Without a doubt, the biggest opportunity that the WWE missed was to award the WWE World Heavyweight Championship to the winner of the 2016 Royal Rumble. In a time when almost everything has been done before and repeated multiple times over, there has only ever been one Royal Rumble Match to contest the WWE Championship. It is often called the greatest Royal Rumble Match ever, the 1992 battle royal saw Ric Flair outlast 29 other competitors and was an exclamation point on Ric Flair's WWF arrival. To WWF fans, Flair was made into a superstar in just one night. Who knows if the same star treatment could have been achieved by another superstar if given the opportunity at this year's Rumble? The first thought might be that the Royal Rumble PPV was two months away, but especially after the past couple years in which the WWE had gotten fans used to not always seeing the WWE Champion, is that really a problem? And given how well the angle worked out the last time it was utilized as part of the Rumble 23 years ago, isn't it worth the risk? As previously discussed, the title had been off WWE TV for months at a time previously. Why not utilize the Rumble as the culmination for a new Champion? Imagine the anticipation and hype surrounding this event. Both the Survivor Series and TLC PPVs could have been positioned used to establish the entrants, their order, any additional obstacles or shortcuts, allegiances formed and broken, etc. This could've been billed as the "most important Royal Rumble in history" with every entrant spot to be fought hard for. It was undoubtedly the biggest missed opportunity for the WWE and the trajectory of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
A former stuntman for Paramount Pictures, Matt enjoys sports, water skiing, driving fast, the beach, professional wrestling,
technology, and scotch. At the same time, whenever possible.
Having attended many famous (and infamous) shows including WrestleMania XV, In Your House: Mind Games, and the 1995 King of the Ring, Matt has been a lifelong professional sports and wrestling fan. Matt's been mentioned in numerous wrestling podcasts including the Steve Austin Show: Unleashed, Talk Is Jericho, and Something To Wrestle With Bruce Prichard.
As a former countywide performer, Matt has been referred to as Mr. 300 for his amazing accomplishments in the world of amateur bowling. He is also the only man on record to have pitched back-to-back no hitters in the Veterans Stadium Wiffle Ball League of 2003.
