— WWE has confirmed that January’s Royal Rumble event will be returning to the traditional 30-man format, down from 40 men last year.
The 25th annual Royal Rumble takes place on Sunday, January 29, 2012 from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri.
— As he alluded to on his Twitter account last week, developmental wrestler Seth Rollins (formerly Tyler Black in ROH) will be touring with the RAW brand all next week. There’s been some talk that he’ll be wrestling against the returning R-Truth, but that’s not confirmed at this time.
Black is seen as one of the top stars at Florida Championship Wrestling along with Dean Ambrose (formerly John Moxley), who started touring with WWE last week
After the 2011 Royal Rumble was dubbed the “biggest Royal Rumble in history” with a record-breaking 40 participants, it appears WWE is reverting back to the traditional 30-man format for the Rumble’s 25th anniversary in January.
St. Louis’ Scottrade Center, which hosts the Rumble, is advertising a “30-man Royal Rumble match” as well as WWE Championship & World Heavyweight title matches for the event.
Tickets for the January 29th pay-per-view go on sale December 10, with prices ranging from $20-300.
— Matt Hardy was ordered to complete his court mandated rehabilitation program as part of his release from jail on Monday. District Court Judge Robert Wilkins lowered the former WWE star’s bond from $1 million to $100,000.
“This was done over the state’s objection,” District Attorney Maureen Krueger told ThePilot.com.
Should Hardy fail to complete rehab, his bond will increase to $250,000.
— Tickets for the 2012 Royal Rumble go on sale December 10, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. via Ticketmaster.com. Prices are set at $300, $90, $75, $45 and $20.
The Royal Rumble takes place January 29 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri.
— The promotional poster for the 2012 Royal Rumble has been released Santino Marella depicting a fortune teller.
The 2012 Royal Rumble takes place January 29 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri.
— Following the success of the Greatest Rivalries – Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart video release, WWE has a second volume highlighting Steve Austin vs. The Rock tentatively scheduled.
— SLAM! Wrestling conducted an interview with former WWE Diva Maryse which will be published this week. A teaser quote: “I’m ready for a new chapter in my life.”
– The new storyline for NXT Rookie Derrick Bateman is that Teddy Long has signed him to a temporary contract for the Smackdown brand.
Johnny Curtis is currently involved in a love triangle angle on NXT with Bateman and Maxine.
— Gregory Iron, a 25-year-old independent wrestler with cerebral palsy, has posted a video online petitioning for a spot in next year’s Royal Rumble.
Iron drew attention in July after CM Punk confronted him at an independent show in suburban Chicago. The WWE Superstar appeared in the ring to tell Iron, “You’re awesome! You overcome more than I ever have just waking up every morning. The fact that you became a pro wrestler, I’m only assuming it’s because it was something you wanted to do. You didn’t let anybody tell you that you couldn’t do it … I saw something special watching you in this ring.”
— Kelly Kelly is advertised to host an “Ugly Sweater Christmas Party” on Friday, December 9, 2011 at Jackson’s in Tampa, Florida. The WWE Diva will participate in a VIP Meet and Greet, which includes a photo on the red carpet and an autograph. Tickets are available here.
– After WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross was fired on Monday Night RAW 2 weeks ago by John Laurinaitis, many (including Jim Ross) were surprised when Ross was booked for the following week’s show from Mexico City.
The decision to bring Jim Ross back to RAW so quickly was made after WWE evaluated the television ratings from the show where Ross was fired. An analysis of the minute-to-minute ratings revealed that ratings plummeted immediately after Ross was fired. Additionally, WWE received a ton of negative feedback online via social media. As for JR’s future on WWE television, the belief is that anything is possible at this point.
– This week’s inside joke is that even though Randy Orton is currently the man scheduled to win the 2012 Royal Rumble, those plans may change as soon as Vince McMahon realizes the Rumble takes place from Orton’s home town of St. Louis. As evidenced by the way Jim Ross was fired when RAW took place from Oklahoma, WWE has a track record of burying people in front of their home town crowds.
– WWE’s stock price has rebounded to the $10/share level this week after recently dipping below. Part of the reason for the rebound is that a few financial publications classified the stock as a “buy” – since the company is still very profitable. $9 The stock pride which was below $9 for a while, is now up to $10.10 afer an article listing WWE as a bargain because of how low the price had gotten and that they are still turning a profit.
– Congratulations go out to Jack Swagger, who is now a father. Swagger and his wife Catalina White, a former Maxim model and developmental wrestler, had a baby boy on 10/17 named Knox Stribling Hager.
– In an interview with WWE.com, Mason Ryan comments on his return to Raw after been sidelined since June due to injury.
“I’ve been training very hard, but being out through injuries is a tough thing for anyone because you obviously want to be in the ring competing,” Ryan said. “Being out of action made me even more focused than I was before to come back and be a bigger, better, stronger, faster and all around better Mason Ryan.”
– A fan asked Randy Orton during his autograph signing on Monday at Slackers CD and Games in Hazelwood, Missouri if the 2012 Royal Rumble would take place in St. Louis, Missouri: he replied yes. Security personnel, however, told Orton that it was merely a “strong rumor.” Here’s the video footage:
WWE issued a survey yesterday regarding their planned WWE Network launch next year to select mailing list subscribers. The survey suggests that WWE’s “classic big 4” pay-per-view events would be included in the channel at no additional cost.
Imagine a 24-hour cable network that was run by The WWE. It featured a mix of WWE-made programs, including new shows, repeats of Raw and SmackDown from USA and Syfy and “classic” or “historical” programs featuring shows from different promotions like classic WWE footage, WCW, ECW, NWA, AWA, etc. from years past.
It would have two new weekly WWE live in-ring shows (wrestling), but not SmackDown or Raw.
It would have a daily live in-studio viewer interactive show similar to SportsCenter.
Additionally, this network would include WWE’s “classic big 4” pay-per-view events including WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Survivor Series and Royal Rumble to the lineup at no additional cost. Rather than having to pay for them, they would now be specials with the same match quality you’re used to seeing on pay-per-view for no additional cost. These 4 events would only be available on The WWE Network.
In addition to The WWE Network, you would receive approximately 30 additional channels including NFL Network, NBA TV, Biography Channel, Fox Business Network and Fuel TV.
How interested would you be in upgrading your service for an additional $7-$12 per month to a tier which would include the WWE Network described above?
— WWE issued a press release touting WrestleMania XXVII as the most attended entertainment event in Georgia Dome history, with 71,617 in attendance.
WWE claims the previous attendance record at the Georgia Dome for an entertainment event was set by The Backstreet Boys, which attracted 65,658 fans on February 19, 2000. WWE’s statement is false as according to a 2009 article on Billboard.com, that particular Backstreet Boys concert drew 73,337, not 65,658.
— Alberto Del Rio’s loss to Edge last night at WrestleMania XXVII marks as the fourth consecutive year that the Royal Rumble winner has failed to win the title at WrestleMania.
Edge, Randy Orton, John Cena and Del Rio have all lost their respective title matches at WrestleMania after winning the Royal Rumble. The last WWE Superstar to win a championship at WrestleMania after winning the Royal Rumble was The Undertaker in 2007.
– John Cena tweeted the following on Sunday afternoon, which seems to imply The Rock will have some sort of involvement on Monday’s RAW:
“CeNation. Just got back from south america. Holy casserole it was magical. I heard a rumor that the rocks camp was pretty peeved at what I said on mon. I think he may have something planned for tomorrow. I can not wait.”
– According to the WWE corporate website, this year’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view is estimated to have drawn 449,000 buys. This is down from 462,000 buys in 2010 and virtually even with 2009’s 450,000 buys.
– WWE legend Randy Savage was spotted during Saturday’s New York Mets vs. Atlanta Braves spring training game in Port St. Lucie, Florida. A reader sent in this screen shot of Savage, who had great seats for the game .. Savage is the one that looks like Santa Clause playing on his cellphone:
— There was some confusion surrounding Alex Riley and his elimination during the Royal Rumble last night because he was not supposed to go out when he did. He was supposed to hang on to the ring ropes when he was thrown over. This explains why the announcers were asking about him after he had been eliminated. They didn’t call his elimination.
— As Kevin Nash was getting up from the ground following his elimination from the Royal Rumble, a referee told him something. He then stared down Big Show as he was exiting the arena. It’s thought that this may have been a backstage audible due to the crowd’s receptive reaction to him and WWE planning something for him going forward.
— The song used during the video promoting Randy Orton’s match against The Miz at the Royal Rumble is “Machine Gun Blues” by Social Distortion.
Here is the card announced thus far for tonight’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Only 34 WWE Superstars have been announced for the 40-Man Royal Rumble Match.
WWE Championship Match
The Miz vs. Randy Orton
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Edge (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler
2-on-1 Handicap Match for the Divas Championship
Natalya (c) vs. Lay-Cool
40-Man Royal Rumble Match
Alberto Del Rio, Big Show, Chris Masters, CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Darren Young, David Hart Smith, David Otunga, Drew McIntyre, Ezekiel Jackson, Heath Slater, Husky Harris, Jack Swagger, John Cena, John Morrison, JTG, Justin Gabriel, Kane, Kofi Kingston, Mark Henry, Mason Ryan, Michael McGillicutty, Primo, Rey Mysterio, R-Truth, Santino Marella, Sheamus, Ted DiBiase, Tyson Kidd, Vladimir Kozlov, Wade Barrett, William Regal, Yoshi Tatsu and Zack Ryder
— Multi-time champion Booker T has arrived to Boston, Massachusetts for tonight’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view. He is expected to participate in tonight’s 40-Man Royal Rumble Match.
— “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan is expected to appear at tonight’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view as he is in town for an autograph signing with fellow former WWE talent Carlito.
— Christian was flown into Boston for tonight’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view. It is presently unclear what his role at the event will be. It should be noted that he isn’t wearing his arm in a sling. He has been sidelined since September due to a torn pectoral muscle.
Booker T and Kevin Nash are scheduled to appear as surprise entrants for tomorrow night’s 40-Man Royal Rumble Match, reports PWInsider.com.
Booker T was expected earlier based on recent talks with organization officials and his scheduled appearance at the New Orleans Comic Con this weekend being canceled. Company sources confirmed this morning he is set for the 40-Man Royal Rumble Match.
WWE sources have also confirmed that Nash is booked for the match and is scheduled to fly into Boston later today. He was in discussions with TNA Wrestling officials as late as yesterday to finalize a contract with the organization, but instead opted to return to World Wrestling Entertainment.
Meanwhile, TNA Wrestling sources have confirmed that discussions with Nash fell through. Both sides had been negotiating on and off with sources indicating at one point that a deal was finalized. An infuriated Nash then accused TNA personnel of leaking the information, which led to new rounds of negotiations. He admitted last week to a Puerto Rican newspaper that he was in talks with TNA regarding a return to the organization. The aforementioned discussions ended within the past 24 to 48 hours.
— Six-time world champion Booker T has canceled his scheduled appearance at this weekend’s New Orleans Comic Con at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Regarding a surprise appearance at Sunday’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view, he was in discussions with World Wrestling Entertainment officials a few weeks ago regarding a potential return.
— This Sunday’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts is sold out. Complementary tickets for the event are hard to come by and scalpers have reportedly unloaded their share.
— The Bellas Twins made numerous media appearances today in Atlanta, Georgia promoting Wrestlemania XXVII.
— Two ‘legends’ are reportedly scheduled for Sunday’s 40-Man Royal Rumble Match. Another wrestler that would be considered a surprise is also set to appear.
— It was disclosed at a WWE-sponsored web conference yesterday that the Diva Search competition would be brought back to company programming. The concept will reportedly be similar to NXT as the contestants would be mentored by WWE Divas. Additionally, it is said that company officials will make a concentrated effort to recruit female talent from the independent wrestling scene.
— Former WWE Champion Shawn Michaels has been nominated for a Shorty.com Award in the sports category, which honors the best producers of short real time content (on Twitter).
— For weekend live events, the Raw tour saw Friday’s show in Trenton, NJ draw 6,500 paying $189,000. Saturday in State College, PA, drew 4,200 paying $120,000. Sunday in Youngstown, OH, drew 5,400 paying $170,000. Monday’s Raw in Detroit drew 9,000. The SmackDown events saw Saturday’s show in Kalamazoo, MI draw 4,400 and $128,000 and Sunday’s show in Hammond, IN drew 3,300 pay $98,000.
* Warning: The following contains a spoiler for Friday’s SmackDown:
At Tuesday’s WWE SmackDown tapings (Spoilers), it was announced that World Heavyweight champion Edge has been banned from using his spear finishing move during his title defense against Dolph Ziggler.
If Edge spears Ziggler, he’ll be automatically disqualified and stripped of the belt.
The ruling came from Vickie Guerrero, who is in charge of SmackDown now that Teddy Long is out of action.
— Michelle McCool and Layla said tonight on Raw that they never got their Divas Championship rematch against Natalya and therefore are using it at Sunday’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view. WWE.com has specified that the match will be a 2-on-1 Handicap Match.
— Former WWE talent Tammy Sytch (a/k/a Sunny) is denying online reports claiming she will be inducted into this year’s WWE Hall of Fame class in Atlanta, Georgia. She will be in the area WrestleMania weekend, but for scheduled appearances for Ring of Honor.
She wrote on her Facebook account: “FOR THE RECORD: (yes, websites may copy this): I HAVE NOT BEEN CONTACTED BY ANYONE IN THE WWE ABOUT ANY UPCOMING APPEARANCES FOR WRESTLEMANIA WEEKEND.. I AM BOOKED TO APPEAR ON THE ROH SHOWS IN ATLANTA, AND THAT IS ALL. Please do ont fill my facebook wall with rumors….thanks.”
— The Raw live event on Feb. 24 has been moved to the Voltaire Paladines Polo Coliseum in Guayaquil, Ecuador. It was originally scheduled to take place at the Movistar Arena in Santiago, Chile.
— WWE creative has discussed reuniting Randy Orton and Edge as a tandem after the Royal Rumble. The duo is scheduled for a dark match at this Tuesday’s SmackDown taping in Cincinnati, Ohio against WWE Champion The Miz and Dolph Ziggler.
Orton and Edge formed an alliance known as Rated-RKO in October 2006 to challenge the team of Triple H and Shawn Michaels. The group captured the World Tag Team Championship in November 2006 and officially disbanded in May 2007, after Edge moved to the SmackDown brand.
— Triple H appeared today on ESPN’s NFL Countdown to talk about Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rogers, who makes a belt motion around his waist during on-field celebrations.
— DirecTV is still advertising the Royal Rumble as a 30-Man Match in their commercial promoting the event. The commercial also has Randy Orton and Edge boasting about winning the match. Both Superstars have not been announced for the battle royal.
— Corre members Wade Barrett, Ezekiel Jackson, Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel have been officially added to the 40-Man Royal Rumble Match. This brings the confirmed count to 25 WWE Superstars, 18 from Raw and 7 from SmackDown.
— The Jan. 20 episode of WWE Superstars on WGN America scored a 0.49 cable rating, with 565,000 viewers. Last week’s show drew a 0.58 cable rating, with 606,000 viewers.
The midnight replay did a 0.18 cable rating with, 174,000 viewers.
— Former WCW Hardcore Champion Crowbar made his Ring of Honor debut at last night’s ROH on HDNet television taping in Philadelphia. He’s also slated to appear at tonight’s show.
— More than one person within WWE feels its only a matter of time before Batista returns to the organization. He’s currently in Thailand filming The Man with the Iron Fist with mixed martial artist Cung Le, his highest profile acting role to date. Russell Crowe and Lucy Liu also star in the movie.
— One WWE source feels the Royal Rumble match expanding from 30 to 40 men is not a good idea.
“When you have 30 guys who are not over and you add ten more guys, it isn’t special,” the source said. “It’s like adding vanilla to vanilla.”
— Today is WWE Diva Maryse’s birthday. She turns 28 years old.
The following 21 WWE Superstars have been announced by WWE.com as competitors in the first-ever 40-Man Royal Rumble Match, which takes place Jan. 30 in Boston.
* Alberto Del Rio
* CM Punk
* Cody Rhodes
* Daniel Bryan
* Darren Young
* David Hart Smith
* David Otunga
* Husky Harris
* John Cena
* John Morrison
* Mark Henry
* Michael McGillicutty
* Primo
* R-Truth
* Rey Mysterio
* Sheamus
* Ted DiBiase
* Tyson Kidd
* William Regal
* Yoshi Tatsu
* Zack Ryder
As previously reported, it’s been announced that the 2011 Royal Rumble match will feature 40 competitors instead of the usual 30.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross posted the following on Twitter @JRsBBQ regarding the news:
“If having 40 men in the Royal Rumble match helps sell ppvs, then its a really good idea. 40 sounds good to me. Makes the main event bigger.”
“Watch what I say, the 40 man royal rumble match will be over analyzed by many. Gives 10 more paydays & adds ‘biggest ever’ mkt’ing hook”.
After checking with a WWE source, it appears Ross’ idea of selling more pay-per-views is exactly what WWE is going for by adding 10 more men to the match. With 40 men involved in the Rumble, expect the interval between each man entering the match to be reduced from 2 minutes to 60-90 seconds.
Following Friday’s WWE SmackDown, here’s the updated card for WWE’s Royal Rumble 2011 pay-per-view:
40-Man Royal Rumble Match Winner gets a title shot at WrestleMania 27
WWE Championship Match
The Miz defends Randy Orton
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Edge defends against Dolph Ziggler
Be here on Sunday, January 30th for our ROYAL RUMBLE LIVE COVERAGE! Throughout the entire show, we’ll be posting up-to-the-minute live results and analysis of what’s going on .. We’ll see you here on the 30th.
PREDICTIONS: We want to know what YOU think is going to happen at the Royal Rumble. Who will win the Rumble? Who SHOULD win the Rumble? Will we see any title changes? COMMENT below and make your predictions.