Andrade has thrown down the gauntlet, challenging Finn Balor to an Intercontinental championship matchup.
The Superstar defeated Finn during his RAW debut after the Superstar Shake-Up. This victory surprised many, considering Balor’s recent triumph at WrestleMania 35, and would have helped Andrade quickly establish himself on the RAW roster.
Things didn’t turn out that way, however, as Andrade would quickly return to SmackDown Live the following Tuesday. Upon his sudden, retconned return to the blue brand, he would subsequently lose to Finn Balor, who was making his blue brand debut. Balor’s move also brought the Intercontinental championship to SmackDown Live.
With the tally now at a win each, a rubber match makes sense to determine the final victor. Making it for the Intercontinental championship certainly ups the stakes involved for each man.
“El Idolo” would call out Finn via Twitter, writing:
“@FinnBalor I got you once, you got me once. Let’s make it more interesting next time…put that #IntercontinentalChampionship on the line! Que tú piensas ???”
With the challenge having been accepted, it seems likely that the two will clash for the gold at WWE’s upcoming Money In The Bank event, which takes place on May 19th.
Becky Lynch is the new WWE RAW and Smackdown women’s champion. The Champ Champ will bring both titles to RAW tonight inside Barclay’s Center. The “RAW after Mania” tonight promises to create new storylines where old ones have been concluded.
WWE RAW 4/8 Preview
In addition to Becky Lynch, several other newly crowned champions will be on tonight’s show. Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Zach Ryder, & Curt Hawkins all have new championships as a result of their matches at WrestleMania and all will be on RAW tonight.
Becky Lynch Brings Both Belts To WWE RAW
Becky Lynch will bring both belts to RAW tonight. While WWE is giving little away as to what Becky will be doing on the show tonight, there will likely be some type of ceremony to honor her accomplishment.
Becky’s segment tonight raises other questions, however. For instance, will either Charlotte Flair or Ronda Rousey be on-hand? Or will Flair stick to Smackdown and Rousey ride off to the sunset? There are still a lot of unanswered questions at the top of WWE’s women’s divisions and we might get some answers tonight.
Seth Rollins Returns To RAW
Seth Rollins is the new Universal champion. He slew the beast at WrestleMania and now that beast has flown home and reportedly has more interest in Daniel Cormier’s title belt than the one Rollins now holds.
Rollins has promised to be the opposite kind of champion Brock was. The Architect plans to be a fighting champion which could mean he puts the title on the line tonight.
Drew McIntyre Not Expected To Go Away Quietly
Despite losing to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania on Sunday, Drew McIntyre is not expected to drop his rivalry with the Big Dog. McIntyre controlled much of his match against Reigns and sources are saying he plans on pursuing another match with the former Universal champion. We’ll likely find out more about this tonight.
Finn Balor’s 2nd Intercontinental Championship Reign Begins Tonight
Much like with Rollins, Balor says he plans to be a fighting champion. To that end, we could even see Balor put the title on the line tonight.
Balor won the Intercontinental championship by defeating Bobby Lashley at WrestleMania. He did so, however, as his demon gimmick. Balor could likely have to prove he can defend the title without the demon sooner rather than later, however.
The Streak Is Broken
For the first time in 5 years, the RAW after Mania will also feature the fall-out from a long streak ending. Instead of the Undertaker’s WrestleMania streak coming to an end at WM30, however, it’s Curt Hawkins long losing streak coming to an end at WM35.
Hawkins and Ryder pulled off the upset over the Revival last night. Scott Dawson & Dash Wilder will likely be looking for a rematch soon, however, so time will tell how long the new champs can keep their current winning streak alive.
He regained the WWE Intercontinental Championship once he beat Bobby Lashley at Sunday’s (April 7, 2019) WWE WrestleMania 35 pay-per-view event in East Rutherford, NJ at MetLife Stadium on the WWE Network.
Lashley only held the title for a few weeks heading into this show. The amateur wrestler turned pro beat Balor to win it back on the March 11th episode of RAW after Lio Rush caused a distraction by ringing the ring bell several times that allowed Lashley to connect with a devastating spear on Balor to pick up the win and capture the title.
This feud had been going back and for over the last few weeks. Balor won the prestigious secondary title on the red brand when he beat Lashley back at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view event in Houston, Texas in February.
Lashley first reign happened when captured the gold when he beat Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose in a Triple Threat Match back on the January 14th episode of RAW, which he added to his collection of titles he’s earned under the WWE banner that includes the ECW and United States Titles.
Last night’s episode of Monday Night RAW finally confirmed what we’ve seen hints of for weeks: The Demon King returns at WrestleMania 35.
For weeks there have been hints, teases, and (somewhat) subtle references to Finn Balor’s alter ego returning. Whether it was through posters and adverts for the event itself or backstage promos, all signs pointed towards the return.
During RAW, Bobby Lashley, accompanied by Lio Rush, spoke with Charly Caruso. He explained that he’s been fighting for a long time. Because of this experience, he sees no difference between Finn Balor and The Demon:
“If you think I’m scared of some little Irish fairy tale, you’re out of your mind. Finn Balor is the Demon, and the Demon is Finn Balor. I whoop and dominate Finn Balor every single time.”
He would then be interrupted by Finn, who cautioned Lashley. He shared that he’s “always been a guy who’s had demons” before promising that at WrestleMania, “My Demon will become your nightmare.”
WWE has uploaded the clip, suggesting that “There’s a chance @fightbobby may need to be a little concerned heading into #WrestleMania because a DEMON is coming for his #ICTitle! #Raw @itsLioRush @FinnBalor”
The two will compete for the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 35, which takes place this Sunday on April 7th.
In a short video uploaded after this week’s Monday Night RAW, another hint was dropped regarding who might be showing up at WrestleMania 35 to face Bobby Lashley: Finn Balor or The Demon.
This week’s episode of RAW saw Finn Balor defeat both Lashley and Jinder Mahal in a handicap matchup. This victory would secure an opportunity at Lashley’s Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 35.
Bobby Lashley’s manager, Lio Rush, uploaded a short clip to his Twitter account. The video features the two having a clash of words backstage. Lashley, angry over Finn’s win and new number one contender position, would lash out at Rush’s choice of partner for him that night.
Lio Rush would respond, saying: “Don’t do this right now, do not do this right now, you need to focus. You’ve got Finn at WrestleMania, that’s it. That’s the match. You versus Finn at WrestleMania. We’ve still got a couple of weeks until then, so the real question is: what do we do now? What do we do now, because the match is already set in stone.”
Earlier this month, WWE released a WrestleMania advertisement that actually featured Finn Balor in his demon attire. This would prompt fans to anticipate The Demon’s return at WrestleMania 35. This video from Rush just adds to the speculation that The Demon may return on April 7th.
Earlier today (Tues. March 26, 2019) UFC star Conor McGregor shook up the sports community. “The Notorious” has announced his retirement from mixed martial arts (MMA) competition. He posted the following on Twitter early this morning:
Hey guys quick announcement, I’ve decided to retire from the sport formally known as “Mixed Martial Art” today. I wish all my old colleagues well going forward in competition. I now join my former partners on this venture, already in retirement. Proper Pina Coladas on me fellas!
This isn’t the first time McGregor has retired via social media. McGregor did the same back in 2016 when he was struggling to negotiate his next fight at the time. Of course, McGregor eventually returned to fight several more times, including a mega-money boxing fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. Now, however, it looks like the Irish star is teasing retirement yet again.
With McGregor now focused on ventures outside of the Octagon, it did not take long for his fellow countryman Finn Balor to take notice. Balor responded to McGregor’s Tweet by saying, “See you at Mania brother.”
McGregor has certainly been linked to rumors of working with WWE before. He bad-mouthed several WWE stars prior to his UFC 205 fight back in 2016, and has been chummy with Becky Lynch on social media since her rise to fame. Perhaps McGregor will show up at “The Show Of Shows” in New Jersey next month to show support for Lynch and Balor, his two fellow Irishmen on the card.
Our partner site MMANews.com has much more on McGregor’s retirement from MMA, including UFC President Dana White’s reaction.
Do you want to see a McGregor appearance at WrestleMania?
It’s been a while since we last saw the Demon persona of Finn Balor on WWE Programming but it appears that the former Champion maybe bringing in his alter ego for WrestleMania 35.
WWE recently updated their WWE Network page of WWE.com with graphics to promote the upcoming WrestleMania 35 event and it features some top stars of the company.
What’s interesting to note here is that alongside stars like Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns, we see Finn Balor being featured on the graphic in his Demon persona:
While not confirmed, many are taking this as an indication that Balor will be bringing in his alter ego to the upcoming show instead of appearing as himself.
Demon Balor was last seen during his SummerSlam match with Baron Corbin last year, though it was an unadvertised appearance for him where Balor ended up picking up a squash win over Corbin.
There is no word yet on who Finn Balor will be facing at the upcoming event. At one point it was rumored that he will be part of a multi-person Intercontinental Championship match.
However, the former NXT Star lost the belt at this week’s episode of Raw. Now, this hint about Demon Balor is being considered as a sign that the company might have something more significant planned for him after all.
Finn Balor will look to defend his Intercontinental championship tonight on RAW against Bobby Lashley. Balor won the title initially at the Elimination Chamber PPV on Feb. 17th. He later defended the title successfully against Lio Rush 2 weeks ago on RAW.
Tonight’s episode of Monday Night Raw takes place in the PPG Paints Center in Pittsburgh, PA.
Finn Balor vs Bobby Lashley – Intercontinental Championship
Bobby Lashley won the Intercontinental championship for the 1st time earlier this year. He defeated Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose in a triple threat match on the January 14th episode of RAW to win the title. He lost it just 34 days later at the Elimination Chamber PPV without having defended it successfully once. Lashley only lost the title in a 2-on-1 handicap match when his partner, Lio Rush, was pinned by Balor, however.
“Last week on Raw, Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley & Baron Corbin overcame Intercontinental Champion Finn Bálor, Braun Strowman & Kurt Angle in a frenetic Six-Man Tag Team Match,” a WWE press release for the match reads.
“Now, 24 hours after he and his cohorts battled The Shield, Bobby Lashley has an Intercontinental Championship Match against Finn Bálor. Who will walk out of Raw with the workhorse title on the turbulent Road to WrestleMania?”
Last night (Sun. February 17, 2019) Sasha Banks and Bayley won the inaugural WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles. Banks and Bayley outlasted other teams like Nia Jax & Tamina, Sarah Logan & Ruby Riott, Sonya Deville & Mandy Rose, Billie Kay & Peyton Royce, and Carmella & Naomi inside the Elimination Chamber. The victory also resulted in a fairly interesting bit of history.
Shortly after their victory, WWE Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon took to Twitter to congratulate The Boss N Hug Connection. She also had some nice words for all the other women who competed in the historic bout:
Also at Elimination Chamber last night, Finn Balor captured the Intercontinental Championship by defeating Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush in a 2-on-1 Handicap match. This was Balor’s first singles title victory on the main roster since becoming the inaugural WWE Universal Champion back in 2016.
Unfortunately, Balor only held that title for one day before vacating it the following night on Monday Night RAW due to injury. During his interview for WWE’s YouTube channel after his win, Balor took a shot at Sam Roberts:
“Well, unlike Sam Roberts, I like to do my talking in the ring,” Balor said. “And, you know, I know Sam Roberts has a face for radio, so maybe he should stay on it.”
There’s a new WWE Intercontinental Champion and its former WWE Universal Champion Finn Balor. The Monday Night RAW star won the prestigious secondary title on the red brand when he beat Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush in a Handicap Match at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view event at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
This marks the first time that Balor has held the title and the second set of gold that he has held on the main roster. He’s also a former WWE NXT Champion.
Lashley captured the gold when he beat Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose in a Triple Threat Match back on the January 14th episode of RAW, which he added to his collection of titles he’s earned under the WWE banner that includes the ECW and United States Titles.
It appears that WWE Chairman Vince McMahon will continue this feud going and allowing Lashley to have a rematch for his title at the next pay-per-view event for the WWE, which will mark the final show before WrestleMania 35. That show is Fastlane as it goes down on March 10, 2019. This is based on local advertising.
What are your thoughts on Balor winning the title? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.
Finn Balor recently appeared on Edge & Christian’s Pod Of Awesomeness. The inaugural WWE Universal Champion discussed a number of topics including his severe labrum tear that made him relinquish the title.
The injury took place in the first ever Universal Title match at Summerslam 2016. Balor faced Seth Rollins and said that his shoulder was dislocated immediately. Finn also said that he did not know the extent of the injury when it happened. While the match continued Balor realised that his shoulder was “totally destroyed.” He also realised that he would be out of action for a long time.
“Straight away, I knew the shoulder was out because I could feel it out. I didn’t realize how bad it went out.” Balor stated.”I’ve had a shoulder separation before where, like, I could pop in back in and it wasn’t so bad. But when I hit the deck, I said, ‘oh no, your shoulder’s out of place.’ So instinctively, I pulled it forward and it pops back in.”
Balor continued, saying “I go, ‘okay, phew, breathe, calm down, get your bears, [and] get back in the ring.’ So I get back in the ring, and I start working, and it feels pretty loose. And I think [Rollins] shoots me off and I reverse him, and I’m, like, pushing him in the back, and I give him a little push with my right hand on the back, and it pops out again. I go, ‘oh no, this is going to be a big issue.’
In And Out of The Ring
Balor elaborated further, saying he “ended up coming out [of the ring] three or four times in the match where I kept resetting it, resetting it, but it was totally destroyed. There was, like, a bicep tear, a pec tear, the socket was broken. The labrum was torn, so, like, that’s pretty much why I kept slipping in and out. Kind of halfway through the match I realize. ‘You’re not going to be wrestling, not for a long time.’ But they said, ‘stay the course,’ and I finished the match. And the rest is history.”
Former WWE Universal Champion Finn Balor is now going after different gold after his failed attempt to conquer Brock Lesnar to win the title. Now, the star of the red brand is slated to challenge WWE Intercontinental Champion Bobby Lashley for the strap on Monday’s episode of RAW in Portland, OR.
Balor decided to have some fun at the expense of Lashley and his “hype man,” Lio Rush, through the power of social media as he has shared some photoshopped pictures that poke fun at the two stars. First up is from the movie The Heat where Lashley’s head on top of Sandra Bullock’s body while Lio Rush’s head on top of Melissa McCarthy’s body. The second photo is from Kevin Hart and The Rock’s film with “Lack of Intelligence.”
The staff who are in charge of WWE’s official website pay attention to social media and have heard the fans voice their opinions when it comes to which match they think should headline this year’s WrestleMania 35 event. As of this writing, WWE has only confirmed two matches taking place at the biggest pay-per-view of the year.
WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar defending the title against Seth Rollins and WWE RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey defending against Becky Lynch.
WWE.com released a poll asking fans which match that they would like to see headline the show that takes place on n Sunday, April 7, 2019 in East Rutherford, NJ at MetLife Stadium. Lynch vs. Rousey is currently in the lead with over 82%.
Last night at the Royal Rumble, Brock Lesnar defeated Finn Balor to retain the Universal Championship. The match appeared to be going Balor’s way after he rammed the champion’s midsection into the corner of the announce table. Lesnar was able to secure the submission and the victory, however, after locking in a Kimura after kicking out of the Coup de Grace.
Paul Heyman was asked in the backstage area if he was ever worried Lesnar was going to win the match.
“Tonight, you and the entire WWE universe got to witness history,” Heyman said. “My client, the reigning, defending, undisputed, Universal heayvweight champion, Brock Lesnar revised, re-wrote, re-imagined the bible itself,” Heyman said. “And if you, the WWE Universe, the God or the Devil has a problem with it then take it up with Brock Lesnar.”
Brock Lesnar Universal Championship Reign
Brock Lesnar is in the midst of his second reign as WWE Universal Champion. He first won the title at WrestleMania 33 from Bill Goldberg. He would defend the title 6x over the course of his 503-day reign with the belt. Lesnar then dropped the title to Roman Reigns at SummerSlam this year. He would regain it at Crown Jewel on November 2nd, however, when he defeated Braun Strowman for the title Reigns was forced to vacate earlier.
This weekend (Sun. January 27, 2019) the WWE will host its Royal Rumble pay-per-view (PPV) from the Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. In the main event, Universal Champion Brock Lesnar will defend his title against Finn Balor. Initially, Lesnar was scheduled to defend his title against Braun Strowman. There has been a lot of injury concerns surrounding Strowman and his status.
However, those didn’t seem to be too much of a factor in the main event change. Instead, Vince McMahon decided to make the change to protect Strowman. Balor earned the opportunity to compete for the Universal Championship against Lesnar by winning two matches on Monday Night RAW recently. There will certainly be a massive size discrepancy between the pair, but that didn’t stop AJ Styles from giving Lesnar a great fight at Survivor Series in 2017.
WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross discussed the bout in the latest episode of his podcast, “The Ross Report.” While he admits Balor is likely to do the job this weekend, Ross also discussed a scenario, albeit an unlikely one, in which Balor could emerge victorious:
“I’m happy that [Bálor] is getting this opportunity and win or lose, that’s where we are,” Ross said. “I guess what you have to consider about this match is could Bálor upset Lesnar and be the Universal Champion heading into WrestleMania? He certainly could. He certainly could. It wouldn’t shock me a bit.
“But you’ve got to think, who does WWE want in that title match at WrestleMania? I keep hearing they want Lesnar and Rollins. Okay, if you know that’s what they want, then, Bálor will do the honors at the Royal Rumble, but he’ll go down in a blaze of glory with an amazing story being told.
“So looking at it ahead, but maybe Bálor is their guy and they’re going to have him match up with say, Seth Rollins at WrestleMania. Well, you know the match is going to be badass.”
Do you think WWE will have Balor upset Lesnar at the Royal Rumble?
This Sunday, at WWE’s Royal Rumble event, Finn Balor will face off against ‘The Beast Incarnate’ Brock Lesnar. The two will clash for the WWE Universal Championship. Balor was inserted into the matchup after winning a Fatal 4-Way to fill Braun Strowman’s spot. Strowman lost the opportunity thanks to Vince McMahon during last week’s Monday Night Raw.
Balor has already shut down the prospect of the WWE Universe seeing ‘The Demon’ at Royal Rumble. He stated, “[…] I can assure you that the man who faces Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble will be Finn Balor, the man.”
Backstage Balor
In a recent interview with Scott Fishman of TV Insider, Balor reflected on his rise back to the main event, and his hard-earned journey to face Lesnar for the Universal Championship. Finn was also asked whether he thinks Vince McMahon believes in him, and what their working relationship looks like.
“I [have] got to be honest, I’m not sure what my relationship is with Vince McMahon. I’m not sure if he believes in me or not. He can be a man of few words. When I show up to work, I find out what I need to do and go handle my business in the ring,” Balor admitted. “That’s kind of how I’ve handled my career for the last 18 years. I’m not the type of guy who is going to be knocking on doors trying to pitch storylines and work inside angles. I’m just going to show up and do my job. I will say he has shown nothing but respect to me face-to-face, but that is as far as our relationship goes.”
Do you think Vince McMahon believes in Finn? Will Balor make the most of his opportunity this Sunday and walk out victorious? Does he need to channel ‘The Demon’ to stand against ‘The Beast’?
Finn Balor spoke to ESPN about his Universal Championship match against Brock Lesnar this Sunday at the Royal Rumble. Lesnar will be the toughest fight of Balor’s WWE career. When Balor is up against his biggest challenges, he summons the demon inside. The Irish Superstar told ESPN he will not be tapping into his painted alter ego at the Rumble.
“I feel like maybe I leaned on the demon too much there in the past as a crutch, and I can assure you that the man who faces Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble will be Finn Balor, the man,” he told Tim Fiorvanti of ESPN.com.
“I think a lot of people were surprised when I came out at WrestleMania not in demon paint but I feel like I had a bigger message to spread that day — one of equality and acceptance. Honestly, this match just kind of came about so fast that I haven’t had much time to think about it.”
Balor added that he not have new ring gear or a surprise look in store for the title match, but we’re still several days away and he’ll probably come up with something.
After Braun Strowman ripped the door off of Vince McMahon’s limo during Raw, The Chairman stripped “The Monster Among Men” of his Universal Championship Match against Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble and made an impromptu Fatal 4-Way Match for later in the night to determine his new challenger. Balor then beat John Cena, Drew McIntyre, and Baron Corbin to earn the Universal Championship Match against Lesnar at the Royal Rumble.
Superstar Billy Graham, a WWE Hall of Famer and one-time WWE Champion, took to Facebook on Tuesday night to criticize WWE for switching Strowman with Balor as Lesnar’s opponent at the Royal Rumble. Graham feels that WWE fans won’t buy Balor as a worthy opponent for Lesnar, pointing out that Balor is considerably smaller.
Graham wrote, “Well fans, just my professional opinion once more, and certainly nothing personal about any of the talent. But as you folks who watched RAW last night ( I didn’t ) know that ” The Monster Among Men ” Braun Strowman has been pulled from the main event against Lesnar. Despite Strowman’s superhuman strength and his ability to over turn paramedic trucks, 18 wheeler 10,000 pound cab trucks, and then overturn Vince’s limo, he can’t quite seem to beat a mere mortal in Brock Lesnar. So, now he has been replaced with less than 2 weeks before this mega PPV by Finn Balor.
“Does anyone in their right mind really believe Finn will have a chance in Hell of beating Lesnar ? I would want my money back immediately. Word is Finn Balor will spend 3 hours getting his spray paint demon gimmick on, to help him beat Lesnar, who it looks like to me out weighs Finn by a good 100 pounds.”
Graham also responded to Dave Meltzer stating on Wrestling Observer Radio that Vince McMahon planned Balor vs. Lesnar all along. With WWE continuing to promote Lesnar vs. Strowman to sell tickets, Graham feels that WWE is double-crossing fans “by putting in a man who will not sell one ticket to see this match.”
Graham continued, “Ah, but the following news by Meltzer is very telling. Meltzer is reporting that this was the plan all along to sell tickets. Knowing that fans would not buy Finn Balor against Lesnar. So that is where the WWE is with their talent. They have to work a gimmick that is a new one for me by advertising a wrestler the fans think had a chance to beat Lesnar to sell tickets, then pull the rug right out from underneath the fans, double crossing them by putting in a man who will not sell one ticket to see this match. Also waiting as long as they could.”
Graham closed his post by writing, “Damn, the WWE sucks when it comes to talent. I bet that Cody Rhodes and his crew will out draw WWE head to head every time. Truly, a colossal scam by the WWE, man do they ever suck. S.B.G.”
We recently reported on WWE’s reasoning behind removing Braun Strowman from his scheduled match against Brock Lesnar. The match was meant to happen at WWE’s Royal Rumble event at the end of the month. With the company not wanting Strowman to lose to Lesnar once again, however, plans were changed. Finn Balor won a Fatal 4-Way this past Monday. This earned him a shot against Lesnar for the Universal Championship.
But if WWE’s intentions were always to change the plans to protect Braun’s character, why continue promoting the matchup against Lesnar for so long?
According to Dave Meltzer via Wrestling Observer Radio, the decision behind the continued advertising was done to continue selling tickets.
Considering that this year’s Royal Rumble is emanating from Chase Field, a baseball stadium, the company wanted to ensure they could sell approximately 40,000 tickets to the WWE Universe. As far as WWE was concerned, Brock vs Braun was the way to do it.
Brock Lesnar has had a recent string of matches against smaller opponents. He reportedly enjoys working with these kinds of Superstars. This could be another reason why Balor is now going to be facing off against Lesnar.
Finn has spoken before about facing off against Brock Lesnar and finally gets his opportunity to reclaim a championship he never lost at Royal Rumble.
Last night during Monday Night Raw, Vince McMahon would fine Braun Strowman $100,000. He then officially removed him from the Universal Championship match at Royal Rumble. Finn Balor would eventually win a Fatal 4-Way matchup later that night, earning the right to compete against Brock Lesnar.
If you thought WWE’s reasoning behind removing Braun was down to his injury, you’d be half right. According to Mike Johnson of PWInsider, there is more to the story than just Braun’s recovery.
“[…] why isn’t Braun Strowman in this match? Well, the obvious reason is that he’s just not physically cleared by WWE’s medical staff to do a big heavy duty match with Brock Lesnar.”
“However, they also didn’t want Braun to get beaten by Brock, and they were not planning on putting the belt on Braun Strowman at the Royal Rumble,” Johnson revealed. “So they kind of painted themselves into a corner and then they painted themselves out of that corner somehow.”
Lesnar may well keep the Universal championship through to WrestleMania 35, where it is speculated he will face Seth Rollins. Despite Lesnar/Strowman no longer happening, there is still a chance WWE could deliver the match in the future.
Finn Balor has been the recipient of a major push in recent weeks. He recently gained a notable victory against Drew McIntyre at TLC, and made a surprise appearance at the recent NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool event. This push makes sense in order to rebuild Balor up to main event status prior to his matchup at Royal Rumble.
Triple H, who oversees both WWE NXT and NXT UK, took part in a media scrum with various reporters after Saturday’s WWE NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool from the Empress Ballroom in Blackpool, England that aired on the WWE Network.
During this session, he discussed the decision to bring in former WWE Universal Champion Finn Balor to work a match at the show. For those who may have missed the show, WWE did an angle where Jordan Devlin was originally scheduled to face Travis Banks but had Devlin attacked Banks prior to the contest and leaving him without an opponent. NXT UK General Manager Johnny Saint walked out and announced that he had a backup opponent for him. This led to Balor coming out.
“It’s about launching a brand. He was extremely cool with it,” said Triple H. He continued by stating that having Balor on the show put a lot of eyeballs and puts a stamp on the brand for what it means to Balor.
He did admit that part of him hated taking the moment away from Banks but thinks it was the betterment of everybody and understands that Banks sees the bigger picture as NXT is all about everybody coming together as they’re working as a team. “It’s working for a greater good. It’s about the overall product and not the individual. That’s the way he took it.”
It turns out, the interview wasn’t the only tease coming from the former Universal Champion, and he made the following post on Instagram recently, hinting at a possible match with the Dead Man:
While reports of Finn Balor receiving a push in the near future have surfaced recently, it’s too early to say if Officials are actually planning a match between him and Taker. Though it’s still a possibility and we’ll keep you posted on any development in the situation.
Triple H Vs Randy Orton Full Royal Rumble 2005 Match
WWE recently uploaded the full match between Triple H and Randy Orton from the 2005 edition of Royal Rumble onto their official YouTube channel.
This match was for the World Heavyweight Championship and was from the time when Orton turned on Evolution and started feuding with the group.
Orton had earned this opportunity by defeating Batista on an episode of Raw prior to the PPV and Eric Bischoff had banned other members of the group from ringside for this bout. You can check out the full match in the video below:
While Finn Balor has been subject to reports of a push, there has been no news on what the company is exactly planning for him, and with WrestleMania season approaching, the biggest question probably is who he will be facing at the event.
During his recent visit to the WWE UK Performance Center, the former Universal Champion talked to Inside the Ropes and discussed a number of topics.
When asked who he would like to face at the Grandest Stage Of Them All this year, Balor took the name of the Phenom saying that the kid Finn Balor wants to face the Undertaker.
Continuing on the topic, the former Universal Champion mentioned how the time is running out with the Dead Man and pointed out that nobody knows when his last match is going to be.
Though later in the interview he also named the Beast Brock Lesnar who currently holds the Universal title as a potential opponent and claimed that he would take either one.
Apart from this, Balor also discussed his short reign as the Universal Champion and explained that his focus has now shifted more towards having a positive influence in people’s lives rather than winning championships.
Who would you like to see Finn Balor face at WrestleMania this year? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
WWE held the first ever NXT UK Takeover event last night. The WWE Network show featured some of the top Superstars of the brand giving their all to put the new brand on the wrestling map.
One of the biggest moments came when WWE RAW Superstar Finn Balor appeared to take on Jordan Devlin. Devlin had been scheduled to take on Travis Banks at the event, although a pre-taped segment was filmed showing Devlin attacking Banks’ knee. Banks still appeared for the bout but was quickly sidelined after Devlin launched another vicious attack using the ring steps.
The assistant ti the NXT UK General Manager Sid Scala confirmed that there was a replacement on hand…Finn Balor. The Irish Superstar appeared to a huge ovation from the Blackpool crowd and went on to have a great match with the younger Devlin.
Devlin was actually a student of Balor’s back in Ireland, a fact that was brought up on the broadcast. The ‘Irish Ace’ Devlin tweeted following the bout, saying “I’ve been chasing you across this planet for 16 years now. Tonight I finally caught you up, in a @WWE ring. Thanks for the scrap. Now you better start running again, I WILL get you next time. #NXTUKTakeOver#NXTUK“
Raw Superstar Finn Balor made a surprise appearance at Saturday’s NXT UK Takeover special from Blackpool England. In a shock to everyone in attendance, the Balor was the surprise opponent for Jordan Devlin.
Devlin was initially scheduled to face Travis Banks. The ‘Irish Ace’ attacked Banks earlier in the day in a pre-taped segment. Banks appeared for the match but was favoring his knee and could not compete.
The Assistant to the NXT UK General Manager Sid Scala confirmed that there would still be a match for Devlin and that they had a back up plan. Balor then appeared to a rapturous response from the Blackpool crowd.
Balor famously taught Devlin back in Ireland and the match was structured as master vs student. After an exciting back and forth contest, Balor picked up the victory.
Check out these videos of Finn Balor at NXT UK Takeover: Blackpool:
Finn Balor and Seth Rollins are both official for the Royal Rumble this year. Rollins declared his entry into the match at a recent WWE live event in Columbus.
Balor lasted almost an hour in last year’s Rumble match after entering in at #2. He was eliminated by John Cena with only 3 other competitors left in the match. Balor eliminated Baron Corbin, Aiden English, Dolph Ziggler, and Rey Mysterio.
Rollins entered into last year’s Rumble at #18 and was the 22nd eliminated. He was thrown out by Roman Reigns after lasting 19 minutes. He eliminated the Miz and Cesaro during the match.
Royal Rumble 2019
With Balor and Rollins official for the Rumble, there are now 7 Superstars set for the men’s Rumble match.
Confirmed for 2019 men’s Royal Rumble match:
R-Truth (#30)
Drew McIntyre
Xavier Woods
Big E
Kofi Kingston
Finn Balor
Seth Rollins
Confirmed for the 2019 Women’s Royal Rumble match:
Carmella (#30)
Ember Moon
Natalya
Bayley
Sasha Banks
Ruby Riott
Liv Morgan
Sarah Logan
Royal Rumble 2019 Lineup – January 27th, 2019
Women’s Royal Rumble match
Men’s Royal Rumble match
Smackdown Women’s Championship
Asuka (c) vs (Winner of Carmella vs Charlotte Flair vs Becky Lynch)
WWE Championship
Daniel Bryan (c) vs AJ Styles
Universal Championship
Brock Lesnar (c) vs Braun Strowman
WWE Cruiserweight Championship Fatal 4-Way
Buddy Murphy (c) vs Kalisto vs Akira Tozawa vs TBD
