This week, WWE ‘made history’ once again as Stephanie McMahon announced that on 28th January at the 2018 Royal Rumble pay-per-view, the company will hold the first ever women’s royal rumble match. A highlight of the men’s iteration over the years has been the surprise entrants, be they returns, one-off cameos, debuts or blasts from the past, that have run down the ramp for a shot at Wrestlemania gold. So, which women not on the main Raw and Smackdown rosters might we see make their way down the ramp when the buzzer sounds at zero?
5. The Iconic Duo
Peyton Royce and Billie Kay have been a heelish highlight of NXT during 2017. They play the mean girls role to perfection and are never afraid to get their comeuppance as the butt of a joke. Yet, they can both go in the ring. An appearance from either of these ladies would make the inaugural female rumble truly Iconic.
4. Nikki Cross
The Sanity member has also been a real highlight of NXT and more than proved her worth in an outstanding last man standing match against Asuka during 2017. Her character is unhinged and played so well that the Scotswoman brings an air of unpredictability to any situation, and chaos is very welcome in a royal rumble match.
3. Lita
An Attitude Era favourite who is still on very good terms with the company, having served on pre-show panels during recent years, Lita is a Hall of Famer who went against the grain of the divas during the early 2000s and was one of the more extreme in the ring. The last time we saw her get physical was at Raw’s 1,000th episode in 2012. Will we see her climb back into the ring five and a half years later?
2. Ronda Rousey
Ronda Rousey is arguably the biggest star MMA has ever produced. Sure, her last couple of bouts in the octagon didn’t go as planned, but her name still means more to the general public than anyone else in the sport thanks to her star power in the UFC and subsequent movie roles. Ronda is a lifelong WWE fan and even made an appearance at Wrestlemania 31, joining The Rock inside the ring to help take out Stephanie McMahon and Triple H. It’s been heavily rumoured that she’s WWE-bound for a while and her four horsewomen cohort Shayna Baszler is joining the NXT roster imminently. The Royal Rumble would be a great way to debut Rousey and would cause the crowd to pop massively.
1. Trish Stratus
Arguably the most fondly remembered women’s wrestler of all time, Trish Stratus has been retired for more than a decade aside from a Christmas appearance in which she teamed with John Cena way back nine years ago and a six-person tag match at Wrestlemania 27 (almost seven years ago). Starting her career with the WWE as a fitness model with no wrestling experience, Stratus became one of the company’s best performers, both in the ring and in terms of character. Along with Lita, she was part of the first women’s main event on Raw and is a Hall of Famer. While she is a mother of two and runs her own business, therefore likely ruling out a full-time return, hearing that chuckle ring out across the arena would make for a heck of a moment and add a certain amount of legitimacy to this monumental rumble match.
Honourable mention: Stephanie McMahon
For the reaction alone. Imagine if she won…
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