WWE
Royal Rumble 2019 Final Results and Grades
This year’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view is officially in the books. There’s a mix of opinions coming from the fans; Some love it, some don’t think it was that good. But how well did it do in Graded? Let’s take a look at the final grades for Royal Rumble 2019.
(PRE-SHOW) Roode & Gable def. Rezar and Scott Dawson
Final Grade: D+
This match got thrown together as the show began. If Rezar and Dawson won, each of their teams would receive tag title matches. That didn’t happen, so this match seemed even more pointless.
Roode and Gable won with their Neckbreaker/Moonsault combo.
(PRE-SHOW) WWE United States Championship: Shinsuke Nakamura def. Rusev to win the title
Final Grade: D+
Rusev’s reign lasted just over a month this time around. Shinsuke wins back his title after Lana gets herself hurt once again and Rusev allows himself to get distracted.
(PRE-SHOW) WWE Cruiserweight Championship Fatal 4-Way: Buddy Murphy def. Akira Tozawa, Kalisto, and Hideo Itami to retain
Final Grade: B+
Best match of the pre-show. Each man showcases fantastic athleticism. Lots of dives to the outside and around the ring. Itami kicked out of Kalisto’s Salida Del Sol. Murphy won with the Murphy’s Law in the end.
SmackDown Women’s Championship: Asuka def. Becky Lynch via submission to retain
Final Grade: B+
Good showing from both women. Given what happens later on in the night, it’s strange they had Asuka win clean by submission.
Swinging Neckbreaker/Suplex from the apron to the floor. Asuka and Becky used each other’s finishes at one point. A bridging Auka Lock made Lynch tap out in the end.
SmackDown Tag Team Championships: Miz & Mac def. The Bar to win the titles
Finish of the Night Winner: Shane McMahon’s Shooting Star Press
Final Grade: B
The greatest tag team in the world finally has the gold they so clearly deserve.
Shane shows that middle aged dads are the most dangerous kind of animal when provoked. Miz hit a Skull Crushing Finale that was followed up by a Shane O’Mac Shooting Star Press.
RAW Women’s Championship: Ronda Rousey def. Sasha Banks to retain
Final Grade: B-
Ronda took the most offense more than she has in any other WWE match up until now. Sasha looks like she had the match won at several points. But Ronda also technically won twice in this match; She made Sasha tap with the Armbar on the outside of the ring before winning officially by pinfall.
Most of this match is who can apply the better submission. Since Ronda made Sasha tap, the Armbar clearly won here. But, the Piper’s Pit is what decided the match in Rousey’s favor.
Women’s Royal Rumble: Becky Lynch wins
Match of the Night Winner
Final Grade: A+
Becky “The Man” Lynch is going to WrestleMania.
Maria Kannelis made a return to the ring. Rhea Ripley, Candice Lerae, Io Sharai, as well as a few others, make their main roster debut.
Lana, who entered at 28, couldn’t make it to the ring. Becky Lynch came out and demanded she replace her. Finlay gave the ok, and Lynch stormed to the ring.
The final four came down to Nia Jax, Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch and Bayley. Jax tossed Bayley from the ring. Becky threw out Jax. Then, when it looked like Flair may actually pull off the upset, Lynch threw her out to declare herself the winner.
Action packed and full of exciting moments; Easily match of the night.
WWE Championship: Daniel Bryan def. AJ Styles to retain
Final Grade: B-
This match has the misfortune of going on after the first Royal Rumble. That being said, it doesn’t give any real reason to pay attention anyway.
We’ve seen everything there is to see between Styles and Bryan. The only thing that saves this match from a “C+” is the appearance of Eric Rowan. It doesn’t make sense, right now, but it was different. Something different in a feud going stale is its saving grace.
Universal Championship: Brock Lesnar def. Finn Balor to retain
Final Grade: B-
At times, it looked like Finn Balor actually looked like he was going to pull off the unthinkable. But, Brock made Balor tap out with the Kimura Lock.
Right out of the gate, Balor took the hurt to Brock. He managed to hit the Coup De Grace, but Lesnar kicked out. Brock wins, but Finn looks strong walking out of it.
The post-match beatdown from Lesnar didn’t matter towards the final grade or my overall positive opinion of this match.
Men’s Royal Rumble: Seth Rollins wins
Moment of the Night Winner: Nia Jax getting RKO’d by Randy Orton
Best Elimination of the Night Winner: Seth Rollins eliminates Braun Strowman with the Curbstomp
Final Grade: A
Predictable? Maybe. Entertaining? Hell yeah.
There was a few surprise entrants; Johnny Gargano, Aleister Black, Pete Dunne, and Nia Jax took part. Jeff Jarrett enters at number two to offer a duet to Elias, who drew number one. But Elias completed the prophecy and hit Double J with his guitar.
All hope seemed lost for Rollins after Bobby Lashley put him through the announce table. But he later rallied back and won. He and Strowman stood on the apron. With the “Monster Among Men” in the correct position, Rollins hit the Curbstomp to eliminate the massive man.
Nia Jax attacked R-Truth and took his spot in the match. Controversy came when Jax received a Superkick, 619, and RKO all in the span of about fifteen seconds. Was it necessary? Since she was a competitor in the match… Yes.
Overall Royal Rumble 2019 Final Grade: B
Unpopular Opinion: This show is amazing. A majority of the wrestling fan community think it wasn’t a good card. Either good or bad, it still has memorable moments and entertaining action.
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Photo credit to WWE via Instagram
