media

That’s different. We are officially in the busy season for WWE as the Road To WrestleMania is set to begin on Saturday at the Royal Rumble. That is the kind of show that changes the way WWE operates and several important moments can take place during the night. WWE has already changed things around on the show though and one big match is not going to take place.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Already: Bray Wyatt Receives Surprise Designation On WWE SmackDown Roster
According to Fightful Select, WWE has made a change to a planned Royal Rumble title match. The December 30 SmackDown Women’s Title match featuring Ronda Rousey successfully defending against Raquel Rodriguez was originally scheduled for the January 28 Royal Rumble but WWE changed the plans. In addition, Charlotte’s return and title win were moved to SmackDown as well, in an effort to beef up the show. There is no word on what this means for other planned matches, including Rhea Ripley vs. Rousey and Charlotte vs. Bianca Belair. It..

The San Antonio Express-News recently interviewed WWE superstar Kevin Owens to promote the upcoming Royal Rumble event this Saturday. He discussed a number of topics, including his upcoming championship match with Roman Reigns, Sami Zayn, Stephanie McMahon and more.
Below are some highlights from the interview:
On his championship match with Roman Reigns:
“I don’t know if I expected it (to come full circle), but I certainly hoped it would,” said Owens, whose real name is Kevin Steen. “Because when our whole feud started, we were doing it through the pandemic in empty buildings. So it’s gonna be nice to have at least one match in front of an actual crowd, considering we had some of our best matches against each other with nobody in the arena.”
On Sami Zayn:
“(His success) is no surprise to me. I’ve known how good (Zayn) was and how special of a talent he is for 20 years now,” Owens said. “It just took a while for him to get into a situation where he can showcase just how good he is..

Here comes the next generation. Earlier today, WWE issued a press release, detailing the names of 15 new college athletes who will join the company’s NIL (Name, Image & Likeness) program, “Next In Line.” This program was created to give an opportunity to collegiate athletes that want to be a part of WWE.
The names are as follows:
Name College Sport Height/Weight Hometown Abby Jacobs South Alabama Soccer 5’7 Gulf Breeze, Fla. Alexandra Jaksec Mary Washington Tennis 5’4 Pittsburgh, Pa. Alia Armstrong LSU Track & Field 5’4 Baton Rouge, La. Cameron Jones Cincinnati Football 6’8, 320 lbs. Hindman, Ky. Dee Beckwith Kentucky Football 6’5, 235 lbs. Florence, Ala. Greg Kerkvliet Penn State Wrestling 6’3, 250 lbs. Inver Grove Heights, Minn. Isaiah Iton Rutgers Football 6’2, 290 lbs. Houston, Texas Jaiden Fields Georgia Softball 5’9 Kennesaw, Ga. Landon Jackson Arkansas Football 6’7, 275 lbs. Texarkana, Texas Mady Aulbach Youngstown State Basketball 5’3 Slippery Rock, Pa. Nick Dawkins Penn Stat..

That’s a special place. There are a lot of wrestlers on the WWE roster and that adds up to quite a bit of talent. It takes a lot for someone to move up the ladder and reach the top of the pile but you know someone special when you see them. Now WWE is seeing something in one of its stars and thinks enough of them to put them above most of the roster all at once.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Again: Vince McMahon Facing Another Lawsuit Over Alleged Sexual Harassment Payments
According to Wrestling Observer Radio, Bray Wyatt is currently slotted in as the #1 babyface on the SmackDown roster and the #1 star that Roman Reigns has not worked with during his title reign. There is also no word on if Reigns will be feuding with Wyatt anytime soon, as Reigns is said to know that people who feud with Wyatt wind up looking “a lot worse than going in”. Wyatt is scheduled to have his first televised match after his return this weekend at the Royal Rumble.
There is a history between them. Check out Reig..

That could be worse. There are all kinds of injuries in wrestling and some of them are a lot more severe than others. You never know when you are going to see someone get hurt and put on the shelf for a long time. That is the kind of thing that can derail a lot of plans, but thankfully in this situation it seems that the injury is only going to cause a minor delay instead of a big change.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: He’s In For Now: Former WWE Star Set For AEW Debut
This week, AEW announced that Britt Baker had suffered an undisclosed injury and would be pulled from her scheduled triple threat match along with Toni Storm and Ruby Soho. Baker did appear during the match, offering a distraction to Storm so Soho could pick up the win. According to Wrestling Observer Radio, Baker’s injury “wasn’t serious” and she should be returning to the ring soon. Baker could have wrestled this week but AEW erred on the side of caution and held her out instead.
Baker is a star worth waiting on. Check out ..

Jay Briscoe: A Celebration Of Life
Date: January 26, 2023
Location: Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Carpice Coleman
As you might have guessed, this is a special show honoring the life of Jay Briscoe, who passed away last week. The show was filmed after last week’s AEW taping and features special matches, plus presumably tributes and maybe classic matches from Briscoe’s career. That should be more than enough so let’s get to it.
We get the tribute video from this week’s Dynamite.
Ring Of Honor Pure Rules Title: Hagane Shinno vs. Wheeler Yuta Yuta is defending under Pure Rules and Shinno is from Big Japan. They go with the grappling to start with Yuta working on a head/wristlock. Shinno shrugs that off and strikes away but gets caught with an Angle Slam for two. Yuta starts in on the leg and the cranking sends Shinno to the ropes for the first break. That’s fine with Yuta, who grabs a Gory Stretch to work on the back.
Something like the Octopus sends..

They just keep coming. Earlier this month, Vince McMahon returned to WWE in what could almost be defined as a coup. McMahon said that if he was not put back in his previous role of Chairman Of The Board, he would not let the company go forward with either television rights deals or a sale. He got what he wanted, but that might not be what everyone else wanted and now some more people are saying something about McMahon.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: On The Mend: Update On Wrestling Legend’s Health Status, Leaving Hospital Soon
According to Bloomberg, McMahon is facing another lawsuit involving alleged payments made to deal with sexual harassment claims. While the details of the lawsuit, filed by Carole Casale and Chrystal Lavelle, are not known, they are attempting to sue on their own rather than part of a class action lawsuit. McMahon is already facing two lawsuits filed earlier this month, both of which are hoping to be recognized as class action suits over attempting to keep McMahon off t..

Dynamite
Date: January 25, 2023
Location: Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz
This is going to be an emotional one as the main event will feature the Jay Briscoe Tribute match between Mark Briscoe and Jay Lethal. If that’s not enough, we’re still on the way to Revolution and that means Bryan Danielson gets to wrestle again. This time he has to find a way around Brian Cage, which is quite the different opponent than he has had in recent weeks. Other than that, the Gunns and the Acclaimed are going to have family therapy, which could go in a few different ways. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Chris Jericho/Sammy Guevara vs. Action Andretti/Ricky Starks We are joined in the middle of Jericho’s entrance (including Daniel Garcia). Andretti and Guevara start things off and exchange some flips without being able to make a ton of contact. Andretti’s standing moonsault misses and they stare at each other for a bit. Guevara offers a handshake and th..

Welcome to KB’s Old School (and New School) Reviews. I’ve been reviewing wrestling shows for over ten years now and have reviewed over 5,000 shows. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I’ll be posting a new review here on Wrestlingrumors.net, starting today. It could be anything from modern WWE to old school to indies to anything in between. Note that I rate using letters instead of stars and I don’t rate matches under three minutes as really, how good or bad can something that short be?
Royal Rumble 2003
Date: January 19, 2003
Location: Fleet Center, Boston, Massachusetts
Attendance: 15,338
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz, Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler
This is a really odd entry in the series as the namesake match is being treated as secondary to almost everything else. Really, coming into this show, there’s a good argument to be made that Torrie Wilson vs. Dawn Marie is being treated as a bigger deal than the Rumble itself. Let’s get to it.
The opening video is your standard montage of w..

That’s a step forward. Wrestlers have to deal with a lot of issues during their careers, but some of those problems do not go away once they retire from the ring. Several health issues can continue, including some that might happen to anyone at any time. Now a wrestling legend is dealing with some serious health problems, but things might be looking a bit better.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Another Happy Return? Controversial WWE Star Discussed For Possible Royal Rumble Return
Earlier this month, it was announced that WWE Hall Of Famer Superstar Billy Graham had been hospitalized due to an infection, which had caused his heart to start. Graham was brought back and has improved in the time since. On Wednesday, Graham’s wife announced that Graham will soon be moved to a skilled nursing facility for rehab and physical therapy. He will also continue IV antibiotics for “a long time”. There is no word on how long Graham will be in the new facility.
Graham was a heck of a star. Check out some o..

That would be a return. There have been all kinds of roster changes in WWE in recent months and there is nothing to suggest that they are finishing up. This very well may include the Royal Rumble, where several surprise names are known to show up again after lengthy absences. Now there is a rumor that a former WWE Women’s Champion may be making an appearance.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: He’s In For Now: Former WWE Star Set For AEW Debut
According to PWInsider Elite, Nia Jax has been rumored for a possible Royal Rumble return. This has NOT been confirmed and is currently seen as just a possibility being discussed. Jax, a former Raw Women’s Champion, was released from the company on November 4, 2021. She has not wrestled since, though she was announced for an independent event in the United Kingdom which never took place.
In case you forgot. Check out Jax’s time in WWE:
[This post contains video, click to play]

[This post contains video, click to play]

[This post contains video, click..

New home? The rise of AEW has changed the way the wrestling world works, including the wrestlers. One of the biggest changes has been the rise of a new big budget wrestling promotion where wrestlers can go, meaning more wrestlers are at work. If nothing else, it allows people who leave WWE to have another place to find work, and that is the case again as a former WWE star will be making his AEW debut.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Back Later: AEW Announces Injury, Match Set For Dynamite Changed
Bryan Danielson is currently trying to earn a shot at AEW World Champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman at Revolution. In order to earn a shot, Danielson must win a series of matches, ending on February 8. This week, Danielson defeated Brian Cage, but Cage injured Danielson’s shoulder after the match. Later in the night, Friedman announced that Danielson’s next opponent will be former WWE star Timothy Thatcher, who will be making his AEW debut. Since his release from WWE in January 2022, Thatcher has primari..