Posts Tagged ‘Royal Rumble’

Match Originally Planned For The Rumble, Superstars Preview

— The WWE Championship Match for the Royal Rumble was originally planned to be a Triple Threat Match featuring John Morrison, Randy Orton and The Miz. There was also talk of adding Sheamus to the bout, making it a Fatal 4-Way Match. But as seen Monday, it will be a rematch from TLC featuring Orton vs. The Miz.

— WWE.com is advertising United States Champion Daniel Bryan and Mark Henry vs. Ted DiBiase and Tyson Kidd for tonight’s episode of WWE Superstars on WGN America. Other matches scheduled to take place include JTG vs. Tyler Reks, Chris Masters vs. Curt Hawkins, and Yoshi Tatsu vs. Zack Ryder.

— The total amount of wrestling action on this week’s episode of NXT was 13 minutes and 3 seconds.

source: www.f4wonline.com

Title Match Set For Royal Rumble, Barrett Booted From Nexus

Randy Orton beat King Sheamus and Wade Barrett in a Steel Cage Match tonight on Raw to become the No. 1 Contender to the WWE Championship. He will face The Miz at the Royal Rumble on January 30.

Due to Barrett’s loss in the match, he has been banished from The Nexus and CM Punk is officially the leader of the group. Earlier in the evening, Punk offered the Englishman his opportunity to compete in the Steel Cage Match. Were Barrett to win, he would remain leader of The Nexus. However, were he to lose, he would be banished from the group forever.

JR Blog: Royal Rumble, TNA vs. WWE, Booker T, Younger Stars

WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here are some highlights of what JR said about:

Who Will Win The Royal Rumble: “My early pick to win the 2011 Royal Rumble would have to be John Cena.”

WWE’s Future & Developing New Stars: “The long term future of WWE appears to be bright to me. The company has a strong infrastructure manned by some intelligent, hard working professionals and have continued to take positive steps in putting their footprint around the Globe.  As in any other entertainment or sports entity for that matter, the development of the next wave of superstars who can transcend the biz is imperative. WWE is an attraction oriented business and when new, main event level, attractions evolve and become established then ‘business will pick up’ without question.”

Whether TNA Ever Seriously Compete WWE: Some fans of TNA have asked me when I predict the time line that TNA will over take WWE in the marketplace. Without coming off as a tool but simply being totally realistic, the answer is never. But wait, there’s more….does it matter? I would suggest to you that TNA has all they can say grace over making their brand stronger and are likely, if they are smart, not even trying to compete w/ WWE but only with trying to make themselves better. WWE is the NFL and no other football league will ever touch the NFL. Period. End of story. That certainly doesn’t mean that another league can’t make money and be viable in their world. I’ll never wish TNA or any other company ill will but IMO this is the reality of the matter and the answer to a question we seemingly get all the time. I can assure you that I want our on line biz to grow but I don’t fixate on other similar sites but instead try to think of ways to make our site better.”

Booker T’s Potential As An Announcer: “I do think that Booker T could be an effective broadcaster on  a wrestling TV show if paired with the right partner and given some time to establish his body of work and timing with his partner. I could also see Booker being a great manager, if the manager role, which would be new in today’s world, was brought back. “

Royal Rumble News: Rumored Title Matches & Rumble Winner

Following John Morrison’s win over Sheamus in the #1 Contender’s match at Sunday’s Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view, the main event of January’s Royal Rumble event is expected to be Morrison challenging The Miz for the WWE Championship.

Many within WWE saw his match against Sheamus at TLC as a star-making breakout performance. Some compared it to the TLC match that put the Hardy Boyz, Edge and Christian “on the map” as top-tier performers. Despite his impressive performance, it really does come down to how WWE management pushes him and it’s not a sure thing that he will be treated as a main eventer in the long term.

On Tuesday’s special live edition of SmackDown, we saw a continuation of the Edge vs. Kane feud, so it appears that will be the likely World Heavyweight title match at the Rumble.

WWE has yet to announce anything for the Rumble on January 30th. However, they have added a basic preview for the 30-Man Royal Rumble match on the company website.

Royal Rumble Poster, WWE Possibly Ending Spinner Belt

— WWE officials have discussed ceasing the “Spinner” belt as a result of The Miz becoming champion. A revamped WWE Championship has been ready since late last year.

— The first promotional poster for the 2011 Royal Rumble has surfaced online and it features a slew of WWE Superstars including Alberto Del Rio, The Miz and John Cena. The 24th annual Royal Rumble event takes place on Jan. 30, 2011 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Here’s the poster:

goodbye

Game Developer Talks About SmackDown vs. RAW 2011

BUY IT HERE: SmackDown vs. RAW 2010 (Amazon.com)ir?t=se0e6 20&l=ur2&o=1

The hosts of the Monday Night Mayhem Internet radio show sent in the following recap with THQ’s Bryan Williams, a developer of the new Smackdown vs. RAW 2010 video game:

THQ’s Bryan Williams Discusses The Release Of WWE’s SmackDown vs. RAW 2011, The Changes & Improvements From Last Year’s Game (Highlighted By The All-New “WWE Universe” & “Road to WrestleMania” Modes), The Feedback Received From WWE Superstars Thus Far, Which Match Was Focused On The Most (From A Game Designer’s Perspective), Taking The Royal Rumble Online For the First Time Ever, & Which Potential Additions Could Be Made As Part Of The Forthcoming DLC Release Later This Fall

THQ’s Bryan Williams was a featured guest on this week’s live edition (10/25/10) of the award-winning Monday Night Mayhem. You can feel the “MNM Fall Tour ’10” every Monday night (at 7PM ET/6PM CT).

  • Listen Here: THQ’s Bryan Williams/Monday Night Mayhem Interview

Interview highlights courtesy of The Mayhem’s official correspondent, Paterson from New Jersey:

The changes & improvements that THQ made from last year’s game (SmackDown vs. RAW 2010) to this year’s game (SmackDown vs. RAW 2011) & why the Hell in a Cell Match, from a game designer’s perspective, was focused on the most:

“Where do you start? We’ve added so much new content to 2011, which is a major feat, because SmackDown vs. RAW 2010 had a wealth of content as well. We added dynamic physics into the game for the first time and added it to all the objects in the game: tables, chairs, & all the objects that reside under the wrestling ring. It makes all the matches, like TLC or Chairs Match, or any match involving weapons that much more lifelike & representative of what you see on Pay-Per-View or weekly television. We also revamped the Hell in the Cell Match. Fans have been asking us for years to update that experience and for good reason. It was the match that needed the most attention. We enlarged the cell and made it more of the scope of the structure.”

Taking the Royal Rumble Match online for the first time ever:

“We redid the Royal Rumble match in 2010, and this year we brought it online. You could have up to 12 human players in the match, and I gotta tell you, it’s fun as hell. Even if you get eliminated, you’ll still be able to control a Superstar coming in from the 30, so you never have that feeling like you’re just watching the match and waiting to play.”

The feedback THQ has received from SmackDown vs. RAW 2011 thus far from the WWE superstars & which ones in particular will go as far to play the game as themselves:

“Yes, they play as themselves. That’s why they get so upset when their attributes are on the lower side of things. There’s a couple of guys that I know for a fact play the game, Kofi Kingston plays the game a bit, Dolph Ziggler plays the game, Evan Bourne plays it. Those are the guys I know for a fact plays the game, and Kofi is pretty good at it.”

Which potential additions could be made as part of the DLC (downloadable content) for SmackDown vs. RAW 2011, in addition to what’s being released later this fall & which one superstar he would love to see sooner vs. later into the game itself:

“I can’t really say. There has been some talks about maybe doing another one, but a decision hasn’t been made one way or another. I think what we’re gonna do is take a wait & see approach and see how the first couple of packs do, and if there’s success, and we get a lot of people downloading the DLC’s, I think that will definitely help & urge us to do a fourth pack. I would like to do another so we could get Daniel Bryan in the game, but all these decisions are not mine to make. I could only voice my decisions and hope & pray.”

Much more is included in Bryan’s highly-anticipated Mayhem return, including his thoughts on the game’s all-new “WWE Universe” mode, what fans can expect in this year’s “Road to WrestleMania” mode, the creation upgrades from SmackDown vs. RAW 2010, plus much more! Follow The Mayhem right now on Twitter (at www.Twitter.com/FeelTheMayhem), as one lucky Mayhem follower/listener will score a copy of the game for the Nintendo Wii this coming weekend! Eight more giveaway copies are coming your way throughout the rest of the “MNM Fall Tour ’10” leading through our “2010: Year In Review” special on December 27th. Log on to the official website of SmackDown vs. RAW 2011 (located at community.smackdownvsraw.com), and be sure to follow the “SD vs. RAW” franchise on Facebook & on Twitter right now (located respectively at www.Facebook.com/WWEGames & www.Twitter.com/WWEGames).

Royal Rumble Buyrate, Playboy Model Gone From WWE?

— According to WWE’s Q1 2010 performance report (see PDF file here), the 2010 Royal Rumble garnered approximately 462,000 pay-per-view buys. This figure is up from last year’s show, which drew 450,000 buys.

— The word going around Florida Championship Wrestling is that Jillian Beyor has already parted ways with WWE. Beyor, who was named Playboy‘s 2008 Model of the Year and was one of ten finalists for Playboy‘s 2009 Model of the Year, signed on as a developmental talent with WWE this past November.

Check Out: WWE Signs Playboy 2008 Model of the Year Jillian Beyor (PICTURES)

— Ata Maivia, mother of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, attended this past Thursday night’s Florida Championship Wrestling television taping in Tampa.

(source: PWInsider.com)

Original Plans For The Rumble Ending, Vince Talks WM27

(Partial source: F4wonline.com)

– At Monday’s WrestleMania 27 press conference , Vince McMahon talked about how the city of Atlanta has a rich history of pro wrestling but never took a jabs at Ted Turner or WCW. Vince later appeared on a local radio station and was asked by the host if it gave him satisfaction coming to Atlanta because of his rivalry with Turner. Vince said that it hadn’t even crossed his mind. (Of course not, ’cause Vince isn’t the kind of guy to hold a grudge!)

– The original ending for the 30-man Royal Rumble match was for Edge to eliminate Chris Jericho for the win. WWE wound up using Cena as the final elimination instead of Jericho.

– The decision to add MVP vs. The Miz United States title match to the Royal Rumble PPV was made on Sunday afternoon.

– This year’s Royal Rumble match was the third shortest Rumble match ever (just 49 minutes long.) The 1988 and 1995 Rumbles are the other two shortest.

Backstage Royal Rumble News: What You Didn’t See On PPV

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

– WWE had the backstage area on lockdown last night to protect the surprise return of Edge from leaking out. Even invited guests who were originally invited backstage were told it was “staff only” last night. 

– Several DirecTV subscribers had technical problems during last night’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view.

– The phrase “Royal Rumble” was one of the top searched phrases on Yahoo.com and was one of the trending topics on Twitter last night.

– As previously reported, Gail Kim, Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres & the Bella Twins defeated Jillian Hall, Katie Lee, Natalya, Maryse & Alicia Fox in a dark match that took place prior to the Rumble went live on PPV. The crowd was said to be dead for this match.

– After the Royal Rumble PPV went off the air, Edge was in the ring for about another ten minutes with loud “Welcome back” chants coming from the crowd.

(Partial Source: PWInsider.com)

** What Did YOU Think of the Royal Rumble? COMMENT Here

Royal Rumble List Of Entrants & Eliminations, Most Elimations

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

The 2010 Royal Rumble is in the books and the surprise entrant, Edge, is our winner.

Here’s this year’s Royal Rumble by the numbers:

Order of Entry

1: Dolph Ziggler
2: Evan Bourne
3: C.M. Punk
4: JTG
5: Great Khali
6: Beth Phoenix
7: Zack Ryder
8: Triple H
9: Drew McIntyre
10: Ted DiBiase
11: John Morrison
12: Kane
13: Cody Rhodes
14: MVP
15: Carlito
16: The Miz
17: Matt Hardy
18: Shawn Michaels
19: John Cena
20: Shelton Benjamin
21: Yoshi Tatsu
22: Big Show
23: Mark Henry
24: Chris Masters
25: R-Truth
26: Jack Swagger
27: Kofi Kingston
28: Chris Jericho
29: Edge
30: Batista

Order of Elimination:

1: Bourne by Punk
2: Ziggler by Punk
3: JTG by Punk
4: Khali by by Phoenix
5: Phoenix via Punk
6: Ryder by Punk
7: Punk by Hunter
8: Miz by MVP
9: MVP eliminated himself when he took out Miz
10: Matt Hardy by Kane
11: Kane by Hunter
12: Carlito by HBK
13: Rhodes by HBK
14: DiBiase by HBK
15: Morrison by HBK
16: McIntyre by HBK and HHH
17: Hunter by HBK
18: Benjamin by Cena
19: Yoshi by Cena
20: Masters by Big Show
21: Henry by R-Truth
22: Show by R-Truth
23: Swagger via Kingston
24: Truth by Kingston
25: Kingston by Cena
26: Jericho by Edge
27: HBK by Batista
28: Batista by Cena
29: Cena by Edge

Most Eliminations: Shawn Michaels (6)

WWE Royal Rumble 2010 Results: 1/30/10

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

Gail Kim, Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres & the Bella Twins b.d Jillian Hall, Katie Lee, Natalya, Maryse & Alicia Fox in a dark match prior to the start of tonight’s pay-per-view.

WWE Royal Rumble 2010 Results
Report by Sean Hopkins

We get the usual video package, this time highlighting the Rumble match and some of the other feuds heading into tonight.

Lots of pyro and Michael Cole welcomes us to the 23rd annual Royal Rumble.

The first match is announced to be the ECW Championship. Christian’s music hits and he makes his way to the ring to a nice pop.

ECW Championship Match: Christian (c) vs. Ezekiel Jackson

They’re doing the three man announce team tonight with Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler and Matt Striker. ECW Championship match opening is no surprise as Christian should get this crowd going against Ezekiel Jackson.

Ezekiel is out second with Regal in tow. Jackson gets next to nothing in the way of a reaction from the crowd.

Both men lock up and Christian is quickly shoved away by Jackson. Christian ducks another lock up attempt, but Jackson is quick to regain the advantage with a belly to back slam. Christian is up and he slaps Jackson across the face. Jackson chases Christian to the outside, but back in the ring, Jackson is caught by surprise with a couple of quick fists, a dropkick, and a springboard plancha from Christian. Christian rolls Jakcson back into the ring, ducks a couple of clotheslines and hits another slap, but Jackson responds with a slam.

Jackson hits Christian with a couple of big blows to the back, and he sends Christian into the corner twice, but Christian comes out and even attempts the killswitch. Jackson fights it off and tries for a gorilla press but Christian fights out, knocks Jackson into the ropes, and stands on his back, choking him. Christian slaps Jackson a third time, but when he goes to the second rope, Jackson pulls his feet out from under him and sends him to the outside. Regal tries to get involved, but the ref sees it and ejects him from the ringside area.

Jackson slams Christian into the steel ring steps and rolls him back into the ring. Jackson goes for the pin but Christian kicks out at two. Jackson wrenches away at Christian’s neck. Jackson picks him up, from a seated position and choke slams him. Jackson hits a delayed vertical suplex, but again it’s only good for two. Jackson bends Christian around the ropes and clubs away at his chest before bringing him back into the ring and working over Christian’s back. Christian comes up with a springboard sunset flip out of nowhere, but Jackson plucks up Christian and plants him with a double hand choke slam. Jackson locks in a camel clutch but Christian fights out.

Christian slaps Jackson three times, but Jackson comes back with a clothesline to the back of the head, that’s good for a two count. Jackson locks in a weird modified full nelson, but Christian is able to get to his feet. Jackson sits Christian on the top rope and he goes for a superplex, but Christian fights out of it, and kicks Jackson in the face, following up with a flying shoulder block.

Christian side steps a charging Jackson, who connects with the turnbuckle. Christian connects with a missile dropkick and he tries for the killswitch, but Jackson fights out again. Christian hits a reverse DDT, and he goes to the top, trying for a splash, but Jackson moves. Jackson connects with a huge lariat, but Christian won’t stay down. Christian tries for the killswitch again, but Jackson counters into a backbreaker, but it’s still only good enough for two. Christian dodges a charging Jackson again, and hits a kick to the face. Christian hits a tornado DDT, but Jackson is still able to kick out.

Christian goes for the killswitch yet again, but Jackson counters out. Christian locks in a sleeper, but Jackson muscles him into powerslam position and slams him into the corner twice, but going for the third, Christian connects with the killswitch out of nowhere. Christian rolls over Jackson, and this one is over.

Winner and STILL ECW Champion: Christian

Teddy Long complements Tiffany on the last match and Cryme Tyme interrupts. Shad says there’s two of them, but there’s only one in the Rumble, and that’s not right. They try to get Teddy to give them two spots so they can both wrestle. Long says he doesn’t think he can do it. Shad says that they’ve coerced someone to give them their spot. Great Khali comes in. JTG says is Khali gives them their spot, he can kiss Tiffany. Singh comes in from the side and says no dice, because apparently they’re keeping it real. Singh makes a joke about ‘Family Matters’ and Khali says something. Long calls Cryme Tyme fools talking about their pants on the ground and everyone starts singing that stupid song. Miz comes in and looks disgusted. He says you might as well be asking Who Let the Dogs Out, but what people will be talking about is Miz winning his first Rumble. Long says he makes the rules, so not only will he wrestle in the Rumble, he’ll be defending his title against MVP, and that match is next. Khali starts singing Who Let the Dogs out.

Randy Orton is shown backstage. Cody Rhodes comes in and says the Legacy has done too much and come too far to let it all slip away. He and Ted believe that he’ll beat Sheamus, and he’ll have his back. Orton thanks him. Rhodes says he wishes he could say the same thing for Dibiase. Rhodes says he hasn’t been the same since his movie came out, and all he’s talking about is winning the Rumble and challenging Orton for the title at WrestleMania. Rhodes says maybe tonight he’ll get it out of his system, but that’s not why he’s here. Rhodes says ‘you can count on me’, and he walks off. Orton looks conflicted.

It was just announced that The Miz will defend the WWE United States Championship at tonight’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view against MVP.

United States Championship Match: The Miz (c) vs. MVP

Miz is out first to a bit of an apathetic reaction from the crowd. MVP makes his way out next to a much warmer reaction.

Miz tries to hide behind the ref at the beginning of the match, but he quickly comes out with a couple of kicks. MVP is quick to come back though with a flying lariat that’s good for a near fall. MVP hits a suplex and floats over into a cover for a one. MVP sends MIz into the corner, but when he follows in he eats a boot. MVP retaliates with a back body drop. Miz tries to leave the ring, but MVP hits a belly to back suplex instead. Miz bails to the floor, but MVP follows him out, hits him, and body slams him into the barricade. MVP rolls Miz back into the ring, but he ends up being kicked out to the apron, and Miz knocks him off into the announce table.

Miz sends MVP back into the ring and he works over MVP with a couple of stomps and a leg drop. Miz backs MVP up into the corner and drives his shoulder into MVP’s midsection before just pounding him down. Miz hits his corner clothesline, and he goes to the top rope, where he hits a double ax handle that’s good for a near fall. Miz locks in a rear chin lock and he takes MVP down to the mat.

MVP eventually fights back up to his feet and out of the submission, and hits Miz with a couple of right hands before launching him in the air and down to the mat. MVP drives Miz’s face into his knee and he hits the ballin’ elbow. MVP tries for the playmaker, but Miz fights it off, only to walk into a Yakuza kick that’s good for a two count. Miz rolls out to the apron and when MVP follows, he gets hung up on the top rope. Miz tries to catch MVP off guard, but MVP retaliates with a pounce.

MVP goes for the Playmaker’s boot but Miz ducks, Miz goes for the SCF, but MVP fights out. MVP catches Miz with a series of roll ups, but Miz continually kicks out. Miz locks in a small package out of nowhere, and he gets the three count.

Winner and STILL US Champion: The Miz

After the match, Miz jaws at MVP, so MVP retaliates with the Playmaker before walking off.

Big Show is shown walking backstage, he walks into Jericho but tries to walk right by. Jericho stops him. Show says Jericho is jealous because he said Miz and him had more chemistry that JeriShow, and that Miz might be a better tag team partner. Jericho says he’s sorry for Big Show, Miz is pretentious and ego-centric, and Show has to see it. Show says he sees it, just like he saw Jericho do it. Jericho says he and Show were the greatest tag team of this generation. He says he can feel the chemistry between he and Show, and if it comes down to he Miz and Show, he knows where Show’s loyalty lies. Show says he throw both of them out. R-Truth comes in and says if Show doesn’t he will. Jericho says he’ll have to get through Big Show first, but Big Show is nowhere to be found.

Orton is shown backstage again, this time he runs into Dibiase who says good luck, and whatever he needs, he’s there. Orton asks where Cody is. Ted says he can’t talk to Cody because he keeps talking about winning the Rumble and taking on Sheamus, and that he’s counting Orton out. Dibiase says he’s there to help. Orton says he’s about to go out and win his title back, and he doesn’t need any help from either member of Legacy.

WWE Championship Match: Sheamus (c) vs. Randy Orton

Sheamus is out to the ring first to a bit of heat from the crowd. We get a little bit of a re-cap, but not the usual hype video that’s brought out for most title matches. Orton is out second to a surprisingly warm reception, but I guess someone has to play the babyface here (even if it is unwillingly).

We get formal ring introductions for this one, so after Orton’s glacially slow entrance, it’s still going to be a bit.

Both men stare each other down at the outset of the match. Sheamus pumps himself up, to the crowds disapproval, this crowd is solidly behind Orton. Orton locks in a headlock, but Sheamus is quick to fight out, but Orton connects with a beautiful dropkick. Orton and Sheamus stare each other down again. Another lock up and Sheamus backs Orton into the ropes, but Orton turns it around. Sheamus shoves Orton, but Orton comes back with a European uppercut, it’s not enough though as Sheamus comes back and works on Orton’s arm.

Orton goes to the outside and Sheamus follows, slamming Orton into the barricade and slamming Orton’s arm into the ring steps. Sheamus sends Orton back into the ring, and continues to work over Orton’s arm, wrenching away. Sheamus picks Orton up into powerslam position, but Orton works out of it and goes for a chop block. Orton immediately goes to work on Sheamus’ knee, stomping away at the leg.

Orton wrenches away at Sheamus’ leg and ankle, making Sheamus squirm. Sheamus tries to kick him off, but Randy just wrenches harder. Sheamus kicks again and this time it’s enough to stop Orton. Sheamus sends Orton shoulder first into the ring post, and then does it again.

Sheamus buries his shoulder in Orton’s midsection twice, but when he goes for a third, Orton gets his knee up. Orton kicks Sheamus in the knee, and goes right back to work, stomping at Sheamus’ wrist. Orton drags Sheamus’ legs to the apron, and slams them down, and then into the ring post. Orton clubs at Sheamus’ chest and Sheamus falls to the floor.”

Orton brings Sheamus back into the ring, and he kicks at Sheamus’ midsection. Sheamus fights back though, and hits a single arm DDT out of nowhere that’s good for a near fall. Sheamus locks in an arm bar and digs his knee into Orton’s ear.

Orton fights out of the submission, getting to his feet and punching Sheamus’ kidney, but Sheamus switches it up, locking Orton’s wrist behind his head. Orton fights out, and he and Sheamus trade punches, with Orton getting yays, and Sheamus getting boos. Sheamus hits a uranage backbreaker on Orton, but it’s not enough for a three count.

Sheamus picks Orton up and he goes for his finisher, but Orton fights out, kicks Sheamus in the knee and sends him to the outside.

Sheamus makes it to the apron at 7, but Orton quickly goes for, and hits his rope assisted DDT. Orton goes for the pin but Sheamus is able to grab the rope and force the ref to stop the count. Orton gets in position for the punt, but Sheamus rolls to the outside to prevent it. Orton gives chase, and he clubs Sheamus with a big European uppercut, but Sheamus sends him into the ring post twice. Sheamus rolls Orton back into the ring, but Cody Rhodes jumps the security rail out of nowhere and he hits Sheamus. Orton connects with the RKO and he goes for the pin, but the ref calls for the bell on account of DQ.

Winner and STILL WWE Champion BY DQ: Sheamus

Rhodes makes his way into the ring to apologize to Orton and the crowd starts to chant ‘RKO’. Rhodes apologizes profusely, but Orton responds with a right hand. Orton slams Rhodes head into the canvas, and Dibiase is out to break it up. Dibiase holds Orton off, but all it gets him is a right hand of his own. Orton tells Rhodes he’s done and he stomps away at him. Sheamus is back on his feet, but Orton is occupied with Legacy, so when he turns around he walks straight into a huge boot from Sheamus.

Sheamus makes his way to the back, Legacy slink away, and Orton is left laid out.

WWE Women’s Championship Match: Michelle McCool (c) vs. Mickie James

Michelle McCool is out to the ring first, without Layla, but she doesn’t get much of a reaction. I don’t know if this crowd is just waiting for the Rumble, or what, but they’re just dead tonight.

McCool gets on the mic, and she says she’s about to give the people what they want to see, her. Her defend her title of course, but apparently Mickie James is nowhere to be seen, because if she was near the arena, no one would be able to miss her. McCool asks the fans if they’ve seen her, then asks if she’s at the hot dog stand again. McCool says it looks like James forfeits, and that’s such a shame because Layla has been making a cake, and they would have shared with her. Layla comes out in the same pig costume from Smackdown. Mickie’s music hits and she charges to the ring. Mickie takes out Layle right off the bat, slammer her head into the ground and sending her into the barricade. James makes her way into the ring, and we’re ready to start.

Mickie hits her DDT, and pins McCool, and this one’s over.

Winner and NEW WWE Women’s Champion: Mickie James


James lays out Layla on top of McCool and the rest of the divas come out with a big cake. James slams the cake into McCool and Layla’s faces and all the divas celebrate.

Rey Mysterio is shown backstage getting ready, this leads us right into the video package hyping the World Heavyweight Championship match.

World Heavyweight Championship Match: Undertaker (c) vs. Rey Mysterio

Rey Mysterio is the first man to the ring, and he gets a warm reception from this crowd, but still not quite as big a pop as I expected.

Gong, big pop, and The Undertaker makes his way to the ring to an even bigger pop from the crowd.

We get formal ring introductions, and this one is ready to go.

Mysterio tries to use his quickness early on, kicking at Taker’s leg, and getting in some quick strikes, but Taker grabs Mysterio by the throat, and simply throws him over the top rope and to the floor.

On his way back into the ring, Mysterio catches Taker with a quick shoulder and some more quick striker, but when he goes for a springboard move, Taker simply punches him in the face and Mysterio crashes to the floor. Taker follows him out and sets him up on the apron, clubbing away at his chest. Taker goes for the leg drop, Mysterio moves but Taker lands on his feet and clubs Mysterio. Taker sets Mysterio up on the bottom rope and hits the leg drop instead.”

Taker goes for a chokeslam, but Mysterio turns it into a hurricarana and he tries for a 619 but Taker catches him. Taker tries for the tombstone, but Rey fights out of it. Mysterio goes for a springboard cross body, but he ends up eating Taker’s boot. Mysterio rolls to the floor and Taker follows.

Taker catches Mysterio with a big blow, another, and a third. Taker breaks the count, and he tries for a big boot, but Mysterio ducks and Taker ends up hung up on the ring post. Mysterio heads back into the ring and connects with a baseball slide to Taker’s leg while it’s still hung up. Taker falls to the floor, and when he gets to his feet, Rey tries for a hurricarana. Taker catches him and tries for the Last Ride, but Mysterio climbs up on the apron and hits an asai moonsault to take down Taker.

Taker gets to his feet and catches Mysterio by the throat before slamming him back into the barricade. Back in the ring Taker goes for the cover but Mysterio is able to kick out. Taker goes to work on Mysterio’s arm, hoisting him up in the air, and slamming him down across the top rope. Taker chokes Mysterio, breaking at a 3 count, and Mysterio crawls to the corner. Taker starts to work over Mysterio with measured blows in the corner.

Taker connects with a side slam, but Mysterio is still able to kick out at two. Mysterio goes to work with a couple of quick kicks, but another right hand puts him right back down on the canvas. Mysterio catches Taker with a jawbreaker, and a low dropkick to the face. Mysterio hits a springboard leg drop, and goes for the cover, but Taker kicks out at two. Taker makes his way to his feet and catches Mysterio with a huge lariat. Taker is bleeding from the nose and mouth pretty bad. Taker goes for the Last Ride, but Mysterio fights out and Taker ends up in the ropes. Mysterio connects with a 619 and a springboard dropkick to the back. Mysterio hits another 619, but when he goes for the springboard senton, Taker catches him and hits a huge stalling Last Ride. He pins Mysterio, and this one is in the books.

Winner and STILL World Heavyweight Champion: The Undertaker

Backstage, HBK is shown watching a monitor. Kane comes in and says his obsession with his brother is unhealthy. Kane says whatever vision Michaels has in his head, in the end, there is no light, only darkness. Hunter enters the dressing room and says he figures that wasn’t a pep talk. Hunter wishes Shawn good luck. Michaels says sorry about last week. HBK says he doesn’t have any right to step on Hunter’s dream of winning tonight and going to WrestleMania. Hunter and Shawn shake hands. Shawn says he and the Undertaker is meant to be though. Hunter says he knows it is, that’s why he knows Michaels will find another way.

We get the same video running down Royal Rumble statistics that they’ve been playing for a while now, though this time it’s updated to include Santino’s new record from last year’s Rumble.

ROYAL RUMBLE MATCH

#1: Dolph Ziggler
#2: Evan Bourne

Here we go! The bell rings and we’re ready to start. Ziggler jaws at Bourne and they both eye the WrestleMania sign. Bourne catches Ziggle with a coulpe of kicks and a hurricarana before connecting with a heel kick to Ziggler’s jaw. Ziggler almost knocks Bourne out with a dropkick, but Bourne fights him off and stays in the ring. Bourne launches himself up off of Ziggler and connects with the double knees to Ziggler’s chest. Bourne knocks Ziggler to the apron, but he makes it back into the ring. Ziggler connects with the Zig Zag out of nowhere, and he throws Bourne to the apron, but Bourne kicks Ziggler and comes back in the ring with a Shooting Star Press, the buzzer rings:

#3: CM Punk

Punk goes after both Bourne and Ziggler and he immediately eliminates both. Punk grabs the mic and thanks the crowd for joining him for the most historic moment the Straight Edge Society has seen. 29 other men will either be eliminated or saved.

#4 JTG

JTG goes right to work on CM Punk, but when he charges Punk in the corner, he finds himself eliminated. Punk gets right back on the mic and says not everyone can win the Rumble, just like not everyone can be saved. Not everyone has his dedication. And tonight he’ll be the first straight edge Rumble winner. The clock counts down again and this time it’s the Great Khali.”

#5 Great Khali

Punk tries to save Khali, telling him he can make him greater. Punk says he can see the pain in Khali’s eyes and he needs to be saved. He asks Khali to raise his right hand and accept straight edge into his life, but Khali hits a chop and locks in the vice. The clock counts down again and the next entrant is Beth Phoenix.

#6: Beth Phoenix

Khali immediately picks up Beth and puts her over the rope and directs her to the back. Beth kisses Khali and drags him over the top rope, while remaining on the apron. She turns around and goes right to work on Punk, trying to eliminate him. Punk connects with the G2S on Phoenix.

#7: Zach Ryder

CM Punk eliminates Beth Phoenix. CM Punk grabs the mic, tells Zach Ryder he has potential and tells him he can join his movement before attacking him and throwing him out of the ring. Punk grabs the mic again and says he’s better than everyone.

#8: Triple H

Hunter makes his way to the ring slowly, and Punk hypes himself up. Punk and Hunter stare each other down, and Punk tries for a right, but Hunter fights him off. Hunter connects with a knee and puts Punk back into the corner, pounding on him. Punk connects with a high knee, but Hunter fights off the bull dog and hits a spinebuster.

#9: Drew McIntire

Hunter fights off McIntyre as soon as he gets in the ring with a high knee. Hunter tries for the pedigree on Punk, but Punk fights out. Punk tries for the G2s, but Hunter fights out and sends him out of the ring.

#10 Ted DiBiase

Dibiase is immediately taken down by Hunter, but he retaliates with a scoop slam. McIntyre and Dibiase take turns stomping on Hunter. McIntyre and Dibiase double team Hunter for a bit as the clock counts down.

#11: John Morrison

Morrison immediately goes to work on Dibiase and sets his sights on McIntyre. Morrison connects with a crazy DDT on McIntyre, but he’s attacked from behind by Dibiase. Dibiase tries for the Dream Steet, but Morrison fights it off and hits a big kick. Morrison connects with Starship pain on McIntyre.

#12: Kane

Kane comes into the ring with a top rope clothesline to Hunter. Kane fights off everyone in the match, and turns his attention to Dibiase, hitting a big side slam. Kane hits a double chokeslam on McIntyre and Morrison and a big boot to Hunter. Kane tries to eliminate Dibiase, but Hunter comes in from the side to work on Kane, he gets a chokeslam for his efforts.<br><br>The next entrant is Cody Rhodes.

#13: Cody Rhodes

Rhodes immediately saves Dibiase from elimination by Kane and Legacy go to work as a team on Kane. Rhodes attacks Hunter and McIntyre, before he sends Morrison to the apron. Morrison comes back in with a springboard, but he eats a dropkick from Rhodes. Rhodes and Dibiase try to eliminate Kane, but Hunter goes to work on Rhodes. Hunter tries to eliminate Rhodes, but Cody hangs on.

#14: MVP

MVP is immediately taken out from behind by the Miz who hits him with the US Title. Morrison connects with a springboard kick to McIntyre’s face. Legacy try to eliminate Triple H, but Kane goes after Legacy, saving Hunter.

#15: Carlito

Carlito comes in as a house of fire, even fighting off a double team attempt from Legacy. Carlito and Kane trade blows, with Carlito going after Kane’s knee. Carlito even gets in a backstabber on Hunter, following up with another to McIntyre, the Dibiase.

#16: The Miz

Miz hits the SCF right off the bat, but MVP is right out and he goes after Miz, both men tumble over the top rope. Both Hunter and McIntyre look to be in trouble, but Kane saves Hunter and McIntyre is able to save himself. Hunter stomps away at Carlito.

#17: Matt Hardy

Hardy comes in and goes to work, but when he goes up top, he’s eliminated by Kane, who just pushes him off. Kane is then eliminated by Hunter. Hunter hits a couple of spinebusters and he goes for the pedigree on Rhodes, but McIntyre connects with a chop block to stop him.

#18: Shawn Michaels

Carlito is eliminated and so are Rhodes and Dibiase, all at the hands of HBK. Michaels chops away at McIntyre and connects with a flying forearm. Michaels ducks a kick from Morrison and tosses him out, adding another man to his elimination tally. Morrison goes to work on HBK, but he’s left alone in the ring with DX, who team up and take him over the top rope with adouble clothesline and Hunter looks like he hurt his knee.

#19: John Cena

Cena hits a double shoulderblock right off the bat. Cena hits a double five knuckle shuffle. Cena goes for the AA on HBK to send him to the outside, but Hunter makes his way up and connects with a pedigree on Cena.

Hunter is up, but he eats Sweet Chin Music and goes over the top!

#20: Shelton Benjamin

Benjamin goes right to work on both HBK and John Cena, connecting with Pay Dirt on HBK. Shelton goes for the move on Cena, but he finds himself dumped over the top.

#21: Yoshi Tatsu

Tatsu comes in with a couple of big kicks on both Cena and HBK, but he ends up being dumped over the top, just like Benjamin. HBK chops away at Cena in the corner, but Cena is quick to retaliate with a sloppy facebuster. Cena pounds on HBK in the corner.

#22: Big Show

Show hustles his way down to the ring where he quickly takes down Cena and takes HBK all the way to the ring apron, but HBK is back in the ring, where he almost ends up eating an AA. Michaels ends up almost falling to the floor, but he holds on, catches Show in hurricarana position, and ends up being thrown to the canvas.

#23: Mark Henry

Henry and Show face off in a stare down. Show shoves Henry and Henry throws a couple of punches. Henry tries to slam Show, but Show fights it off. Cena hits a big shoulder block on show, and another, followed by a slam from Mark Henry. Cena tries for an AA on Henry, but Cena can’t follow through.

#24: Chris Masters

Masters goes to work right away, and he tries for the Masterlock on Show, but he finds himself launched over the top rope. Henry gets Show off the ground and almost eliminates him, but HBK comes up from behind to prevent it.

#25: R-Truth

R-Truth comes in an eliminates both Mark Henry and Big Show, who were fighting by the ropes. It’s just Truth, Cena and Michaels in the ring. Truth works over Michaels in the corner with a couple of kicks and right hands, and he tries to send HBK over the top, but Michaels isn’t having it.

#26: Jack Swagger

Swagger comes in with a quick Vader bomb on Cena and then HBK. Swagger powerslams Truth into the corner, and then the canvas. Michaels is up and comes in with punches and chops, but he ends up eating a kick, and almost being eliminated by a lariat from Swagger. HBK is able to make it back in under the bottom rope.

#27: Kofi Kingston

Kingston comes in and goes right to Jack Swagger, taking him down and hitting the boom drop. Kofi tries to take Swagger out, but Swagger catches him. Kofi ends up taking Swagger out with a body scissors over the top rope. Kingston is almost eliminated by Truth, but in turn Truth is eliminated by Kingston for real.

#28: Chris Jericho

Jericho goes right after Cena, stomping away at him. Jericho ends up eating an AA from Cena anyway though. Michaels hits a DDT on Cena and HBK goes to the top, where he flies off with an elbow drop to Jericho. HBK tunes up the band, but instead he falls victim to Trouble in Paradise from Kingston. Cena eliminates Kingston with AA and Jericho connects with a Codebreaker on Cena.

#29: EDGE!!!

Edge comes out to a HUMUNGOUS pop from the crowd. Edge spears Jericho, Michaels and Cena, before shoving Jericho out over the top rope. Edge plants HBK, and the takes Cena down with an Impaler DDT.


#30 Batista

Batista comes in as a house of fire, taking everyone out and planting Cena with a spinebuster, but he walks right into a spear from Edge. Edge eats an AA from Cena. It all comes down to HBK, Batista, Cena and Edge.

Michaels is able to fight off everyone for a bit, taking out both Cena and Batista. HBK goes to the top again, this time connecting with an elbow to Cena. HBK hits an enzugiri to Batista and goes up top for an elbow drop to Batista.

HBK connects with SCM on Cena and Batista, but he ends up clotheslined out to the apron by Edge eats a SCM on the apron, knocking him back in the ring, but Batista attacks HBK from behind and Michaels falls to the floor, being eliminated in the process.

Michaels attacks a referee and makes his way back into the ring, where he pleads his case with another ref. In anger, Michaels hits the ref with SCM and falls to the canvas, clutching his head.

Michaels finally begins to make his way to the back, looking distraught. It’s down to Cena, Batista, and Edge.

Batista charges Cena, and Cena counters with a low bridge, Batista falls to the floor and we’re down to two men! Edge stalks Cena from behind, but Cena turns around and hits Edge with a kick. Edge shrugs it off and sends Cena over the top rope and to the floor.

WINNER: EDGE

Edge celebrates in the ring .. Pyro goes off around the WrestleMania 26 sign as the PPV goes off the air.

Thanks to everybody who joined us here at SEScoops.com for our live coverage of the Royal Rumble.

3 More Superstars Added To The Royal Rumble

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

After this week’s edition of WWE Superstars, Matt Hardy, Chris Masters and R-Truth have been added to the list of Royal Rumble entrants. Three spots now remain.

Here’s an updated list of the 27 confirmed entrants:

Raw (15): John Cena, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Ted DiBiase, Cody Rhodes, MVP, The Miz, Kofi Kingston, Mark Henry, Jack Swagger, Big Show, Evan Bourne, Carlito, Santino Marella Chris Masters

Smackdown (7): Batista, Chris Jericho, CM Punk, Great Khali, Kane, R-Truth and Matt Hardy.

ECW (5): Shelton Benjamin, Yoshi Tatsu, William Regal, Zack Ryder and The Hurricane.

VOTE on Who Will Win The Royal Rumble

Big Plans For The Rumble & WrestleMania, WM27 Location

– Although plans can change very quickly in WWE, the idea over the weekend was that Triple H is the favorite to win the Royal Rumble and receive a title match against Sheamus at WrestleMania.

His DX partner Shawn Michaels’ is expected to face Batista at No Way Out to determine who will battle the Undertaker at WrestleMania.

At one point there was talk of Triple H and Shawn Michaels BOTH winning the Royal Rumble (ala Bret Hart and Lex Luger back in 1994), which would have allowed HBK to chose the Undertaker and Hunter to chose Sheamus as their respective WrestleMania opponents. The idea was seemingly dropped after creative came up with the idea of Hunter winning by himself.

Then the big interbrand match at WrestleMania would pit John Cena against Batista.

– Miami and Atlanta are the two cities being considered to host WrestleMania in 2011, according to Gary Stokan, President of the Atlanta Sports Council. Skohan told The Sports Buffet that the announcement will be officially made on Monday, the day after Sunday’s Royal Rumble PPV.

If Miami is chosen, Sun Life Stadium, which holds approximately 76,500 fans, would host the event. If Atlanta is chosen, the Georgia Dome which holds 71,000 would host the event.

It’s also worth noting that this year’s Surivvor Series is taking place in Miami.

(Credit to PWInsider.com & F4Wonline.com)

Updated Royal Rumble Card: 4 Title Matches, 24 Entrants

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

Here is the official list of participants for WWE’s annual over-the-top-rope contest, the Royal Rumble.

Raw: Big Show, Carlito, Cody Rhodes, Evan Bourne, Jack Swagger, John Cena, Kofi Kingston, Mark Henry, MVP, Santino Marella, Shawn Michaels, Ted DiBiase, The Miz and Triple H.

ECW: William Regal, Shelton Benjamin, Yoshi Tatsu, Zack Ryder and The Hurricane.

SmackDown: Batista, Chris Jericho, C.M. Punk, Kane and Great Khali.

Six spots remain open.

Other confirmed matches taking place include:

World Heavyweight Championship Match
Undertaker (c) vs. Rey Mysterio

WWE Championship Match
Sheamus (c) vs. Randy Orton

ECW Championship Match
Christian (c) vs. Ezekiel Jackson

WWE Women’s Championship Match
Michelle McCool vs. Mickie James

Undertaker Retirement Update, Batista’s Role At The Rumble

– As previously reported, the Undertaker is said to be in rough physical shape and is working through significant pain in recent months. However, talk of him retiring at WrestleMania 26 are premature. His physical limitations are already affecting how often he wrestles and what he’s able to do in the ring, but there’s been talk of Undertaking retiring for nearly a decade, so many expect him to continue working through the pain for months and years to come.

— Although Batista is currently advertised to be one of the 30 participants in the Royal rumble match, Rey Mysterio did a radio interview in Mexico last week stating that his match with the Undertaker at the Rumble will be a three-way.

– Speaking of the Royal Rumble, the Phillips Arena in Atlanta, GA, the site this year’s Rumble, is already sold out.

(Source: F4wonline.com)

John Cena Back Injury: Bulging Discs, Surgery Needed?

John Cena

John Cena

The word going around WWE is that John Cena is suffering from a back injury.

Reports indicate that Cena is suffering from a few bulging discs, which can be very painful and might require surgery.

Not much more is known about the injury at this time and the severity is hard to assess.

Nonetheless, it does appear that Cena’s condition is the reason Cena will not be wrestling WWE Champion Sheamus at the Royal Rumble.

Rumble Participants To Be Announced, Elimination Chamber

— World Wrestling Entertainment will begin announcing participants for the twenty-third annual Royal Rumble next week on Monday Night Raw as well as on the company website.

— WWE’s second pay-per-view of the year, Elimination Chamber, will go head-to-head with an United States vs. Canada Olympic hockey game on February 22nd. The feeling is this will significantly affect pay-per-view buys in Canada.

— This week’s episode of WWE Superstars on WGN America scored an 0.8 cable rating.

Royal Rumble Plans: Surprise Entrants, Matches & More

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

2010 WWE Royal Rumble

WWE’s next pay-per-view event is the 2010 Royal Rumbe on January 31st. Here are a few news items heading into the annual winter classic:

– It’s likely that John Cena vs. Sheamus will be a match at the Royal Rumble as reported yesterday.

– Next week’s ECW on SyFy will see the ECW Homecoming Over-The-Top-Rope Challenge with the winner receiving a shot at Christian’s ECW Title at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. The participants will be CM Punk, Shelton Benjamin, Evan Bourne, Matt Hardy, Kane, Vance Archer, Ezekiel Jackson and Yoshi Tatsu.

WARNING: The following contains a potential *SPOILERS* for the Rumble match:

– There are tentative plans for Shawn Michaels and Triple H to be the last two participants in the Rumble match. It would certainly be an interesting twist but hasn’t been confirmed yet. Michaels’ has of course challenged The Undertaker to a WrestleMania re-match, while there was also previous talk of a Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H match at the pay-per-view.

– Booker T may return to WWE as a surprise entrant in this month’s Royal Rumble match at the pay-per-view.The former World Heavyweight Champion has had discussions with WWE officials in recent weeks regarding a return to the company.

(Credit to F4Wonline.com & the PWTorch Newsletter for the information used in this report)

Releases Coming, Obama Distances Himself From WWE

– There are a lot of undercard talents in WWE who are worried about their jobs right now as everyone is expecting the company to release a number of talents after the first of the year.

– Dennis Miller noted on FOX’s O’Reilly Factor show last night that WWE paid him no money for hosting the Slammy’s last week and what he got in return was to promote the USAcares.org charity.

– After Linda McMahon seemed to use Barack Obama’s promo on WWE’s Tribute to the Troops special for political gain, The White House issued a statement to The Hartford Courant paper stating that the message Obama filmed for the special was for the Troops and not done in any way to show support for WWE. The White House said that Obama did not tape the promo for WWE but for the Troops and doesn’t mention WWE once in the message.

– The theme songs for WWE’s 2010 Royal Rumble pay-per-view will be Martyr No More by Chris Jericho’s band Fozzy and Hero by Skillet.

– WWE has been booking little people all week and have booked a Miami area courtroom for this coming Monday afternoon so it appears the segment with DX and Hornswoggle is finally happening after being put off for weeks.

Tournament To Determine Royal Rumble ECW Title Match

The ECW Homecoming Qualifying matches kicked off on last night’s show with Kane and Ezekiel Jackson picking up wins. Over the next few weeks, former ECW Superstars will return to the brand to compete in these qualifying matches with the winners advancing to an eight-man Homecoming Finale Over-the-Top Rope Challenge on January 12th.

The winner of that will go on to face Christian for the ECW Title at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view.

Jack Swagger will return to ECW on next week’s show to face Yoshi Tatsu in a qualifying match.

Royal Rumble Plans, Update On WWE Changing ECW & SD

– The current plan is to not start any new major angles for the Royal Rumble pay-per-view until the first or second week of January. Monday’s RAW will feature the 2009 Slammy Awards and the December 21st and 28th RAW shows will likely be used to continue the pushes of Kofi Kingston and Sheamus. The original plan was to shoot a big angle for the Royal Rumble at the January 11th edition of RAW, but with TNA airing Monday Night iMPACT! the week before, we could see that Rumble storyline air a week early.

– With this week’s edition of ECW on Syfy drawing the lowest rating ever, speculation regarding the show being rebranded entirely continues. With WWE’s television deal with SyFy set to expire soon, major changes are almost a certainty. Changes are also in store for the SmackDown brand, but it will likely be after the new year before we see anything.

– ECW’s newest tag team, Trent Baretta and Caylen Croft, have been added to the roster page on WWE’s website.

– The guys who played Mark Cuban’s security on RAW this past Monday were indy wrestlers Danny Matthews, Mark Vaughn, Ryan Davidson and Kristopher Haiden.

(Credit to F4Wonline.com and PWInsider.com for some of the information used in this report)