10 Ways WWE Can Guarantee Royal Rumble 2017 Sell-Out
6. Preoccupy Roman Reigns
It’s not his fault, but Roman Reigns has killed the past two Royal Rumbles. His 2015 victory was so obvious that watching the event was almost rendered pointless, and the 2016 build-up practically guaranteed that Triple H would return to screw him out of the WWE Championship. Predictability kills these matches, and when said predictability revolves around the most divisive man in the company, things get even worse.
Reigns has been the focal point for the past two Rumbles, but he should stay on the periphery this time. He’ll be among the favourites (and he should be, given his status in the company), but WWE can’t afford another build-up like the past two years. Presenting Reigns as the clear favourite would mean certain death, and have fans rolling their eyes and switching the computer off instead of logging onto Ticketmaster and buying seats.
Instead, WWE should focus on the United States Championship. Reigns has largely ignored the belt since winning it from Rusev, and it’d do the division a world of good to see him defend it against top-level competition. Scrap the rumoured title vs. title program with Kevin Owens, take “The Guy” out of the spotlight for a few weeks, and let others establish themselves in his absence. A slim hope, of course, but one that would help WWE avoid the mistakes of the past two years.