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The 2024 Royal Rumble provided fans with several unforgettable moments from the night’s two title matches, including unforgettable comebacks and a tense finish with a spot in the main event of WrestleMania 40 on the line.
In the wake of WWE’s first premium live event of the year and the start of the road to WrestleMania, there were several key takeaways from the show.
What were they, what do they mean for the coming weeks and how could they impact WWE’s biggest event of the year?
Find out with this summary of Saturday’s program.
Jade Cargill made her long-awaited debut Saturday during the women’s Royal Rumble and wasted little time establishing herself as a star, almost instantly eliminating the dominant Nia Jax to the approval of the fans at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.
If the crowd’s white-hot response to the 31-year-old wasn’t impressive enough, it somewhat paled in comparison to the reaction to the stare-down with Bianca Belair that followed.
Cargill and The EST of WWE looked at each other and the result was electrifying, with the fans going crazy. It was a dream match almost realized before being prematurely interrupted by the others in the Battle Royal.
That moment made something clear: Cargill vs. Belair is the dream match we need to see on April 6 and 7 as part of WrestleMania 40 in Philadelphia.
Both women have a physical talent that few people on the roster have. They are strong, fast and athletic. Belair has been at the top of professional wrestling, making history with her victory for the SmackDown Women’s Championship over Sasha Banks at WrestleMania 37.
Cargill hopes to continue his path, taking a star he introduced to the wrestling world in All Elite Wrestling and improving him for greater success in WWE.
Putting these two women in the ring against each other on The Show of Shows and letting them create magic is what that stage is made for.
For years, Bayley has watched her fellow NXT Four Horsewomen get opportunities to make history and shine brighter at WrestleMania.
Charlotte Flair won the WWE Women’s Championship in her first dance on that stage, Becky Lynch won her first-ever women’s main event, and Sasha Banks made history in the first title match between two black women at WrestleMania 37 against Belair.
Bayley, meanwhile, has been involved in tag team feuds and multi-woman championship matches where the focus was partially on her or almost not at all.
When he finally got his chance to shine, it came during the COVID-19 pandemic and without fans.
On Saturday night, Bayley put the pieces in place to rectify that by winning the Women’s Rumble and inching closer to a showdown with WWE Women’s Champion Iyo Sky.
Her role as leader of Damage CTRL has diminished as Sky, Asuka, Kairi Sane, and Dakota Kai lose faith in her to ensure the faction’s winning path. That should continue, concluding with her friends kicking her out of the group and Bayley deciding to use her guaranteed title shot at The Genius of the Sky.
There will likely be twists and turns along the way, with previews of a match against Rhea Ripley dominating the coming weeks, but Bayley will get her chance anyway.
The most surprising thing is that it will be his first singles match at WrestleMania, a surprising fact given his 10 years of excellence in both NXT and WWE.
For the fourth consecutive year, Roman Reigns entered the Royal Rumble as champion.
For the fourth year in a row, he left with his title intact.
The Tribal Chief defeated LA Knight, AJ Styles and Randy Orton to retain the WWE Undisputed Universal Championship in a Fatal 4-Way Match, ensuring that his reign will reach WrestleMania 40 barring unforeseen circumstances.
However, it won’t go beyond that.
Cody Rhodes won the men’s Royal Rumble, cashing in his ticket to The Showcase of the Immortals and a rematch with Reigns on wrestling’s grandest stage.
A year ago, everyone was sure he would dethrone Reigns, but they watched in silence as the Tribal Chief retained the top prize at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.
That won’t be the case this year.
Rhodes has endured a grueling, year-long journey back to the top of the mountain. And as evidenced by his confrontation with the undisputed WWE Universal Champion in the final moments of Saturday’s pay-per-view, he has chosen Reigns as his opponent at WrestleMania 40.
There’s no doubt about it because any other outcome would cause irreparable damage to The American Nightmare and ruin him as a legitimate WWE main event star and babyface.
Rhodes will finish his story, pay a two-year odyssey and engrave his name in the history books in a way that not even his Hall of Fame father could.
CM Punk may have momentarily seen his dreams of headlining WrestleMania come crashing down in the final moments of the Men’s Rumble, but his runner-up status won’t affect his path to the main event of wrestling’s most prestigious event.
It has been his motivation and the goal he has set since the first day of this round with WWE. The seeds were planted for a WrestleMania showdown with Seth Rollins when they came face to face during an electric confrontation on Raw, and there’s no reason to believe that match isn’t still the plan.
There are ways for Punk to get into that position and for that match to happen without him winning the Rumble.
Elimination Chamber 2024 will take place on February 24 and the number one contender to The Visionary’s title will be determined in the event’s namesake match.
Punk is announced for the show in Australia, and there are few better ways to magnify the importance of this premium live event in Australia than to have him earn his title shot there and celebrate the enormity of the moment.
Punk will go to the main event of WrestleMania, probably on the first night and probably against Rollins. Just because that’s not set in stone after Saturday’s show doesn’t affect the path to achieving his goal.