Credit: WWE.com
With the Royal Rumble only days away, we already know over two-thirds of the field for the Women’s Royal Rumble Match. With seven spots still unannounced, there’s still room for surprises and debuts. Which WWE legends could we see make an appearance on Sunday?
After last year’s inaugural Women’s Royal Rumble Match featured returning legends as exactly one-third of the match’s participants, it already looks like things won’t be quite so lopsided this year. As of today, 23 of the 30 participants have been announced, leaving seven potential openings for WWE legends, NXT debuts, and surprise returns.
Last year, we saw Lita, Torrie Wilson, Molly Holly, Michelle McCool, Vickie Guerrero, Kelly Kelly, Jacqueline, Beth Phoenix, Brie Bella, and Trish Stratus all compete in the first-ever Women’s Royal Rumble. Every single one of these women got a special moment in what will always be a historic match, but that doesn’t mean they’ll all be making such appearances on a regular basis.
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While we could see some overlap, it’s more likely that few of these stars will make a follow-up appearance. The number of legend appearances may continue to shrink as the years go by and WWE’s women’s division continues to expand, but there’s certainly room for a few surprises this year. Even if two superstars from NXT compete like last year, that leaves five openings for legends.
WWE has no shortage of legendary female competitors to choose from, but who exactly makes the cut won’t be clear until the match itself. Let’s take a look at five legends we should see in the match, starting with an unlikely but very deserving choice.
Credit: WWE.com
Sara Amato aka Sara Del Rey
Normally, it might seem completely out of left field to suggest an entrant who has literally never competed on WWE television. However, perhaps no one is as deserving as NXT’s first ever female trainer. Amato signed with WWE in July of 2012, starting as a trainer for NXT at the WWE Performance Center in September of that same year. She was later promoted to NXT Assistant Head Coach in May of 2015.
Despite staying largely behind the scenes in WWE, Amato’s impact on the evolution and growth of women’s wrestling is truly monumental. Prior to arriving in WWE, Amato honed her craft and became a veteran of the independent scene. Previously known as Sara Del Rey, she competed worldwide in Japan and Mexico, later making her mark in promotions like Chikara, ROH, and Shimmer.
Since Amato was signed, WWE has seen a continuous improvement in not only the growth of the women’s division and the skills of their female superstars. At the time of Amato’s arrival, the WWE Divas Championship was held by Layla and struggled to get enough television time on a weekly basis.
Not only were the women rarely featured, but when they were it was often in very short segments or matches. The likelihood of WWE’s only women’s title at the time, the Divas Championship, being defended at a pay-per-view seemed to dwindle each month. Things finally started to change in 2013 with the introduction of the NXT Women’s Championship.
After a strong tournament, NXT superstar Paige became the first champion. By April of 2014, Paige had made her transition to the main roster and become the WWE Divas Champion. It was in many ways the beginning of the revolution, as the #GiveDivasAChance movement began in February of 2015 after The Bella Twins faced Paige and Emma in an extremely short match on Raw.
From there, things truly exploded. We’ve seen an influx of superstars from NXT, most of whom got critical training from Amato, become the very backbone of WWE’s modern women’s division and the subsequent evolution of the division. As of right now, 21 female superstars scheduled to compete this Sunday came through NXT and likely were trained by Amato. If anyone deserves a brief moment in the spotlight, it’s Sara Amato.
Credit: WWE.com
LayCool (Layla & Michelle McCool)
The next two superstars we’ll hopefully see make an appearance this Sunday are Michelle McCool and Layla, known collectively as LayCool. While Michelle McCool appeared in last year’s women’s Royal Rumble, Layla hasn’t been on WWE television since her retirement from professional wrestling in 2015.
Prior to her departure, Layla had been dealing with some lingering injuries, which could have contributed to the decision. Whatever the reason, Layla hasn’t been seen since. However, McCool had also been absent from WWE for several years before appearing in the Royal Rumble last year.
Despite spending the majority of their time in WWE when the women’s division wasn’t quite a priority, Layla and Michelle are both very capable in-ring competitors. Layla is a former WWE Divas Champion and WWE Women’s Champion, while Michelle McCool has captured each of those titles on two separate occasions. It’s also worth noting that while Layla was born in London, she currently resides in the very same place the Royal Rumble will hail from this year, Phoenix, Arizona.
When news broke that WWE was introducing Women’s Tag Team Championships, fans took to Twitter wishing for LayCool to return to WWE and target those titles. Michelle McCool quickly increased the buzz by indicating this would happen as long as Layla was on board.
https://twitter.com/McCoolMichelleL/status/1085222012891684864
Just a few days later, that speculation hit yet another level as Layla expressed some interest in returning as well if there was interest from the WWE Universe.
https://twitter.com/mslayel/status/1086259108372770816
Since these tweets surfaced, many fans have spoken out in support of seeing LayCool reunited in a WWE that properly appreciates their female superstars. If LayCool could be a legitimate set of contenders for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles, the perfect time to start the reunion would be this Sunday at the Royal Rumble.
Jazz
While perhaps as unlikely as an appearance by Sara Amato, WWE legend and 2-time WWE Women’s Champion Jazz would be a fantastic choice to appear in this year’s Royal Rumble. While she hasn’t competed in WWE since the revival of ECW back in 2006, Jazz has continued to stay active on the independent scene since then.
After sporadic appearances from 2007 to 2015, Jazz really saw her independent career blossom and her stock rise after capturing the NWA World Women’s Championship in September of 2016. Jazz defeated former champion Amber Gallows and Christi Jaynes to capture the title, sparking the spectacular revival she’s seen since then.
While making some varied appearances but competing primarily with NWA, Jazz has continued to hold tight to her championship. For over 860 days, Jazz has represented NWA as the World Women’s Champion. She’s successfully defended against names like Penelope Ford, Jordynne Grace, and Joseline Navarro.
Not only would Jazz be an appropriate choice considering her history in WWE, but it would be huge for WWE to allow the reigning NWA World Women’s Champion to compete in the Royal Rumble match.
Kaitlyn
My fifth and final choice to enter this year’s Royal Rumble as a WWE legend is former WWE Divas Champion Kaitlyn. While she hasn’t been seen on the main roster since her retirement from wrestling in 2014, Kaitlyn made a return as a participant in last year’s WWE Mae Young Classic.
Despite her time away from the ring, Kaitlyn looked to be in fantastic shape and proved herself still fully capable inside the ring. While we only got to see Kaitlyn compete twice, her win over Kavita Devi in the first round and subsequent loss to Mia Yim were both great matches.
Whatever ring rust existed didn’t hinder her, and fans were very supportive of Kaitlyn’s return to WWE. After proving herself in the Mae Young Classic, Kaitlyn could get the opportunity to redeem herself to an even broader audience and make one last big moment for her WWE career.