With a 50-man Battle Royal, stacked card and the return of many wrestling legends, the Greatest Royal Rumble pay-per-view had sky-high expectations and had the opportunity to be the best WWE show of 2018.
Just think about this for a moment. John Cena and Triple H - two wrestling legends who have completely transformed the industry in the 21st century - were "only" the opening match of the show.
Fans also got to see seven championships put on the line. Future Hall of Famers in The Undertaker, Rey Mysterio and Chris Jericho made returns. Major stars like Kurt Angle and Daniel Bryan headlined the 50-man Royal Rumble. What wasn't there to love?
And say what you want about Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar, but these two men in a Steel Cage match was to be must-watch TV. They are two of the most decorated talents in the WWE, and their matches are always jaw-dropping.
Oh, and having Shinsuke Nakamura and AJ Styles Part II for the WWE Championship was supposed to be special, if their WrestleMania 34 bout was an indication of anything. So the fans in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, had good reason for optimism. This was a once-in-a-lifetime stacked card.
But it's safe to say that very few of us fans expected the show to play out the way it did. Lackluster matches, top talents not putting on their best performances and virtually no surprise finishes.
Really, this wasn't the best of work by the WWE creative team.
The Cena and Triple H match definitely wasn't high in quality, but we can forgive the creative team for this. The two haven't feuded in nearly a decade, and it never hurts to bring back the nostalgic feel in a big show.
Cena also cut a nice heartwarming promo, thanking Jeddah for having him and expressing his pleasure to be there as he deals with personal issues (the heartbreak with partner of six years, Nikki Bella).
But nonetheless, the match quality and flow just wasn't there. Cena is 41 years of age and has worked through shoulder injuries, while Triple H turns 49 soon and has only been a part-time performer for the past few years. A little more practice beforehand could have made this match better.
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We did expect both tag team title matches to play out the way they did. But as the WWE Universe knowns, predictable results aren't fun. In a way, you kind of had to expect some form of a surprise to happen.
But seeing Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt holding the Raw Tag Team Championships will be something to behold, no doubt. But did we really think The Bar would win, when they were just moved to the SmackDown Live brand in the Superstar Shake-Up? Of course not.
And like The Bludgeon Brothers were going to lose to The Usos. How many times have we seen Harper and Rowan squash those two on SmackDown Live? It wasn't going to change in this one. The whole world knew that. Couldn't they have at least thrown in another tag team so there was some form of expectation Harper and Rowan wouldn't retain?
Speaking of obvious championship outcomes, did anyone really think Jeff Hardy was going to lose to Jinder Mahal? Was there much of a doubt that Seth Rollins was going to retain his Intercontinental title, less than three weeks after winning it?
All of these matches had predictable outcomes, and that's not a good thing. The fans are supposed to be guessing, and this was the perfect time for the WWE to set up some surprise finishes. It didn't happen. It's disappointing.
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As for the main championship matches? Not many will complain about AJ Styles and Brock Lesnar retaining their titles, but the match endings will go down as two of the most forgettable in recent memory.
Styles and Nakamura are both more than over with the crowd, and both men are among the greatest talents to ever step foot in the WWE ring. So what was the finish? Both men getting counted out. Seriously?
That finish almost felt like the Fingerpoke of Doom incident that virtually killed WCW. It just felt like a major insult to the fans who paid good money and sacrificed valuable time on a Friday to watch the match. Styles really couldn't retain via pinfall? We'd love to get knowledge as for the ending match?
The Lesnar and Reigns match was actually excellent, with both beasts getting in some major blows. But the ending certainly could have been better, and Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Newsletter noted a glaring mistake:
The saving grace of the show was Braun Strowman winning what was an epic 50-man Greatest Royal Rumble, as the creative team looks bent on continuing his major push.
But zero championships changed hands. WWE didn't bring the element of surprise for any of their matches. The hyped-up bouts had horrible finishes. And this was supposed to be one of the most memorable pay-per-view shows in WWE history.
We won't forget the venue or the fact 50 men battled in one Royal Rumble. Maybe it was the Greatest Royal Rumble ever, but this show certainly won't go down as the Greatest of the year.
NEXT: GREATEST ROYAL RUMBLE:TITUS O'NEIL EATS IT RUNNING TO THE RING [GIF]
