The Queen made her triumphant return to WWE after a year-long injury at the Royal Rumble event this month. She re-established herself as the top competitor of the Women’s Division by winning the Women’s Battle Royal and earning the right to yet another WrestleMania title match.
Fans had been speculating who Flair would choose as her Mania opponent since then. Charlotte even teased going the NXT route once again instead of choosing one of the main roster champions.
This week’s episode of SmackDown saw one of the two main roster women’s champions Tiffany Stratton defending her title against former friend Nia Jax.
The title match ended in disqualification after Candice LeRae attacked the Women’s Champion just as she was setting Jax up for the Prettiest Moonsault Ever. WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus who was in the arena tried to make the save for Stratton but couldn’t get the job done.
Charlotte Flair who was at the ringside watching the bout closely then strolled into the ring and announced that she’ll be challenging Tiffany Stratton at WrestleMania 41 from Las Vegas.
This will be The Queen’s first WrestleMania match since 2023 after she missed the show last year due to her injury.
For Stratton, this will be her first WrestleMania match ever. She’s following in the footsteps of Flair herself who 9 years ago made her Mania debut as a champion as well. Charlotte entered the WrestleMania 32 bout as the Divas Champion and walked out with the Women’s Championship that replaced the old title.
WWE revealed a big hint about the mystery attacker of Jade Cargill on this week’s episode of SmackDown from Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.
The former AEW star has been off TV after being attacked backstage by unknown assailants during the November 22, 2024 episode of the Blue Branded Show. Cargill held the Women’s Tag Team Championships with Bianca Belair at the time and was replaced by Naomi in the team.
There hadn’t been a lot of development in this storyline since then but with Cargill seemingly getting ready for her comeback now, it appears the company is finally ready to move this story forward.
General Manager Nick Aldis called the current tag champs to his office during the latest episode of the Blue Branded Show and revealed that he’s received an ‘anonymous tip’ on the Jade Cargill situation.
“Theres been a development in the Jade situation. We’ve received an anonymous tip.”
He went on to play an alternate-angle video of the night of the attack, in which Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez can be seen walking away from the scene as the former TBS Champion is stretchered into the ambulance.
Before being taken out, Jade Cargill was originally supposed to compete at the Survivor Series WarGames event and the duo of Morgan and Rodriguez were part of the opposing team at the match beyond. So it makes sense for the Raw duo to have taken out the SmackDown star before the PPV.
Though many believe that this is a red herring and the real culprit is Naomi who ended up taking Jade’s title and her place at the Survivor Series team.
WWE legend Michelle McCool is the second entrant of the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2025, as announced on ESPN’s Get Up.
The announcement was made by WWE creative head Triple H as both Michelle and her husband The Undertaker appeared at the show. The Game first discussed how Taker was involved in surprising him with the news of H’s own HOF induction earlier.
The King of Kings joked that as the head of the company, he has the opportunity to get the last laugh, before announcing Michelle for the 2025 class:
“I wanted to come here today to take a moment to say, Michelle, The WrestleMania season is upon us, which means the Hall of Fame season is upon us. And I would like to tell you right now that you’ll be inducted into the 2025 Hall of Fame.”
Triple H credited McMcool’s influence on the advanced state of women’s professional wrestling, calling her “one of the women that transformed what we do.”
Triple H welcomes Michelle McCool to the WWE Hall of Fame on @GetUpESPN ?
Michelle McCool is a WWE veteran who is considered a trailblazer for women’s wrestling. A multi-time woman’s champion, the wrestling icon is the idol for many of the current WWE stars.
Having found her way into the business in 2004 through Divas Search, McCool quickly became a fan favorite. She was considered one of the top female stars of the Ruthless Aggression Era before she retired from active competition in 2011.
A career dedicated to breaking down barriers and making every performance #Flawless. Michelle’s accomplishments inside and outside of the ring solidified her status as a legend to @WWE fans globally.
The retired wrestling star made history when she became the inaugural WWE Divas Champion at the 2008 Great American Bash event. Not only did she have a long reign with the title, but she also went on to win the Women’s Championship in 2009. Michelle then unified both the belts, securing her name in the history books as the first and so far, the only Unified Divas Champion.
SEScoops would like to congratulate Michelle McCool on the well-deserved induction.
Michelle McCool has opened up about her own experience of dealing with obsessive fans at the airports.
The transgression of fans when approaching talents in public has been a topic of discussion recently. Especially for female talents it has become a huge problem in recent times. Stars such as Asuka have had to publicly condone such actions, making people concerned about their well-being.
The wrestling veteran also opened up about facing such troubles during a recent interview with Chris Van Vliet. Michelle McCool called such fans awful and noted how people don’t leave stars alone even when they’re with kids:
“People recognizing we were traveling on the road all the time. But man, it’s crazy. People just don’t have boundaries. It’s like, you appreciate and love the fans. You hear it from even the superstars today, but when you’re getting chased or followed and your kids are around, especially, it’s just like, Dude, come on.”
The former Women’s Champion is not the only one who has spoken about such issues in recent time. Sonya Deville who was victim of an attempted kidnapping in 2020 recently discussed how stalking laws don’t provide a lot of protection to celebrities and called for a change.
Apart from this, Michelle McCool also talked about the early backstage reactions to her relationship with The Undertaker and expressed regret on being part of a cruel WWE storyline. You can check out what she said about the matter here.
Ricky Starks was presented as a game-changer upon his surprise NXT debut this week. While many are already seeing the former AEW talent as a future superstar, wrestling veteran Jim Ross is taking a more patient approach.
The AEW personality talked about things like the recent WWE releases, signing The Big Show to WWE and more on the latest episode of his podcast.
Speaking about Starks’ NXT debut only a day after his AEW release, Ross claimed that he has a unique opportunity ahead. He mentioned that Ricky has a big personality but cautioned talents who think signing with WWE as their end goal:
“Well, he’s a high-motor guy. I don’t know if he’ll be the next Shawn Michaels at his size, but he has a unique future. He’s got a big personality, so hopefully, he’ll do well and live his dream. It seems like the dream for a lot of talents is to make it to WWE and call it a day. That’s not where it ends, that’s where it begins.”
Ricky Starks ended his 5-year run with Tony Khan’s promotion when he was let go earlier this month. While originally considered a future main eventer for the company, the former FTW champion had spent most of 2024 on the shelf with all kind of rumors about his status.
Speaking about his move from AEW to NXT, Jim Ross claimed that the 34-year-old ‘has a high opinion’ of himself. Whether he’s able to live up to the hype or not, is yet to be seen:
“So, I saw the episode of NXT last night [and was] surprised to see Ricky Starks. [I] don’t know how he’s going to do. He’s got a high opinion of himself, and he’s got a lot of abilities. There’s no doubt about that. So we’ll see how it works out for him. It’s never easy to get over, and hopefully, he can get over and stay over as a top star. It remains to be seen. Let’s see how it goes.”
While the former champion was presented as a star upon his debut, WWE avoided mentioning his name on TV. You can check out the potential reason behind this caution here.
The Undertaker has defended his recent meeting with Vince McMahon.
The former WWE owner recently made a rare public appearance, being spotted at the Super Bowl event. He wasn’t the only wrestling name at the show. Both The Dead Man and Shane McMahon were seen hanging out with the boss during the night. A lot of people were critical of this outing in light of Vince’s ongoing legal battle with ex-employee Janel Grant.
Shane McMahon along with his wife and kids hanging out with Undertaker and Vince McMahon at the Super Bowl. Really says a lot about them. pic.twitter.com/AXgrE5F7sS
During a recent appearance on Busted Open Radio, the Hall of Famer tried to defend his meeting with the former WWE chairman. The Undertaker admitted that he was a guest of Vince McMahon at the event. Speaking about the horrific accusations against his former boss, the retired wrestling star claimed that he does not know anything about it:
“Look, I’m gonna get hate for that. Listen, I don’t know. I don’t know. People think, ‘Oh, you guys are so close you know [everything.]’ I don’t know what has been done, what hasn’t been done. We don’t talk about those things, right? But he is a friend of mine.”
The Undertaker discussed how Vince gave him an opportunity to make something of his life and the two became very good friends over the years. He also advised people critical of his continued friendship with McMahon to ‘get off their high horse’:
“So, I don’t know everything that’s happened, what’s going on, and I’m not the judge on this case. I’m not the judge. There’s only one judge. That’s the man upstairs. He’s gonna give us all whatever we deserve at the end, and that’s what it [is]. I think people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.
And I think if you really look at your life and people who get off their high horse and their righteousness on social media and everything else…I don’t have to agree with everything that people do. It doesn’t change the fact that I love somebody, and I’m friends with somebody. It doesn’t mean I’m gonna do the same things. But that’s the way it is.”
The former World Champion noted that the last time he met Vince was in Saudi Arabia right after the latter’s back surgery. Per Taker, the longtime wrestling executive looked ‘much better’ this time around and was more like the ‘old Vince’ he has known through the years. Addressing the people critical of him over the meeting, the Attitude Era star said that he doesn’t ‘give a shit’ about their opinion and said ‘I don’t conform, if you’re my friend, you’re my friend.’
Ricky Starks’ strange WWE debut has kept people guessing about his identity in his new home but latest reports suggest that the answer to it might not be as exciting.
The former AEW star made his surprise debut for the Endeavor-owned promotion during this week’s Vengeance Day go-home episode of NXT. To the curiosity of fans, Starks was not mentioned by name during his appearance, making many believe that he might be getting a new moniker in the company.
A new report from Fightful Select suggests an alternate reason for holding off his formal introduction, however. The site noted that WWE works on sync agreements with performers that allow them to utilize names and other trademarks not belonging to the company.
Since Starks’ debut was put together on very short notice after his AEW release, the belief is that the two sides were still working on that deal when the former FTW champion made his NXT appearance.
Though the company is listing him as Ricky Starks internally and with the wrestling star owning the trademark for his name, there seems to be no reason why a deal cannot be reached sooner than later.
The newest WWE signee cancelled a scheduled indie appearance for the weekend after his NXT debut, and it’s believed that he’ll be part of Saturday’s Vengeance Day special from CareFirst Arena in Washington D.C.
Michelle McCool has opened up about being part of the Piggy James storyline.
In 2009, the former Divas Champion was involved in a demeaning storyline with fellow legend Mickie James. The storyline saw McCool, alongside her tag team partner Layla bullying James for supposedly being overweight and nicknaming her Piggy James.
The retired wrestling star opened up about the feud during a recent interview with Chris Van Vliet. Michelle McCool noted that she hated the whole thing and revealed that she used to apologise to Mickie constantly for it:
“The whole Piggy James storyline, me at heart hated it, just because of what it was. You’re bullying somebody, supposedly that they’re supposedly overweight, and that has never been me. Every week I’d go up to her, ‘Mickie, I’m so sorry. This is what they want us to say’.”
Michelle McCool later gave praise to Mickie James for never complaining about it or trying to change the story like other talents. She also expressed the belief that the storyline is what got the LayCool tag team off the ground:
“Complete professional. Not once did she try to change things, which often girls did. Not once. She’s like, ‘No, it’s good. It’s cool.’ She knew that took two to tango. She knew what her role was. She knew what our role was, and she really, I think, put us on the map with that storyline.”
Apart from this, Michelle McCool talked about a potential Hall of Fame induction. She said that being inducted individually will be an honor but she hopes that LayCool also gets inducted as a team.
Chad Gable is ready to hold a singles title in WWE.
The American-made leader has won gold while competing in all three brands of WWE as part of various tag teams. Despite his decade-plus career with the company, however, he is still in the hunt for his first singles championship in the world of professional wrestling.
The former Olympian talked about his predicament during a recent appearance on The Jay Ferruggia Show. Gable claimed that he is considering the ‘dangerous’ idea of making this his goal for 2025:
“I’m entertaining the idea if I’m going to put ‘win a singles title’ on my goals for 2025 because it’s not all in my hands. I will be very disappointed if I don’t deliver.
I’m a goal guy. I’m a goal-driven guy. I’m interested to see what I will do, on top of everything else I do, to try to make that happen or force it to happen. I know I’m ready. I can carry a title.”
People Are Going To Have Respect For That: Chad Gable
Chad Gable came very close to winning his first singles title in 2023 when he feuded with the then Intercontinental Champion Gunther. Gable even picked up a victory over the Ring General via countout in one of the title matches during their feud, ending Gunther’s undefeated streak on the main roster.
To the frustration of a lot of fans, however, it was Gunther who got the upper hand in the end. He ended the feud with a decisive win over Gable, making Chad’s daughter cry in the process. When the host mentioned that people have been ready for a Chad Gable title run, the 38-year-old noted that fans mention it to him every time he interacts with them:
“You can sense that, I get that any time I interact with people at a meet and greet. ‘You gotta get your singles title.’ It’s almost cool in a sense that no matter what it is or which title ends up being, I think people are going to have respect for that. ‘He earned it. He deserved it.’
Gable lost a match to the debuting Penta during the January 13th episode of Raw. Since then he has embarked on a quest to learn the ‘dark arts of Lucha Libre’ to enact revenge on the masked star.
Sheamus and Rusev have history together as both partners and rivals. It was the Irish star who Rusev defeated to win his first ever title in WWE, winning the United States Championship in a WWE Network exclusive match in 2014.
The duo also teamed together as part of the short-lived League of Nations faction also featuring Alberto Del Rio and King Barrett back in 2016.
The former WWE star however, has not been active in the wrestling world for over a year. His last match came at the 2023 Worlds End PPV where he picked up a victory against Andrade.
All kind of rumours have persisted as to why the company did not book the former TNT Champion for any shows since then. With Miro now a free agent, it’d be interesting to see if we get some answers to his AEW mystery.
Paul Heyman has introduced a brand new online multiplayer mode for the upcoming WWE 2K25 video game dubbed ‘The Island.’
The Wiseman introduced the new game mode during the latest Sony State of Play presentation. The online open world experience seems to be similar to ‘The City’ seen in NBA 2K games, with up to 50 players being able to enter and interact with each other at once:
“With The Island, players enter an online environment filled with WWE-themed landmarks, quests, live events, and shops with up to 50 other players at a time.
The Island also offers deep customization, giving players the chance to personalize their MySuperstars like never before. As the first of its kind for the franchise, The Island is not just an addition; it’s a bold step toward the future,”
The preview footage also showed attractions based on popular superstars such as Roman Reigns and Rhea Ripley as well as an area titled the Hall of Legends.
This is not the only thing Heyman is involved with in regards to the upcoming game. The advocate will be providing introductions for all 2K25 showcase mode matches highlighting the various Anoa’i family members.
WWE 2K25 is set to release on March 14, with early access to players pre ordering the Deluxe editions from March 7. The new game mode will unfortunately be only available on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S consoles.
Penta has revealed an emotional incident that made his first meeting with Rey Mysterio even more special.
The Master of 619 has been one of the top Luchadors competing in the wrestling world for over three decades. With his unprecedented success and popularity, there is no luchador of the new generation who hasn’t grown up watching the WWE Hall of Famer and considers the former World Champion his idol.
The newest WWE signee is no different, and for him, Rey has been a hero since his childhood. During his recent Interview with Chris Van Vliet, Penta talked about his admiration for the legendary wrestler. He recalled an incident from before he entered the wrestling world himself where he and his younger brother Rey Fenix attended a meet & greet event in hopes of meeting Mysterio in person:
“I don’t remember what year, but Rey Mysterio would go to Mexico for a meet and greet. But brother it is five blocks long for the line to see Rey Mysterio in Mexico City. Me and my brother are in the line for two hours, three hours, when somebody say, hey, Rey Mysterio is going to leave. Me and my brother running behind the car.
I want a picture with that, with him, but never. My brother is crying in this moment because my brother is six years younger than me. So after that, my brother is crying, ‘Hey, I want to see Rey.’ I say ‘Maybe one day, no worry.’ Because I’m older, no worry.”
The dream of meeting Mysterio in person would finally come true for the brothers year later when the WWE veteran came to a PWG show where both Penta and Fenix were competing:
“But my first time with Rey Mysterio was, I remember in PWG, in LA, Battle of Los Angeles, the tournament. Konnan came with Rey Mysterio to the show. I remember that I was in the locker room I see Rey. I go Rey! He speaks Spanish too. This is my first time, it was amazing and magic for me. I never forget that.”
The former AEW star also discussed the comparison to Mysterio after his Raw debut. He repeated his previous remarks saying that Rey is his role model but he wants to be remembered as the first Penta because their style is very different.
The Undertaker feels Brock Lesnar did not need to break the Streak.
The ending of The Dead Man’s famous WrestleMania winning streak remains one of the most controversial decisions ever taken in wrestling. Many people still believe that Taker should have retired undefeated while others argue that the win should have been given to an up-and-coming name to take their careers to the next level.
The WWE Legend himself also feels that Brock Lesnar should not have been the one. During a recent appearance on Busted Open Radio, The Undertaker discussed how someone else could have benefited from the victory:
“I didn’t feel like Brock needed it, right? Brock was…and people you know, all the internet geniuses [were like] ‘Well, you know, he lost this, and he didn’t do this, and he didn’t do that. He needed a win.’ Brock was an attraction all to himself by this time. Would it have helped Bray? Obviously, would have helped Bray. Would it have skyrocketed Roman? Probably, if they’d have got that juice.”
I Didn’t Like The Way It Panned Out: The Undertaker
The Phenom also talked about how Vince McMahon went back and forth on the decision to end The Streak for weeks before WrestleMania XXX. To Undertaker the disturbing part of the whole thing was that the decision was made at the last minute:
“But again, it wasn’t my call. I questioned it. The thing that was the most disturbing for me was when I got to the building that day, I was going over. I didn’t like the way it panned out. So it’s early afternoon in the Superdome. I’m in a room completely by myself, and the old man walks in and you know, that just doesn’t happen. As soon as I saw him, I knew right away.”
Brock Lesnar remains off WWE TV after being implicated in Janel Grant’s sex trafficking lawsuit against Vince McMahon. You can check out details of the amended complaint filed by Grant earlier this month here.
This week’s episode of Dynamite from Gateway Center Arena at College Park in Atlanta, Georgia featured a segment with the new AEW World Tag Team Champions The Hurt Syndicate.
MVP cut a promo on the victory of Shelton Benjamin and Bobby Lashley and told the crowd to get on their feet for the new champions. He then praised the Private Party and claimed that they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The former WWE star also teased an announcement but before he could go any further, The Gunn Club’s music hit and the duo of Austin and Colten Gunn made their way to the ring.
When MVP asked them what their business was, Austin introduced the duo as former tag team champions to The Hurt Syndicate. He claimed that they’ve been waiting years to get their rematch for the tag titles.
Colten then claimed that it’s time for the Gunns to take back their titles and in response, MVP granted them a title match for next week’s episode of Dynamite.
The duo of Austin and Colten Gunn have not wrestled on AEW programming since last September. Austin Gunn had suffered an injury during their last match with The Cage of Agony. His brother had also been pulled from TV in his absence.
LA Knight has revealed his stance on celebrity involvement in wrestling.
Wrestling has a long history of embarrassing celebrity involvement. While recent crop of talents like Pat McAfee, Logan Paul, and Bad Bunny have done a lot to change this perception, caution is still needed while allowing famous people to get involved in the physical side of the business.
The WWE star was asked about his stance on the matter during an interview with Battleground podcast. LA Knight explained that not everyone has an athletic bone in their body so you’ve got be a picky about which names you allow to experience the physical side of things:
“Not everybody can do this. That’s my one qualm with having too many celebrities do this, it gives people the idea that anybody can do this. Not anybody can do this, very few people can do this and do it well. I will give credit to Logan Paul, he’s a hell of an athlete and can do a whole lot of crazy things that I wouldn’t even dare do.”
Some People Just Don’t Belong In A Ring: LA Knight
Knight also talked about Snooki as an example of someone who should have never been in the ring. The reality TV star wrestled in a six-person mixed tag team match at WrestleMania XXVII:
“That’s one of the great examples. No offense to my sweet Snooki out there, never met her in my life, but look, that’s another example of like, I understand the idea, I understand the reasoning, we’re going cross promotion but some people just don’t belong in a ring if I’m honest.”
The match saw Snooki teaming up with John Morrison and Trish Stratus to face off against Dolph Ziggler and LayCool. The bout lasted only 3 minutes 15 seconds with Snooki pinning Michelle McCool to get the victory for her team.
The debut of a new faction has been teased for the upcoming NXT Vengeance Day special set for Saturday, February 15, 2025.
The main event of this week’s episode of the Black & Silver show saw Oba Femi and Trick Williams teaming up to take on A-Town Down Under. The duo of Greyson Waller and Austin Theory won the match thanks to an argument between the two NXT stars and interference from Eddy Thorpe.
Thorpe, who had brought in a leather strap with him continued attacking Williams after the match as Femi headed to the back. The producer’s graphic appeared as Eddy stood tall but right before the show went off air, it cut to a screen with colored bars and a message reading ‘Vengeance Day.’
The message was similar to the one seen last week but this time it cut to a new screen showing four mysterious figures standing in the dark:
The Vengeance Day teaser closes out #WWENXT again this week and we got a glimpse of the people behind it! ?? pic.twitter.com/mN6q5yRFNu
This new vignette all but confirms the debut of a new faction at the upcoming show from Entertainment and Sports Arena in Washington DC.
The show will also see Oba Femi defending his NXT Championship against both members of A-Town Down Under in a triple-threat match while Giulia will defend the NXT Women’s Championship against Roxanne Perez and Bayley.
A unique decision was made on NXT tonight when a referee reversed the outcome of a match because of a post-match attack.
The latest episode of the Black & Silver show featured a match between Kelani Jordan and Karmen Petrovic. Ashante Adonis was in the latter’s corner for the bout.
The ending of the bout saw Jordan hitting not one but two Split Legged moonsault. She then locked her opponent in a sleeper hold, which forced Petrovic to tap out.
Jordan however, was not done even after this and she went back to attacking Karmen immediately after the referee raised her hand. The post-match attack led to an interesting consequence, as the referee decided to turn the match outcome and Karmen Petrovic was then declared the winner.
Kelani Jordan VENCE a Karmen Petrovic por sumisión después de los dos Moonsaults, queriendo mandar un mensaje a Jaida Parker. Y después, sigue en su locura haciéndole otra sumisión a Karmen… y LA GANADORA, POR ELLO, ACABA SIENDO KARMEN.
So far Kelani has not reacted to her win being overturned but the decision is sure to play a part in her future storyline.
Apart from this the show featured an appearance from the 2025 Women’s Royal Rumble winner Charlotte Flair. She put Giulia on notice, reminding the NXT Women’s Champion that she previously cashed in a Royal Rumble victory on the then NXT Champion Rhea Ripley.
We also saw the surprise return of a former WWE star as part of the company’s partnership with TNA. You can check out more about it here.
Sami Zayn could not walk out on his own after this week’s episode of Monday Night Raw from Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio.
The post-Royal Rumble show began the build for the upcoming Elimination Chamber PPV with qualifying bouts. Zayn was involved in one of the two such bouts of the night, facing CM Punk in the main event of the show.
The Underdog from the Underground fought hard and did his best to defeat the former world champion. Unfortunately for Sami Zayn, it was CM Punk who came out victorious in the end, winning the bout with a GTS. The Straight Edge Star showed respect for his opponent after the bell by shaking hands.
As the two stars were leaving the ring, however, a banged-up Kevin Owens appeared out of nowhere. Owens attacked his best friend from behind, inadvertently taking out Punk in the process as well. KO then continued his attack on Sami, delivering a brutal Package Piledriver to end the show.
While Owens left after the show went off air, Sami and Punk remained in ring. The medics came out to check on Zayn after the brutal attack. The former IC Champion could not walk out on his own in the end, and he had to be taken out on a stretcher as a concerned Punk looked on.
CM Punk and Kevin Owens had a heated promo battle on the January 31 SmackDown heading into Royal Rumble. Now this second interaction between the two suggests that the company might be planning a feud between the two in future.
Triple H says his Hall of Fame induction is one of the most meaningful things of his career for him.
The Game was surprised by the trio of Nick Khan, Undertaker, and Shawn Michaels who announced him as the headliner for the 2025 Hall of Fame during a WWE Townhall meeting earlier this week.
The former World Champion was asked how he felt about the announcement during his appearance on the post-Royal Rumble media scrum. Triple H noted that he had previously been inducted as part of the DX, but going in alone is very different:
“I’ll be honest. We did it with DX. It was a lot of fun. It’s different when it’s you. While I’ve been a part of all of these, and I’ve seen some talent see it as the biggest honor. I’ve seen other talent be like, ‘Yeah, whatever.’ But for the most part, our talent all see it as sort of the ultimate pay of respect to you and your career.
I’ve had the honor of calling a lot of people to tell them, ‘We’re going to induct you in the Hall of Fame,’ or be there in person to say to them, ‘We’re going to induct you into the Hall of Fame’ and watch them cry and watch them get emotional. Because of our passion for what we do, it hit me up way harder than I thought it would.”
Triple H said that when Taker and HBK first came out, he thought that they were there to promote some WWE project. The WWE creative head claimed that it was a very emotional moment when the reality dawned on him:
“When we left there, it was a kind of an oddly comical and surreal moment. Then Taker was there, and Shawn was there. We went straight upstairs and went into a meeting and everything else. As it slowly started to dawn on me, I thought like, ‘Here we go.’
The same moment that I watched everybody else have, that emotions, all flooding over you. Of your career, the people you’ve worked with, what it meant to you, the fans that you’ve met around the world, the moments that you’ve been able to create and share. Fortunately for me, this is not, I’m not out of the business.
I have the maybe almost more enjoyable point in my life of being able to watch all these guys do it now. Help them get there and put it all together. But it was emotional, and I’m excited for it. I wish it wasn’t at WrestleMania, so I could focus on it more, but it’s one of the most meaningful things in my career.”
AJ Styles is looking forward to what’s next for him in WWE after his Royal Rumble return.
The Phenomenal One almost recreated the moment of his WWE debut from back in 2016 at tonight’s show. Returning from an injury he suffered in October last year, Styles showed he had no ring rust.
The former World Champion was interviewed by Cathy Kelley after the show. When asked about his return, Styles noted that he wore almost the same gear as his WWE debut as well and said that the fan reaction is what keeps him going:
“Did you notice that I wore the same gear, too? Pretty much the same colors, everything, pretty much. Wow, almost the same experience with the fans. The WWE Universe. You know, it really, it’s been a minute because I’ve been hurt and I’m back.
But man, that feeling that you get when you walk down that aisle and thousands of people are screaming. I don’t know if it gets any better than that. Does it get much better than that? I don’t think so. I don’t know, it’s why I’m still doing this.”
AJ Styles ended up becoming one of the two people being eliminated by YouTube star Logan Paul alongside CM Punk. When asked about the elimination, AJ said that he is not alone ‘in the shame’ but expressed interest in moving forward nonetheless:
“I’ll never live that down, getting eliminated by Logan Paul. But you know what? I got out there and I did what I needed to do. I stayed long there, was in there with the big dogs, and I held my ground.
Unfortunately, I didn’t see the one coming behind me, who apparently jumped on the table, scaffold his way back over to the steps and caught me off guard. But this is the WWE. You will lose. You will win. Accept it. Move on. Next Big Thing.”
Joe Hendry is back on his quest to get a match against John Cena after his Royal Rumble appearance.
The TNA Champion continued the tradition of representing the Anthem-owned promotion at the first WWE PPV of the year by entering the men’s Royal Rumble at #15. Hendry got a moment to shine in the Rumble, having the spotlight all to himself for his big pose before being eliminated by Roman Reigns.
The viral star was interviewed by Cathy Kelley backstage after the show where he was asked about his participation in the event. Joe Hendry first claimed that it isn’t the last time he crosses paths with the OTC before once again calling out John Cena for a match:
“It’s unusual for Joe Hendry to be at a loss for words, but say his name, and he appeared here in Indianapolis at the biggest Royal Rumble of all time. Roman Reigns, congrats. You threw Joe Hendry over the top, and I’m willing to bet this isn’t the last time that you and I cross paths.
But before I go, I do want to share a little bit of knowledge that was bestowed on me by one John Cena. He gave me four words, and it was, ‘Fortune favors the bold.’ So here I am, boldly saying John Cena’s name,”
Joe Hendry was also asked when we’ll see him next on WWE TV and the TNA champion said that he’ll appear at ‘any show’ if enough people say his name.
John Cena was unsuccessful in his quest to win the Rumble tonight as well but he’s already announced that he’ll be entering the Elimination Chamber. You can check out more about it here.
Nikki Bella already has future opponents in mind after her WWE return at the 2025 Royal Rumble event.
The WWE Hall of Famer was the final entrant of the Women’s Royal Rumble match, following other surprise entrants such as Jordynne Grace and Charlotte Flair. While she did not win the bout, Bella showed that she hadn’t lost a step since her last Rumble appearance in 2022.
The wrestling veteran was interviewed by Jackie Redmond backstage after the match. When asked how she felt about the crowd erupting for her return, Bella said that she had to be very careful not to get emotional:
“Oh my goodness. It’s crazy. The crowd just gets you right back into who you are out there. What I sometimes have to be careful is I always want to go into ultimate heel Nikki mode, it’s just like where I thrive. It gives me very Bambi vibes.
You almost try not to get emotional because it’s been so long. I love my WWE Universe family. I love my family back here. Then when you hear the crowd react like that, you’re just like, ‘Oh my Gosh.’ It gives you all the feels.”
Nikki Bella also named the people she would like to get in the ring with after her return including a number of veterans as well as the Women’s US Champion Chelsea Green:
“There’s a lot of people. I feel like there are parts me of that have unfinished business, long business, with Charlotte Flair, but also with Liv Morgan. That would probably be my most unfinished business with. It’s great to see some of my girls back here.
We still have Naomi and Nattie. I’ve never caused chaos to Bayley, that’s someone…and someone who I’ve really been loving and I kind of want to kick her off her high horse is Chelsea Green.”
Drew McIntyre’s elimination from the 2025 men’s Royal Rumble reportedly did not go according to plan.
The former world champion entered the Rumble at #17 and survived till all 30 participants had entered the match. Right after the final entrance of Logan Paul, however, he was eliminated from the bout by Damian Priest.
— Anutosh Bajpai || SEScoops || Wrestling News (@AuthorAnutosh) February 2, 2025
PWInsider is now reporting that something went wrong with McIntyre’s elimination at the show and the wrestling veteran was not very happy about it.
According to them, Drew was “screaming and cursing” that “someone had to get their moves in” at the expense of other stories in the match when he got back to the gorilla position.
The Scottish Psychopath did not stick around for long after this. Drew McIntyre reportedly ‘loudly stormed out of’ the Lucas Oil Stadium before the conclusion of the main event.
The former Royal Rumble winner has carved a unique persona for himself with his out-of-the-box ideas and incredible character work over the past couple of years, so everything related to him has to be taken with a grain of salt.
Though if the reports are true, we’ll have to see how the management handles the situation and where McIntyre ends up on the WrestleMania card.
The 2025 Royal Rumble was one of the most anticipated wrestling events of all time and it ended on a shocking note with Jey Uso eliminating John Cena to punch his ticket to a WrestleMania main event.
There were many notable moments coming out of the Men’s Rumble before this which elicited interesting reactions from people within the wrestling world.
Akira Tozawa who could not enter the Rumble after being attacked by Carmelo Hayes during his entrance noted that he would like to take a step closer to the ring next year. Meanwhile, social media personality Speed who took his place in the battle royal claimed that he was done with WWE appearance after taking a huge spear from Bron Breakker before his elimiation.
Sheamus who got into a fight with Jacob Fatu after the Samoan Warewolf attacked Joe Hendry during the match noted that he was enjoying Hendry’s performance. Bronson Reed who has been out of action since Survivor Series last year also expressed his thoughts on the match.
8 years since I came to WWE. This was my first time making an entrance at the #ROYALRUMBLE
Next year, I want to take even one step closer to the ring!!
Wrestling World Reacts To Jey Uso Winning Royal Rumble
The win of Jey Uso came as a huge surprise for people who were hoping for other big names to pick up the victory this year and the match’s ending is garnering mixed reactions from fans online.
Though the whole wrestling world recognizes Uso’s hard work over the past few years as well. There have been many like Bully Ray, Zelina Vega and Ricochet who have congratulated the former IC Champion on his big win since the show.
The one wrestling personality who doesn’t seem to be thrilled with the idea is the World Champion Gunther, who previously defeated Uso on multiple occasion:
Cody Rhodes has explained why he is not overly enthusiastic about potentially facing John Cena during his retirement tour in 2025.
The Cenation Leader has announced that he’ll be competing in WWE throughout the year before calling it a career at the end of 2025. Top names such as CM Punk, Drew McIntyre, and Randy Orton have expressed interest in sharing the ring with Cena one more time before he hangs his boots for good.
The Undisputed WWE Champion was also asked about potentially getting in the ring with Cena during an interview with Theonemona. Cody Rhodes noted that he is one of the people who has not expressed the same interest in a potential John Cena match as many other:
“One thing that’s been on my mind I think, when he announced he was retiring, is a lot of guys jumped to the line of, ‘I want to wrestle John.’ A lot of guys jumped to the ‘I want to do something with John.’ Of course I’m probably the one who didn’t hold his hand up, and that’s simply because John is everything to me.”
Cody Rhodes explained that John Cena is one of his biggest heroes and someone who he learned a lot from during his early years in WWE. According to the American Nightmare he almost dreads the idea of being tasked with defeating the 16-time world champion if the two do come face to face:
“There’s been so many guys I’m a product of, who I took a little something from. The most that I’ve taken from anybody ever would be from John. That was from driving those few years with him, seeing how he did his interactions with fans, seeing how he would do main events, seeing how he was the quarterback, the leader, all those things. So when I hear this is it, it’s still not fully for me.
I don’t love this is it, and I know it is. I know he means it when he says it, but I want to watch like a fan. I almost dread the idea of what that would look like, because when you’re up against John now, you’re tasked to beat John Cena in his final run. That’s why I’m not raising my hand to be in that spot.”