A lifetime ago by the time December arrives (in this of all years specifically), the Royal Rumble matches often get overlooked in the end-of-year cycle unless they leave behind something resembling a lasting legacy.
It remains to be seen if the winners can do just that, but the matches on the night did much to reassure respective winners Bianca Belair and Edge that the company can still do the basics well. Two gripping battle royals that managed to crown crowd-pleasing winners in the empty ThunderDome allowed everybody to feel hopeful on a Road to WrestleMania that simply needed to be optimistic.
Many had hoped that the Rumble's rich history could go untainted by the ongoing global b*stard, and while that wasn't to be, the road to some normality seemed to sync up with WWE's road to getting audiences back in the most financially fruitful period on the calendar.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
