WWE Royal Rumble 2022 predictions
By Ryan Satin
FOX Sports WWE Analyst
The Royal Rumble is WWE’s most unpredictable event of the year.
Lucky for you, it’s my job to attempt to figure out what might happen anyway — so I’ve come up with a few possible winners for the over-the-top-rope Rumble matches on Saturday, as well the rest of the card.
Emanating from The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis, this year’s Royal Rumble lineup is as follows:
- The Men and Women’s Royal Rumble matches for a title shot of the winners' choosing at WrestleMania in April
- Roman Reigns (c) vs. Seth Rollins — Universal Championship
- Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Bobby Lashley — WWE Championship
- Edge and Beth Phoenix vs. The Miz and Maryse
- Becky Lynch (c) vs. Doudrop — Raw Women’s Championship
First, let’s start with the WWE title match, because I think it might set off a chain of events that’ll unfold throughout the night.
Brock Lesnar vs. Bobby Lashley — WWE Championship
There’s no question this is a dream match.
Lesnar versus Lashley is something WWE fans have been waiting over a decade to see, and I’m expecting it to deliver on all fronts.
Here’s the thing, though. Brock winning the WWE title was basically a blip in the timeline. It wasn’t supposed to happen. Now, we’re in a new timeline where things are all out of whack — which explains Cowboy Brock on Monday — and order needs to be restored to get things back on track.
Brock versus Roman at WrestleMania was where the story was going.
To resume this storyline, I have a feeling Lashley defeats Lesnar for the WWE Championship with assistance of some sort from Paul Heyman.
As much as I’ve enjoyed seeing Brock reunite with Heyman, "The Beast" is massively over as a babyface and audiences are eating up every single thing he says on the microphone, therefore the pairing just isn’t needed.
Roman, on the other hand, has felt like something was missing from his act ever since relieving the Special Counsel of his duties. Heyman has also never spoken ill of his former Tribal Chief and continually shows that he still cares. I think it’s a clue of where his allegiances lie.
PREDICTION: Bobby Lashley via submission stoppage after distraction from Paul Heyman
Edge and Beth Phoenix vs. The Miz and Maryse
This has been a fun story.
Getting the chance to watch Edge and Beth Phoenix team together for the first time on Saturday will be a nice moment for longtime fans, one we never thought we’d get to see, and Miz/Maryse are the perfect opponents to do it against.
This one seems like an easy call, though. There’s no reason to extend this feud beyond the mixed tag match, and I’m assuming Edge will begin to setup a different program for WrestleMania in the next few weeks.
PREDICTION: Edge and Beth Phoenix via pinfall
Becky Lynch vs. Doudrop — Raw Women’s Championship
Doudrop has been killing it on WWE TV as of late and making the most of every opportunity, especially in the build to this match.
I particularly liked her confidence in their segment on Raw this week, and I’m hoping the Becky bout is a breakout match for her going forward.
Unfortunately, I have a hard time believing she has enough momentum right now to defeat Becky Lynch before the Road to WrestleMania begins.
PREDICTION: Becky Lynch via pinfall
Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins — Universal Championship
This might be the most hyped I’ve been for a match between two heels.
For over five hundred days, Roman Reigns has felt untouchable while becoming the true embodiment of his "Head of the Table" persona. During that same time, however, Seth Rollins was re-defining his character as well and proving he’s a master of reinvention like others before him.
Now, the former members of The Shield will clash as two new, fully-formed characters — making their upcoming match feel like a very big deal.
As I said before, though, I believe Heyman’s allegiances still lie with Roman Reigns. Therefore, after turning on Brock earlier in the night, it would make sense for Paul to restore order to the timeline by reuniting with "The Tribal Chief" and helping him retain the Universal title against Seth.
PREDICTION: Roman Reigns via pinfall after interference from Heyman
Men’s Royal Rumble Match
Confirmed competitors: Omos, Randy Orton, Riddle, Otis, Chad Gable, Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, Kevin Owens, Big E, AJ Styles, Damian Priest, Johnny Knoxville from Jackass, Sami Zayn, Kofi Kingston, Happy Corbin, Madcap Moss, Sheamus, Angelo Dawkins, Montez Ford, Rey Mysterio, Dominik Mysterio, Austin Theory.
Who I want to win: Big E
Big E deserved better for his first World title reign.
Fans were excited when he was given the ball to run with on Raw, yet for some reason he was continually booked as a weak champion, and the short reign ended with the charismatic powerhouse not being able to put up much of a fight against Brock Lesnar in the end.
I would love to see him get a shot at redemption, though, by winning the Royal Rumble and getting a rematch for the WWE title on the Grandest Stage of Them All.
Who I think will win: Brock Lesnar
If you’ve read this far, you knew this was coming.
Brock losing the WWE title, then inserting himself into the Royal Rumble and winning the whole thing for a title shot of his choosing at WrestleMania makes the most sense.
That way he can tease a rematch for the WWE Championship against Lashley – who he (at this point) would’ve lost the WWE title to unfairly – or a Universal Championship match against Reigns, the Superstar he was already trying to fight at WrestleMania.
Wild card: Riddle
This one is a longshot now, but I had previously speculated on Riddle winning the Royal Rumble and the breakup of RKO being a WWE title storyline heading into WrestleMania.
I don’t think that’s the case anymore, as Brock Lesnar and Day 1 happened, but it was worth mentioning again just in case.
Women’s Royal Rumble Match
Confirmed competitors: Bianca Belair, Charlotte Flair, Liv Morgan, Naomi, Rhea Ripley, Nikki A.S.H., The Bella Twins, Carmella, Queen Zelina, Lita, Michelle McCool, Kelly Kelly, Dana Brooke, Natalya, Mickie James, Tamina, Shayna Baszler, Summer Rae, Aliyah, Shotzi.
Who I want to win: Bianca Belair
"The EST of WWE" winning the Royal Rumble again on Saturday, then going on to WrestleMania in April and defeating Becky Lynch to regain the Raw Women’s title, is what should happen this year.
Becky has been fantastic since returning, but she herself even told me back in October that Belair’s 27-second loss at SummerSlam would all get paid off in the end and eventually be good for Bianca.
Unfortunately, that hasn’t really happened.
A WrestleMania rematch/win for Bianca would, though.
Who I think will win: Charlotte Flair
The SmackDown Women’s champ declaring herself for the Royal Rumble makes her the most likely candidate to win.
The champion being able to pick their own WrestleMania opponent is unique, too, so I could see the powers that be wanting to explore that story to make Charlotte’s program heading into the biggest event of the year feel different.
It also wouldn’t surprise me to see Flair eventually choose Becky Lynch for a title versus title match at WrestleMania, too, so they can continue to play into their real-life issues that were made public last year and make the match feel even bigger.
Wild card: Ronda Rousey
We’ve all seen the rumors now, so this is the elephant in the room.
Could Ronda Rousey return on Saturday?
I honestly have no idea, but if she did, it would certainly be a huge moment and make headlines all around the world.
It would also be interesting to see if it leads to WWE finally booking her in a singles match at WrestleMania against Becky Lynch — the match we’ve all been craving to watch — or if they go another way with it.
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Ryan Satin is a WWE analyst for FOX Sports. Satin previously appeared on FS1's "WWE Backstage" and founded Pro Wrestling Sheet, where he broke countless news stories as editor-in-chief.
