- Royal Rumble will take place at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis in February
- The 30-wrestler field is stacked with huge talent as the favourite become clear
- WWE’s showpiece event kicks off the Road to Wrestlemania later in the year
WWE legend CM Punk is being backed by the bookies to be crowned champion of the Royal Rumble early next year.
The event is one of the biggest in the wrestling organisation’s calendar, kicking off the Road to Wrestlemania, and will take place at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on 1 February 2025.
As we are closing in on the new year, fans and experts within the spoirt are beginning to speculate who could come out on top at the showpiece.
Cody Rhodes won the Royal Rumble for the second year in a row earlier this year, beating the favourite CM Punk in the dying embers in a drama-filled match.
Rhodes managed to shock the world and set up a date with Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania, which he went on to win in April.
Punk’s defeat was a major blow to his story, but this year he is the favoruite once again to go all the way.
CM Punk is the bookies favourite to take victory in the Royal Rumble match on February 1
Punk came an agonising second to Cody Rhodes in last year’s edition in Tampa, Florida
The Rock (left) and John Cena (right) are also favourites to take home glory in Indianapolis
The Royal Rumble match is infamous for its unpredictability, with 30 of the WWE’s best wrestlers trying to eliminate each other.
A wrestler is eliminated when both of their feet touch the floor outside the ring, with most getting there after being thrown out by a competitor.
Punk has entered the event six times in the past, but has never come out on top, with last year’s agonising second place the closest he has come to winning.
The legend’s closest rival is deemed to be John Cena, who will be competing in his last Royal Rumble.
The 16-time champion is set to retire next year after 26 years of dazzling mammoth crowds with his signature moves.
Cena has tasted victory in the Royal Rumble match on two previous occasions, first coming out on top during his peak in 2008.
Five years later, Cena won it again to set up a crunch match with rival The Rock, which he won to secure his 11th WWE Championship title.
The Rock himself is up there as one of the favoruite’s to win this year’s event, just behind Punk and Cena.
He returns after an appearance at Bad Blood in Atlanta, Georgia, and will look to make his presence felt in a bid to set up a championship date with Rhodes.
By winning the Royal Rumble, a wrestler earns a shot to fight for a championship of their choice at Wrestlemania 41.
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