411 Wrestling Fact or Fiction: Was Jey Uso the Right Choice to Win the Royal Rumble?

Welcome back to the 411mania Wrestling Fact or Fiction. I’m your host Jake Chambers.

Usually in the run-up to the Royal Rumble, I call up former regular 411 columnist Dino Zee to enter the FoF ring at #1 and throw out 29 other statements until he’s conquered the field.

This year, we had to wait until AFTER the Rumble, but he’s back to blast through a talk all things WWE and Rumble related in the aftermath of the show.

Let the countdown begin… 10… 9…

Statement #1: Jey Uso’s Royal Rumble win is in the Nakamura / Del Rio / Sheamus / Edge B-level category.

Dino Zee: FICTION – We DO NOT tolerate Jey Uso slander here! He’s one of the most popular people in the company, he’s worked his way from tag team wrestler to legitimate singles star, and while I know it’s always fun to trash the most over act, I’m not going to do it here. And really, what’s with the sideswipe at Edge here?! Unreal!

Back to the question, I know of a *lot* of fans who felt that Jey should be the one to end Roman’s reign at SummerSlam, but now winning the Rumble ain’t it?! I’m an Uso stan, and I’m here for Jey until the wheels fall off. And his win is a testament to the work he’s put in, and appreciating every second of his career to this point!

Jake Chambers: FACT – I’m just going to chime in here, with all due respect for Jey’s popularity, and back-up the statement that he’s still a B level guy on the company’s booking sheet, as evidenced by making him do the geek move of challenging for the B-level world title in what I’m sure we all believe will not be the main event on Sunday night at Wrestlemania.

This falls in line with all of those other B-level winners, including Edge winning in 2010, and would have been Cody Rhodes in 2024 if booking genius HHH had gotten his way. We can all like/love Jey Uso, but I don’t think we can deny this win was not like when real main event-ers won Rumbles in the past.

Statement #2: You have watched a WWE PPV / PLE from a private corporate box.

Dino Zee: FACT – I have, and it was really fun! WrestleMania 31, as a matter of fact. I usually like to be a bit closer to the action overall, but sometimes it’s nice to have everything catered for you in every way possible, too!

Statement #3: Charlotte was the right call to be the first woman to win 2 Rumbles.

Dino Zee: FICTION – I just think that anyone having 2 Women’s Rumble victories when there’s been like 8 is a little crazy. Obviously if we have to have a 2-time winner, Charlotte’s a fine choice, and it keeps in line with the “she needs to win everything” mentality they’ve applied with her from the start. But yeah, there’s plenty of other women that can get a victory at the Rumble and have it actually carry significance without already having a repeat winner. But we’ll be fine, worse things have happened in wrestling.

Statement #4: Kevin Owens losing ANOTHER title match at the Rumble was really uncool, even if the match was good.

Dino Zee: FICTION – Obviously for us Owens fans, it sucks. But I take an uncharacteristically un-markish approach here, and realize that WWE has put KO in the title match at 3 of the last 5 Rumbles, counting on him for huge, pivotal moments in their main storylines. That has to mean something. Sure, I’d love to see an ending with him as champion, but as long as the company displays faith in the performer, that’s all we as fans can really hope for. Owens will continue to be showcased in the biggest moments for years to come. I think that’s rad.

Statement #5: The Berzerker really should have won at least one Rumble.

Dino Zee: FACT – I don’t see why not. His inability to trust anyone else surely should have been to his benefit, and I don’t get why he didn’t try to utilize the sword more in a Rumble setting. Yeah, easy FACT.

Statement #6: John Cena will ultimately be remembered as a movie star like The Rock rather than a generational WWE superstar like Hogan or Austin.

Dino Zee: FICTION – If it’s one or the other, then I’m going with him being remembered more as a WWE great like Hogan or Austin all day. He’ll get a slight acknowledgment for his acting feats, but it’ll always be along with a side of “he wasn’t bad for a pro wrestler” whereas The Rock was one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, period. This is a crazy world sometimes. I just don’t think Cena’s transcended in any way close to The Rock, but his legacy is still an incredible one for us old-timers to recall for these damn kids.

Statement #7: You believe in Joe Hendry… to win the WWE Title one day.

Dino Zee: FACT – You could have WWE Creative sit me down and say it’ll never happen, and I’ll still believe in Joe Hendry. Love that he’s caught this second wave after his initial TNA run years ago, and I just want the whole world for him. I just love the guy, what can I say?

Jake Chambers: FICTION – I can see it now! Joe Hendry wins the 2026 Royal Rumble and challenges… LA Knight for the Undisputed title to main even Wrestlemania Sunday! lol

Statement #8: Here’s a great idea for a Rumble match innovation: once a wrestler is eliminated, they can stay around the outside of the ring and if they can somehow pull someone out of the ring then they can take their spot.

Dino Zee: FACT – My gut reaction was FICTION, but every time I thought of a why, I ended up loving it. This would create so much shenanigans, and opens up the door for a total low-card loser to steal a Rumble win from a top contender, and I’m here for that storyline to be played out because COME ON! WHY COULDN’T VIRGIL WIN THE DAMN RUMBLE?! So, begrudgingly, I’m going FACT here. This is how a loser lucks his way to the Main Event of WrestleMania. It’s the right call.

Statement #9: Pro-wrestling basically peaked with Mini Mankind, Mini Vader and Mini Goldust.

Dino Zee: FICTION – Dude, it’s the Kane/Big Show technical masterpiece from like 2006, and I won’t accept any other answer.

Jake Chambers: FACT – All right, damn, I just wanted to re-watch the video of those guys wrestling, but instead…

Statement #10: The run of creative Rumble endings stopped after the 2004 match (except for the 2011 Santino fake-out) and from now on all we’re ever generally going to get again are these one-on-one superstar showdown deals.

Dino Zee: FACT – Cause, see the DRAMA from having face offs when it’s the last 4, then last 3, then last 2… it’s so cool! A match that begs for random chaos and we get the same basic deal every time. Hey, I bet the guy about to be thrown will reverse at the last second and get the elimination himself! Wild!

Statement #11: Since both of them have a had a pretty dull year, Roman Reigns probably shouldn’t have lost the WWE Title to Cody Rhodes at Wrestlemania last year.

Dino Zee: FICTION – It had to happen. Probably should have happened the year before, all things considered. WWE’s inability to keep strong face champions doesn’t mean you just hide behind a strong heel for 5 years. Cody winning was right, he’s been more than just fine as champion, and it’s freed Roman up to address all things Bloodline without being hampered by a championship. All in all, sounds good to me.

Statement #12: You have seen the future, and its name is Dominick Mysterio.

Dino Zee: FACT – It’s destiny. Mastering the sports entertainment side of things so early only bodes well for his future. I look forward to Dom’s future, for it is, in my eyes, extremely bright.

Statement #13: If the Hulk Hogan who won the 1990 and 1991 Rumbles was in a modern one, he would easily throw all the small-sized superstars of today over the top.

Dino Zee: FACT – He’s manhandling The Warlord and Earthquake, but I’m to believe that Seth Rollins or Andrade would give him trouble?? Simple physics, Hogan would run right through a modern Royal Rumble field. But, also, and this is super important: dude is trash.

Statement #14: More people would have cared about like a Maven vs. The Boogeyman match at the 2025 Royal Rumble than that 2/3 Falls Motor City Machine Guns vs. DIY match.

Dino Zee: FICTION – No way, you’re not getting me to talk trash about the Motor City Machine Guns. Absolutely not. We cared! We were just enthralled by the incredible action… jerk!

Statement #15: Main event-ing the Saturday show is not really main event-ing Wrestlemania.

Dino Zee: FICTION – Look, we’ve had WrestleMania cards with like 5 “special” Main Events for years, and no one was hand-wringing about whether it counted or not. Night 1 Main Eventers are main eventing WrestleMania, period. And honestly, they’ve had the better match the last few years. Like, of course it’s a main event. Only the most semantically-inclined would even bother wasting time thinking about this.

Jake Chambers: FACT – When they billed a show like Wrestlemania XIX as having five “main events”, out of the 10 wrestlers involved in those matches, 8 of them were former/current/present Wrestlemania main eventers (meaning being in the last match) with only Booker T and company owner Vince McMahon as the other two. So, that’s not too crazy a statement. But when you’ve got guys like Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins out here bragging that they’ve “main event-ed” 2 Wrestlemanias to CM Punk, it’s starting to sound a bit lame.

Punk seems to be on record now as saying his dream is to main event Wrestlemania, and I’m pretty sure he’s talking about being in that last match on the last show of the weekend, and not a tag team match on Night 1, an impromptu match, or cashing in a Money in the Bank to join the real main event for 2 minutes. Are we going to get a multi-person ladder match to main event Saturday one year now so guys like R-Truth or Finn Balor can claim they main event-ed a Wrestlemania too? Or what happens when they expand to 3 night of Wrestlemania, that Friday show is gonna open up another “main event” slot? C’mon.

Statement #16: You don’t recognize Hacksaw Jim Duggan or Braun Strowman as real Royal Rumble winners.

Dino Zee: FICTION – Who the hell doesn’t count Hacksaw JIm Duggan?! Do you also hate puppies and ice cream and air?! What the ever-loving hell are we even doing if we don’t count his win?! I don’t even care about Strowman’s inclusion… Duggan won the first Rumble. If we count Shawn Michaels and his 1995 win where people entered every 2.5 seconds and the Bulldog eliminated him, then I’m fine with counting Duggan’s win. The audacity!

Jake Chambers: FACT – That Hacksaw match was not a PPV, it was only 20 men, and it was basically ignored by the WWF for years. It’s a fun match to watch today, but doesn’t feel like a real Rumble and Hacksaw probably shouldn’t be considered the “first” winner. Should we count the Corporate Rumble they did on RAW that time too? Or those fan cam Rumble matches from house shows that are floating around out there?

Statement #17: You wouldn’t have cheered so hard for Knockouts Mickie James and Jordynne Grace entering previous Rumbles if you knew that it would lead to TNA officially becoming a seeder system for the WWE.

Dino Zee: FICTION – Nah, I cheer for cool moments, and definitely don’t worry about hindsight implications. Their inclusions were historical and groundbreaking, and enjoying them was the only right move.

Statement #18: It’s never gonna happen for the Street Profits like it did for the Usos.

Dino Zee: FACT – Look, I think the world of the Street Profits. I think Montez Ford is a license to print money. But the Usos are a legitimate candidate for greatest tag team of all time, and so with that framing, sure, I don’t think it happens for the Profits like it did the Usos. But I still think they as a team can capture a few more tag team titles, and again, I think Montez as a solo act is a guaranteed success. So maybe not like it did for the Usos, but it WILL happen.

Statement #19: Starting with 5~10 wrestlers in the ring would be a good innovation to liven up the Rumble.

Dino Zee: FICTION – Overcrowding is a constant source of annoyance in modern rumbles, and now we’d just be feeding right into it. That said, I don’t think starting with 3 people would be the worst idea. One extra body ensures constant action at the start without any downtime, and makes it so the next entrant is enabling pairs to fight, instead of the awkward “I attack you, then I attack YOU” deal we often get. 5-10, though, just hits me as too much for the start.

Statement #20: A random mid-carder or a “jobber” will never win a Rumble.

Dino Zee: FICTION – IT’S THE ONLY GOOD STORY LEFT FOR THIS MATCH! IT HAS TO HAPPEN! Some jerk from NXT, or some jobber on the main roster… COME ON!!

Statement #21: Despite her size, Roxanne Perez will be a successful star on the WWE main roster.

Dino Zee: FACT – I haven’t seen anything from Roxanne that has me worried about her future. Solid in the ring, great connection with the fans, years ahead of her to get better… as long as nothing terrible happens, yeah, I think she’s going to be a huge star for WWE.

Statement #22: Despite her size, Lash Legend will NOT be a successful star on the WWE main roster.

Dino Zee: FICTION – I think Lash Legend is also someone with so much promise, and as long as she’s brought along correctly and nothing terrible happens, I think she’ll be another strong WWE star for years to come. Sure, she’s got plenty of areas to improve, but for her limited experience, I think she’s ahead of the curve and also look forward to watching her develop into a dominating WWE presence.

Statement #23: I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, the women’s Royal Rumble match only needs to have 20 entrants.

Dino Zee: FICTION – I like keeping things even with 30 apiece for men and women, but it also allows for more surprises in the women’s Rumble if the roster is thin. I’m all for legendary women competitors and some TNA invaders if that’s how we fill in the spots. But making it 30 is saying it’s not as big a deal as the men’s Rumble, and surely that’s not the messaging we’re looking for?

Jake Chambers: FACT – We should be real here. Women’s wrestling in WWE takes up let’s say less than 25% of the TV time. So why does that division need a full 30-person Rumble match? They don’t have a roster of even remotely legitimate contenders to challenge for one of the women’s titles, let alone even have a match on a Wrestlemania card. If the message we want to send here is lip service, then that match is doing a great job. But if they want to make the match more interesting and logical, drop that number down to 20. And while they’re at it, exclude like the top 5 A-level women’s challengers who can just walk into a title match whenever they want anyways. Let the women’s Rumble winner be a real chance for a female performer who wouldn’t normally be there to get herself on the WM card with a meaningful match.

Statement #24: Logan Paul will win the 2026 men’s Royal Rumble match.

Dino Zee: FICTION – Nope, I’m not putting this out into the universe. Absolutely not. No way. Impossible. Never happen. No.

Statement #25: Liv Morgan will win the 2026 women’s Royal Rumble match.

Dino Zee: FICTION – I don’t know who else it’d be, but my gut is that Liv will not be having her hand raised next years as the women’s Rumble concludes. It’s not out of the realm, but I’ma keep this easy and just say FICTION.

Statement #26: You will watch both the new WWE Evolve show and the LFG reality competition show.

Dino Zee: FICTION – I barely make it to RAW/SmackDown on a regular, weekly basis, so I don’t see either of these new entries somehow forcing their way into my schedule. I’ll probably watch an episode or two, and then we’ll see, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.

Statement #27: HHH’s booking is super boring.

Dino Zee: FICTION – Look, he has his favorites, and they get pushed, and sometimes you can see it coming a mile away… but he doesn’t go out of his way to actively sandbag talent with dumb gimmick changes “just to see how they deal with” or whatever, and he still has an NWA-tinged focus on personal issues and violence that lead to the best competitor winning. It maybe isn’t the most intriguing booking at times, but I wouldn’t call it boring. Living in a world of swerves just for the sake of swerving people looking forward to the conclusion was way, way more boring.

Jake Chambers: FACT – He’s predictable, corny and dull. He books the same matches over and over, and they’re pretty much all the same in-ring style. He’s absolutely booking to the “that’s what should happen” crowd, instead of the chaos that makes those fans frustrated. And frustrating smart fans IS the job of a good booker. But if you want to book a wrestling show that gouges fans, gets ads on the mat, and can surround the ring with a bunch of back-slapping CFO types and celebrities, book the HHH way!

Statement #28: John Cena is a really nice guy who should have a really nice ending to a really nice career.

Dino Zee: FACT – I’m on Team Give Him 17, so yeah, that sounds right. We start off with him not winning the Rumble, maybe he comes up short again at Elimination Chamber (maybe he doesn’t), loses at WrestleMania, and then somewhere around the early summer we kick it into high gear, big programs that lead to #17 happening around Survivor Series, and he goes out with a win because we all know it’s a work and he doesn’t have to abide the time honored tradition, that’s for marks. Give it all to Cena. He’s the greatest WWE Superstar of all time, and it cannot be argued.

Jake Chambers: FICTION – I guess this is more of a continuation of my “HHH is boring” fears, and how we’re entrusting this guy with the one-year storyline of a John Cena retirement tour. I fear for the most predictable string of matches without any real “WTF” drama along the way. Cena was a polarizing figure when he was on top, a genuine frustration for the smart fans, and the reverberations of that run are truly the reason for WWE’s global success today. By giving the guy a watch and some nice matches that hide his weaknesses just to make him look like a good guy, that’s not going to be fun and not what Cena deserves. He should be humiliated, he should be beaten down, he should be mocked for being out of shape and sucking, and he should ultimately lose in the end. That’s what they did to him when he was a bad ass and strong, but he was able to fight back. So, it would be appropriate to send him out like that when he doesn’t have the power to fight back anymore. Instead, we’re just going to kiss his ass like that’s how we treated him all along? Corny.

Statement #29: CM Punk will face Stone Cold Steve Austin at Wrestlemania one day.

Dino Zee: FICTION – I’m dubious but hopeful. I just don’t think that’s in the cards, no matter how cool it would be. Austin’s WrestleMania 38 match with Kevin Owens is the perfect way to come back real quick without tarnishing your legacy, and I think he should let that be Owens’ privilege and how we remember Austin. It’s too perfect to mess with by doing another return.

Statement #30: You kinda forgot about AEW.

Dino Zee: FICTION – Never! It’s definitely cooled down a bit, but I’m always aware, always checking news, and catching up with a Dynamite every few weeks. If there’s wrestling, I’ll always try to at least keep a side-eye of awareness on it!

Thanks to Dino Zee for bringing it once again for 30 straight statements! He’s the man! We love you buddy and we’ll see you back here soon!

And speaking of winners… just a quick update on the finals of our 3rd (Semi) Annual Larry Csonka Memorial Wrestling Fact or Fiction Tournament. We have a winner, so let’s congratulate Steve Cook on his second victory in this prestigious tournament!

Don’t forget the GoFundMe for Larry’s daughters is still active, please follow the link for more details: https://www.gofundme.com/f/larrymania-living-on-in-his-girls