Pantoja’s WWE Royal Rumble 2025 Review

WWE Royal Rumble

February 1^st, 2025 | Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana

Women’s Royal Rumble Match

I typically write reviews as I watch a show but this is one that I’m doing after so some details may not be as fresh to me. IYO SKY and Liv Morgan kicked this off before NXT’s Roxanne Perez entered at #3. Roxanne has been in this spot before but this feels like it’s on the verge of a main roster debut. There were a lot of cases in this match of the ring being full without anything too special happening. I don’t like that in Rumbles because it makes them feel like battle royals. Anyway, surprise entrants included Lash Legend, Jaida Parker, Stephanie Vaquer, Giulia, and Jordynne Grace. Legends were Trish Stratus and Nikki Bella. The biggest pops of the match were for Alexa’s return (she seriously got an ovation louder than her music for several minutes) and Trish but Giulia got a very jarring no pop. Even Vaquer got more of a reaction. Charlotte obviously made her return too. They had Alexa and Trish get eliminated by Liv and Nia which was smart because it doesn’t get heat on any other woman. Nia actually eliminated a big number at once, cleaning house late. The coolest spots saw old NXT queens (Charlotte, Bayley, and Bianca) against the new crop (Giulia, Vaquer, and Roxanne). The saw Nia get eliminated after going over with Roxanne and then Charlotte knocked Roxanne out to win in 70:20. Roxanne broke Bayley’s record from last year. This was largely fine but dull at points and the predictable winner hurt things. [***]

WWE Tag Team Championship Two Out of Three Falls Match: DIY [c] vs. The Motor City Machine Guns

It’s insane to see Alex Shelley, a guy I quickly connected with as a fan of mid-2000s ROH and TNA, on a WWE Big 4 PPV. This match in 2017 or so (or 2016 DIY against 2007 MCMG) would’ve been an epic. They’re still very good though. MCMG moved at a wild pace to start. Teams in their 20s can’t move that fast. DIY weathered the storm and actually ended up taking the first fall. What was interesting here was seeing DIY, who were the face team in the greatest tag match ever at TakeOver: Toronto, work as heels in this 2 Out of 3 Falls match. They cut the ring in half and found creative ways to get around the usual tag formula. Like the way they cut off the hot tag was clever and different from what you usually see. The Guns had to fight from beneath and work hard to rally, trying things up with Skull and Bones. That set us up for a high energy third fall that saw some ridiculous spots and close calls. MCMG was on the verge of winning but two men in hoods jumped on the apron. One distracted the referee while the other hit Shelley with a kendo stick. It was the Street Profits and that allowed DIY to hit Meet in the Middle to win in 14:04. That was awesome, so I just know that 2016 DIY vs. 2007 MCMG would’ve been the greatest match in history. [****]

Post-match, the Profits also jumped DIY and held up the titles.

Undisputed WWE Championship Ladder Match: Cody Rhodes [c] vs. Kevin Owens

I really wish KO would’ve won the title at Saturday Night’s Main Event and dropped it back here. The Sid run. We get too many long title reigns these days, it would’ve freshened things up a bit, and it gives KO a well-deserved run. It’s still wild to me that Cody Rhodes is THE GUY in WWE and this run has been an all-timer. Crowd was red hot for this. Big brawl mostly out of the ring to start. They were brawling like a classic Attitude Era main event. I love that shit. KO was on his game, talking trash throughout and even yelling at Michael Cole while coming across as a dangerous villain. When they got back into the ring for the more traditional ladder match stuff, it was fantastic. This felt like a classic big fight main event people two people who dislike each other. This wasn’t about the high spots (though there were still some great ones), it was about a fight with ladders. From Cody using a rung to wail on KO to KO using taking a back bump, the ladder was used as a weapon in smart ways, not just for the sake of it. The fisherman buster onto the ladder was one of the best spots of the year. That led to officials coming to check on the competitors. Sami Zayn ran out and looked worried. KO got up and shoved the referees away, continuing the fight only to have his Stunner countered into the Cross Rhodes. That sparked an emotional Cody run that peaked when he did the Alabama Slam off the announce table and through a ladder. A sickening spot. As Sami and officials checked on KO, Cody climbed the ladder to retain in 25:04. An unbelievable match. In the conversation for my favorite ladder match ever. Just a brutal, absolute war that was everything I could want in this match type. This could very easily get bumped up to five on a rewatch. [****¾]

Men’s Royal Rumble

I feel like this was the first year in forever where it felt like there were 7-8 people who could realistically win. Rey Mysterio and Penta started this in a cool lucha moment. Santos was out soon after giving me Lucha Underground flashbacks. IShowSpeed was given Akira Tozawa’s spot (after Carmelo Hayes took him out) and it ended up being a fun spot as Bron Breakker gave him one of the most vicious Spears I’ve ever seen. I loved that this Rumble didn’t rely on so many wrestlers from the past. Drew, Jey, Seth, Punk, Roman, Cena, all felt like huge stars. Joe Hendry also had a surprise appearance. The whole thing was entertaining but the final third or so was the stuff of legend. Everyone felt like a big deal and the spots mattered. Punk throwing out Seth and Roman just for Logan Paul to throw him out was wild. Then Seth hit Roman with the sickest stomp I’ve ever seen and Punk was involved in their beef. It felt like they were going to go with Logan Paul. But then Cena managed to eliminate him, leaving it up to Cena against Jey. An unexpected final two but one filled with exhilarating moments and drama. When Jey finally threw out Cena to win in 80:15. I loved that so much. A drama filled, enjoyable Rumble that is up there with 2020 as one of the best ever. The unpredictable nature was so cool because I was invested with a long stretch of losing my shit over the twists that were happening. [****½]

9.5

The final score: review Amazing

The 411

If that Women’s Rumble was better, this would’ve been an all-time event. It was still good but did miss the mark a bit. But the Tag Title match ruled, that ladder match was one of the best I’ve ever seen, and that Rumble was so great with a legitimate shock and feel good winner.