The WWE Royal Rumble is just three weeks away! Thirty competitors from each division are gearing up to fight for a shot at the main title of their choice. Similar to last year, the women’s rumble match will likely feature a mix of up-and-coming superstars, veterans, and a few competitors who have been out of action for a while. Here are five competitors that could prevail if they compete in the 30-woman bout.
The young Roxanne Perez is one of the fastest-rising stars in the women’s division. Perez was called up to the WWE main roster last year at just the age of 23 and immediately made an impact. On the first night as an official member of Raw, she qualified for the Money in the Bank ladder match. Perez would later successfully defend the Women’s Tag Team Championship, alongside Raquel Rodriguez, in a Fatal Four-Way tag match at Evolution.
Perez is now looking to solidify herself as the future face of the women’s division. There is almost no better way of doing so than winning the Royal Rumble. It would likely set up a feud with a star that Perez has had several run-ins against, dating back to their time in NXT, Stephanie Vaquer. Perez also feels like she should have had the opportunity that Vaquer received, only adding to the tension that already existed.
Many WWE fans were disappointed when former Women’s United States Champion Chelsea Green dropped the title to Giulia on the first SmackDown of the year. That move, however, may have been a means for Green to move on to bigger and better things. Towards the end of 2025, she had multiple encounters with WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill, one of which ruined what was supposed to be a celebratory night for Green.
Cargill has essentially bullied Green in every encounter they have had; however, at some point, she must fight back. If Green were to emerge victorious at the rumble, she could take that opportunity to face The Storm and become the women’s champ in the process.
Tiffany Stratton may be nearing a return to action based on recent social media posts. After nearly a month of inactivity, Stratton started posting pictures of herself back in the gym last month. Some of the captions included “Sorry I’ve been MIA” and “See you next year.” The “you” that the former women’s champion was addressing may have been the WWE universe.
Cargill beat Stratton for the women’s title back in early November at Saturday Night’s Main Event in dominant fashion. Tiffy did not look like herself in that bout, and it turns out that she was dealing with a legitimate injury. Stratton would definitely be a prime candidate to win the rumble if cleared to return in time. The former MITB winner would likely choose to face Cargill again in an attempt to avenge that embarrassing loss from two months ago.
Upon returning to Raw last month, Liv Morgan had a brief backstage encounter with Vaquer and eyed the title that she once held. It was the first Raw appearance for Morgan in nearly six months, after separating her shoulder back in June. Morgan clearly had plans to pursue the world title again, but fellow Judgement Day member Rodriguez had already decided that she would be making another run at the gold. That led to some awkwardness between them, but they have settled their differences, at least for now.
Morgan has taken a backseat since and even talked about making a run at tag team gold with Perez. Deep down, however, Morgan probably feels some animosity towards Rodriguez for pursuing the world title again. Morgan was at the top of the WWE women’s division around this time last year, and winning the Royal Rumble would mean a direct line to doing so again. It would not be surprising if she wins it and also eliminates a Judgement Day member in the process.
Bianca Belair continues showing signs of returning to the WWE soon. The EST recently posted on her Instagram account the progress of her finger, which she broke last year at WrestleMania, and a picture of a scale. Belair is letting the fans know that she is healing and getting back into in-ring shape.
The Royal Rumble is always a great spot for the biggest stars to make a scheduled or surprise return (like Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss last year). If Belair does indeed return for the rumble, she would be one of the obvious candidates to be the last woman standing in the ring.
A rivalry between Belair and Cargill was always likely to happen, even before Naomi attacked Jade, which ultimately ended the alliance between the three. Cargill has been much more brash lately, feeling as though she is untouchable. Belair would be the perfect person to put her former ally in her place.
All five of these candidates have history, or at least some previous encounters with the current champions. There would already be something to build upon if one of them were to win. Belair may make for the best storyline, but if WWE wanted to continue the theme of pushing someone different, Green would be a great pick as such a fan favorite.
Hopefully, whatever direction WWE decides to go in ends up better than what we received from the Flair versus Stratton storyline. Things went off the rails quite a bit, as both women took unscripted shots at each other regarding situations outside the company. Having two competitors with chemistry is crucial for providing an engaging story that the fans want to get behind.
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