WWE’s Royal Rumble PLE takes place on Saturday (Jan. 31) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
On this week’s (Jan. 26) episode of Raw, Finn Balor tried to declare his spot in the men’s Rumble match, but General Manager Adam Pearce denied his request because all spots have already been filled.
I guess The Miz didn’t get the memo or watch the show, because the A-Lister has since told ESPN’s Get Up that he plans to declare for the match but hasn’t gotten around to it yet:
“My goal, if I’m in the Royal Rumble, which I have not declared yet. We will soon have to see if I will declare. I’m planning on it, but we will see. I plan on throwing over 29 other superstars, winning the Royal Rumble, and we are on the road to WrestleMania.”
The Miz is a low card guy in WWE these days, so it’s not the craziest scenario in the world that WWE might not book him for one of the 30 spots in the men’s Royal Rumble match. I’d bet that’s the main reason why Miz described his Royal Rumble status in such an awkward way that makes him sound silly for waiting so long in kayfabe to declare his entry.
According to the data at All Rumble Stats, Miz is currently tied with Kofi Kingston for the most Royal Rumble appearances (16) out of all active wrestlers on the WWE roster. What I said about Miz also applies to Kingston, in the sense that the New Day rarely ever wins matches anymore in WWE, so Kofi doesn’t look like a lock to be in the 2026 Royal Rumble either. Kingston didn’t compete in last year’s Rumble match, which opened the door for Miz to tie him on the list.
I’d guess that The Miz has a better chance than Kofi to be in this year’s Royal Rumble match, mostly because Kofi is stuck doing forgettable work in the tag team division on Raw and no longer does the yearly Rumble spot where he saves himself from elimination in spectacular fashion. The Miz at least gets regular TV time on SmackDown, and was featured in recent tournaments to vie for the world title and also be John Cena’s final opponent. It looks like he’s also about to challenge Carmelo Hayes for the United States title, so perhaps their story can play out more in the Royal Rumble match this weekend.
Do you think Royal Rumble mainstays The Miz and Kofi Kingston will find their names listed among the 30 competitors in this year’s men’s match in Saudi Arabia? Let me know in the comments below, Cagesiders.
