10 Early Favourites To Win WWE Royal Rumble 2018 Match

5. AJ Styles

Roman Reigns
WWE.com

WWE's perception of AJ Styles crystallises the sea change in the company's recruitment policy. You still can't shift the niggling doubt that, while definitively not a B+ Player, Styles hovers at the A- level. His legacy and popularity is such that he can be transplanted into the headline ranks with no real need to reheat him. But he's not and probably will never be the guy, even on a SmackDown roster relatively low on star power.

That doesn't necessarily prohibit a Royal Rumble win. The Rumble's selling point - the winner goes onto headline WrestleMania - has been sold off several times this decade. Styles challenging for the WWE Title on the midcard is more than plausible. Say the AJ Styles Vs. Shinsuke Nakamura dream match is just that. Who else is there on the heel side for Styles to challenge? The Kevin Owens rivalry outstayed its welcome quickly. Jinder Mahal's low currency isn't sustainable. You'd hope. Baron Corbin isn't 'Mania-ready - but then again, Mahal's performance at SummerSlam was laid out to be dismal, so that might not matter that much.

Bobby Roode debuted on SmackDown as a face. That must be a red herring, regardless of how over his entrance theme is. A retread of Roode's moneyed pr*ck versus Roderick Strong's humble everyman writes and sells itself.

The prospect of WWE allowing themselves to promote a match for the biggest prize on the biggest stage between two TNA homegrown talents is less plausible, though.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!