WWE Royal Rumble 2018: Rating all the matches on the card

Akash C
The King of Strong Style is going to Wrestlemania
The King of Strong Style is going to WrestleMania

Well, WWE Royal Rumble 2018 certainly proved to be a lively encounter as for the first time ever, the women of the WWE joined in for their share of Royal Rumble fun. Shinsuke Nakamura and Asuka stood tall at the end of the night as winners of the Men's Royal Rumble match and Women's Royal Rumble match respectively.

The pacing of the show was a bit off due to the match placements but overall, it was still a great night of wrestling. Sure, it didn't quite live up the standards set at NXT Takeover: Philadelphia but then again, what WWE pay per views live up to their Takeover counterparts?

With that in mind, we get ready to review the matches from the very first WWE pay per view of the year. So, without any further ado, here are our ratings for all the matches from WWE Royal Rumble 2018:


#1 AJ Styles (c) def Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens (2-on-1 Handicap match for the WWE Championship)

Does AJ do bad matches?
Does AJ do bad matches?

The Phenomenal One found himself in an odd predicament at WWE Royal Rumble 2018 as he was forced to defend his WWE Championship in a handicap match against the team of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn in the first match of the night.

While the match itself was quite decent and planned very well, the issue here is that the premise of a Handicap match for the WWE Championship just doesn't feel quite right. The three men did all the right things but at the end of the day, the match ended up being just good enough rather than great.

It's actually quite the compliment to AJ Styles, KO, and Zayn that they did such a great job with this encounter.

Rating - 7.5/10

#2 The Usos (c) def Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin (2-out-of-3 falls Tag Team match for the SmackDown Live Tag Team Championship)

Why was this match 2 out of 3 Falls?
Why was this match 2-out-of-3 falls?

The Usos vs Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin for the WWE SmackDown Live Tag Team Titles was extremely strange. The first three-quarters of the match was some of the best tag team wrestling you will see this year as all four men put on a clinic.

But, the match was really let down by the events after the first fall. Jimmy and Jey quickly followed up their first pin with a surprise roll-up to take the contest two-to-nothing. I mean, what was even the point of the stipulation? They could have just kept it as a normal match.

Rating - 6/10

#3 Shinsuke Nakamura won the Men's Royal Rumble match

Finally, Nakamura wins big!
Finally, Nakamura wins big!

In a change from usual traditions, the Men's Royal Rumble match gave up its customary main event spot in exchange for headlining the mid-card this time around at WWE Royal Rumble 2018. And, despite the placement of the match, it was an excellent one.

Finn Balor was the unsung hero of the entire thing, as he went over 55 minutes in his role as the unofficial Iron Man of this year's Royal Rumble. While there were some fears that Roman Reigns was going to emerge victorious, the fans were left elated when Shinsuke Nakamura managed to eliminate the Big Dog and punch his ticket to WrestleMania 34.

There might have been a few wasted storylines but overall, after last year's debacle, this was certainly a step in the right direction.

Rating - 8.5/10

#4 Sheamus and Cesaro def Seth Rollins and Jason Jordan (c) (Tag Team match for the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship)

Poor Seth
Poor Seth

The WWE Raw Tag Team match between The Bar and Seth Rollins and Jason Jordan proved to be a supremely strange encounter which got clarified later on, as news of Jordan's apparent back injury emerged.

Kurt Angle's son actually sat out the majority of the encounter because of a kayfabe head injury, in order to mask his real-life back troubles. As expected, Rollins was overwhelmed and dropped the titles to Cesaro and Sheamus.

This was easily the worst match of the night although it's unfair to blame it on the competitors, because of the injury.

Rating - 5/10

#5 Brock Lesnar (c) def Braun Strowman and Kane (Triple Threat match for the WWE Universal Championship)

Oh look, Brock won
Oh look, Brock won

The WWE Universal Title match saw a repeat of the same old formula we have been seeing in matches involving Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman over the past few months, and unfortunately, it has grown a little stale at this point.

The Monster Among Men started things off at a furious pace as he completely annihilated everyone in his path before Brock mounted a comeback. There was the usual shock and awe over his feats of strength, though it was nothing we haven't seen before.

But, wait. Where was Kane, you ask? Well, he did get a few good shots in, but he mainly served his purpose of being there to protect Strowman by eating the pinfall from The Beast.

A fairly routine Universal TItle match.

Rating - 7/10

#6 Asuka won the Women's Royal Rumble match

Well, this is going to be interesting
Well, this is going to be interesting

The first-ever Women's Royal Rumble match was awarded the main event spot on the night and the ladies delivered a really great match in their first big chance to shine in 2018. Much like Finn Balor, it was Sasha Banks who was the unsung hero of this encounter.

And, much like Shinsuke Nakamura, it was Asuka who lived up to her reputation and managed to punch her ticket to WrestleMania. It wasn't quite up to the level of the Men's Rumble, but it was a pretty good first attempt by the female superstars of the WWE.

Rating - 8/10

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