Vader, Iron Man, and a welding mask had a three way and that came out of it. Seriously, did Kane burn his face off again while working on his classic Chevrolet? Maybe him and Alberto Del Rio can have a Classic Car Match at WrestleMania!

All kidding aside, Masked Kane is back. Fans have wanted it for a long time, and such a makeover can only mean that The Big Red Machine is going to get rammed down our throats. A Royal Rumble win would make perfect sense for a wrestling standpoint, but as C.I.M. points out, the WWE may have an entirely different reason.

Whatever the case may be, if the WWE wants to go crazy with Kane, putting him in the main event of WrestleMania would be a step in the right direction.

Whichever Wrestler Is the One in the Viginettes

I apologize for being incredibly vague here, but I have no clue who this is going to be.

There are rumors floating around that the person could be Stephanie or Shane McMahon because in this promo, which aired Monday night, the narrator talks about "Control." If it's either of these two, it won't happen.

It also won't happen if these promos are for The Undertaker. If that's the case, I highly doubt he sees a ring until WrestleMania at the earliest, perhaps playing mind games with Triple H prior to a rematch from last year.

It's also been rumored that it could be Chris Jericho. Personally, after holding out hope for a Jericho return for about a year now, I believe that it's just not going to happen any time soon. If it is, I'm estatic...but I'm not going to hold my breath.

Whomever this may be, they're going to have a HUGE role in the WWE beginning next year. If it's an active wrestler, they have to be automatically considered as a potential Royal Rumble winner.