Why do people think Bryan was robbed?

[JDD]

I 100% understand why people are upset that Reigns won, and that people are mad that Bryan was eliminated so early, but why does everyone think Bryan deserved another Mania moment?

The man had one of the best Road's to Wrestlemania pf all time last year, and doing the whole underdog thing again would have been stale in my opinion. Is Reigns winning the best choice? No, but why people think Bryan was due a victory I just dont get.

[Str8Shooter]

I see what you're saying. And I don't necessarily think Bryan needed to win the Rumble. The problem is that the crowd clearly wanted him to win the Rumble and the way they unceremoniously was dumped out early killed all momentum the match had. And then they might have been able to salvage things a bit if they had Ambrose or Ziggler win, but they botched that too!

[Hanley!]

Because he was the most popular guy.

To be honest, if the fans were behind Reigns right now, I'd much prefer him to win over Bryan. I don't like Bryan's character much, his look is so bad that it puts me off, and it's always nice to see new talent in the main event.

But you don't fucking argue with the crowd. It's always pretty obvious who the most popular guy is around Rumble time and that's the guy who gets to main event. They had no problem letting Hogan, Michaels and Austin win twice in a row. Much as I don't agree with the general sentiment, Bryan is that guy right now. He should be treated accordingly.

[Messiah]

Because he is the top babyface and the top babyface should be in the main event of WrestleMania.

I mean I don't think anyone is saying Bryan deserved another moment. He was just the guy that should have won because the crowd wants him the most. It is logic 101.

[Viazon]

Don't get it twisted. I'm not mad that Reigns won. I'm mad at the way they went about it.

All of the people who work backstage who write and come up with storylines. Whoever they are. All of the people in corrective. Or just anyone general who works behind the scenes for however many number of years. Between all of their collective knowledge on the industry, there had to be one person who could bring up the face that thus would have been a bad idea.

Then again, maybe there are no one listen to them.

[EmperorWu]

They should have let him win the Rumble like everyone wanted. Have him face Lesnar and lose, or win if they really want heat on Rollins, then let Rollins get the strap with a cash in. Best way to make everyone happy. Nobody said he needs another moment.

[Messiah]

Because he was the most popular guy.

To be honest, if the fans were behind Reigns right now, I'd much prefer him to win over Bryan. I don't like Bryan's character much, his look is so bad that it puts me off, and it's always nice to see new talent in the main event.

I don't prefer Reigns over Bryan but I do agree, if we were able to re-book the entire last year of the company, I wouldn't have Bryan in a position to main event WrestleMania again as much as I love the guy. I would have built someone else up effectively for the fans to get behind and root for to main event 'Mania. You know, like Cesaro.

Instead, the WWE didn't do that. They fucked up with Ambrose and Ziggler although the funny thing is, the fans were still behind them the most. They fucked up Reigns' push and exposed his weaknesses for the fans to see and this is the result. Tonight was a result of year-long poor booking outside of their handling of Rollins.

But the biggest sin the WWE committed? He is pretty much John Cena! That is the biggest issue I have with Reigns. He is the cheesy, making-jokes that overcomes the odds babyface that Cena already is.

[Everlong]

I don't even necessarily think Bryan HAD to win this Rumble. I just think it's fucking absurd that they gave him such a weak showing and clearly eliminated him early in an effort to control the crowd for later on, which didn't work.

As @Viazon so astutely said in another thread, they should have just not had him come back at all before the Rumble if this was how they were going to handle it. At least give him a fighting chance in the Rumble.

[Hanley!]

If I was booking the product, I would have built up Ziggler to win the Rumble after his big performance at Survivor Series. That guy is overdue a main event push. But instead he got fired and spent a month on the sidelines just so John Cena could get the slight rub of being the guy to rescue him.

[Everlong]

If I was booking the product, I would have built up Ziggler to win the Rumble after his big performance at Survivor Series. That guy is overdue a main event push. But instead he got fired and spent a month on the sidelines just so John Cena could get the slight rub of being the guy to rescue him.

God, the way Ziggler was just squashed in the Rumble was awful too. He got a huge pop, and then NOTHING.

[Tom]

Just because Austin won it in 1998 and headlined Wrestlemania, does that mean he shouldn't have done the same in 2001? Daniel Bryan is your most over guy, he is the guy that is most popular with the fans. Therefore it would have made more sense if they had booked him to win it, although I understand it from a company perspective as to why he wasn't chosen considering he has been injured for the better part of a year.

I think a major problem is how he was eliminated. He was eliminated far too early, and in a very underwhelming manner. I am guessing his elimination leads to him facing Bray Wyatt at Mania, which is something I don't have an interest in seeing at their biggest show of the year. I seen it on Raw last week thank you very much. His elimination also sucked the energy out of the entire match. The match was actually OK until he got eliminated. After that it was dull, flat and predictable.

Being honest, the way they handled Ziggler as well was another "f*ck you" to the audience. The guy has been one of the stars in the company over the past few months, and deserved a much better run in the match in my opinion. I nearly would have been tempted to book him to win the damn thing. It seems as if they are going to go with "the authority didn't want Reigns winning the Rumble" angle. Surely Ziggler or Bryan would have been better options than Reigns if that is the case?

Having Reigns winning the Rumble is the exact same as the company choosing Lex Luger ahead of Bret Hart back in 1993 to chase Yokozuna for the title. It is the exact same as Batista winning the Rumble. In both cases the company made a decision to suit themselves and what they wanted as opposed to what the fans wanted. In both of those cases they realised their mistake within months. In this case I don't think they will. Although if booked right Reigns may still have been a popular winner, I still think it was far too early for him to win it. He is just a guy with potential at the moment as opposed to someone who is truly considered by the fans as one of the most popular superstars. And by booking him to win the Rumble they may ruined somebody who in the future could have been one of their biggest stars eventually.

The best way to look at it is this. In 1998, would it have made sense for WWE to book Ken Shamrock to win the Rumble over Austin? Shamrock was popular (as is/was Reigns) but Austin was clearly the guy the fans wanted to win it. Therefore shouldn't WWE have booked someone who the fans would have liked to see win it, and in this case one of their biggest stars (aka Daniel Bryan)? I am not comparing Bryan to Austin, but the cases are very similar when you think about it. Austin vs HBK was a much more intriguing battle for the title than Shamrock vs HBK, as is Bryan vs Lesnar in my opinion. It pits your biggest babyface vs your biggest heel.

Maybe the reality is that the fans didn't get to fully see the "Daniel Bryan Championship Story" because he got injured and still want to see it. If he hadn't got injured and eventually lost the title to Brock, maybe the fans would have accepted his elimination more kindly as well as Reigns for that matter. Austin got a chance to win the Rumble a matter of months after returning (2001). What would have been different than doing it with Bryan? The rulebook doesn't state that you can't have more than "one" Wrestlemania moment.

I fully get why Bryan may not have been chosen due to injuries and whatnot. But he certainly would have been a much more logical option than Reigns in my opinion.

On a positive note the triple threat was incredible and it was great seeing Bubba Ray in the Rumble as well. It was certainly the most enjoyable and surprising part in what will go down as one of the worst Rumble matches (if not the worst) in history.

[Matteo]

Filmmaking is a real democracy - it's up to the audience to vote with their tickets.

To a small extent, this quote can be applied to the WWE. More people purchased and attended the PPV to see Daniel Bryan win, not Roman Reigns. It really should all come down to that. But, as we sadly know, WWE is not a democracy, it's a dictatorship. And they seriously do not care about their fans.

[DBSoT]

I know most of the crowd's chants were for Bryan, but I don't even think it was just Bryan they were mad about. They were mad for other wrestlers basically being tossed aside so WWE could force their guy in. I feel bad for Reigns because he is about to walk into Goldberg/Lesnar territory at mania. As Goldberg has stated in interviews, the reason that match was so bad was because both guys knew they were on their way out and didn't care. What do you think Lesnar is going to do when he realizes he is working with the greenest guy since his return and that he is done the next day? The crowd shat on the booking at the rumble including the Rock, the build up will be shat on by crowds (not all, but you will here the chants), and then the match will be shit. Reigns is too young to have such a huge black mark on his record already. Reigns hasn't even won a mid card singles title before. Even Cena and Lesnar didn't do that. Hell Rusev hasn't even been pinned yet and he still holds a mid card singles title. Fans attach themselves to the wrestlers journeys and Reigns really never had one. He didn't have great singles feuds or defining moments. Winning the rumble is suppose to be a crowning achievement to someones career to justify their past work. The fans have no journey to attach to Reigns. Reigns journey basically started tonight and that puts him in Sheamus territory of peaking to early.

[Everlong]

Fans attach themselves to the wrestlers journeys and Reigns really never had one. He didn't have great singles feuds or defining moments. Winning the rumble is suppose to be a crowning achievement to someones career to justify their past work. The fans have not journey to attach to Reigns. Reigns journey basically started tonight and that puts him in Sheamus territory of peaking to early.

This was a great post, especially this section. Really highlights just how much WWE has completely fucked this guy over. The comparison to Sheamus is especially apt, especially when you consider WWE has been trying to force each of them into being the new Cena.

Reigns is totally fucked.

[Matteo]

Did anyone else notice that as soon as Bryan was eliminated, "shattered dreams" on the titron appears a few seconds later? That's fucking cold.

[Georgerv]

Haven't read all the responses above and am too drunk to attempt to do so.

But even taking out the guy's popularity, and it is a ridiculously insane level of popularity, even Kayfabe wise he is the guy that got screwed out of his title by Kane, a member of the authority and had to relinquish it due to injury.

The storyline is there, the popularity is there and the talent is there. Why the hell wouldn't people think he was robbed?

[Racing Guy]

He didn't have to win. However, he should've at least made the final 4.

[VaderBomb]

Did anyone else notice that as soon as Bryan was eliminated, "shattered dreams" on the titron appears a few seconds later? That's fucking cold.

Yup, caught that immediately.

You are shit, WWE.

[Kyle]

I'm most upset that he was eliminated in a weak fashion. If he's going to be eliminated, at least make it be in the final 5-6 participants and make it a dirty elimination.