12 Ups & 13 Downs For WWE In 2019 (So Far)

11. The Right Road To WrestleMania

Seth Rollins Becky Lynch
WWE.com

WWE dropped the ball spectacularly when it came to booking last year's Royal Rumble winners. Shinsuke Nakamura and Asuka partook in crowd-popping victories at the 2018 event and it looked very much like Vince McMahon had finally conquered his inability to book Japanese wrestlers well, but each flopped within months of their career's greatest triumph. For Nakamura, it was losing to AJ Styles and the never-ending feud that followed, and for Asuka, it was the end of her awesome undefeated streak by Charlotte Flair's hand.

Fortunately, WWE knocked it out of the park in 2019. Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch were the right winners, and their respective pathways to WrestleMania saw them arrive at the year's biggest show just as their momentum was peaking, with both wrestlers partaking in compelling feuds.

Were their programmes perfect? Of course not, but they largely hit the right notes, and their success culminating in the night's two biggest pops after Kofi Kingston's emotional WWE Title triumph. Battered and bludgeoned, Rollins rose to slay Brock Lesnar in the opener, while Lynch's triumph in the first-ever women's main event transcended the sloppy finish to her bout with Ronda Rousey and Flair.

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Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.