WWE is officially on the road to WrestleMania 41. Charlotte Flair and Jey Uso walked out of the 2025 Royal Rumble as the winners, securing title opportunities of their choice at the upcoming event. There was a lot of anticipation heading into this event, and it delivered with several important surprises. Here are the three best surprises from the 2025 edition of the Royal Rumble.
Alexa Bliss Returns After Two Years
Alexa Bliss was last seen back at the 2023 Royal Rumble where she was soundly defeated by Bianca Belair in less than eight minutes. She’d step away for maternity leave, but fans were anxious to see her return. There was speculation that she’d be a part of this year’s event, but no formal reporting came out of any major outlets.
Well, that speculation was right as Bliss made her big return to the 21st position in the Rumble. The fans welcomed her with a huge response, and you could tell that she was fighting back emotion heading to the ring. Her jacket had a tribute to none other than Bray Wyatt, who she was closely linked to on air before leaving and the latter’s untimely passing. Bliss gives the women’s division a big name at a time when it needs some spark across both Monday Night Raw and SmackDown.
AJ Styles Comes Back From Injury
AJ Styles is battling Father Time in a battle that everyone loses at some point. However, he returned during the Royal Rumble, coming back after suffering an injury that many believed would keep him out for a full year. That would not be the case, as he’s back at a time when the main event couldn’t be any more crowded.
It will be interesting to see where Styles goes from here. Does he go after Logan Paul who eliminated him from the Rumble? Styles had an extended run in the main event against Cody Rhodes, so it would not make any sense to put him right back in that position. Perhaps moving him to Raw via the transfer window could create some new openings. Even better, with TNA Wrestling and WWE working together, Styles would have an amazing run in TNA to add another layer to the closing of his career.
Nikki Bella Returns To WWE
Nikki Bella’s return to WWE was a last-minute rumor that came true during the show. For the longest time it looked like neither of Bella’s would return to WWE. However, Nikki made her return to the 30th spot of the Rumble. She’d eliminate Bayley, which was a big moment in the match. There’s no telling if Bella is around for an extended run, but she’s a name who could have an impact and draw attention in a women’s division that needs it.