WWE Royal Rumble 2016: 10 Things We Learned

9. 'Last Man Standing' Was The Perfect Opener

By contrast, the curtain-jerking 'Last Man Standing' war for the WWE Intercontinental Title was a storming affair. Kicking the show off in earnest, both Dean Ambrose and Kevin Owens certainly earned their wages with this one. Crashing through security barriers and tables and generally causing absolute mayhem, they provided a ton of entertaining moments. It was a shrewd decision by WWE management to put this match on first. Other scheduled matches wouldn't have ramped up the excitement like Owens and Ambrose did - they really set the tone for the rest of the pay-per-view. Imagine, for example, the WWE Tag-Team Title match had been chosen to open proceedings instead. Whilst that was a fine effort, it couldn't hold a candle to the IC Title clash. Wall-to-wall craziness and old-school brawling sensibilities were on full display, and it was a predictably excellent encounter. WWE have used Dean Ambrose and Kevin Owens to great effect during their feud, and it simply must continue.
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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.