Going into the 2016 Royal Rumble, expectations for what was once WWE's second biggest show were arguably at an all-time low. The winner felt like a foregone conclusion - one that many fans didn't want - and the lazy structure of the two previous rumbles had us all believing that this year would complete the trifecta of awful events - and this one without the power of the amazing triple threat WWE Title match that saved last year's card from being a total dud. Our expectations were exceeded in a very real way because WWE went out and delivered a great show that no one saw coming. The ending was not a foregone conclusion, new angles were set up for the future, the debut of a new superstar took the crowd by storm and the Rumble itself was a well-structured bout that told a great story. After months of shaky booking and apathetic audiences, hopefully the Royal Rumble was a step in the right direction as we head into what WWE hopes is their biggest show of all-time. With 100,000 seats to fill, they're going to need to capitalize on every single bit of momentum they're able to build. Let's take a look at everything they did right at the 2016 Royal Rumble.
Brad Hamilton is a writer, musician and marketer/social media manager from Atlanta, Georgia. He's an undefeated freestyle rap battle champion, spends too little time being productive and defines himself as the literary version of Brock Lesnar.
