10 Things We Learned From WWE 24: Empowered
6. Safe Hands
On balance, the 2018 Royal Rumble may have been one of the best WWE pay-per-views ever, if only for the impressive feat of presenting two near-identical hour-long matches just a few contests apart without once losing the interest of a notoriously tough capacity crowd.
The primary reason for both matches succeeding beyond even wild expectations on the night was in clear view precisiely 24 hours earlier.
It warmed the cockles to see Royal Rumble architect Pat Patterson back amongst the planning stages at a carefully constructed practice ring the night before the match itself.
Viewers were shown clips of the women rehearsing spots that would eventually creep into the Battle Royal itself, implying that a full rehearsal may have bee conducted to test if Patterson's nous for the clash was as sharp as ever. He deserves additional praise for devising spots that not only contributed to a compelling arc, but also protected the bodies of the diverse selection of performers involved.
Based on the end results (in both the female and male matches for that matter) it appears as though his influence was thankfully still a key ingredient.