Royal Rumble 2026 exit survey: Did WWE get it right — and where do we go from here?

After last weekend’s Royal Rumble, we’re officially on the road to WrestleMania 42. To celebrate, the Uncrowned Horsemen have piled into a vehicle of your choice to dissect some of the biggest angles coming out of the first major PLE of the year.

This time around, we tossed Drake Riggs over the top rope (we still love you, Drake!) and tagged in Raj Prashad to join Kel Dansby, Robert Jackman and Anthony Sulla-Heffinger for the latest round.

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Let’s ride!

1. Which WWE star had the best performance at the Royal Rumble? How — if at all — will they factor into WrestleMania?

Prashad: Oba Femi continues to be a name I come back to. There’s an aura about when he’s in the ring that demands attention. It never tracked that he could have won this year’s Rumble — especially with a rising star like Jacob Fatu on track to wrestle for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania — so his run was the next best thing.

But WWE has been intentional in its presentation of Femi as a monster capable of mixing it up with just about anyone across the roster. At worst, his positioning is already into the upper mid-card based on the opponents he’s encountered. In the Rumble, Femi was dominant early on, had a sustained run in the ring, stood toe-to-toe with Cody Rhodes, and had a signature showdown with Brock Lesnar. Femi’s stock might be the highest of the non-winners on the roster.

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WWE should simply replicate the playbook they used with Fatu from last year and feed a mid-card title to Femi at ‘Mania. Give him a sustained run and get him ready for the main-event scene in time for WrestleMania 43.

Sulla-Heffinger: I am going to go with two here, because both were equally impressive in their own ways. First, Lash Legend is a battle royal star. Between what she did at Evolution and what we saw this past weekend at the Royal Rumble, she’s rapidly making her way into the main-event picture. Usually those dominant Rumble spots are reserved for Legend’s tag partner, Nia Jax, but WWE did a smart thing by not booking them to be in the match at the same time, which allowed Legend to fully dominate on her own

Sticking in the women’s Royal Rumble, how can you not walk away utterly impressed with Sol Ruca as well? I think we could’ve all pegged that she was going to have some fun spots in the match, but to make it to the final three? In a different way than Legend, this was another star-making performance for Ruca.

The “SmackDown” women’s division needs something to shake it up. Let’s get these two as the final combatants in the Elimination Chamber and send one of them right into a title match at WrestleMania. I don’t have a preference truly as to who I would rather see there, but I think all things considered, Legend might be a smidge more ready for that spot than Ruca — who might be better suited for a MITB run.

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Dansby: It was hard to miss Oba Femi’s impact the moment he entered the Rumble at No. 1. He felt like a star immediately, from the crowd reaction to how he carried himself in the match. WWE is going to have a tough time slow-playing him if this momentum keeps up.

All signs point to a showdown with Brock Lesnar in the near future. The repeated faceoffs and “heat check” moments between the two didn’t feel accidental, and if that’s the direction, it’s clear WWE sees Oba as a major piece of the WrestleMania picture sooner rather than later.

Jackman: I’ll echo the obvious points about Oba Femi here. His performance on Saturday has to be one of the biggest debuts in years. And of course he wasn’t the only NXT call-up to make a splash: Je’Von Evans and Sol Ruca also had a great night. So while you can knock this year’s Rumble for its lack of surprises, you can’t say it didn’t help push the young guns.

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When it comes to the best performance, I’m going to say a word about Gunther. I really liked the story he told throughout the night — looking absolutely devastating in his match against AJ Styles, and then limping out at No. 30 in the men’s Rumble to clash unsuccessfully with Roman Reigns.

The fact that he didn’t win the Rumble showed that he isn’t entirely invincible. That adds some nuance to this whole “career killer” gimmick. Sure, he can beat the veterans, but can he do the same against the real upper-card guys like Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes? That’s the sort of thing that makes him more interesting once the dust has settled on these retirement matches.

2. Did WWE get it right with the two Royal Rumble winners?

Jackman: Yes, but only because they’re working backward from the real question: Are these the right WrestleMania main-eventers? When you have a two-night, 60,000-seat stadium show to sell at TKO ticket prices, you need to be putting your biggest names on the WrestleMania card as soon as possible. And both Reigns and Morgan meet those criteria twice over.

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If you look at the past two WrestleManias, WWE knew they had The Rock and then John Cena to help sell tickets. That almost certainly isn’t the case this time around, meaning they need to make the best use of their most recognizable remaining stars as they can.

Prashad: No complaints here. After wrapping up the Liv Morgan revenge tour, it was about time to see her get back into the title picture on the road to WrestleMania. WWE mapped out the Women’s Royal Rumble expertly, with multiple pieces moving in the right directions. Personally, a different winner wouldn’t have made as much long-term sense, assuming WWE pulls a couple more moves down the stretch (more on that later).

For Reigns, his words couldn’t ring more true. “The Tribal Chief” stepped out of the spotlight, provided an opportunity for someone or some story to take his throne, and that just didn’t happen. WWE needs balance, and for a two-night WrestleMania, it makes sense to elevate one star (likely Jacob Fatu in the World Heavyweight Championship picture) while boasting star power in the other title match against CM Punk.

Dansby: Another year, another set of overly predictable winners. This feels like a direct result of stagnant booking and a failure to consistently put younger stars in position to feel credible in matches like these.

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Right now, WWE feels less like a competitive locker room and more like a line of stars waiting their turn for a title shot. The Royal Rumble works best when it feels chaotic and unpredictable, not when the outcomes feel decided months in advance.

Sulla-Heffinger: Yes. Even if Liv Morgan was the obvious choice, there’s arguably no other woman who brings a compelling story and star power to the road to WrestleMania than the Judgment Day member does right now. It was time, there was no reason to make this more complicated than it needed to be.

For the men, you can’t go wrong with Roman Reigns. A year after one of the biggest Rumble surprises ever, there really wasn’t a singular person fans were behind. If anything, the WWE Universe made it clear who they didn’t want to win. Reigns and CM Punk are going to absolutely cook both on the microphone and in the ring, there wasn’t a bigger match you could make for WrestleMania.

3. What was the biggest surprise/swerve for you?

Sulla-Heffinger: It has to be Bron Breakker getting snuffed out before he got a chance to make it into the ring.

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Austin Theory being the original masked man has done little to move the needle or elevate The Vision, so it was a bit strange that we saw a similar attack at the very start of the men’s Royal Rumble, especially after Paul Heyman made such a big deal out of Breakker drawing No. 2.

All signs point to this being the vehicle to bring Seth Rollins back into the fold, but I wonder if it would have been better executed had it happened later on in the match and we got an actual reveal.

Prashad: I’ll be honest, I was stunned to see Bron Breakker getting stomped before he even got started in the Royal Rumble. I figured at minimum he’d get a nice run and finish in the final four, minimum. The fair question is perhaps, if he’s not going to be the person winning it, which situation is better — to take him out before the match or have him fall just short yet again?

WWE clearly has plans for Breakker, and in the context of Fatu getting elevated, it’s understandable that creative will wait to pull the trigger on him. But Breakker has also felt right on the cusp of breaking through for his first world championship since stepping into The Vision’s spotlight against CM Punk. I’m not a huge fan of the masked man bit over and again, so I guess we’ll see how this one pans out.

Dansby: Honestly, nothing, which kind of says it all about the current state of the Royal Rumble as a premium live event. If I had to pick something, it would be Brock Lesnar getting unceremoniously eliminated during Jey Uso’s extended “Yeet” entrance.

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Instead of feeling shocking or impactful, it fell flat and didn’t make Lesnar feel special at all heading into WrestleMania.

Jackman: The biggest swerve has to be Bron Breakker. I agree with Raj’s assessment that it makes sense in the grand scheme of things, but I defy anyone to say they saw this one coming. It’s the second time that The Vision storyline has completely wrong-footed everyone. Remember how shocked we were when Bron took out Seth Rollins?

If we’re doing surprises, I’d also like to put in a plug for how well Kiana James did. All the expectations were that she’d play a comedy role — unlike Breakker, she was one of the names tipped for quickest elimination — but she went on to deliver a barnstorming 30-minute performance peppered with decent in-ring spots that managed to get a response from the live crowd.

Who knows — maybe she will end up on the same trajectory as LA Knight, i.e., forced to make do with a comedy gimmick before breaking out as a serious wrestler and becoming a fan-favorite at the end of it.

4. Is Sami Zayn once again going to be a one-and-done challenger for the Undisputed WWE Championship?

Jackman: In the short term, yes. My read on WWE booking that match in the first place was that creative saw it as a great chance to turbocharge Drew McIntyre’s heel champion credentials by having him beat the biggest babyface in Saudi Arabia. To my mind, Saturday’s match did the job pretty well, even if we didn’t see McIntyre pull out any dastardly tricks or resort to beating Zayn senseless.

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Given Zayn’s massive popularity in Saudi, I think there’s mileage in giving him a monster push going into next year’s WrestleMania (which also takes place in Riyadh) and having him finally win a world title. That’s something that you can pick up nearer the time, though. For now, his business with Drew McIntyre is finished.

Sulla-Heffinger: I have to wonder how many times we’ll see this Sami Zayn story play out before it starts to wear thin with fans. Should he have beaten Drew McIntyre last weekend? Absolutely not. McIntyre looking like a strong heel champion/agent of chaos is what is best for the overall health of the Undisputed WWE Championship picture right now.

I predicted Zayn to win the Rumble because I think the bigger play here is to have him dethrone McIntyre at this year’s WrestleMania, despite the clear, massive moment next year’s WrestleMania 43 presents. WWE is presented with an opportunity to shift Zayn from the lovable underdog here to a focused, determined — and still lovable — underdog. (Kofi-mania and the Yes Movement, anyone?) We saw shades of this in the immediate aftermath of Jey Uso’s title win last year and it was an interesting wrinkle that was never really explored. Pop Zayn into the Elimination Chamber, have him win and go after McIntyre. You can also protect Cody Rhodes and Jacob Fatu by having them cost each other in that same Chamber match.

Prashad: It sure feels like it, doesn’t it? Drew McIntyre, Cody Rhodes, and Jacob Fatu never really paused their feud with each either. WWE simultaneously provided space for Rhodes and Fatu to squash their beef while Zayn climbed the ladder toward the World Heavyweight Championship picture against McIntyre.

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Two things feel true here: McIntyre eliminating Rhodes from the Royal Rumble felt like he was moving right back into the rivalry that has been the focal point of “SmackDown” in recent weeks. At the same time, there’s no logical path forward for Zayn. Unfortunately, he might just be a victim of WrestleMania season and fade to a separate challenge, perhaps against someone like Trick Williams.

Dansby: The curious case of Sami Zayn continues. Once again, it felt like the right time to pull the trigger and finally put the championship on him, and once again, he came up short.

Maybe this is long-term booking meant to build toward the ultimate underdog payoff, but it’s starting to test people’s patience. The danger now is that fans will stop believing the moment is ever actually coming.

5. Coming out of the Royal Rumble, what is one match you would absolutely book for WrestleMania?

Dansby: Let’s think outside the box and focus on the mid-card, where the roster is loaded with talent who are largely underutilized.

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On the men’s side, give me Gunther vs. Randy Orton in a Career Killer vs. Legend Killer matchup. Orton beating Gunther to keep his career alive could give him real momentum heading into the summer and naturally lead into a much-needed feud with Cody Rhodes.

On the women’s side, the mid-card has solid feuds but not enough intrigue. I’d love to see Giulia defend her title in a six-woman ladder match. It would let her showcase her athleticism while giving more of the “SmackDown” women meaningful WrestleMania moments. And let’s be honest, Chelsea Green would inevitably steal the show with a ridiculous bump.

Jackman: I’m a bit of a broken record on this one, but let’s get this women’s tag extravaganza booked. To have the lion’s share of the upper-carders focused on the tag scene has to make me think there’s something big in the works for WrestleMania. (If nothing else, it would be absolutely criminal to have Rhea Ripley babysitting the tag belts if there isn’t a suitably big payoff.)

RhIyo vs. Flair/Bliss has been teased over and over again. We’ve also had hints that Lash Legend and Nia Jax might be in the mix, as well as the Kabuki Warriors and Bayley and Lyra Valkyria. At this point, I’m less bothered by what the exact match looks like. I just want them to stop teasing and get the damn thing booked.

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Prashad: Put the Women’s World Championship on Raquel Rodriguez and get her in the ring with Liv Morgan. Stephanie Vaquer is an incredible talent, but WWE has a chance to catch lightning in a bottle with breaking up in the Judgement Day just in time for WrestleMania. Vaquer successfully retained her belt on “Raw,” but that would have been too straightforward. I don’t think we’re close to being done with the Rodriguez-Morgan fallout, unless WWE inexplicably drops their beef or we get a WrestleMania-sized turn.

Rodriguez has been one of the breakout stars of 2026 thus far, towering over the other women on the roster and showing a mean streak we haven’t seen in some time. Matching her against Morgan feels like the Diesel/Shawn Michaels evolution of their relationship, and I’m absolutely here for another certified main event women’s star. As good as Vaquer is, I’m just not as invested in any potential story as this one.

Sulla-Heffinger: Brock Lesnar is going to be at WrestleMania — he’s all over the promotional materials, after all.

Is there a better way to use him than have him go toe-to-toe with Oba Femi? Their staredowns in the men’s Royal Rumble were electric. Have Lesnar put over The Ruler in Las Vegas in a 10-minute slugfest.