Every January, 30 of WWE’s toughest Superstars throw their hat in the ring for the biggest opportunity in sports-entertainment — a chance to main event WrestleMania. The Royal Rumble Match is a test of endurance, smarts and pure will. Each entrant has to dig deep and pull out all stops to avoid being thrown over the top rope and having both feet touch the arena floor.

Watch Royal Rumble 2015 on WWE Network |  Full Royal Rumble coverage

The field for this year’s over-the-top-rope melee is wide open, with numerous Superstars looking to break through to The Grandest Stage of Them All. Who has the best shot of making their Show of Shows dream become reality? See which competitors WWE.com’s editors think have the best chance in our Royal Rumble Match predictions, presented by Hulu!

Daniel Bryan

Twelve months ago, there was only one man WWE fans wanted to see win the Royal Rumble Match. And as the clock counted down to the No. 30 entrant, those fans hoped Daniel Bryan would sprint to the ring, emerging as the savior of the night and spoiling Batista’s unwelcome return. Instead, it was Rey Mysterio. The Pittsburgh crowd unleashed a chorus of boos not because they didn’t love Rey Mysterio, but simply because it was not what they wanted.

Daniel Bryan became a WrestleMania hero regardless of the outcome in the Steel City. But following Bryan’s triumph in the Superdome, his career spiraled into a mess of injury and uncertainty if he’d ever compete again. This month, the former champion finally returned to the ring following an eight-month absence. And he’s just in time for this year’s Rumble, just in time to reclaim his role as WWE’s hero, just in time for a bit of redemption. — ZACH LINDER

Roman Reigns

The resume that Roman Reigns has built since storming into WWE as the powerhouse of The Shield makes me wonder why anyone wouldn’t pick the man behind the mantra “one versus all.”

Reigns was the sole survivor of the 2013 Traditional Survivor Series Elimination Tag Team Match, he’s toppled Evolution, one-upped Randy Orton and done it all with an infectious swagger. Oh, and did I forget to mention that he broke the Royal Rumble Match’s elimination record last year with 12? Reigns is a freight train, and the final destination is the main event of WrestleMania 31. I feel bad for everyone on the tracks. — MICHAEL MURPHY

Watch Roman's record-breaking Rumble performance on WWE Network

Dean Ambrose

Dean Ambrose hasn’t made nearly as much noise as his former Shield compatriots lately, given that he’s almost singularly devoted himself to battling Bray Wyatt back and forth, but that doesn’t mean The Lunatic Fringe can’t, or won’t, claw his way through 29 dudes to win the Royal Rumble Match and skulk his way to WrestleMania.

If there’s one thing Ambrose has never, ever been, it’s predictable, and a career performance by the former U.S. Champion, whose hastiness led to an untimely ouster fromlastyear’s over-the-top fracas, would be about the last thing on anybody’s mind. (Imagine Ambrose vs. Brock in some kind of Hardcore Match on The Grandest Stage of Them All, and now tell me that’s not what you want to see.) In a year when Rollins may well become the champion and seemingly everyone with a pulse is pegging Reigns to be the one to march onto WrestleMania, it’s the sketchy guy with a criminal mind who may, and can, be the man to throw a wrench into the whole thing. Let’s get nuts. — ANTHONY BENIGNO

Bad News Barrett

No Superstar is as uniquely equipped, or as deeply motivated, to be the last man standing in Sunday’s Royal Rumble Match as Intercontinental Champion Bad News Barrett. Though a Barrett victory would be historic for more than one reason — no reigning Intercontinental Champion has ever won the 30-Superstar brawl — it’s certainly not out of the question.

Thanks to the quick-action Bull Hammer Elbow, Barrett is well-tooled to strike and move, which will behoove him greatly in the Rumble. Add in all the times Bad News has been denied breaking through into the main event (often due to injury), and it’s easy to see why he’ll stop at nothing to win this Sunday and guarantee his place in the WrestleMania 31 main event. — JOHN CLAPP

Rusev

Few competitors have skyrocketed to Superstardom quicker than Rusev. The Russian powerhouse made his debut during last year’s Rumble match, bulldozing through everyone in his path. No lone person could eliminate The Super Athlete. In fact, it took four Superstars to toss the mighty Rusev.

Watch Rusev's WWE debut in the 2014 Royal Rumble Match on WWE Network

Since then, Rusev has crushed the competition, steamrolling his way to the United States Championship. He has yet to be pinned or made to submit in singles competition. But the Royal Rumble Match was custom-made for someone like Rusev, who takes pleasure in dishing out punishment. With a dominant year of main-roster experience under his belt, The Super Athlete may have the best chance to punch his ticket to WrestleMania 31. — ANTHONY BENIGNO

Bray Wyatt

The Royal Rumble Match favors two things besides the sheer luck of the draw: the guys who aren’t afraid and those who can hang around the longest.

None of the other entrants can match Bray Wyatt’s vicious side. Since his July 2013 debut, The Eater of Worlds has destroyed Kane, brainwashed Daniel Bryan and struck fear into John Cena — before defeating all three of those former World Champions, of course.

Wyatt moves around the ring fairly quickly for a 285-pounder, so his stamina shouldn’t be an issue in his Rumble Match debut. Considering Kane lasted for more than 50 minutes in 2001, bigger Superstars can certainly go the distance.

Whenever Wyatt steps into the ring, he brings terror with him. In the Royal Rumble Match, 29 other Superstars will see it first-hand. — JEFF LABOON

Brock Lesnar

This is actually two predictions in one. Paul Heyman’s client, Brock Lesnar, will win the 2015 Royal Rumble Match and head to WrestleMania as the challenger for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The man I predict he will challenge will be Seth Rollins. After all, The Authority would not have risked embarrassment by inserting Rollins into the championship match if they didn’t have a way to make sure their guy won.

Watch Brock Lesnar's victory in the 2003 Royal Rumble Match on WWE Network

Here’s how it will go down: After losing the WWE World Heavyweight Championship without being beaten when Rollins pins John Cena, Lesnar will take another Superstar’s spot in the Royal Rumble Match after beating him into unconsciousness backstage. The enraged former UFC Heavyweight Champion will then leave battered and broken bodies strewn about ringside behind him as he starts his Road to WrestleMania — and revenge. —  @JOEYSTYLES