CM Punk vs. The Rock WWE championship match official for the Royal Rumble on Jan. 27

And now it's official.

Although it's been widely assumed, rumored, speculated on, and all but guaranteed, it's now official that CM Punk will defend the WWE championship against The Rock at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view (PPV) on Sun., Jan. 27, 2013, at the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona.

The match was made official thanks to Punk's victory over Ryback on tonight's episode of Monday Night Raw thanks to interference from The Shield, who made the save after Punk was put through a table by putting "Big Hungry" through another table set up over the ring steps.

That allowed Punk to climb the ladder and grab the title to retain.

So it's set. Punk vs. Rock for the WWE championship at the second biggest event of the year. Does it get any better than this?

Here's the updated Royal Rumble line up:

- CM Punk vs. The Rock
- Royal Rumble