– Part-time WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam is reportedly returning at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view later this month. Current plans call for Van Dam to work WrestleMania XXX in April.
– According to reports, WWE Superstar Batista is heading to California soon to train with mixed-martial-arts trainer Cesar Gracie in preparation for his WWE return on January 20th.
(Credit: PWInsider.com)
As previously reported, WWE was originally planning on a Brock Lesnar vs. Big Show match at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. The idea came about when Show was feuding with The Authority.
Apparently the plan was for Big Show to go through Randy Orton and The Authority, although he would never win the title, yet he would come out of the program as a solid main eventer. This would set up Show looking strong, making Lesnar look strong for a match against The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXX when he beat Show at the Rumble.
Speaking of Taker vs. Lesnar, there appears to be some concern over a few different issues. One is the physical style that Lesnar has in recent years. Lesnar’s rough style, mixed with the bad physical shape Taker is in, is causing some concern.
Another issue is that many, if not all of Taker’s opponents the last several years have secretly worked out their match with extensive practice before it actually took place. There is some concern within WWE as to whether or not Lesnar would be willing to put in that amount of time preparing for the match.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– WWE will make their “groundbreaking announcement” next Wednesday, January 8th at the International CES at the Wynn Hotel, which is expected to be the official announcement of the WWE Network. Vince McMahon will be on hand to make the announcement, along with “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Triple H, John Cena and others.
– The 2014 WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view is slated for both a DVD and Blu-ray release in February.
The final WWE RAW show of 2013 ended with Daniel Bryan joining The Wyatt Family. The RAW main event featured Daniel Bryan facing Luke Harper first. If Bryan defeated Harper, then he had to beat Erick Rowan. If he defeated them both, then he could get his hands on Bray Wyatt. Bryan ended up beating them both. When Bray’s turn to face Bryan came up, he stopped himself from attacking Bryan. Bryan ended up telling Bray he was right. He said fans chanted “Yes!” in every building he went to, and “they” still didn’t care. Bray then hit Bryan with his Sister Abigail finisher, but the two still ended up leaving together. Bryan stopped at the top of the stage to think over his decision, but ultimately decided to do it anyway.
Also on RAW on Monday night, both Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman returned. The two returned as part of Triple H’s “blockbuster announcement.” They announced their intentions on becoming the WWE World Heavyweight Champion by defeating whoever wins the Royal Rumble main event between John Cena and Randy Orton. This led to Mark Henry coming out, only to get beat up by Lesnar. Lesnar speared Henry through the barricade on the floor and then hit him with an F-5 on the floor.
It was announced on the special New Year’s edition of WWE RAW on Monday night that at next week’s special “Old School” themed edition of RAW, CM Punk will battle Shield member Roman Reigns in a singles match.
Also announced on RAW, in one of the promised “blockbuster announcements,” Stephanie McMahon revealed that John Cena would challenge Randy Orton for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at the main event of the Royal Rumble pay-per-view in a traditional Championship match.
As previously reported, former WWE Superstar Batista will officially return to WWE on the January 20th edition of WWE RAW and will be hanging around at least through WrestleMania XXX.
Apparently the idea is that this is not a one-time WrestleMania return type deal for Batista, but rather a “final run” for him that could last as long as two years. His new deal reportedly calls for him to take some time off during the summer to promote a film project.
Regarding the specifics of his return, while his first televised appearance back with the company will be on the 1/20 episode of RAW, he will not be wrestling that night. His first official match is scheduled to take place in the 30-man match at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view.
The deal for Batista to return during WrestleMania XXX season is something he and Triple H have been working on for a few months. Batista is scheduled to work some television tapings, pay-per-views and even some of WWE’s non-televised live events. The deal calls for Batista to stick around for at least some time after WrestleMania XXX in April.
Before announcing his return on RAW on Monday night, the original plan called for Batista to return as a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble. WWE had copy of the promotional materials that were scheduled to be sent to local arenas and apparently those were sent out prematurely without notice that Batista’s inclusion in them was to be held off until he officially debuted at the Rumble.
Apparently as a result of the information leaking early on official arena websites, among other places, WWE was quite upset. One source joked that it was a good thing Vnice McMahon was overseas visiting the U.S. Troops when the news leaked, or he may have killed someone.
One person who recently saw Batista this past weekend noted that he has put on a lot of size and muscle and appears to be more ripped than usual.
[Credit: PWInsider.com]
According to reports, WWE is planning on putting the WWE Tag-Team Championships on Luke Harper and Erick Rowan at some point before the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event in January.
Harper and Rowan were already expected to become the WWE Tag-Team Champions before the WrestleMania XXX event in April, however it appears now as though WWE has moved those plans up and will do the title change earlier than originally planned.
According to current creative booking plans, Shield member Roman Reigns is going to have a major role in the 2014 Royal Rumble Match
Originally, it was expected that Reigns would have a similar role as most large athletes in the Rumble match in the past, such as Kane or Diesel, where they make him look strong by having him eliminate multiple participants in the match.
We are looking into further specifics, but the latest plans for Reigns’ role at the Rumble are even more significant than just a few weeks ago.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– WWE is reportedly working on securing their “surprise entrants” for the 2014 Royal Rumble match. The company has started the process of looking at Superstars that aren’t on the current active roster, some of which will be stars from the past making returns, others will be a few potential NXT stars that could get called up.
– WWE added a video to their official YouTube channel of The Miz attempting to win over a young fan during an appearance at the Tribute To The Troops (TTTT) special earlier this week. The video is accompanied by the following description: “At a Tribute to The Troops appearance with soldiers and their children, The Miz can’t seem to get a favorable, awesome response from a young WWE fan who was asked who his favorite WWE “
[Partial Credit: F4WOnline.com]
In Demand recently released the promotional poster for the 2014 WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view. The poster is accompanied by the following description, which is pretty interesting when considering the upcoming WWE TLC pay-per-view main event stipulation:
WWE: Royal Rumble
PPV Premiere: Sunday, January 26, 2014
Don’t miss John Cena, CM Punk, The Shield, and all your favorite WWE Superstars as they compete for the right to face the WWE or World Heavyweight Champion in the ultimate battle at WWE Royal Rumble, Sunday, January 26, at 8PMET/5PMPT.
It should be noted that this could always be a case of dated promotional materials, however many are speculating that when the WWE TLC pay-per-view concludes in two weeks, there will still be a WWE and a World Heavyweight Champion.
– The WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view this year at the TD Garden in Boston had 13,500 fans in attendance, with 12,000 paid. WWE announced the attendance as 15,297.
– There are already plans for WWE Superstar and current member of The Shield, Roman Reigns, to get a huge push in the 2014 Royal Rumble match. The idea is to use him similar to the way Kane and Kevin Nash have been booked in the past, where he would rack up a number of impressive eliminations during the match.
[Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter]
– According to the latest indications, tickets for the 2014 WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view are nearly sold out already.
– Speaking of tickets, WrestleMania XXX ticket sales were just under the 40,000 mark for the first week. Due to the higher ticket prices, when looking at things from a live gate perspective, it was the second largest grossing first weekend in history, trailing only WrestleMania 29.
– The following is a clip from the documentary portion of the new WWE RAW 20th anniversary DVD box set:
http://youtu.be/5v8ln05Xysg
[Partial Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter]
The following are highlights from a recent WGD Weekly interview with Jake “The Snake” Roberts:
On the possibility of buying TNA: “I want to run an Indigogo and raise the money to buy that son of a bitch and do it right. Not to be in competition with Vince, but to do wrestling the way I liked it. Maybe it will happen, maybe it won’t. But, now I hear the guy from Smashing Pumpkins is snatching it, so maybe I should just buy the band Smashing Pumpkins and go on with my life and start singing.”
On how he would run TNA if he were able to purchase it: “I got all the thoughts, bro. There ain’t nobody better at that. I would make it simple, there would be good guys and there would be bad guys. There wouldn’t be no bullshit and there wouldn’t be twenty minute interviews. We would actually, ‘rassle…the world needs it, man.”
On he wants in the 2014 Royal Rumble match: “All I can hope for right now, you know, I’m trying to get myself in shape to do the Royal Rumble, one last time…You know, I’d like to go out on my own terms with my head held high, I think I deserve that. I’ve had thirty seven years in the ring and it was a wonderful life, it was crazy, insane, I did a lot of things wrong, but I did a lot of things right too, brother.”
On turning down Vince McMahon in 1984: “Vince McMahon had tried to hire me before when I was with Georgia Championship Wrestling, because he bought out Georgia Championship Wrestling from some individuals at the time. He tried to hire me and I did my stupid shit, cussed him out, called him a fag, and that’s not a cigarette by the way, and told him to shove it up his ass and walked out…then…I was back asking the man for a job.”
On a classic Andre The Giant story: “One instance that was pretty horrifying for me, it was his birthday and we were up in Montreal…he had quite a few bottles of wine, and a couple bottles of vodka too. We got in the ring and there is something you never want to see if you are an opponent, and that is a playful fucking giant. It’s dangerous…if they are giggling and they are hopping around, so, I think, ‘my god, are you fucking serious, what am I gonna do now?’…during the match, we would usually do a spot…he’d grab both ropes…and he’d squat down on me, it looked great, it normally didn’t bother me at all, but this night hi hand slipped off the rope and he adjusted every frigging vertebrae in my body…I just couldn’t believe it, it knocked the breath out of me, then I turned on my side and all of a sudden I felt my shoulder vibrating, I’m thinking, ‘What the fuck is that?’…and he is laughing…Dave Hebner came over and said, ‘Andre, what are
you doing laughing’…’I’m farting,’ he says, and my shoulder is vibrating, I don’t know what the world record for a fart is, but it was well into the thirty second range, and the stench, it would have gagged the maggots. My first thought was to get up and paint brush the son of a bitch, but, I quickly got over that.”
On his memories of traveling with a young Undertaker early in his WWE run: “He came to me and he says, ‘I hear you know all the great strip joints,’ I said, ‘yes, I do, worldwide,’ he says, ‘I’ll travel with you’…so, he tried to hang with me, and it’s a chemical world, so I was cheating. After about three or four weeks, we went to TV and Vince looked at him and said, ‘Mark, I don’t think you need the makeup today, you look like hell. Jake is killing you and a few days later, he was in the hospital with alcohol poisoning. Finally, I had to smarten him up and tell him how I was doing it, and we then became very, very good friends. I have all the respect in the world for Mark. He has earned everything that he has gotten. He is a unique character, I love the fact that he upholds kayfabe, just a great guy, and of course he was there for the stripper times with me, and we did it well.”
– As previously reported, WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan is scheduled to appear on the Oprah Winfrey show, “Where Are They Now?” The show is scheduled to air this Sunday night on the OWN network. Other guests listed for the show include Carrot Top and Chris Judd. You can watch a video preview of Hogan’s appearance online at Oprah.com.
– The following are some dates and information for scheduled WWE DVD releases in the early part of 2014:
January 14th — WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2013
January 28th — Best of RAW & SmackDown 2013
February 11th — Shawn Michaels: Mr. WrestleMania
February 25th — Royal Rumble 2014
According to a recent report by The Examiner, WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan and WWE have come to a “verbal agreement” that would see Hogan return to the company in 2014.
The following is an excerpt from the article:
“WWE Examiner learned exclusively on Thursday from a trusted WWE source that Hulk Hogan is officially back with World Wrestling Entertainment.
Although Hogan has reportedly refused to sign a typical “legends contract,” there is said to be a verbal agreement in place between Hogan and WWE that will result in Hogan returning to WWE programming possibly early in the new year.
There is even talk of Hogan returning as a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble.
“We knew this would happen at some point,” the source tells Examiner. “It’s my understanding that there isn’t a contract in place, but there’s a verbal agreement that will move forward. It’s just a good fit for everybody involved, especially with the milestone WrestleMania 30 coming up. Hogan needed to finish up his stuff with TNA and just come home.”
Check out the complete article online at Examiner.com.
NOTE: It’s worth pointing out that we have been unable to confirm the above report as of right now. We should have an extensive update on this story on Monday morning, so until then, take the above information as strictly rumor.
UPDATE: Backstage News On Hulk Hogan & WWE’s “Verbal Agreement”
The following are highlights of a recent Busted Open Radio interview with former WWE Superstar Chris Jericho:
On a return at the WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view: “I can post a picture of me and the Pope on Instagram or Twitter and the first three thousand comments will be: ‘When are you coming back to the WWE?’ People are so obsessed with that. My response is that I don’t know. I talked about this the last time I was on the show in New York for Fozzy. I don’t have any plans. Not to say that I won’t but as you can see there are a lot of really cool projects that are going on under the Chris Jericho brand umbrella and I think that just adds to me being an asset to the WWE and spreading my wings as much as I can and gaining the biggest fan base I can. I’m not retired from wrestling, I never said that. The time has to be right and soon eventually it will be right. I came back to the Royal Rumble last year and to come back at the Royal Rumble this year, it would be like: ‘We’ve been there and done that’. I have to see what’s going on and figure out another cool way to make it work when the time is right.”
On the next major star in WWE: “I think anybody can be the face of the company if the fans dictate it. I think sometimes the powers-that-be may have different opinions but the thing about Daniel Bryan is that his rise is very organic. It happened basically in spite of the way he was getting pushed. I think if I had to pin point a moment that it happened, it was during that eighteen second loss at WrestleMania last year where people were legitimately angry that the company could treat him that way and started to really get behind him as a character. I think when everybody is chanting his name and the guy goes out there as possibly the best wrestler in the world and a great character and a great performer, why not? You need something different to replace the one that’s on top as we saw when they were trying to replace Hulk Hogan for so many years until Bret Hart stepped up. I think he can be the face of the company if they so desired.”
On the rise and the falls being a test from within: “If you are a conspiracy theorist, you would think that. All I know is from my experiences and if you look how I came into the WWE in 1999, it was the biggest thing in a long, long time. You look at the timeline of that, two or three weeks later, I was losing to Stevie Richards on Sunday Night Heat. There is always a growing process and if you remember the famous title match I had with Triple H where I beat him for the title back in 2000 and then was forced to give it up a few minutes later and what people forget about that is at the end of the show, I got pinned by Hunter in a six man tag team match, clean, 1-2-3. You always wonder that sometimes they do the opposite of what you would expect to happen as far as the way you would book things.”
“I think that there is kind of a test, can this guy get over? Can he sink or swim? What’s going to happen if we pull a swerve on him? Will he have a bad attitude? Will he stop working hard? You never know. My response to that is all you can do is the best you can do with whatever situation you are given. If you get too far with it, you got to make a stand and say something. Before I won the title that time at State College, Pennsylvania against Triple H, I was on my way to Vince’s (McMahon) office; it was like the movie Slap Shot: ‘Who owns the Chiefs? Pay me or I will leave’ sort of thing. I’m done! I lost to Viscera. I lost to the Godfather and this was a waste of my time. I’m done. The writer at that time was Tommy Blacha at the time and he said: ‘Listen, before you go to Vince, I have to say something.’ I said: ‘There is nothing you can say that’s going to change my mind.’ He said: ‘You’re going to win the World Title tonight.’ And that changed my mind. You just got to hold on and Eddie Guererro’s told me that his dad used to say: ‘The cream will always rise to the top. If you can wrestle, you will always have a job and you will get to the top.’ I still believe that. Whatever kind of politics or dipsy doodles may happen, all you got to do is keep performing to the best of your ability and sooner or later you are going to get that shot.”
On the possibility of Shawn Michaels returning to the ring: “Honestly knowing Shawn (Michaels), I don’t think so. That’s my opinion. He could but you look at the way he went out, in one of the greatest matches of all time at WrestleMania in the main event with this huge reception. The performer of Shawn Michaels caliber and his ego, and I say that in a good way because we all have egos, he is not going to come back for anything for less than that. I don’t think you are going to get anything bigger than that. Undertaker versus Shawn Michaels, in my opinion, were the two greatest matches ever. What can compare to that? My gut feeling says no, of course I don’t know but if you ask me, I’d say no.”
“The reason why Taker and Shawn worked is that you have two guys that are on the same exact level, iconic performers that no one can really touch. Maybe Shawn versus Triple H is something that maybe they would do but I don’t think that’s even big enough. I think that door is closed for Shawn and I think he is happy doing what he is doing and I think that’s the same for Steve Austin. I think he very satisfied with his career, I don’t think he feels the need to comeback. Sometimes it happens. As much as the wrestling fans demand it, sometimes if you feel that you did everything that you wanted to do and you’re happy, then why mess with it.”
On whether or not Big Show is hotter now than he has ever been in the past: “I only know from what I read in the reports. I haven’t had the chance to watch a lot of the shows because I have been busy on the road and I find with the Big Show has been around for so long and has performed at the highest level in some many different angles, in so many different personas, I think he is one of the most taken for granted performers in the history of the WWE. He can do anything, he can have a great match every single night but when he is motivated, he goes to a totally different level.”
“I think all you have to say to Show is that: ‘You are going to be involved in the main event storyline (Randy) Orton and Hunter and I think that’s all that Show needs to turn it up some more. I think that Show at eighty percent is better than eighty percent of the roster. But when he is motivated, there are not a lot of performers that can touch him. I think he is very underrated. I think he is taken for granted by the fans and by the company. If I was going to start my own wrestling company, Big Show would be in the top 5 easily, easily, and easily.”
Check out the complete interview online at Facebook.com/bustedopenradio.
Backstage News On Surprise Entrants Planned For The 2014 WWE Royal Rumble
The following are highlights from the latest online Q&A update from the official website of WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross:
On if Brandi Runnels will be brought in immediately to the Rhodes Family storyline: “I don’t know if any of that is even true and if it is what the motive may be. However, in my opinion, for one family to be completely dependent on the wrestling biz for their livelihood isn’t wise in today’s world.”
On AJ Lee competing in the 2014 WWE Royal Rumble match: “Women should not compete w/ men in pro wrestling in any physical manner.”
On the most agile and exciting “big men” in pro wrestling history: “Young Andre, Vader, Don Leo Jonathan, Bigelow, among others I’ve naturally overlooked.”
On how many more matches The Undertaker has left in him: “No way of knowing. I assume Taker takes it a year at a time.”
You can check out more Q&A updates from Jim Ross at his official website, JRsBarBQ.com.
Details On AJ In The Royal Rumble + Undertaker’s Possible WMXXX Opponent …
-Tickets for the WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view went on sale to those who were in attendance at WWE RAW on Monday night. The official pre-sale for Rumble tickets is now available as well, with the code: RUMBLE. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Saturday.
-WWE Superstar The Miz (Mike Mizanin) celebrates his 33rd birthday today. Miz was born on October 8, 1980.
-As noted on Monday’s edition of WWE RAW, WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam is taking time off from WWE. The official WWE website ran an article about the situation, trying to put a storyline spin on the issue by claiming Van Dam is taking time off due to the fact that he is not 100 percent “mentally and spiritually.” WWE also announced that RVD revealed his decision during an exclusive interview for the WWE Battleground DVD. For more information, visit WWE.com.
RVD UPDATE: What’s His Future With WWE?, Will He Go Back To TNA? [DETAILS >>]
The following are highlights from a recent interview with WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T:
On whether or not he has interest in a return to the ring: “I wouldn’t call it a comeback (laughs). I’m semi-retired and to work around these schedules that the younger wrestlers and the divas (applies to the female talent, whether as wrestlers, managers or ring announcers) is rough. It’s a young man’s sport. I don’t want to be one of those wrestlers who still holds on to the past, hearing all the roars from the crowd. Royal Rumble is cool, I can do it once a year but to do it every day or week is tough. It’s time for me to step aside.”
On what he misses most now that he’s “semi-retired”: “I don’t miss wrestling, but I miss performing. You know, going out and amazing everybody and feeling that adrenaline rush. I performed in front of soldiers in Iraq in 2003 and the temperature was 40°C. And when you strap on your gear and with the adrenaline pumping, it feel more like 80°C. I’ll miss that. If it’s not for the exhausting travels, I could do wrestling for another 10 more years (laughs).”
Check out the complete interview online at NST.com.
Latest On SURPRISE ENTRANTS In The 2014 Royal Rumble Match — Click Here!
-Although it is still unofficial, WWE is planning on holding a Fan Fest in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania priorr to their Royal Rumble pay-per-view event.
-WWE Divas and Total Divas reality stars The Bella Twins are featured in the latest issue of Self Magazine.
-Former WWE Superstar and one of the nWo founding members, Kevin Nash, will be appearing at the Funkafied Wrestling Federation (FWF) event at the Elks Lodge in Brick, New Jersey on October 15th.
Huge *SPOILER* On 2 SURPRISE ENTRANTS In The 2014 ROYAL RUMBLE
[Credit: F4WOnline.com]
The following are highlights from a recent website Q&A from WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross:
On whether or not the Internet Wrestling Community is killing the business: “Far from it. So, no.”
On whether or not WWE still views Survivor Series as one of the “Big 4” PPVs: “I can only speak for myself but I’d say yes. Having 12 PPV’s makes it challenging for all of them to be special.”
On if he’d like to see Jake “The Snake” Roberts back in WWE, possibly in the Royal Rumble: “I’d love to see Jake clean, sober & healthy living a happy, productive life.”
On if there is a reason WWE holds PPVs on Sunday nights: “I’d assume that there is research to indicate that Sunday is the best night for WWE PPV’s plus it is and has become a tradition that I don’t see changing. Plus, it works well with the cable and satellite operators which is critical.”
On his opinion of Abdullah The Butcher, and if he deserves to be in the WWE Hall Of Fame: “Abby had an amazing, LONG career and was an independent business man who was a main event star around the world. He was unique.”
Check out more Jim Ross Q&A online at JRsBarBQ.com.
SHOCKER On 2 NEW Surprise Entrants In 2014 Royal Rumble Match
According to reports, the plan as of this week is for both currently injured top WWE Superstars John Cena and Sheamus to be the surprise returns at the 2014 WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view event in January.
One source claimed that if both Cena and Sheamus returned on the same night, in the same match, it’s doubtful that there would be any other surprises, such as Jake “The Snake” Roberts.
WWE ROYAL RUMBLE SPOILER: MAJOR Current TNA Star To Be SURPRISE!
[Credit: F4WOnline.com]
-Former WWE Superstar Chris Jericho appeared on the Live Audio Wrestling (The LAW) radio show out of Canada this past Sunday night. Durnig his appearance, Jericho told the story behind his surprise return at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view.
Below is a transcription of Jericho telling the story:
I was in Anaheim at the North American Music Merchants Convention, which is where all the bands go and do signing for whoever it is that you’re endorsed by, and it’s a really giant convention thing. Afterwards, it’s just like a huge party. I was with M. Shadows from Avenged (Sevenfold), a really good friend of mine, and with a couple other guys from Avenged as well. We got completely plastered and loaded, and it ended up with me demanding that Matt’s friend let me kiss him on the lips. I wouldn’t leave the car, and finally when I did leave the car I chased him around the car and then jumped on the hood of the car and wouldn’t let him leave. Then the cops were called, and they were gonna arrest me. I was like “If I get arrested and thrown in the drunk bank tonight and miss the Royal Rumble, I’m probably gonna be in pretty big trouble.” So I stopped what I was doing, got in the car, and as we were driving away I punched him in the face as hard as I could. It was just like the worst feeling; everyone was so mad at me, and Shadows was like “You can’t punch guys in the face!” I felt awful. I woke up about an hour later and I had to go catch a flight, but I felt bad because I punched Shadows’ friend in the face, so I called that guy and apologized. Then my flight was delayed. I finally landed in Phoenix, got ready in one of the crew buses, and went out and wrestled for 48 minutes. So yes, that is how Jericho rolls.
I remember Vince McMahon asked me the next day, “You haven’t wrestled in such a long time. I mean, obviously you’re in good shape, but how did you go out there and do 48 minutes and do all the stuff that you did?” I was like, “I don’t know.” I don’t know how I did it; I didn’t even realize it was 48 minutes until afterwards. Someone told me, “You were out there for 48 minutes,” and I was like, “Oh, wow! That’s awesome.” It’s one of those things. It’s just part of the job, I guess. (Transcribed by Chris Maffei)
-Due to Labor Day weekend, there will likely be no ratings information for Sunday’s edition of Total Divas, or Monday’s edition of WWE RAW, until Wednesday.
Details On The 2 MAJOR Surprise Returns Planned For ROYAL RUMBLE 2014 …
-WWE has recently updated their advertising for upcoming live events now that John Cena will no longer be able to appear on them. The biggest shuffle is Daniel Bryan being moved from the “B” shows to the “A” shows, in place of Cena as the singles headliner.
-Speaking of Cena, while publicly the statement from both he and the WWE side is that they are expecting him back by WrestleMania, apparently the expectation is that he will be back in time for the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. That would be just under five months after his surgery, which is pushing the recovery process slightly. As noted, especially with Cena, returning sooner than scheduled when dealing with injuries is not out of the ordinary.
-WWE CEO Vince McMahon celebrates his 68th birthday this Saturday. McMahon was born on August 24, 1945.
-ESPN personality and former WWE broadcaster Jonathan Coachman appeared on the “Mike and Mike” show this morning on ESPN Radio answering questions from Twitter regarding WWE.
UPDATE: John Cena To Miss More Than 4-6 Months? [READ HERE >>]
[Partial Credit: F4WOnline.com]
Follow SESCOOPS.COM journalist Matt Boone on Twitter @MBoone420 for breaking news updates!