WWE Royal Rumble 2018: How the Women’s Rumble can stand out

With the first ever Women’s Royal Rumble Match in WWE history set for Sunday, here are a few ways the match can stand out.

WWE history will be made this Sunday in Philadelphia as the first ever Women’s Royal Rumble Match is set to take place at the first pay-per-view of the year as the road to WrestleMania 34 begins.

The historic announcement was made by Stephanie McMahon on the Dec. 18 episode of Monday Night RAW, and it truly was an amazing night as the women standing in the ring with her had no idea it was coming. The pure joy on their faces was evident, and it really did make for an exciting moment.

This historic announcement couldn’t come soon enough. The women’s division is as good as it’s ever been, and these phenomenal athletes have been making history left and right over the past few years. They’ve been the main event of RAW and SmackDown Live. They’ve been in the main event of a pay-per-view. 2016 gave us the first Women’s Hell in a Cell Match. 2017 gave us the first Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match, which actually turned into doing it twice (more on that in a minute), and 2018 will give us the first Women’s Royal Rumble Match. What a time to be alive, am I right?

However, with any “first” comes a great deal of responsibility and pressure to succeed. This match has to be special and has to stand out. I do like that the women are being treated as equals when it comes to the Royal Rumble. They didn’t get a lower number and are getting 30 entrants. They didn’t go with the competitors having to just hit the floor as they’ve done in past battle royals. To be eliminated, one must be thrown over the top rope, and that’s the right call. So they’re off to a good start. Here’s just a few more ways that the Women’s Royal Rumble can be a success.

Keep the boys away from it

I hate that I even have to start with this but it had to be said. I can look back and see Santino Marella being crowned Miss WrestleMania and I cringe. However, getting into something more recent and what I alluded to a moment ago, we can’t get anything like we saw at the inaugural Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match. These women fought like hell to get chances like that, and to have a man, especially a man likes James Ellsworth, be the one to climb up and grab the briefcase was an absolute travesty. I know neither work for the company anymore, but if I see Santino or Ellsworth anywhere near the Royal Rumble, I’m going to lose it.

Give us a few surprises

We’ve already seen Kurt Angle on the phone talking with somebody about coming back so I may not even have to mention this. However, the WWE Universe usually expects a surprise or two at the Royal Rumble, and the women’s edition should be no different. With all they did for the division, I would love to see both Trish Stratus and Lita in there squaring off. Can you imagine the pop that would get? Yes, most of the spots should be reserved for current superstars, but a few surprises never hurt anyone.

Give them the time

What initially got this women’s revolution rolling was the amount of television time their matches were getting. They would get three or four minutes at a time, even for title matches. That obviously won’t be the case on Sunday with 30 entrants but don’t make the intervals between entrants less than the men. Whether it’s 90 seconds or two minutes or whatever they’re going to go with, keep them the same. Give these ladies time to shine. They deserve it.

Don’t open the show with it

I understand that there’s two Royal Rumble matches to get through. We know that the men are probably going to close the show, and that’s okay. But don’t have the women open up the show. There are so many title matches and big names on the card that there are plenty of things that can jerk the curtain. Get a match or two in there, maybe even one of the world title matches, and then go with it. Don’t start with it and then let everyone forget about it as the night goes on. I know some might say that it would then just be another match in the middle of the card, but if done correctly, that won’t be the case.

Keep things interesting

There have been plenty of bad Royal Rumble matches. It’s hard to keep things rolling for an entire hour, and things can get slow. But there have been good Royal Rumble matches and great Royal Rumble matches and this first one HAS to be in one of those categories. The action has to keep flowing throughout and the booking is so key. I’m not even talking about who wins right now. What I’m talking about is telling good stories that keep the crowd invested the entire time. Just tell good stories, ones that can continue into Monday and Tuesday nights. You can set up months of programming in one night. Take Sasha Banks and Bayley. With that history, one of them almost has to eliminate the other to set something up for the future. Create dissension within factions. Bring in the surprise entrants at the right time. The great Rumble matches have an entertaining beginning, middle and end, and it’s important that this first one follows that formula.

Make sure to get the winner right

Now we can talk about who actually wins. First of all, I’m going to go ahead and state that I DO NOT want Ronda Rousey in this match. Could that be a way for the match to stand out? Of course. But there are plenty of other ways to get her into WWE, and this isn’t it. The winner of the inaugural Women’s Royal Rumble needs to be somebody on the current main roster and it needs to be somebody that the crowd wants to see at WrestleMania. Asuka is the obvious choice here, but even if it’s not her, WWE can’t risk the Batista outrage from 2014 or the Roman Reigns fiasco the following year. The final four needs to be very strong featuring real possible contenders. Send the crowd home happy and get out of there.

Next: WWE Royal Rumble 2018: Preview, prediction and picks

How do you think the first Women’s Royal Rumble Match is going to go? Feel free to join in the conversation in the comments section below.