WWE Royal Rumble 2019: 10 Things We Learned

10. Rusev Day Is Postponed (Again)

Rusev Lana
WWE.com

Cancel the planned celebrations, call off the marching band and pop those balloons, because Rusev Day has been pushed back. Yes, again, and it'll probably happen a few more times throughout 2019 too.

When Rusev lost the United States Title back to Shinsuke Nakamura during the Rumble's Kickoff show, it was just one more setback for the man. He's suffered many over the years, and it's maddening. Ru-Ru has the look, the babe on his arm, the skills in-ring and some personality on the mic, but he cannot push above mid card status.

The Rumble was a bit of a hammer blow to his chances of snagging a slot on the 'Mania card outside of that pre-show Battle Royal too. In the 'new' WWE, automatic title rematches apparently don't happen (we'll see how long that lasts), and that means Rusev is out of the US picture.

It's tough to see where he goes from here. WWE handed him the belt for a third time in late-December, then whipped it back off him on Sunday. His reign, much like that of every recent US Champ not-named Nakamura, was pointless.

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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.