5 former superstars WWE should bring back for the Royal Rumble

If there is one thing the Royal Rumble is known for, it is its unpredictability. Over the years the WWE has done a good job in protecting the surprise factor that comes along with the Royal Rumble match. The surprise may be sweet or bitter, and it depends entirely on the timing of its delivery. We can get sweet surprises like Edge's return in 2010 or we can get bitter surprises like the 30th entrant of the 2017 rumble match.

But the only surprise that never fails to make the fans happy is the return of the former superstars. We have seen multiple superstars make their returns to the WWE in the Royal Rumble match in the past and it is not a sin to expect the same to happen this year. Let's look into the 5 former superstars the WWE should bring back for the 2018 Royal Rumble.

#5 Rey Mysterio

We'll start this list with the winner of the 2006 Royal Rumble, Rey Mysterio. The master of the 619 was a mainstay in the WWE during the early 2000's and he was an integral part of the WWE programming during the period.

Standing in at the time when Vince McMahon considered any WWE superstar below 6 ft as a vanilla midget, Mysterio proved to be the difference factor. He rose to prominence in 2006 after the demise of his best friend, the late great Eddie Guerrero. He has won the World heavyweight championship twice and the WWE Championship once in his hall of fame worthy career.

It won't be a bad idea to have Rey Mysterio return to the WWE to have one final run in the biggest wrestling promotion in the world and have his retirement match in the company that made him a superstar.

#4 Wade Barrett

When Wade Barrett won the first season of NXT and earned himself a shot at the WWE Championship, many of us thought we will finally be seeing the first ever British born WWE Champion. To be honest, he had all it takes to be a main event worthy player in the WWE.

When he debuted in the main roster as the leader of the notorious faction, "The Nexus", he drew something that the current heels are failing to draw, and that is legitimate heat from the fans. He was a natural heel and WWE could've capitalized on the opportunity and made Barrett as the WWE Champion. But instead, Wade was made to float around the mid-card status until he was released in June 2016.

WWE can make up for its previous errors by having Barrett return to the company in the Royal Rumble. We can already hear the Philly crowd going nuts if Barrett makes his way out the ramp when the timer stops counting.

#3 Alberto Del Rio

Now before your jaws drop and eyebrows raise, we all know that Del Rio and the WWE are not in good terms with each other and we have seen the former champion shooting out his disregard for the company many times. But time heals up many wounds and the WWE can call it a truce with Del Rio and have the Mexican Superstar return to the company in the Royal Rumble.

We heard it from Del Rio himself that he is planning to retire from professional wrestling in a few years and there may be no better time for the WWE to resign Mexico's greatest export.

Del Rio is just 40 years old and is in good shape. He is currently signed to Impact Wrestling and is not on good terms with the company, WWE might as well have to break their banks to get back Del Rio from impact wrestling, but he is indeed worth every cent.

#2 Batista

Let's just say that the WWE chose the wrong time when they had the animal return to the company in 2014. They did an even bigger mistake when they had Batista win the 2014 Royal Rumble because the decision totally ruined what could've been an amazing run for the animal in his second run with the company.

This is not the same Batista that left the company in 2014, he is now an established actor and has succeeded in creating a career out of the squared circle. Batista is the biggest movie star to come out of the WWE next to The Rock and his next movie The Avengers: Infinity War is set to hit the screens this year.

So, if the WWE decides to bring back Batista for one last stint with the company, it should be in a way to give back to the animal for what he has contributed to the professional wrestling industry. Batista had expressly quoted his desire to return to the WWE to have a program with Triple H leading to a match at the show of shows in April.

WWE can capitalize on this opportunity by having Batista return to the WWE at the Royal Rumble and leading him to his possible retirement match to end his illustrious career with the company.

#1 CM Punk

Take what I said about Alberto Del Rio, multiply it by 10 times, and that's CM Punk for you. The Straight Edge superstar is the most sought out name in professional wrestling when you speak about returns. The fans have been waiting for CM Punk to return to the squared circle ever since he walked out of the WWE in 2014. We can hear the fans still chant his name even after his departure from the company.

We know it won't be easy for both punk and the WWE to reach an agreement on the former's return, but it's the WWE we're talking about and if Goldberg and Brock Lesnar can return to the company after leaving on similar bad terms with the promotion, so can CM Punk.

The WWE universe had made their intentions very clear in the past that they indeed want to see the straight edge superstar in the WWE once again, and if both Punk and WWE can call it a truce, there may be no better time than the 2018 Royal Rumble match.

Imagine Paul Heyman coming out to the ramp and introduce a returning CM Punk to the Philly crowd, it would be the loudest pop that the WWE would've seen in decades. We just have to contemplate that in our minds until it becomes a reality, and we don't have to wait long to find that out as the Royal Rumble is just a few weeks away.

Which former superstar would you like to see return to the WWE in the Royal Rumble? Shout out in the comments below.

Edited by Akhilesh Tirumala