10 Expectations Vs. Reality For WWE Royal Rumble 2021

4. The Winner Of The Universal Championship Match Is...

Daniel Bryan Brock Lesnar
WWE.com

Expectation:

It has to be Kevin Owens.

Only your understanding of the talent involved in the storyline, and the time of year in which it has unfolded, leads you to the answer Roman Reigns. Roman is the biggest star WWE has pushed in years, he can only lose at WrestleMania at the earliest, etc.

But viewed strictly as a fictional programme, Kevin Owens has to win. He's on a long, drawn-out - and at times preposterous - hero's journey. The guy has been beaten down and beaten down and beaten down for months now. Actually, that not hyperbolic at all description literally applies to a single episode of SmackDown, on which he was repeatedly battered by Roman and Jey Uso as part of a show-long hook. He has twice lost to Roman in gimmicked attractions, and was screwed on both occasions. Beaten, cheated, and launched ten feet to his doom, there is but one logical conclusion to this story: he has to prevail.

Otherwise, why go to these often absurd lengths to make him sympathetic?

Reality:

Because it is law in WWE to drag out programmes rather than make the effort to craft different stories spanning just one pay-per-view cycle. Owens will be knackered as a top-level babyface after this, but he can always turn heel.

There's always a way out, not that that's the good version of escapism.

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!