WWE Royal Rumble: 10 Potential Winners of the Men’s Rumble

Credit: WWE.com

AJ Styles

When we arrive in Phoenix at the 2019 Royal Rumble, it will be the three-year anniversary of the WWE debut of AJ Styles. Back in 2016, there were rumors about the impending WWE arrival of AJ Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura, Luke Gallows, and Karl Anderson after they left NJPW. Most fans were aware it was coming, but no one expected AJ to make his presence felt at the Royal Rumble.

On January 4, 2016, Shinsuke Nakamura and AJ Styles tore the house down at Wrestle Kingdom 10 in a contest for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. The next day, AJ made his final appearance with NJPW when Kenny Omega attacked him, seized control of Bullet Club, and sealed AJ’s departure from NJPW. It was a big weekend, but few knew that AJ Styles had another big moment set for that January.

Just 20 days after facing Nakamura in the Tokyo Dome, AJ Styles entered the 2016 Royal Rumble at number three and went face to face with Roman Reigns. The crowd lost their minds, and the man who made his mark in Impact Wrestling and the independent scene had finally arrived in WWE. Despite a strong showing that night, AJ Styles was eventually eliminated by Kevin Owens after nearly 30 minutes of competition. We’re now three years later and WWE is home to a completely different AJ Styles.

This isn’t the indie darling that people worried might not be a main eventer in WWE. He’s “The Face That Runs The Place.” He’s turned SmackDown Live into “The House That AJ Styles Built.” He’s a two-time United States Champion, two-time WWE Champion, and the cover star of WWE 2K19. Any questions about AJ’s ceiling in WWE have been shattered, and it might be time for The Phenomenal One to punch his ticket to WrestleMania early.