Fans of professional wrestling constantly look forward to January because it means one of the most popular events is right around the corner: the WWE Royal Rumble. This year’s event will be taking place on Saturday, Jan. 29 at the Dome at America's Center in St. Louis, MO.
While the card is filled from head-to-toe with exciting matchups, most fans are looking forward to the men’s and women's Royal Rumble matchups. Thirty men and women will be competing in both matches for a WrestleMania world championship opportunity, so it’s easy to see why people enjoy predicting what will go down in each match.
With that being said, it can sometimes be difficult to predict a WWE Royal Rumble winner. That’s why sportsbooks like BetOnline have released odds heading into this weekend’s festivities that help make more sense of things.
Here’s a look at BetOnline’s odds and our predictions for the men’s and women’s Royal Rumble matches.
WWE Royal Rumble 2022: Men’s Rumble Match Odds
Odds via BetOnline as of Thursday, January 27
- Brock Lesnar (+350)
- Big E (+350)
- AJ Styles (+500)
- Roman Reigns (+800)
- Kevin Owens (+1000)
- Drew McIntyre (+1200)
- The Rock (+1400)
- Bobby Lashley (+1600)
- Seth Rollins (+1800)
- Omos (+2000)
- Finn Balor (+2000)
The complete odds list is available at BetOnline.ag.
At +350 odds, both Brock Lesnar and Big E are BetOnline’s favorites to win the men’s WWE Royal Rumble this Saturday.
At first, it may not make sense for Lesnar to be the co-favorite because he’s the current WWE Champion. However, he has unfinished business with WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns due to the latter’s positive COVID-19 test cancelling their match at the Day 1 pay-per-view event earlier this month. If Reigns interferes and causes Lesnar to lose the WWE Championship to Bobby Lashley, it wouldn’t be unfathomable to imagine the ‘Beast Incarnate’ entering the Rumble and winning it to get his revenge at WrestleMania. That idea could also work in reverse if Lesnar costs Reigns his championship against Seth Rollins.
Big E is an interesting choice because he was just the WWE Champion before losing it to Lesnar at Day 1 in a fatal five-way match. He hasn’t done much since dropping the gold, so a WWE Royal Rumble victory would certainly boost his stock.
One name that some might be shocked to see is The Rock at +1400 odds. It’s been years since he wrestled, however, fans have been hoping to see him square off against his cousin, Reigns, at WrestleMania one day. What better way to do that than have him return to win the Royal Rumble before headlining professional wrestling’s biggest show with his cousin?
Prediction: Roman Reigns (+800)
Reigns has been WWE Universal Champion for well over 500 days and now seems like the perfect time to drop the title since Rollins is on another level right now. Maybe Lesnar will laugh at him backstage, causing the ‘Tribal Chief’ to enter and win the WWE Royal Rumble with the former being his target for WrestleMania.
Women’s Rumble Match Odds
Odds via BetOnline as of Thursday, January 27
- Ronda Rousey (-125)
- Bianca Belair (+300)
- Alexa Bliss (+600)
- Asuka (+700)
- Bayley (+1000)
- Rhea Ripley (+1000)
- Sasha Banks (+1400)
- Raquel Gonzalez (+1400)
- Charlotte Flair (+1400)
- Liv Morgan (+1600)
The complete odds list is available on BetOnline.ag.
Unlike the men’s Rumble, the women’s side of things has a clear-cut favorite. Former UFC fighter and WWE Raw Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey is BetOnline’s -125 favorite this Saturday. It was only a few days ago that rumors started picking up about the 34-year-old potentially returning to WWE because the company wants her for WrestleMania 38. Since Royal Rumbles usually have surprise entrants, bringing her back in St. Louis to win the whole thing would make for a shocking viral moment.
In addition to Rousey, Alexa Bliss (+600), Asuka (+700) and Bayley (+1000) could all make their in-ring returns this Saturday as well. Each of the trio is a former women’s champion and would make for a credible WWE Royal Rumble winner.
Another interesting pick is Paige at +1600. She was forced into early retirement in 2017 due to a neck injury, however, she still wants to return to the ring one day. After seeing Edge and Daniel Bryan (now known as Bryan Danielson in AEW) return from career-ending injuries, perhaps Paige is next to do so.
Prediction: Bayley (+1000)
While Rousey is the easy pick, I’m going with Bayley. She was really hitting her stride before a torn ACL sidelined her in July. Rousey can easily get a world title match just by showing up, whereas a WWE Royal Rumble victory is one of the things that Bayley is missing on her resume.
