The Rock has not been confirmed to wrestle at WWE WrestleMania 41. (Credit: WWE/Getty Images)

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The 2025 men’s WWE Royal Rumble features arguably the most star-studded field in the match’s storied history, and the field is wide open.

With the likes of CM Punk, John Cena, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins among the participants in the 30-man Royal Rumble, there is no clear-cut favorite to win the match and the guaranteed WrestleMania world title shot that comes with it. Just over half the field has been confirmed for the bout, too, which creates even more uncertainty heading into the match.

Reported high-profile WrestleMania bouts like Cena vs. Cody Rhodes or Gunther vs. Rollins seemingly have positioned stars like Cena and Rollins as the Royal Rumble favorites. Yet, any reported WrestleMania 41 creative plans could go up in smoke if and when a surprise entrant spoils the party.

And rest assured, there are plenty of marquee names who could return in the 2025 WWE Royal Rumble as a blockbuster surprise entrant.

ForbesWWE Royal Rumble 2025: Logan Paul And 5 Men’s DarkhorsesBy Blake OestriecherRandy Orton

Randy Orton is expected to return at the WWE Royal Rumble after being written off TV late last year due to a storyline attack by Kevin Owens.

That leaves two potential paths for a return for “The Viper.” One, he returns to confront Owens during his WWE Championship match with Rhodes, either costing Owens the match or attacking him afterward. Two, Orton returns within the men’s Royal Rumble and perhaps even wins it to set up a WrestleMania title match with Owens or maybe even Rhodes.

Orton, a two-time Royal Rumble winner, was generating electrifying crowd reactions prior to his hiatus, so rest assured that his return will be met with open arms by WWE fans. Whether that is Orton confronting Owens as a babyface or turning heel on Rhodes remains to be seen.

But if Orton shows up at Lucas Oil Stadium in any way, it will be a memorable moment with major WrestleMania ramifications.

AJ Styles

WWE is reportedly hopeful that AJ Styles can return for the 2025 Royal Rumble, but “The Phenomenal One” may be touch and go.

In response to a fan’s question on X, the former WWE Champion described his Lisfranc injury—suffered in October 2024—as “challenging,” and he remains sideliend. Styles’ absence on SmackDown has been noticeable, as the blue brand has been relatively thin in the main event scene.

If Styles is indeed cleared to return, that would position him for yet another unforgettable Royal Rumble moment. It was, of course, in the 2016 Royal Rumble that Styles made his epic WWE debut, which was virtually unfathomable just a few years prior.

If Styles—a beloved star whether he’s a heel or babyface—returns within the 2025 Royal Rumble, it would provide an instant boost to SmackDown and potentially set up a major WrestleMania match for one of the greatest in-ring performers of all-time.

Joe Hendry

With WWE making its partnership with TNA official, it’s likely that multiple TNA talents will appear in both the men’s and women’s Royal Rumble matches.

There is arguably no potential Royal Rumble debut more highly anticipated, however, than that of Joe Hendry. The current TNA World Champion, Hendry became one of the hottest acts in all of pro wrestling in 2024 and even made the crossover to NXT, but he never showed up on Raw or SmackDown.

Hendry, though, has already hinted at a potential Royal Rumble appearance and will be in Indianapolis for the Royal Rumble week festivities. Given WWE’s working relationship with TNA, Hendry is seemingly set to follow in the footsteps of Mickie James, who appeared in the 2022 women’s Royal Rumble while holding the TNA Knockouts World Championship.

It’s essentially a no-brainer for Hendry to appear and potentially set up a crossover feud with a WWE star for the TNA world title.

Goldberg

WWE has confirmed that Goldberg will wrestle a retirement match in 2025, paving the way for a once improbable Royal Rumble return.

Goldberg was once reportedly slated to return on last week’s Raw, and though that obviously didn’t happen, that same report has linked Goldberg to a match with Gunther, the current World Heavyweight Champion. That certainly is a logical direction given their interaction on Raw last year, but it’s complicated by the fact that Gunther is champion.

Would WWE really run Gunther vs. Goldberg as a WrestleMania world title match in 2025? That seems less likely with Triple H in charge, but in WWE, you can never say never. Even if Gunther and Goldberg aren’t planned for a WrestleMania bout with a title on the line, however, it’s likely not a coincidence that Goldberg was expected to return on Raw but didn’t.

Perhaps he didn’t show up on Raw purely to save his return for the Royal Rumble match.

The Rock

The reality is that The Rock is the glue that either holds WrestleMania 41 together or makes it fall apart.

It is, after all, well known that The Rock’s presence looms large, even when he’s not present at all. Given The Rock’s interaction with Cody Rhodes on the Raw on Netflix premiere, that seemingly scrapped any possibility of Rock vs. Rhodes—the once obvious direction—at WrestleMania 41.

Then again, maybe it didn’t, or perhaps The Rock could face Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 41. Or The Rock potentially could have no role at WrestleMania at all.

That’s the thing with The Rock. Even when he’s nowhere near WWE programming, his connections to top stars ranging from Rhodes to Reigns to Cena mean that he can’t ever really be counted out. WWE even subtly dropped a major tease during the Royal Rumble Kickoff that The Rock could show up in Indianapolis:

The Rock returning as the surprise No. 30 entrant in the most loaded WWE Royal Rumble ever would be perfectly befitting of his character and potentially set the stage for a blockbuster WrestleMania match with any number of top stars.