Ronda Rousey return headlines rollercoaster Royal Rumble

The WWE Universe erupted this past weekend at Royal Rumble as Ronda Rousey made an unexpected return. 

Ronda Rousey took coming-back-with-a-bang to a whole new level and proved exactly why she is undoubtedly the baddest woman on the planet.

Moreover, as one of the final female superstars to enter the Royal Rumble match, Rousey dominated the ring and quickly secured her place at WrestleMania 38 after defeating the Bella Twins, Shotzi and WWE Smackdown Woman’s Champion, Charlotte Flair.

It’s been almost three years since the WWE Universe witnessed her in the ring. 

Ronda Rousey has returned for a significant run as WWE have revealed that she will be a part of the RAW brand and is signed up to participate in WrestleMania 39 in 2023.

With fierce rival Becky Lynch currently in possession of the Raw Women’s Championship, the road to WrestleMania 38 promises to be a hell of a ride.

The Women’s Royal Rumble

Ronda Rousey wasn’t the only surprise though, as former Divas Champion Melina entered the Royal Rumble as the second entrant, suffering a quick elimination by the woman who opened the over-the-top-rope battle, Sasha Banks. The Boss tallied one more elimination in Kelly Kelly before being eliminated by Queen Zelina, who entered at No. 7.

Sonya Deville (No. 11) decided to wait for a more ideal time to enter the fray, keeping her WWE Official jacket on and joining the announcers at ringside until she jumped in to eliminate Naomi’s former partner Cameron. Unfortunately for Deville however The Glow entered seconds later at No. 14. Naomi headed straight for Deville and sent her to the floor with a kick to the face before Deville reappeared later in the match to pull Naomi off the apron and eliminate her.

With action becoming more chaotic, 2021 Royal Rumble runner-up Rhea Ripley and SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair entered at No. 16 and No. 17 and as a result, five eliminations followed including the Nightmare’s.

Legendary rumble

In a rumble that was already slated to feature legends and former champions such as The Bella Twins, Lita, Michelle McCool and Mickie James, the WWE Universe was treated to the shocking surprise appearances of Ivory, Alicia Fox and Sarah Logan. Even though it was every woman for herself, The Bellas joined forces to eliminate Fox, Logan and Liv Morgan, before Brie made the most of an open opportunity to turn on her sister and eliminate her.

When Rousey finally hit the ring, she made quick work of Nikki A.S.H. and Brie Bella as the herd began to thin following the match’s final entrant, Shayna Baszler. It came down to Baszler, Rousey, Belair and Flair in the final four.

The Queen came alive in the last moments of the gruelling match, however, recording four of the final five eliminations until it came down to just her and Rousey. Flair, however, went right for Ronda Rousey. It wouldn’t matter though as The Baddest Woman on the Planet caught Flair in the middle of a big boot, upending her to stand tall as the lone survivor.

Full list of Royal Rumble Match participants and eliminations

No.	Superstar	Eliminated	Eliminated By	Time
1	Sasha Banks	Melina, Kelly Kelly	Queen Zelina	0:09:44
2	Melina		Sasha Banks	0:00:53
3	Tamina		Natalya	0:16:41
4	Kelly Kelly		Sasha Banks	0:01:05
5	Aliyah		Charlotte Flair	0:22:50
6	Liv Morgan		Brie Bella	0:37:20
7	Queen Zelina	Sasha Banks	Rhea Ripley	0:17:25
8	Bianca Belair	Natalya	Charlotte Flair	0:47:30
9	Dana Brooke		Michelle McCool	0:02:12
10	Michelle McCool	Dana Brooke	Mickie James	0:20:50
11	Sonya Deville	Cameron, Naomi	Naomi	0:02:00
12	Natalya	Tamina, Summer Rae	Bianca Belair	0:36:17
13	Cameron		Sonya Deville	0:00:51
14	Naomi	Sonya Deville	Sonya Deville* (after elimination)	0:07:18
15	Carmella		Rhea Ripley	0:00:50
16	Rhea Ripley	Carmella, Queen Zelina, Ivory	Charlotte Flair	0:30:59
17	Charlotte Flair	Aliyah, Lita, Rhea Ripley, Shayna Baszler, Bianca Belair	Ronda Rousey	0:31:23
18	Ivory		Rhea Ripley	0:00:25
19	Brie Bella	Sarah Logan, Liv Morgan, Nikki Bella	Ronda Rousey	0:19:21
20	Mickie James	Michelle McCool	Lita	0:11:40
21	Alicia Fox		Nikki Bella	0:06:30
22	Nikki A.S.H.	Mighty Molly	Ronda Rousey	0:12:13
23	Summer Rae		Natalya	0:00:52
24	Nikki Bella	Alicia Fox, Sarah Logan	Brie Bella	0:08:40
25	Sarah Logan		Brie Bella, Nikki Bella	0:00:43
26	Lita	Mickie James	Charlotte Flair	0:10:21
27	Mighty Molly		Nikki A.S.H.	0:00:20
28	Ronda Rousey	Nikki A.S.H., Brie Bella, Shotzi, Charlotte Flair	WINNER	0:10:16
29	Shotzi		Ronda Rousey	0:02:56
30	Shayna Baszler		Charlotte Flair	0:05:31