10 Big Talking Points From WWE Royal Rumble 2017
6. Reigns At Number 30
Building on the previous point, it seemed fairly likely that at number 30 we’d be treated to some kind of a surprise this year. With all the big guns having already entered, I’m sure many were hoping—expecting, even—for a Finn Balor or a Samoa Joe to fill the final spot in the 2017 Rumble.
Instead though, we got the pantomime villain of the Royal Rumble piece, Roman Reigns.
I guess it was something of a surprise, given that he hadn’t been announced ahead of time, but it’s fair to say that this wasn’t quite the shock most of us had hoped for.
Regardless of your feelings towards Reigns though, and I personally wasn’t too disheartened to see him at number 30, it makes you wonder what kind of reaction the powers that be were expecting in gifting him the final spot.
You’d have thought they’d have learned their lesson from 2014, when even Rey Mysterio was heavily booed because he wasn’t the man the fans wanted to see emerge at number 30. It’s almost enough to re-open the debate of whether they’re finally going to embrace the idea of a heel turn for Reigns, but at this point I think we’ve just about exhausted that one...