WWE Royal Rumble: 10 Most Likely Winners

On January 14, 2025By Littum

On 1 February WWE will host one of their most popular annual events, the Royal Rumble. This historic event starts the road to WrestleMania and could catapult a new superstar into the main event scene. Let’s take a look at the most likely winners of this year’s Royal Rumble.

1. Randy Orton

Could we see Randy Orton claim his third Royal Rumble win? Don’t rule it out. It’s been seven years since Randy Orton last won the Royal Rumble. It seems crazy to be here in 2025 looking at WWE’s Apex Predator as a favorite again, but here we are.

Of course, history with Cody Rhodes writes itself. Mentor vs star student. Is Orton jealous of Cody’s success? Has Rhodes surpassed Orton or does the veteran still have some tricks up his sleeve? The Viper vs The American Nightmare is a strong story and the in-ring work would be great.

There’s also a chance we’ll see Kevin Owens defeat Cody Rhodes for the WWE Championship, giving Randy Orton the opportunity to target the man who put him out with an piledriver a few months ago.

2. Charlotte Flair

The Queen’s return has been rumored for a while now. What better time to make her presence felt by the WWE Universe again than the Royal Rumble?

We could see Charlotte rekindle her rivalry with Rhea Ripley. They have met at WrestleMania twice before, and each walked away victorious. As someone who sees herself as the greatest women’s wrestler of all time, Charlotte Flair will leave no doubt that she is better than Rhea Ripley.

Will Charlotte focus on Ripley or turn to another champion? After successfully cashing in her Money in the Bank contract, Tiffany Stratton won the WWE Women’s Championship. It may be time for the Queen to return and remind everyone who runs the show in WWE.

3. CM Punk

CM Punk is the favorite of many to win this year’s Royal Rumble. Much has been made of Punk, who has never main evented a WrestleMania. If he reaches this milestone, now seems like the best time to do it.

After his victory over Seth Rollins on the debut episode of Raw on Netflix, Punk wasted no time calling out both Gunther and Cody Rhodes. The Voice of the Voiceless has one goal in mind. It’s championship gold. Do we want to see Punk vs Rhodes? Punk vs Gunther? Either matchup would be an electric WrestleMania main event.

4. Nia Jax

From a narrative perspective, Nia Jax looks to be a clear winner in this year’s Women’s Royal Rumble. Jax will be looking for revenge after losing her WWE Women’s Championship to her protégé Tiffany Straton.

Jax is always a favorite in these types of matches due to her size and power. Adding in her motivation to reclaim her title, there may be no stopping Nia Jax from claiming victory.

Since her return to WWE, Nia Jax has won the “Queen of The Ring” tournament and the aforementioned WWE Women’s Championship. Winning the Royal Rumble will be another accolade on their growing list. We could very well be setting up a personal WrestleMania title match if Jax can cash in his ticket to try to reclaim his title from Stratton.

5. John Cena

When WWE announced that John Cena would be appearing on the debut episode of Monday Night Raw on Netflix, there was an expectation that we would get a hint of where Cena’s retirement tour was headed. Boy, did we.

Cena clearly stated that he wanted to make some history by winning his 17th World Championship. He clarified his intentions; he’s coming off a win in this year’s Royal Rumble. Cena immediately becomes a favorite to win the event.

The idea of what a John Cena title reign is has been debated here on Stadium Rant, but the first step is earning his shot. Will Super Cena get a chance to become a 17-time world champion at WrestleMania, or has time run out on his opportunity to make history?

6. Chelsea Green

Chelsea Green’s commitment to taking what she gets and giving it her all has endeared her to fans and WWE officials alike. This was evident when she became the first United States Women’s Champion at December’s “Saturday Night’s Main Event.”

Green is a dark horse candidate to win this year’s Royal Rumble. Her biggest obstacle will be the target she already has on her back regarding her US championship. Superstars like Michin are actively targeting Green’s title, and what better way to bid for a title shot than to eliminate her from the Rumble match?

She may not be the betting favorite, but don’t be too surprised if Chelsea Green can outlast the rest of the field and earn her chance to become a double champion at WrestleMania.

7. Roman governments

What does WrestleMania look like for the Tribal Chief? After defeating Solo Sikoa and reclaiming Ula Fala, it seems his troubles with The Bloodline are over. However, Solo Sikoa will have other plans.

As Reigns continues to battle Solo Sikoa and his version of The Bloodline, he will still be looking to regain the WWE Championship after Cody Rhodes ended his reign of more than a thousand days. Even while wrestling alongside Cody Rhodes at the end of 2024, it was clear that Reigns still held some disdain for The American Nightmare.

The WWE Universe can get behind Reigns and Rhodes in completing the trilogy. Will Reigns be able to hold off The New Bloodline long enough to win the Royal Rumble and start chasing Rhodes? We’ll find out in February.

8. Iyo Sky

Another dark horse candidate for this year’s Rumble, Iyo Sky, finds himself in a very different position than last year. After watching last year’s fight from the sidelines as the reigning women’s champion at this point, Sky will be competing to win her title shot this year.

After recently falling short in the Women’s Intercontinental Title tournament, Sky has no clear path to The Grandest Stage Of Them All. Her only chance at a prominent spot on the card may be to win the Royal Rumble. A win for Ito Sky could lead to an exciting matchup.

Iyo Sky vs Rhea Ripley is a match that could very easily steal the show at this year’s WrestleMania. Both women have carried the women’s division in WWE at various times over the past year, and seeing them clash on such a massive stage would be a treat for the WWE Universe.

9. The rock

As we get closer to WrestleMania, it’s becoming more and more likely that we won’t be seeing The Rock wrestle at this year’s event. But in pro wrestling, you never really know what’s going to happen.

The Final Boss promised that he would be the one to take care of Cody Rhodes, but he has yet to back up those words. After an intense lead-up to last year’s Mania and Rock getting a pinball on Cody Rhodes, there may not be a bigger possible match than Rock vs Rhodes.

If Rock can wrestle at this year’s event, a Royal Rumble victory is a strong possibility. Fans would love to see Rhodes get revenge on The Rock and defeat the Final Boss once and for all.

10. Becky Lynch

It has been reported that Becky Lynch has re-signed with WWE. The timing of this agreement is not a coincidence.

Lynch is arguably the biggest star in WWE’s women’s division, and the Royal Rumble is the perfect place for her to return. After losing to Rhea Ripley at last year’s WrestleMania, Lynch is poised to win the Royal Rumble and take another shot at The Eradicator.

WWE is a company that loves to create “moments” and what a moment it would be if the Irish Lass Kicker returned to win the Royal Rumble match. The Road To WrestleMania is always full of surprises, and Lynch’s return and victory could very well be the first of many.

End Of My WWE Royal Rumble Rant:

The Royal Rumble is always full of surprises, and this year will be no different. The unpredictable nature of the match means that the eventual winners may not even be included on this list or even on the WWE roster at this point. Who is your pick to win the Royal Rumble? Share this article and share your thoughts.