CM Punk Predicts Winner of AJ Styles vs Gunther at the WWE Royal Rumble

All eyes are on WWE and the Royal Rumble this weekend, which emanates from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for the first time in history. CM Punk isn't wrestling on the card, but did travel with talent to the country for the event.

Punk was featured on the WWE Royal Rumble Kickoff show and made some stark predictions.

First, Punk made news. During a conversation with Michael Cole at the kickoff event, Punk declared that Gunther would not be participating in the men's Royal Rumble match.

It was previously believed that Gunther would wrestle in the match and work double duty on the show, as he is also scheduled for a singles match against AJ Styles. The stakes are high for Styles, considering that if he loses, he will be forced to retire from WWE.

"Gunther is a big, strong, tough individual," Punk told Cole. "I'm glad that he's not in the Royal Rumble, so he can possibly not beat me up anymore."

Gunther and Styles have been feuding with one another since Gunther retired John Cena at Saturday Night's Main Event at the end of last year. Gunther gloated about making Cena tap out, and Styles took offense to that disrespect.

CM Punk chooses AJ Styles

Punk and Styles wrestled for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship on this week's episode of WWE Raw on Netflix. The match ended in a no-contest, but Punk made sure to show respect to Styles if he is indeed on his way out of the company.

During the same conversation with Michael Cole, Punk made a prediction for the Gunther vs. Styles match at the Royal Rumble. Punk said that Styles is the one guy he thought get the job done and win.

"AJ is the Phenomenal One for a reason and if anyone can pull this off it's him."
CM Punk

Punk certainly will be keeping a sharp eye on the Royal Rumble event, even if he isn't wrestling. As the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Punk may have to end up facing the winner of the men's Royal Rumble match at WrestleMania. The Royal Rumble match winners get to face the world champion of their choice at WrestleMania 42 this year in Las Vegas.

The Royal Rumble event airs live on ESPN in the United States and Netflix internationally on Saturday afternoon. Other announced matches besides both the men's and women's Royal Rumble bouts include the Gunther vs. Styles match and Sami Zayn vs. Drew McIntyre for the Undisputed WWE Championship.

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