By Guest Contributor

1988 — A time period that is further away from this very second than the year 2039. It was a year that witnessed the birth of global warming apprehension, the last time the Los Angeles Dodgers would win a World Series, and most importantly, the launching of the fourth major WWE pay-per-view, the Royal Rumble. The brainchild of WWE Hall of Famer Pat Patterson, the Royal Rumble is twenty-six years old.

So what’s the problem? The Royal Rumble is one of the most anticipated spectacles on the WWE calendar and delivers electrifying action each and every year. Crucially, the Royal Rumble Pay-Per-View has produced a WrestleMania main event between its victor and the WWE or World Heavyweight Champion for the better half of the last three decades. In an industry that survives solely on the evolution of creative content, how has a concept like the Royal Rumble stayed relevant?

Don’t get me wrong. The Royal Rumble is my second favorite WWE pay-per-view behind WrestleMania. It fosters some of the most entertaining action all year and is highlighted by the Royal Rumble Match, which is a modified 30-man Battle Royal, but imagine having the same dinner for twenty-six years, listening to the same song for twenty-six years, or having a WWE Superstar cut the same promos and hit the same spots in the ring for twenty-six years.

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Roman Reigns def. Bray Wyatt by Disqualification

This has the potential to be a big time money matchup down the line, so I don't see why this match was wasted here. I realize there was a non-finish and it set up a six-man tag match for later on in the night, but this is a main event caliber match that will mean much more if they save it for later. It didn't help that this was the exact same finish we saw to John Cena's match with Wyatt on Monday night.


Seth Rollins def. Rob Van Dam

The fact these two have faced off so much of the last few months made this match less special, especially considering the fact their last match together took place on Tuesday's Main Event. That said, this was probably their best bout to date, especially down the stretch. RVD looked good defeat and it was another nice win for Rollins. I've read that this was RVD's final WWE match for the time being, so at least he went out in style.

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Adam Rose def. Curtis Axel

It's always bothersome when WWE tapes the same matches for Superstars as they do for Main Event in the same week. It's repetitive and annoying for those who tune in to both shows (and I know there aren't many of us out there). That said, this was probably a better bout than the one Axel and Rose had on Tuesday night. The crowd was a bit livelier, but I attribute that to this match kicking off the tapings on Monday as opposed to following another match like it did on Main Event. Even still, it wasn't anything special and the ending outcome was no different. Tag team or no tag team, Axel is still brutally boring.


Fandango def. R-Truth

Speaking of boring, are there two Superstars in WWE right now that are more stale than Fandango and Truth? Pairing them together was a disaster from the start. Nothing they did intrigued me and therefore I couldn't get invested in the action. Renee Young on commentary tried to tell the story of how these two are former friends, but it didn't ring true because they have no prior history together. Fandango winning was a slight surprise, but at the end of the day, it hardly means anything. If nothing else, at least Layla and Summer Rae didn't show up at ringside to cost Fandango the match again.

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

NXT Tag Team Champions The Ascension def. Two Local Athletes (Non-title)

I'm honestly at a loss for words. The fact this match even happened boggles my mind. Are the Ascension squash matches merely a rib by this point? Could they not have faced a team that lost in the recent tournament? If nothing else, at least it was kept short and sweet. Their post-match promo was fine for what it was, but they could have cut that same promo without competing in a meaningless match.


William Regal Was Named the New NXT General Manager

I absolutely love this move. Not only because I'm a big Regal fan, but it makes perfect sense. JBL, the former GM, was rarely ever there and therefore did nothing in the role. We know from his time as Raw GM that Regal can be an awesome authority figure and he's there for every NXT taping anyway. The interaction between Adrian Neville, Tyson Kidd, Tyler Breeze and Sami Zayn was pretty paint-by-numbers, but at least the NXT Championship match for NXT Takeover 2 has finally been announced.

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Tommy Dreamer Interrupted MVP

I like Kurt Angle in the authority role he's currently cast in, but it's evident his heart isn't into it and he's just counting down the days until his TNA contract expires. MVP continues to shine on the mic and he's the perfect mouthpiece for Lashley. I figured Dreamer's time in TNA was done after Dixie Carter was put through a table, but apparently not. I'm fine with it since I'm a fan of Dreamer, but he doesn't add much to the product and he only enforces the ECW vibe that should be no more.


TNA World Heavyweight Champion Lashley def. Tommy Dreamer in a New York City Street Fight (Non-title)

The stipulation made the match more enjoyable, but when there's seemingly a hardcore match every week, how much does it really mean? Dreamer shines in these types of matches and while this wasn't his best showing, he carried Lashley to a decent enough bout. Lashley held his own and deserves some credit as well. It wasn't an all-out war, but it was as long as it needed to be and it gave Lashley a nice win that further established him as a beast.