WWE: Looking to the Future for 2025 After the Royal Rumble

I know people are mad at Jey Uso winning (and Charlotte too) but I recently ran a few scenarios for the next few months, possibly even up until next year’s Wrestlemania of various story lines that might evolve based on the outcome of the Royal Rumble 2025 as well as developments on TV. Now, I’m not going to do a top down review of the roster. I’m mostly going to focus on the big names and prominent stories that may factor in these events.

So the only clear cut thing at the moment coming out of the Royal Rumble 2025 is that Jey Uso mentioned he wants another shot for Gunther’s World Title. And given that Jey is hot right now (his matches….well that’s a different thing entirely) I’m going to say that he’ll actually win it so that he has his Wrestlemania moment. That doesn’t mean he’ll retain the title for long but at the very least the WWE will give it to him as a kind of consolation prize for him being around for 15+ years (and it seems that he’s well liked behind the scenes)

Given that, I think the guy who will challenge for the World title afterward is Sami Zayn. Sami Zayn has been the odd man out in all of this where he’s risen near the main event but never managed to go over that hump. He’s developed enough of a decent promo where he can carry himself that way and engage the audience. His selling is great even though I’m not a huge fan of his matches. But I think he’s good enough where he might have that (short) title reign. He mentioned prior the Royal Rumble that he WANTS the title (as opposed to needing it). To me this indicates he’ll go after one of them. Once Jey obtains it, I can see Sami genuinely asking for a title shot but being denied because he’s not in line. They could try to pull off the Terry Funk – Ric Flair ’89 angle (minus plastic bag) where Sami goes completely nuts but if you want to put a world title on Sami Zayn, this is the pathway for that booking.

Despite not winning the Royal Rumble 2025, CM Punk most likely will face Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed title. I’ve already read how some people have started declaring that they’ll get that shot through winning the upcoming Elimination Chamber set on March 1st in Toronto. That means, we have a way to build the real main event to WM. Only John Cena has declared for it but he’s inconsistent right now and we saw him put over Jey Uso. So if there’s going to be a retirement tour, John Cena is going to help others as he leaves. That’s how you get a major CM Punk vs John Cena thing started especially if Punk manages to win by beating Cena.

If Punk is the one to headline WM with Cody on night 2, then I still think Cody will win there. Punk has only alluded to having the dream of main eventing Wrestlemania but not winning it as well. I can see Punk putting Cody over big time, shaking his hand and remaining friends with Cody. But he still gets his big main event while Cody is solidified as “the Man” (with no disrespect shown to Becky Lynch here). Then Cody has a solid two year reign as the Undisputed champion and as the face of the WWE.

With the possibility of Cody being on top for 2 years, the guy who will take it from him is none other than Gunther. We’ve seen a future main event teased at a previous Royal Rumble as well as Gunther losing to Cody in Saudi Arabia. I doubt their issue will finish and I think Gunther is going to eventually become the face of the WWE because of how consistent he is and how he excels in every manner that would make him a great top tier champion (he already is the world title holder but that’s just another feather in his cap until he gets the real top spot).

In between these things brews a few key feuds. I think the big one coming up is rise of a new potential faction that has been partly hinted at here and there. This faction will consist of Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Drew McIntyre and Sami Zayn. The crux of this group will be to eliminate Roman Reigns and those closely associated with him, including CM Punk, Paul Heyman, the Usos and Cody Rhodes. I think it’ll be Seth leading the group effectively or at least creating a focus between them. I don’t know if they’ll be like an NWO super group but at the very least it’ll be “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

Next, let’s talk about Seth Rollins. Obviously, Seth vs Punk is far from over. Same with Roman Reigns. But I figure that Seth and Roman will factor into the Elimination Chamber match too. If Punk goes over there, then it might be due to Seth and Roman taking each other out. That leads to Seth having a major Wrestlemania match against Roman. Seth might win that match possibly with aid (Sami Zayn? Kevin Owens?) I would probably have Kevin Owens be the one to help due to him having issues with Roman previously. Zayn could help here but I see that turn happening a little later. Or perhaps Zayn tries to rescue Roman but nails Roman on accident again while Kevin thanks Sami.

Sami joins after people begin doubting him but more importantly when Jey doesn’t allow Sami to get a world title shot. That would drive Sami over the edge and he’ll be the last person to join this group. Drew might be a wildcard here depending on the supposed rumors of him going ballistic after his elimination from the Rumble. I see both Drew and Seth going after Cody for the Undisputed title.

Besides Sami, I envisioned a 5th member to join (so it’s not another version of the Four Horsemen). I figured the following possibilities:

  • Logan Paul – As much as I actually despise this guy, he fits this new faction perfectly. He eliminated Punk which would give him pretty big street cred for this group. Plus, it’ll solidify this group as the top heel faction.
  • Bron Breaker – My personal choice because you’re effectively moving this guy all the way into the main event status in giving him the best story line in the company for 2025 potentially. He would be the power guy and the future which makes him the perfect choice.
  • Solo Sikoa – Logically works due to Roman but I think he’s over Roman and needs a new focus.
  • Gunther – Top guy but he’s a lone wolf type that works better on his own. And his personality doesn’t fit with the other four.

If having this faction means we’ll have stories between these two groups until Survivor Series 2025, what would the other team look like? Obviously, Roman Reigns would be the primary focus because of everyone on Seth’s team hating Reigns for what he and the OG Bloodline had done to the roster. Jey Uso probably would stick around once Sami backstabs him and Jey appreciating the notion of family. Jimmy should be there but he’s not really in that league (unless we add a 6th member to the above group which just makes them look bloated). I’d prefer moving Jimmy away by having him on a different show and having him go solo for a while. Heck, maybe even Roman suggests it to protect Jimmy so that he can go and focus on himself for once. CM Punk would be there because of his growing issues with all the other people involved in that faction (which is why Logan would probably fit better than Bron) And then there’s Cody Rhodes who is in the center with the Undisputed Title (I’ll talk a bit on how he gets involved in a second).

Since we named 5 people for Seth’s faction, let’s add one more person to Roman’s faction:

  • Jimmy Uso – Logical choice but he’s a 5th wheel here. These are going to be super groups and Jimmy needs to start finding his own footing at this point and the only way that’ll happen is to disassociate from the Bloodline story
  • LA Knight – Now, this depends on whether or not management has handled the whole rumored spat between Drew and his elimination. But if cooler heads prevail, then LA Knight would make for a great addition just to finally get him near the main event. I mean, if you’re going to pull the trigger on this guy, this is how.
  • Damien Priest – He eliminated Drew McIntyre which obviously will set up a new, fresh feud. But if you want to really give Damien the big rub, add him to this group. It’s a big and bold move but it works given the players on the field.
  • Solo Sikoa – Because the Reign’s feud story has finished, having Sikoa come back makes sense. At the same time, I think he needs some soul searching just like Jimmy and disassociate himself from the Bloodline stories. I think Cody likes this guy because he works with him frequently but he needs to start doing his own thing.

I mentioned Cody’s involvement in all of this. But imagine this scenario: Cody soundly defeats CM Punk on Night 2 of Wrestlemania 2025. CM Punk accepts the defeat since he was able to get the main event of Wrestlemania and puts Cody over big time. He still loves Cody and respects Cody for all he’s about to face now that he’s still the champion. As they hug, Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens (back from being temporarily shelved) and Drew McIntyre enter and give Cody and CM Punk a major beat down (this needs to happen post match though to maximize shock value and to prevent the match from feeling overbooked by itself). As Cody and Punk get the snot kicked out of them, who comes to rescue them? Yup. Roman Reigns. Now, we build this mega faction feud that is akin to a the Horsemen vs Dusty with Cody again playing the center piece like Dusty for the rest of the year.

The way you freshen things up is through the addition of Damien Priest, Logan Paul and/or Bron Breaker. Bron Breaker probably would be great if he becomes the center piece for his group rather than a supporting player. Damien Priest gets new matches and continues his quest to the main event. Logan Paul has feuds against Punk, Cody, Jey and possibly Roman. There’s a lot you can do with this.

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