10 Outside Bets To Win WWE Royal Rumble 2018

1. Shawn Michaels

Daniel Bryan Shawn Michaels
WWE

Wrestling fan hearts were all a flutter when AJ Styles retweeted a fan-made Royal Rumble 2017 poster that positioned him against Shawn Michaels as a mammoth main event for the show's return to San Antonio's Alamo Dome. Home turf for 'The Heartbreak Kid' and the site of a WWE Title victory for him twenty years earlier, the fantasy didn't become a reality then, but Shawn was unusually coy about the whole thing when the pair sat down with Kevin Nash on a joyous 'Table For 3' Network special earlier this year.

Ordinarily very happily retired, Michaels couldn't hide his enthusiasm over the prospect of wrestling somebody as exceptional as he was, and as far as part-timers returning for big WrestleMania paydays go, there'd be few as welcome as 'Mr WrestleMania' himself.

If 'The Phenomenal One' can hold onto his title at Clash of Champions, attention will rightfully turn to the direction of the Championship at WrestleMania. Based on their brief face-off at Money in the Bank, Shinsuke Nakamura seems a heavy favourite, but a single Sweet Chin Music upon the chin of AJ would be ample replacement for the 'King Of Strong Style's educated feet.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett