10 Things That HAVEN'T Totally Sucked About WWE In 2021
3. Maintaining The Royal Rumble's Aura
The Royal Rumble without a live audience is like crackers without cheese; it's fine, but it's nowhere near as enjoyable.
This was the fear many wrestling fans held for the 2021 Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Going down on 31 January, we were prevented from deafening reactions for the likes of Damian Priest and Christian, instead being offered a clap here and there via the WWE ThunderDome.
Nonetheless, the Royal Rumble still maintained its typical aura.
Without fans in attendance, WWE didn't need to bring in the surprise entrants for either Rumble match. They've got enough folks on the roster to do without a cheap pop. That they still went through with bringing the likes of Carlito and Victoria back is a half-testament to the company's rare willingness to meet the company motto.
They understand that many viewers are using professional wrestling as an escape. This is often the case as it is, however, the past 16 months have brought fans closer to the product than ever before.
By preserving the usual ambience of a Royal Rumble match, that escape route gets a tad exciting for a few minutes. Christian, for example; this was his first match in seven years. Sure, his comeback going down without fans is a shame, however, it still happened. It brought your writer to tears, at least.