Jamie Noble was either injured or part of an off-camera injury angle during the conclusion of Monday night’s edition of WWE RAW.

After Brock Lesnar slam Noble into the barricade outside of the ring, Noble remained motionless for several moments until ringside officials attended to him.

Joey Mercury ended up making it back into the ring for The Authority’s attack on Lesnar, however Noble was never shown on camera again.

Ultimately, Noble was stretchered out of the arena and to the back.

We should have more on this story on Tuesday morning.

Below is a photo from RAW of the WWE medical crew preparing to load Noble onto a stretcher.

• **BRAND NEW PHOTO GALLERY** — Ronda Rousey In SKIMPY Bikinis & SUPER-TIGHT Outfits!

H/T: WrestlingINC.com

Following Monday’s edition of WWE RAW from Indianapolis, Indiana, several new matches were made official for the upcoming WWE Battleground pay-per-view event.

Below is an updated look at the official lineup for WWE Battleground 2015:

WWE World Heavyweight Title
– Seth Rollins (c) vs. Brock Lesnar

WWE United States Title
– John Cena (c) vs. Kevin Owens

WWE Intercontinental Title
– Ryback (c) vs. Big Show vs. The Miz

WWE Tag-Team Titles
– The Prime Time Players (c) vs. The New Day

– Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt

WWE Battleground takes place on Sunday, July 19, 2015, live from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Make sure to join us here at SEScoops.com on 7/19 for the best WWE Battleground live results coverage on the web!

• **BRAND NEW PHOTO GALLERY** — Ronda Rousey In SKIMPY Bikinis & SUPER-TIGHT Outfits!

WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross updated his official blog on Tuesday with thoughts and opinions of Monday’s edition of WWE RAW. Below are some of the highlights.

On Monday’s RAW: “This Raw had a good beginning, a viable middle and a great close with Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman returning to confront WWE World Champion Seth Rollins. To ever do a ‘great’ three hour TV Wrestling show is going to be challenging but this show definitely had its moments and took a nice step toward the next WWE PPV which is, luckily, four weeks away.”

On Kevin Owens attacking Machine Gun Kelly: “Kevin Owens had a memorable night but his power bombing rapper Machine Gun Kelly seemed to be enjoyed and not jeered by the live audience. Nonetheless, @FightOwensFight is making positive strides to become WWE’s top villain. I hope that he succeeds. He’s a throwback in many ways and I enjoy him not trying to be a ‘cool villain.'”

On Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman returning on RAW: “As mentioned the return of @HeymanHustle and Lesnar was well timed although I’m somewhat surprised but not disappointed that it will be Lesnar vs. Rollins at Battleground PPV in St Louis in approximately one month and not at Summer Slam although that’s still a possibility. Lesnar is a legit monster and has more of the ‘IT” factor than any one in WWE for my money. I look forward to some verbal jousting from Heyman and Rollins in the coming weeks while Lesnar stays at home and eats red meat.”

Check out the complete blog at JRsBarBQ.com. You can also order JR’s Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.

• BREAKING NEWS: CM Punk’s UFC Debut PUSHED BACK To 2016?!

– After Monday’s WWE RAW went off the air, Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, Randy Orton and Ryback took on Seth Rollins, Bray Wyatt, Sheamus and Big Show in an 8-man tag match.

Wyatt and Reigns fought to the back, turning the match into a six-man. Fans chanted “please retire” at Big Show and he responded on the mic by saying fans can buy out his contract if they want him to retire.

The babyfaces dominated the match and Orton hit Sheamus with an RKO for the win.

– WWE COO Triple H announced on Monday that NXT will be invading the Louder Than Life music festival in Louisville, KY in October.

Talent advertised include Finn Balor, NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks, NXT Tag Team Champions Blake and Murphy, Enzo Amore, Big Cass, Becky Lynch, Bayley, Baron Corbin, Tyler Breeze and The Vaudevillians.

– WWE.com is running a poll asking fans if they think The Authority is setting Seth Rollins up to lose the WWE World Heavyweight Title by pitting him against Brock Lesnar at Battleground. With almost 10,000 votes, 80% voted “yes” because Rollins has a bad attitude and needs to be taught a lesson.

On the first of three RAW Fallout videos, which you can check out below, Adam Rose and Rosa Mendes are all over each other backstage.

In the second RAW Fallout video, NXT Champion Kevin Owens talks about his attack of hip-hop star Machine Gun Kelly.

Finally, the third of three RAW Fallout videos for this week features Michael Cole discussing his “lawsuit” against Brock Lesnar.

• CM Punk “Super OK” If UFC Debut Doesn’t Happen Until 2016

Brock Lesnar returned Monday’s RAW and was named as Seth Rollins’ next opponent for the WWE World Heavyweight championship.

The Authority came out for the main event segment and teased the announcement. Rollins came out and was told that it’s time to see how the asset WWE has invested so heavily in will hold up under the most extreme pressure.

Lesnar’s music hit and the mayor of Suplex City hit the ring with his advocate Paul Heyman in tow. Lesnar and Rollins went face to face before Rollins retreated and left the ring. The two stared each other down as Lesnar’s music played to close the show.

The announcers sold that Lesnar’s indefinite suspension has been lifted and that match will be taking place in 5 weeks at Battleground.

• Brock Lesnar’s Full WWE Schedule For The Summer Revealed

Following his return on Monday’s RAW, the following is an updated list of Brock Lesnar’s upcoming WWE schedule.

• June 22nd: WWE RAW from Indianapolis, IN
• July 4th: WWE Network Special from Tokyo, Japan
• July 6th: WWE RAW from Chicago, IL
• July 13th: WWE RAW from Atlanta, GA
• July 19th: WWE Battleground from St Louis, MO
• July 20th: WWE RAW from Kansas City, MO
• August 3rd: WWE RAW from San Jose, CA
• August 17th: WWE RAW from Minneapolis, MN

Lesnar is also scheduled to compete at WWE SummerSlam, although that has not been officially announced as of this writing.

In an update on the WWE status of Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman, both guys are scheduled to return at WWE RAW next Monday night in Cleveland, Ohio.

Lesnar and Heyman will be back again the next week in Indianapolis, and are both planned to be regulars on television at least through the WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view.

Lesnar’s next high-profile match is scheduled to be at the WWE Battleground pay-per-view on July 19th, however he’s also booked fr the July 4th live WWE Network special from Japan, where he will be taking on Kofi Kingston.

It’s worth noting that the current plan is that WWE will not be promoting the 7/4 live special from Japan the same way they did with the recent Elimination Chamber pay-per-view.

• PHOTO: Is Ken Shamrock Taking STEROIDS Before Fight With Kimbo?!

(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

As seen earlier this week, Steve Austin immediately downplayed the speculation about a possible WrestleMania 32 match with Brock Lesnar, and apparently there’s a very good reason for that.

According to the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Austin vs. Lesnar will not be happening next year and part of the reason is because Austin and Vince McMahon have some issues. While the key issues aren’t specified, it is noted that McMahon was not happy with how Austin’s “Stone Cold Podcast” with Paul Heyman ended because it caused anticipation and excitement for a match that is not currently part of WWE’s plans for WrestleMania 32.

After the podcast ended, McMahon reportedly spoke to Austin and made it clear that he wanted the story to go away quickly and quietly, so he asked Austin to address it once and then move on, which is exactly what Austin ended up doing.

• PHOTO: Is Ken Shamrock Taking STEROIDS Before Fight With Kimbo?!

(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

“Stone Cold” Steve Austin has once again addressed the possibility of returning to the ring at WrestleMania 32 for a match against Brock Lesnar.

On the latest installment of the Steve Austin Show at PodcastOne.com, Austin addressed his segment with Paul Heyman at the conclusion of last week’s Stone Cold Podcast on the WWE Network.

Austin said that he didn’t know what Heyman was going to say so he went into promo mode because it was right for the “Stone Cold” character. He clarified that he did not mean to raise expectations regarding a potential showdown with Lesnar and did not intend to set up a match between them.

Austin said that he and Lesnar are on different paths right now and made it clear that he was not attempting to jumpstart a Wrestlemania feud.

WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently updated his official Q&A section, answering questions from fans on a wide variety of topics. Below are some of the highlights:

On his favorite gimmick matches: “The 60 minute or 30 minute Ironman Matches were always a favorite of mine. Enjoyed the Royal Rumble as well.”

On differences between ring announcers and play-by-play announcers: “Big difference in being a ring announcer ala Howard Finkel as opposed to being a play by play man like Michael Cole. The guys at the desk work off their monitors or at least that’s the norm. The less I knew that was going to happen the better. I can’t speak for all other announcers.”

On the I-C Chamber match last Sunday: “Yes it was a head scratcher.”

On if Roman Reigns winning Money In The Bank would be a mistake: “It’s impossible to mandate something is a mistake long before it happens. Let’s allow things to play out and then cast judgment.”

On rumors that Bill Watts would fire you if you lost a bar fight: “Watts did not want his wrestlers being on the losing end of a fight to a local as to protect the business. He had no policy against he talent going to bars. Just as we hired Foley we should have gotten Owens hired as well or at least that’s my thinking.”

On if his wife ever gets fed up with all of the traveling he does: “My wife is a fan and has supported and made sacrifices for my career countlessly. I would not be where I am today without her.”

On wrestlers getting multiple inductions into the WWE Hall Of Fame: “I do not believe that anyone is deserving of being inducting multiple times into the WWE HOF.”

On WWE storylines leaking and if there’s a way to prevent it: “Insider info is an industry wide issue not just WWE. Some fans have craving for inside, advance information which to me takes away from the presentation of the various broadcasts. Plus, there are not enough true, superstars performing nowadays.”

On the Steve Austin vs. Brock Lesnar rumors and if Lesnar is the best opponent for Austin: “Again….the match likely will never happen but the cat’s out of the bag and now booking any thing else without a major angle won’t set well with the fans. Again, much to do about nothing IMO.”

Check out more Jim Ross Q&A at his official website JRsBarBQ.com, and order his Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.

• Photos: Ronda Rousey Turns Heads With Revealing Outfit At Entourage Premiere!

As announced on this week’s edition of NXT TV, WWE will be holding a live WWE Network special from Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan on July 4th. Below is the full lineup for the show.

– Brock Lesnar vs. Kofi Kingston

– John Cena & Dolph Ziggler vs. Kane & King Barrett

– Kevin Owens vs. Finn Balor (NXT Title)

– Chris Jericho vs. Neville

– The New Day vs. Tyson Kidd & Cesaro*

– Nikki Bella vs. Paige vs. Naomi (WWE Divas Title)

– The Lucha Dragons vs. Los Matadores

* – Tyson Kidd may be pulled from this match due to injury.

• Photos: Ronda Rousey Turns Heads With Revealing Outfit At Entourage Premiere!

The announcement of Brock Lesnar wrestling at what we now know will be a live WWE Network special at Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan on July 4th resulted in ticket sales going from average to an immediate, legitimate sell out. Because of the way WWE will be setting up the arena, there is only 6,500 tickets for the event, however WWE will likely announce a figure close to 11,000. Lesnar is scheduled to wrestle Kofi Kingston on the show.

There was still advertising for Daniel Bryan appearing on the tour as recently as this week, although he could appear in a non-wrestling capacity, as Hideo Itami, who will not be wrestling, is also being advertised for the show.

Additionally, Japanese wrestling legend Tatsumi Fujinami may attend one or both of the shows in Japan, with the hook being that WWE put him in their Hall Of Fame earlier this year.

• Photos: Ronda Rousey Turns Heads With Revealing Outfit At Entourage Premiere!

(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman will be returning to WWE television sooner than originally planned.

According to the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE called both Lesnar and Heyman to return about a month earlier than they were planning on having them come back.

Originally, WWE was looking at having Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at this year’s SummerSlam event on August 23rd, which means Lesnar would have returned a week, or a few weeks, prior to the date of the pay-per-view. Now, the plan is for Lesnar to return in time for a match at the Battleground event on July 19th.

While the Lesnar-Rollins match at SummerSlam is still a possibility, so much in creative has changed since that idea was in play. So far, Lesnar has been advertised for the June 22nd edition of RAW in Indianapolis, the July 6th RAW in Chicago and the July 13th RAW in Atlanta. Lesnar is also scheduled to work a match at what will now be a live WWE Network special on July 4th at Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan.

• Photos: Ronda Rousey Turns Heads With Revealing Outfit At Entourage Premiere!

WWE inserted a pre-taped segment during tonight’s NXT broadcast on the WWE Network, announcing a live special with a major title match in Japan.

On tonight’s show, it was announced by William Regal that there will be a live special from Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan on July 4th that will feature Kevin Owens vs. Finn Balor for the NXT Championship.

The show is scheduled to start at 6:30am EST., which would be 8:30pm in Japan, so it’s possible that only part of the show will air on the WWE Network, since the show is scheduled for a 7pm start-time.

The event will also include the previously reported Brock Lesnar vs. Kofi Kingston match, and will also feature a John Cena main event, as well as a match including Chris Jericho.

• Photos: Ronda Rousey Turns Heads With Revealing Outfit At Entourage Premiere!

WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross updated his official blog on Tuesday with thoughts on Monday’s RAW, the Stone Cold Podcast with Paul Heyman and more. Below are some of the highlights:

On the John Cena and Kevin Owens RAW promo segment: “Nice verbal interplay between Cena and Owens Monday night on RAW. I’d love to see this develop into a great rivalry but in order for it to happen the villain (Owens) will have to maintain the upper hand until the bottom of the ninth IE the blow off match. Not sure that will happen but I’m certainly interested in going along for the ride. Owens winning at Elimination Chamber was essential and made all the wrestling sense in the world.”

On the Stone Cold Podcast with Paul Heyman: “Enjoyed the Steve Austin-Paul Heyman post RAW edition of the Steve Austin Podcast on the WWE Network and was pleased that WWE extended their time approximately 12 minutes as the two could have easily delivered two, compelling hours of entertainment. It brought back old times when Heyman struck the mean dog with a sharp stick when asking @steveaustinBSR about facing Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania Texas in April of 2016. Great intensity by Austin who flipped the switch into promo mode while talking about the topic that the IWC (Internet Wrestling Community) had to love. My Twitter timeline @JRsBBQ exploded as many fans reacted as if the match had been made and that Steve was firing the opening salvo of the verbal aspect of what would be a record setting main event.”

On Steve Austin vs. Brock Lesnar: “I’d give an educated guess that the odds of an Austin-Lesnar match being held at Wrestlemania Texas as less than 50-50 and likely closer to 65-35 that it won’t happen. I’d love to be wrong but as Austin said “the stars in the sky would all have to be aligned” for that to happen and I don’t see those stars as being fan friendly for the lack of a better expression.”

On Samoa Joe signing full-time contract with WWE: “If true, very strategic of WWE to sign @SamoaJoe to a full time contract with the organization. Joe can work with anyone on the roster in any environment and is a class act who’s a great pro and will be a positive influence to all that he comes in contact with in the locker room.”

Check out the complete blog at JRsBarBQ.com. You can also order JR’s Bar-B-Q products online at WWEShop.com.

• Ronda Rousey On Shaquille O’Neal’s Comments About A Fight With Her

The latest Stone Cold Podcast with Paul Heyman just wrapped up and the big news coming out of the show was Steve Austin telling Paul Heyman that “if the stars aligned” – he might be interested in wrestling Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 32.

As the interview was wrapping up, Heyman asked Austin if we’ll be seeing him back in the ring at WrestleMania 32. The mood changed immediately, with Austin shifting into Stone Cold mode. Austin pitched the idea of taking on Brock Lesnar, but told Heyman that he wouldn’t be looking for a scientific wrestling match against the Lesnar. He had 3 words for Heyman – Texas Death Match. Austin says he’d whoop Lesnar’s ass and acknowledged that he was getting worked up.

WWE is already gauging fan interest in the dream match, encouraging the WWE Universe to re-tweet the following if they’d like to see the ‘Rattlesnake vs. Beast’ inside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

RT if you want this for #WM32 at @ATTStadium! @SteveAustinBSR @BrockLesnar #TexasDeathMatch http://t.co/5E0C6maShO

— WWE WrestleMania (@WrestleMania) June 2, 2015

WWE.com also posted a ‘Fantasy Warfare’ mashup video for the potential match.

As reported earlier, the official Twitter account of the Bankers Life Fieldhouse announced this morning that Brock Lesnar will appear at the venue when a Raw taping takes place in Indianapolis on June 22, 2015. He is advertised to appear at additional events through July. They are:

– July 4, 2016: Live Event from Tokyo, Japan (Event Information)

– July 6, 2015: RAW taping at the Allstate Arena in Chicago, Illinois (Event Information)

– July 13, 2015: RAW taping at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia (Event Information)

– July 19, 2015: WWE Battleground pay-per-view at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri (Event Information)

– July 20, 2015: RAW  taping at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri (Event Information)

Lesnar is expected to remain on WWE television throughout the summer, including WWE SummerSlam.

• Vince McMahon’s reason for turning Lana babyface

– WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross was in attendance at the Ring Of Honor event on Saturday night, May 30th in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The event saw Jay Brisco defeat Hansen to retain the ROH title in the main event.

– The July 4th WWE event at Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan sold out soon after Brock Lesnar was confirmed to be appearing on the show.

– The official WWE Shop website has released two new Kevin Owens t-shirts. The NXT Champion tweeted the following on Saturday about his new WWE merchandise.

https://twitter.com/FightOwensFight/status/604741390107586561

• Ronda Rousey’s Next Opponent Goes Too Far With Suicide Comments!

Brock Lesnar is being advertised to wrestle in Japan for the first time in twelve years for WWE.

The official YouTube account is promoting that the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion will be appearing at the Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan on July 4, 2015. According to WWE.co.jp, Lesnar’s opponent at the event will be WWE Tag Team Champion Kofi Kingston. It will also be his first wrestling appearance at a non-televised WWE event since 2004.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTrvQhQTDJs

On the F4WOnline.com message board, Dave Meltzer said Lesnar is working the event because he planned to visit Masa Saito, a retired Japanese wrestler, with friend Brad Rheingans (a former wrestler from Minnesota who competed for the American Wrestling Association, New Japan Pro Wrestling and briefly WWE in 1986 as an enhancement talent).

“Lesnar and Brad Rheingans wanted to go to Japan to see Masa Saito,” Melter wrote. “Just figured since he was going anyway, make it tax deductible, get his trans paid and work one show.”

Meltzer noted that Lesnar is only working that one show. Another show will be held at the same venue on July 3, 2015.

• Why does Dolph Ziggler have backstage heat?

WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins recently spoke with the folks at Digital Spy to promote this Sunday’s WWE Elimination Chamber pay-per-view. Below are some highlights from the interview.

On his match with Dean Ambrose at Elimination Chamber: “Ambrose is a confident performer, like you said he got a couple of wins under his belt against me, but when the chips are down, always bet on Rollins when it comes to Rollins versus Ambrose. assume he thinks things will be different, but you look at the deck and it’s a little stacked against him. There’s really nobody that performs better in big match situations than me. That’s over the last two, three years, even if you go deeper into my career. Any time it’s a big match and there’s a lot on the line and I’m the guy who needs to hit the home run, I do it. I think Elimination Chamber is another one of those and actually every title match is one of those, and I’m looking forward to it.”

On Kevin Owens coming to the main roster: “No. You know, Kevin’s great. I’ve known Kevin for years and years and years. He’s an excellent talent. There’s a reason The Authority sees big things in him, there’s a reason the WWE Universe sees big things in him. But Kevin Owens is Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins is the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. So I’m not terribly concerned at this point in time. I think I earn my keep quite well. Maybe down the line we’ll have to consider other options, but that’s definitely not the case right now.”

On John Cena fading down in his career: “The end of John Cena is an interesting prospect. I think that John has given this company and this industry so much for the last 15 years that it’s gotta be taking its toll on him, physically speaking. He’s not a young man anymore and you get in there with guys like the names you’ve mentioned, all hungry, young, exciting performers with styles that he’s not accustomed to. I think that throws him a little off. He likes that challenge. I know John, he loves a new challenge and he looks forward every day in his whole life. The end of John Cena? I don’t know, but definitely the beginning of a new era in WWE for sure.”

On Brock Lesnar’s return: “The suspension is indefinite, luckily, so we’ll see how long it lasts. But I’m sure Lesnar’s got his eyes set on the prize, I don’t know why he wouldn’t. And I would be glad to give him a rematch, when the time is right. When the situation calls for it. Until then he can sit on the sidelines and enjoy his time at home.”

On ROH going to Destination America: “Great for Ring of Honor. It’s tremendous any time our wrestling industry continues to grow. That’s awesome for them. They were a breeding ground for a lot of talent that now exists [in the WWE]: Kevin Owens, myself, Sami Zayn, obviously Daniel Bryan, Cesaro. They have proven to be a valuable asset when it comes to cultivating great talent as far as moving guys up to the bigger ranks. It’s great – I’m super thrilled for them and I hope they can sustain and hopefully we see more talent coming out of there and into NXT and eventually into WWE. It’s a good time to be a wrestling fan, that’s for sure.”

On Samoa Joe in NXT: “I was very thrilled for Joe. He’s a guy who was an idol of mine growing up, someone I watched when I was in my formative teenage years. He’s someone whose style I emulated when I first started. There’s definitely pieces of Samoa Joe in the Seth Rollins repertoire so it’s cool he’s part of the company now – something you thought you’d never see. Like I say, it creates a lot of super-interesting match-ups, so it’s a great time to be a professional wrestling fan, a great time to be a WWE fan for sure.”

Check out the complete interview at DigitalSpy.com.

• PHOTOS: CM Punk Training For UFC Debut w/ Former Champions!

The official Twitter account of the Bankers Life Fieldhouse announced Thursday morning on Twitter that Brock Lesnar will appear at the venue when Raw takes place in Indianapolis on June 22, 2015.

JUST ANNOUNCED! @BrockLesnar has been added to the card for #WWEIndy here on Mon., June 22: http://t.co/9dCQfybErh pic.twitter.com/vHIrb8BzS9

— Gainbridge Fieldhouse (@GainbridgeFH) May 28, 2015

On the venue’s official website, Lesnar is advertised to appear “live.”

Lesnar has not appeared on WWE programming since the night after WrestleMania 31, where he attacked announcers Booker T, John “Bradshaw” Layfield, Michael Cole, and a cameraman when WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins turned down an immediate title rematch. This led Stephanie McMahon to suspend Lesnar indefinitely in storyline.

• Vince McMahon’s reason for turning Lana babyface

– Dolph Ziggler is currently overseas in Singapore doing promotional work for WWE.

https://twitter.com/heelziggler/status/603064118648709120

– Wizard World announced today that Stardust and Paige will be attending the Wizard World Comic Con in Richmond, Virginia from July 31st through August 2nd.

Convention News: Billy Dee Williams, Billy Boyd, Sean Astin, WWE Superstar Stardust, Diva Paige A… http://t.co/jEUWnCnZVu via @ComicsOnline

— FAN EXPO HQ (@FANEXPOHQ) May 27, 2015

– WWE’s Kyle Edwards (Arda Ocal) noted on Twitter that the first 3 episodes of WWE History on the WWE Network have more than 1 million views and counting. He added that he and Corey Graves were doing a new video yesterday.

https://twitter.com/kyleedwardswwe/status/603243240989556737

– WWE’s latest 5 Things video looks at 5 Superstars who defeated Brock Lesnar:

Although we’re several months away from the next WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view, a U.K. online gambling website has released betting odds for the 30-man over-the-top-rope match scheduled for January of 2016.

The U.K. betting site known as “Bwin” has released odds for the top five favorites to win the 2016 Royal Rumble. Below are the lines they are offering, with Seth Rollins being the favorite and Daniel Bryan being the biggest underdog.

Seth Rollins +200
Brock Lesnar +400
Roman Reigns +500
Ryback +600
Daniel Bryan +600

• Alberto Del Rio Makes Interesting Comments About Goldberg Fight Rumors!

With all the things you can criticize WWE for these days, the company should be commended on doing an excellent job in elevating their secondary championships.

If you flashback to around this time last year, the WWE World Heavyweight Championship was virtually ‘on ice,’ only being defended on major pay-per-view events due to the champion at the time — Brock Lesnar — working under a special, limited-date contract.

Now, at the time, you could make sense of it, and even Vince McMahon himself did when asked about the topic during his interview on the short-lived “Steve Austin Show” live WWE Network podcast, as he pointed to the fact that having Lesnar defend the biggest title in the company on an infrequent basis made World Title matches feel that much more important.

Fast forward to the present day, and when it comes to championships in WWE — all systems are “go.”

First and foremost, we finally have a fighting WWE World Heavyweight Champion. Sure, the storyline surrounding Seth Rollins, the current world champion, is that he chickens away from ‘the big fight.’ At the end of the day, however, the bell eventually rings, the referee raises the golden belt up high, and two or more competitors end up vying for the richest prize in all of sports entertainment.

Now, move down one level to the two secondary championships. For the longest time, the WWE United States Championship and the WWE Intercontinental Championship, for all intents and purposes, were viewed as a total joke by the WWE Universe — and rightfully so.

Not anymore.

WWE came up with a great idea heading into WrestleMania 31 this year — put more significance behind their secondary titles. First, slap the U.S. title belt around John Cena’s waist. In a bit of irony, it was Cena who really launched his career off of his first U.S. title run, so in a story-telling fashion, his story comes full circle.

So, basically, WWE decided that now that they want to elevate some new blood into the top spots in the company, they decided to put one of their secondary titles — in this case the U.S. title — on arguably the biggest star in the company today.

On the flip side of the coin, when it comes to the WWE Intercontinental Championship, WWE decided to put that belt on the most popular wrestler in terms of the fans — the leader of the “Yes! Movement,” Daniel Bryan.

And that brings us to Monday’s WWE Payback ‘go-home’ edition of RAW.

After being unable to defend his WWE Intercontinental Championship against Bad News Barrett at the recent WWE Extreme Rules pay-per-view as originally scheduled, WWE played the waiting game to find out how the latest round of the Daniel Bryan injury-bug would work out. As it turns out, whatever Bryan is going through is serious enough that WWE felt they had no choice but to have him surrender the Intercontinental Title on live television, much like they had him do shortly after he won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XXX last year.

The idea behind his forefitting of the title last night was where the plan regarding secondary titles in WWE remains in tact. The reason given by Bryan, delivered in a passionate way I should add, was that the WWE Universe deserves a fighting champion. A top contender who deserves the right to bust his ass day-in and day-out, city-to-city, state-to-state, country-to-country and even continent-to-continent, all for the right to try and earn what is now once again slowly being viewed as a title of importance. One of value. One worth fighting to obtain.

Where WWE goes next with the Intercontinental Championship in particular remains to be seen in terms of how far they are willing to go to try and elevate the perceived importance of the title.

Basically put, the company can go one of two ways, as I see it. You can follow the mandate that they have been following since this year’s WrestleMania, which is find the most over performer with the fans, give him the I-C title, and try and get the belt over that way, so that in the future, the belt can make the man, as opposed to the current formula, where the man makes the belt.

Their second option is to try and do the opposite. Put the title on an up-and-comer who has the goods to deliver, but just needs something to put him over the edge so he is viewed as a bigger deal than he already is. Names like Neville and Sami Zayn come to mind.

Zayn, depending on his injury, would make a great impact on the main roster by giving U.S. Champion John Cena all he could handle — with an injury no-less, in his first high-profile match on RAW since having his run as NXT Champion in WWE’s developmental system, and then go on to win the next high-profile match he is in and become the brand new WWE Intercontinental Champion.

Keep reading on Page 2 …