WWE: Royal Rumble (2015)

The second biggest event in WWE’s history for its surprises, unpredictability, and memorable moments in the 27 years the Royal Rumble has existed. In that time we’ve seen championship changes, rivalries formed/settled, returns, and rumble moments that have captivated the WWE Universe. This time a lot is on the line for the entire WWE locker room from top to bottom. This sunday live on the WWE Network, the 28th annual Royal Rumble will host 30 men going in the ring to see which 1 will headline WrestleMania 31 on March 1st, 2015.

At SummerSlam, Brock Lesnar defeated John Cena to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Cena received his rematch at Night of Champions against Lesnar, but won via disqualification when Seth Rollins interfered in the match; as the championship cannot change hands on a disqualification, Lesnar retained the title. At Hell in a Cell, Cena defeated Randy Orton to become the #1 contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. At TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs, Cena defeated Rollins in a Tables match to retain his #1 contender status. Later in the event, it was announced that Cena will face Lesnar for the title at Royal Rumble. On the January 5, 2015 episode of Raw, Rollins was added to the match as a reward for bringing back The Authority after coaxing Cena on the previous episode, making the match a Triple Threat.

On the January 19 edition of Raw, Triple H forced Cena to compete in a 3-on-1 handicap match to not only secure his spot in the Triple Threat match, but also win Erick Rowan, Dolph Ziggler, and Ryback their jobs back after the latter three had been previously fired by the Authority for siding with Cena at Survivor Series. With the help of Sting, who previously assisted Team Cena at Survivor Series, Cena won the match, and afterwards, Lesnar came down to the ring and attacked Rollins, Big Show, and Kane, hitting an F-5 on each of the latter two as a measure of revenge for getting a Curb Stomp by Rollins during the contract signing for the championship match one week earlier.

On the December 29 episode of Raw, The Usos defeated The Miz and Damien Mizdow to win the WWE Tag Team Championship. On the January 15 episode of SmackDown, it was announced that the Usos would defend the titles against Miz and Mizdow at the pay per view.

On the January 5 episode of Raw, Paige came out and helped Natalya to defeat Nikki Bella. On the January 6 episode of Main Event, Natalya came out and helped Paige to defeat Nikki Bella. On the January 12 episode of Raw, Brie Bella defeated Paige due to distraction by Tyson Kidd. On the January 15 episode of SmackDown, Natalya defeated Nikki via submission. On the January 19 edition of Raw, after Paige and Natalya defeated Summer Rae and Alicia Fox, it was announced that The Bella Twins (Brie and Nikki) will face Paige and Natalya in a tag team match at the event.

On the January 5 episode of Raw, Cesaro, Tyson Kidd attacked Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods, which let Adam Rose to defeat Big E. On the January 15, 2015 episode of Raw, Big E and Kofi defeated Cesaro and Kidd. Later in the night, it was announced that The New Day will face Cesaro, Kidd and Rose in a Six-man tag team elimination match on the Royal Rumble Kickoff Show.

On the December 29 episode of Raw, The Ascension (Konnor and Viktor) made their WWE debut. Over the next few weeks, the duo would easily defeat local preliminary wrestlers and compare themselves tot famous tag teams, like the Road Warriors. On the January 19 episode of Raw, the Ascension were confronted and attacked by the New World Order, the APA and the New Age Outlaws (Billy Gunn and Road Dogg) after the Ascension interfered in the nWo reunion segment. Later in the night, it was announced that the Ascension will face the New Age Outlaws at the event.

And then it’s the ROYAL RUMBLE MATCH: