8 WWE Royal Rumble 2021 Impulse Reactions

3. Women's Royal Rumble

Edge Royal Rumble
WWE

The fourth Women's Royal Rumble had more pre-show heat thanks to the earnest and rare hope surrounding both favourites.

Bianca Belair's run as a babyface on SmackDown seemed to perfectly coincide with a WrestleMania Championship match. Meanwhile, Rhea Ripley's entry at Number 14 seemed to confirm strong rumours that the match would mark a main roster call-up.

Both made it to the final four alongside veteran and #30 entrant Natalya and perpetual dream-crusher Charlotte Flair. When the Hart Family legend hit the deck, the drama peaked with old fashioned perfection and the ThunderDome noises didn't feel artificial for a change - there was authentic buzz about this finale.

It was heightened by an electrifying, all-time Rumble closing stretch between Belair and Ripley after they paired up to get rid of 'The Queen'. 'The EST' won out after the hardest of hard-fought battles having gone just under an hour after entering at #3. It was a perfect way for the potentially perfect match with Sasha Banks at WrestleMania 37, capping off a very well booked - if occasionally wonkily worked - clash.

 
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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 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. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. 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