Brock Lesnar and Ronda Rousey won the 2022 Royal Rumble matches and will headline WrestleMania at AT&T Stadium in Dallas.
But perhaps the biggest news coming out of the Royal Rumble is that Shane McMahon is out of the company.
Shane McMahon never had an official title with the company as he didn’t work behind the scenes but does have a talent contract. While people fantasize about his being the guy to take over from Vince, something he probably figured was his birthright, nothing has changed since 2009 when he left the company because that was not going to happen. While he has appeared as talent on television and even as an authority figure on Smackdown, his only role in the company since leaving was as talent.
He was brought back as a secret entrant in the Royal Rumble, and also to produce the match, then go into the Elimination Chamber and finally wrestle Seth Rollins at WrestleMania. Shane McMahon had worked on previous Royal Rumble matches in the past, dating back to the Pat Patterson days. In 2020 and 2021, he was one of the producers for the Rumble even though he doesn’t work as a producer regularly, and has sometimes helped out backstage when he is at tapings. He was brought back this year as well, but there were many complaints about how he wanted to build the match around himself and issues involving co-producer James Gibson (Jamie Noble).
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SUNDAY NEWS UPDATE
The weekend Observer radio covering the Royal Rumble is up on the site right now. We’ll be back with another show after Raw tomorrow night.
Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar and Charlotte Flair vs. Ronda Rousey are the top two matches set for WrestleMania. Bobby Lashley vs. Seth Rollins seems as likely as anything for the Raw title main event but that is just speculation. Lashley and Rousey will both be on Raw tomorrow. Rousey will be considered as part of the Smackdown brand going forward.
Jillian Hall, Kaitlyn, and Aksana were in St. Louis for WWE but were not put in the Rumble match. Kurt Angle was also there. There were a number of extras for both matches in case someone got sick. The Drew McIntyre return was kept a surprise. He was not fully ready as far as being healed up, but is expected to be on television going forward, but not wrestling on the road shows until being more healed up. He didn’t seem to be impacted by the injury in this match, but before he took time off, even in his last match before the injury angle which was done to cover his neck injury, you really couldn’t see a difference. Sasha Banks was not kept a surprise since it was announced on the first segment on Smackdown, but she was a late addition to the match since she had been out with a sprained knee.
There were time constraints to the end of the men’s Rumble match although the basic idea was for Lesnar to destroy everyone at the end and that did happen.
Obviously the Kofi Kingston elimination was a botch and he was supposed to last longer.
Natalya was shaken up in the women’s match but continued and is okay.
There were a lot of former talents called and turned down doing the Rumbles.
There were a lot of complaints about predictability, but the reality is WWE’s booking January through WrestleMania is almost always predictable in the sense they’ve set in motion the key matches and Rumble is there to build those matches so as far as the winners go, there are only a few possibilities. The lack of compelling stories in the matches and no new stars who didn’t win being made is a valid complaint.
Bad Bunny was only in for the Royal Rumble. He has a concert on both nights of WrestleMania. Shane McMahon has a match on the books but it was said to have not been finalized a few days ago which is evidently why they did no angle with him.
The Royal Rumble got 1 million searches on Google which is a very high number. Still, it was only half of what the UFC PPV show did the prior Saturday. The key thing as far as interest went in searches was Rousey, followed by Lesnar. Nothing else related to combat sports cracked the top 20 in any category over the past week.
Bobby Horne, who was Mo of the Men on a Mission tag team, was in ICU yesterday due to COVID coming off a recent liver transplant.
We’re looking for reports from tonight’s PWG show in Los Angeles as well as last night’s show, and yesterday’s RevPro show in London’s York Hall to [email protected]
We’re also doing poll results for both the Royal Rumble and the Stardom PPV show yesterday, thumbs up, down or middle along with a best and worst match for each show to [email protected]
After Ryan Bader beat Valentin Moldavsky in the Bellator heavyweight title unification match last night in Phoenix, it was announced he would defend his title next on 5/6 in Paris, France against Cheick Kongo. Bader won the fight via unanimous decision.on straight 48-47 scores, but media had it 63-37 percent in favor of Moldavsky, so it was a close fight. Benson Henderson won a split decision over Islam Mamedov. Mamedov had won 19 in a row. Henderson said he wasn’t sure if this was his last fight or not. He said it was the last fight of his Bellator contract.
While this likely won’t be the case next year at WrestleMania, for the Rams-49ers game at SoFi Stadium today, parking near the stadium was going for $600 while a mile away in residential areas was costing $100 to $500. (thanks to Patrick Nguyen)
Some matches from PWG yesterday I was told were awesome were Bandido vs. Mike Bailey, which some were calling the best PWG match since the move to the Globe Theater (and there have been numerous incredible matches in that venue), Will Ospreay vs. Michael Oku from RevPro which went 41:00 and was a bloodbath and Francesco Akira vs. Gabriel Kidd also at the RevPro show yesterday and Mayu Iwatani vs. Giulia on the Stardom PPV yesterday.
WWE
Humberto Garza (Angel, not to be confused with his cousin, also named Humberto Garza, who goes by the name Humberto) put out a video noting that he and his wife are expecting a child.
Dwayne Johnson is set to appear tomorrow on Good Morning America.
OTHER NOTES
Stardom PPV results from yesterday in Nagoya: Tam Nakano, Waka Tsukiyama and Mai Sakurai were all pulled from the show due to health issues: Momo Kohgo won a handicap match over Saki Kashima, Rina, Ruaka and Fukigen Death via Battle Royal rules, Hanan b Lady C to keep the Future of Stardom title, Momo Watanabe & Starlight Kid b Utami Hayashishita & AZM, Thekla b Mina Shirakawa to win the vacant SWA title, Hazuki & Koguma b Maika & Himeka to keep the Goddesses of Stardom tag titles, Saya Kamitani b Unagi Sayaka to keep the Wonder of Stardom title, Mayu Iwatani d Giulia over 30:00,Syuri b Marai to keep the World of Stardom title.
Warrior Wrestling on 2/2 at Cicero Stadium in Cicero, IL will be headlined by Thunder Rosa vs. ?. The opponent will be announced Wednesday. Other bouts are Bandido vs. Dante Martin, Warhorse vs. Dalton Castle, Mark & Jay Briscoe vs Workhorsemen, Santana vs. Mike Bailey, Lince Dorado vs. Sam Adonis, The Acclaimed vs. KC Navarro & Brian Cage, Miranda Alize vs. Skye Blue and Alex Zayne vs. Myron Reed vs. Gringo Loco vs Blake Christian.
Southern Hemisphere Wrestling from last night in Western Australia: Faizal Keris & LangKay won three-way over Dizzy Videl & Stella Nyx and Antonio Corrado & Mr. Thompson, Axxton DCOR Chadwick Johnson, Bruno Nitro won three-way over Elijah Henry and Ryan Rivers, Jay Taylor b Chris Target, Jarrad Slate b Davis Storm to keep the Pride title, Del Cano b Felix Young in a 1,000 bricks mach, Jordan Bishop & Ryan Allan b Johnny & Tommy Dux to keep the tag titles, Taylor King b Julian Ward to keep the SHWA title.
Adelaide Championship Wrestling from last night in Adelaide, Australia: Downunder b Joe Mundiem, Kit Condor and Malykai Slic in a ladder match, Simple Simon b Corporate Clint, Darven Rangarsson b Barren, Jesse Hardy won three-way over Duke Marshall and Jake Viper to win the Evolve title, Adam Brooks b Edward Dusk, Redshaw b Broderic Valentine, Zak Sabbath b Matt Hayter 2/3 falls to win the ACW title in a submission match, tables match and hardcore match for each individual fall (thanks to Kevin Chiat).
LFA on 2/11 at the Arizona Federal Theater in Phoenix has former UFC ranked contender Jussier Formiga (23-8) vs. Felipe Bunes (11-5) and Clayton Carpenter (5-0) vs. Windon Ramos (4-1). The show airs at 10 p.m. Eastern that night on Fight Pass.
MLW on 3/31 in Dallas with a show called Intimidation Games at Gilley’s.
Ruthless Pro Wrestling from last night in Maybee, MI: Gary Jay b Sage Phillips, Schwartzy & Kenny Urban b Arthur McArthur & Chuck Stone, Apollo Star b Brutus Atwell, Dread King Logan & Zach Thomas DCOR Shane Mercer & Hy-Zaya, Justin Kyle NC Hoodfoot, Rickey Shane Page b Madman Pondo, Randi West won three-way over Mathias Thrasher and Anakin Murphy, Neil Diamond Cutter b Malcolm Monroe III, Sau Jinn b Otis Cogar in a death match (thanks to Leonard Brand).
Mission Pro Wrestling from last night in Conroe,TX: Rache Chanel b Gigi Rey, JP Harlow won four-way over Kari Wright, Ninja Mack and Jesus Rodriguez (former WWE announcer/manager Ricardo Rodriguez), Davienne b Sierra, KiLynn King b Killa Kate, Madi Wrenkowski b Mazzerati, Robyn & Charlette Renegade b Viva Van & Kelsey Ragen, Thunder Rosa b Rosa Negra.
Drew McIntyre returned at tonight’s WWE Royal Rumble, entering the men’s Royal Rumble match.
McIntyre entered at number 21, making a beeline towards Madcap Moss and Happy Corbin, who attacked and laid him out at WWE Day 1 earlier this month. After taking out everyone in the match, McIntyre attacked Moss and Corbin, eliminating them and destroying them outside of the ring, including suplexing Madcap Moss on top of the ring steps. He would remain in the match until the very end, when he was the final person eliminated by this year’s winner, Brock Lesnar.
Moss and Corbin attacked McIntyre at Day 1 with a stage prop, writing him off television due to a legitimate neck injury that required medical testing. It wasn’t known at the time how long McIntyre would need in order to recover.
Other surprises in the men’s Royal Rumble match include Shane McMahon and Bad Bunny, who were both eliminated by Lesnar towards the end of the match.
Bad Bunny and Shane McMahon returned to WWE at the Royal Rumble event as surprise entrants in the men’s Royal Rumble match.
Both made their first WWE appearances since last year’s WrestleMania 37 event at the Rumble. Bunny entered the match 27th, while McMahon entered 28th.
McMahon was also the 28th elimination in the match, which was won by Brock Lesnar. Bunny was the 26th elimination in the bout. Both were thrown out by Lesnar, who last eliminated the returning Drew McIntyre to win the Rumble.
Before being eliminated, Bad Bunny threw Sheamus and Dolph Ziggler out of the Rumble, while McMahon eliminated Kevin Owens.
WWE released Bad Bunny merchandise for the show describing his return as “one night only.”
Bunny held the 24/7 Championship for 28 days during his prior WWE tenure.
Lesnar has yet to declare which title he will challenge for at WrestleMania, but after Universal Champion Roman Reigns cost Lesnar the WWE title earlier in the show, Reigns vs. Lesnar appears to be the WrestleMania direction for the Rumble winner.
Fans had to be temporarily evacuated after the WrestleMania 38 sign caught fire during tonight’s Royal Rumble event.
After Ronda Rousey won the women’s Royal Rumble, she pointed to the sign, which emitted pyro. During the following match, Becky Lynch vs. Doudrop, the sign had to be lowered as fans from that area had to be evacuated. The situation was fixed by the end of the match, with the sign being lowered, extinguished, and raised once again.
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) January 30, 2022
At the end of tonight’s show, the men’s Royal Rumble winner Brock Lesnar also pointed at the sign, with pyro emitting from the sign. The crowd was evacuated prior to the pyro, with the logo catching on fire again.
The sign made its debut at tonight’s Royal Rumble, which usually sets the course for the next new months leading to WrestleMania. Rousey made her return to the WWE and eliminated SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair to win the Royal Rumble match for the first time. She will be on Raw this coming Monday.
Other key matches at this year’s Royal Rumble had Seth Rollins defeat Roman Reigns by disqualification after Reigns refused to let go of the guillotine after the five count, with Reigns retaining the WWE Universal title. Bobby Lashley defeated Brock Lesnar to win the WWE Championship after Reigns interfered and attacked Lesnar. Paul Heyman gave the WWE Championship to Reigns to use against Lesnar, effectively siding with Reigns once again.
UFC Hall of Famer Ronda Rousey returned to WWE for the first time since 2019 at tonight’s Royal Rumble event, winning the women’s Royal Rumble match.
After entering the match at number 28, Rousey last eliminated SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair to claim her first Rumble match victory in her first attempt.
Rousey originally made her debut as a member of the WWE roster at the 2018 Royal Rumble, appearing after the women’s Rumble and pointing at the WrestleMania sign hanging in the arena. This year, Rousey pointed at the sign as the winner of the match.
Rousey eliminated Nikki A.S.H, Brie Bella, Shotzi, and Flair on her way to the victory. The final four participants in the match were Rousey, Flair, Bianca Belair, and Shayna Baszler. Flair eliminated Baszler, then Belair, leaving Rousey and Flair as the final two.
Rousey’s first WWE run came from January 2018 to April 2019. She claimed the Raw Women’s Championship at SummerSlam in August 2018, then went on to hold that title until WrestleMania 35.
Dave Meltzer reported today that Rousey vs. Flair is on the books for WrestleMania 38 in Dallas. Their prior singles meeting came at Survivor Series 2018, a match that Rousey won by DQ.
Rousey, Flair and Becky Lynch headlined WrestleMania 35 on April 8, 2019. Lynch pinned Rousey to win the Raw Women’s title, and Rousey went on hiatus from WWE.
Rousey and her husband Travis Browne announced the birth of their first child in September 2021.
Three surprise entrants have been confirmed for Saturday’s WWE women’s Royal Rumble match, according to reports.
PW Insider reports that former 3-time WWE Women’s Champion and 2-time Divas Champion Melina, Cameron (Ariane Andrew), and Aksana are in St. Louis and are currently scheduled to take part in the Royal Rumble match.
Melina last appeared on WWE programming at Legends Night on Raw in January 2021. Cameron appeared for AEW in 2020, but has not appeared in WWE since 2016. For Aksana, it has been since June 2014 since her last WWE appearance.
WWE has officially announced 21 of the 30 competitors for the women’s Rumble, while announcing 22 of 30 competitors in the men’s Rumble.
Here is the lineup:
WWE Royal Rumble, Saturday, January 29, kickoff show 7 p.m. Eastern time, main card 8 p.m. Eastern time —
WWE Championship: Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Bobby Lashley
WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns (c) vs. Seth “Freakin” Rollins
WWE Raw Women’s Championship: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Doudrop
Despite unsubstantiated rumors that he could be in the upcoming WWE Royal Rumble, Cody Rhodes will still be appearing on Wednesday’s edition of AEW Dynamite as planned.
News broke Monday that Rhodes is working without an AEW contract as it expired at the end of 2021, meaning he is a free agent. However, it’s believed he is working on a new deal with the company if it hasn’t been worked out already.
Rhodes is an executive vice president with AEW, its current TNT Champion and has already signed on for a second season of his TNT reality show with his wife, Brandi.
As Dave Meltzer noted Monday, Rhodes hasn’t been at AEW TV this year. He was scheduled to defend the title at the first-ever Battle of the Belts on January 8th, but was unable to due to being medically unable to do so.
Rhodes will make his 2022 on-screen debut Wednesday where it’s expected the date and location for his rescheduled title defense against interim champion Sammy Guevara will be revealed. His new contract also could be announced Wednesday.
Meltzer said Rhodes would not be in the Rumble, nor Jon Moxley in another unsubstantiated rumor.
Join on-air personality Denise Salcedo as she reviews to action packed episodes of WWE Smackdown and AEW Rampage. There was tons of news to talk about coming out of both shows, mainly WWE which included a major announcement surrounding the Forbidden door and IMPACT Wrestling.
Topics Rundown:
Smackdown: Roman Reigns is BACK and confronts Brock Lesnar, Johnny Knoxville appears, 18 names REVEALED for WWE Royal Rumble including Mickie James, IMPACT Wrestling and Scott D’Amore, Seth Rollins confronts Roman Reigns, plus more!
AEW Rampage: Jake Atlas Rampage debut, Hook in action, Battle of the Belts matches, plus lots more!
This is a very fun and interactive podcast, perfect for any and all wrestling fans. Denise will also be back on Sunday for a special bonus stream to cover Wrestle Kingdom 16 Night 3 and AEW Battle of the Belts.
‘Jackass’ star Johnny Knoxville has officially qualified for the men’s Royal Rumble match.
Knoxville appeared on tonight’s SmackDown, running into Sami Zayn. He told Zayn that he was looking for management so he could enter this year’s Royal Rumble. Zayn said Knoxville needed ability to get a spot, and told Knoxville he didn’t deserve to be in the match. After Rick Boogs defeated Zayn in a match, Knoxville came out and dumped Zayn over the top rope. The ring announcer then declared that Knoxville has qualified for the Rumble match as a result.
On New Year’s Day, Knoxville posted a video on Instagram expressing interest in entering this year’s Royal Rumble.
“Happy New Year’s Day and love to everyone,” he wrote. “I have a big announcement that I have been dying to get off of my chest. I spent a lot of times over the holiday thinking about how i wanted to start off my 2022, and I decided I want to do it kicking ass and taking names. And the best way to do that i feel is making a run for the Rumble, that’s right @WWE’s Royal Rumble. Training starts today, not that I will need a lot of it because I have seen the WWE’s current roster and it’s laughable to think anyone can throw me over the top rope. LAUGHABLE! I will be channeling my wrestling heroes like @therock, Abdullah the Butcher and the great Gorilla Monsoon. The way I’m looking at it I am giving myself a %100 chance of winning. What chance do you think I have? Sincerely, Johnny Knoxville, World Champ.”
Other entrants announced for the men’s Royal Rumble match include Rey and Dominik Mysterio, Angelo Dawkins, Monetz Ford, and Austin Theory, who was entered into this year’s Rumble match by Vince McMahon.
