WWE News: Huge Star Interferes In Universal Championship Match At ‘Royal Rumble’ – Attacks Roman Reigns To Set Up New Feud

One of the biggest matches of the night the 30th anniversary of the Royal Rumble was the WWE Universal Championship bout between Roman Reigns and champion Kevin Owens. The match was expected to be brutal, and that is exactly what it was as the “No Disqualification” stipulation was used to its full advantage. At the end of the night, the chairs, tables, and brass knuckles didn’t decide who would leave with the title, but the outside interference did.

The match could not end with a disqualification and it would include no interference from Chris Jericho as he was locked high above the ring in a shark cage. Everyone thought that the WWE Universal Championship would be decided by only two men, but that simply didn’t end up happening.

As Roman Reigns gained the advantage and prepared to spear Kevin Owens through a table set up in the corner of the ring, the unexpected interference took place. Braun Strowman appeared at ringside out of nowhere and pulled Reigns out and proceeded to straight-up demolish him.

It’s @BraunStrowman!!! He SLAMS @WWERomanReigns into the announcers’ table!!! #RoyalRumble #UniversalTitle pic.twitter.com/e9Mjnwi4e9

— WWE (@WWE) January 30, 2017

“.@BraunStrowman just LAID WASTE to @WWERomanReigns!” – @MichaelCole #RoyalRumble #UniversalTitle pic.twitter.com/8BMVqFwjDD

— WWE (@WWE) January 30, 2017

As recapped by Wrestling Inc., Braun Strowman just did a huge number on Reigns and there was no way that the former member of The Shield could defend himself.

Strowman slammed Reigns into the ring post before delivering a huge chokeslam onto the top of an announce table which didn’t break. Reigns was rolled into the ring and followed by Strowman who picked him up and delivered a running powerslam through the corner table.

Once that happened, Kevin Owens just scooted on over and draped a hand over Reigns for the pin to retain his title.

Give Me Sports recently reported that upcoming advertisements for WWE Live Events following the Royal Rumble do have Reigns and Strowman in singles matches. Many thought this was a spoiler for the Universal Championship match but that it could have just been early previews. Well, it certainly seems as if those advertisements do not need to be altered now.

Fans may end up being quite happy with this as Reigns doesn’t have a title around his waist and he is moving into a feud with Strowman. So, that means neither man will be in the main event scene and competing for any of the big titles.

While there likely won’t be an explanation for Strowman’s interference until tomorrow night, there may already be a reason known. Remember the Monday Night Raw at the beginning of January where Reigns and Goldberg double-speared Strowman? Obviously, the big man didn’t like that and may have it on his mind.

Going through the Royal Rumble pre-show and opening match, here are the results so far by way of the official website of WWE:

• WWE Universal Championship: Kevin Owens retained over Roman Reigns
• Raw Women’s Championship: Charlotte Flair retained over Bayley
• Nia Jax defeated Sasha Banks
• Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson won the Raw Tag Titles from Cesaro and Sheamus
• Naomi, Nikki Bella, and Becky Lynch defeated Alexa Bliss, Natalya, and Mickie James

A lot more is scheduled for tonight’s pay-per-view (PPV) and that includes the actual Royal Rumble match, but Braun Strowman’s interference is the biggest shock early on.

The 30th anniversary of the Royal Rumble started off with a huge bang as Charlotte Flair kept her PPV record intact by defeating Bayley to retain the Raw Women’s Championship. The huge match that took place after that opening bout is what may have already stolen the show. Kevin Owens and Roman Reigns beat each other from pillar to post, but it was Braun Strowman’s interference that would ultimately decide the match and let KO escape with his Universal Title.

[Featured Image by WWE]