Author: Anutosh Bajpai

WWE has announced that Sasha Banks will be defending her SmackDown Women\’s Championship against Carmella at the upcoming Royal Rumble PPV.

These two stars have been feuding for a while and they have faced off in a number of matches over the last several months including a title match at last month\’s TLC PPV.

Last week\’s episode of SmackDown saw Banks defeat Carmella’s sommelier, Reginald in a match. After that the company confirmed a bout between the two female stars for Royal Rumble during this week\’s episode of the show.

This is the sixth match which has been announced for the upcoming PPV alongside the two battle royals and three other championship bouts.

• Match Announced For WWE Backstage Royal Rumble Edition

Updated Royal Rumble Match Card

Royal Rumble this year will be taking place from the Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL on Sunday, January 31. You can check out the updated match card for the show below:

• WWE Championship Match: Bill Goldberg vs. Drew McIntyre
• Last Man Standing Match for the WWE Universal Championship: Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns
• SmackDown Women’s Championship Match: Carmella vs. Sasha Banks (c)
• WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Match: Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler vs. Charlotte Flair and RAW Women’s Champion Asuka (c)
• Men\’s Royal Rumble Match: Daniel Bryan, WWE United States Champion Bobby Lashley, AJ Styles, Randy Orton, Otis, The Miz, Jey Uso, Cesaro, Jeff Hardy, Shinsuke Nakamura, Sami Zayn, SmackDown Tag Team Champion Dolph Ziggler, WWE Intercontinental Champion Big E, Sheamus, John Morrison, Edge, Elias, Mustafa Ali, 12 spots open.
• Women\’s Royal Rumble Match: Nia Jax, WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Charlotte Flair, Bayley, Bianca Belair, Mandy Rose, Dana Brooke, Peyton Royce, Alexa Bliss, Shayna Baszler, Liv Morgan, Ruby Riott, Tamina Snuka, 18 spots open.

WWE recently announced the return of WWE Backstage for a special Royal Rumble edition and now the company has announced a match for the show.

The company had previously teased some Royal Rumble announcements for the special edition of the show which will see the return of Renee Young.

The promotion then announced that the Royal Rumble edition of WWE Backstage will feature a match for the first time ever and the episode will see Natalya taking on Tamina Snuka in a one on one bout.

The winner of this fight will earn a big advantage for themself for the upcoming battle royal and whoever wins this fight will go on to be the #30 entrant in the women\’s Royal Rumble match.

It has previously been announced that the company will confirm the #1 and #2 entrant for the women\’s Royal Rumble as well as the #30 entrant for the men\’s version of the bout during the upcoming show.

• WWE Backstage Returns To FS1 The Night Before The Royal Rumble

WWE Backstage was on air from November 2019 to mid-March last year before its production was halted due to COVID-19. Renee Young has previously stated that the cancellation of the show is one of the reasons why she left WWE.

The show will be returning for a special episode on Saturday, January 30. Alongside Young, it will feature stars such as Paige and WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T and will air on FS1 at 8pm ET.

Goldberg recently had an interview with Sound Sphere Magazine where the wrestling veteran talked about a number of different topics. The former WCW star was first asked about his movie future. Replying to it, he said that he is a competitor and not a performer and doing more acting roles is not in his plans.

Coming to WWE, the former Universal champion was asked which young stars he sees as the future of the company and Goldberg named four wrestlers he sees as the potential massive stars of the future:

\”I mean the usual suspects… Drew McIntyre, Keith Lee and Ricochet. I’ve always been a HUGE fan of Finn Bálor. I’d have to say those four are the future. There’s no question about it. In my opinion. And what do I know?\”

Goldberg vs. Steve Austin Dream Match

When asked about the dream match with Stone Cold Steve Austin and if he regrets that it never happened, Goldberg said that there was no other match that needed to happen more so than this one:

\”Oh my god, I wouldn’t be living and breathing if I didn’t make that statement.\” said the former WCW Champion, \”There was no other match for my sake that needed to happen more so than that one.

It was a timing issue; it was just a timing issue, and an injury issue. I love him exponentially, man, he’s a great dude and to have graced the ring with him in a match would have been absolutely phenomenal.\”

Apart from this, Goldberg also talked about things like his upcoming match with Drew McIntyre at Royal Rumble and more.

You can check out his full interview at this link.

• Goldberg Agrees With The Undertaker: WWE Is Soft Compared To His Era

WWE typically plans out the WrestleMania card months in advance, but this is not the case for this year\’s \’Show of Shows.\’ According to reports from the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, most of the card is still uncertain. In fact, only one WrestleMania match involving Roman Reigns has been decided on.

The report did not divulge the planned opponent for the Universal Champion, but it did rule out Shinsuke Nakamura as Reigns\’ opponent.

A John Cena appearance for the show which was reported recently has been confirmed but so far it\’s not known what the Cenation leader will be doing at the event and if he will be getting involved in the action.

The company hasn\’t been pushing a lot of long term angles that can lead to a WrestleMania match on TV with the exception of the one feud between Randy Orton and The Fiend.

A Firefly Fun House match between the two was planned for the upcoming Royal Rumble PPV at one point but WWE seems to have scrapped those plans so it\’s possible that the company is holding off the bout for a future PPV.

• Two Part-Time Legends Expected Compete at WWE WrestleMania 37

Other angles such as Charlotte Flair vs. Lacey Evans and Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens could still lead to a match at the show but they are more likely to culminate before the PPV.

If Randy Orton does end up facing Bray Wyatt, that will leave Edge free for the event. So it\’s possible that he wins Sunday\’s Royal Rumble PPV and challenges either Reigns or Drew McIntyre at the show.

The Rated R Superstar\’s promo on Raw was also heavily centered around a title shot. Though it\’s something which the report could not confirm and we will have to tune in to Sunday\’s Royal Rumble PPV to find out whether it\’s the case.

There have been some recent rumblings about Ronda Rousey returning to WWE to fill the gap left by Becky Lynch but Charlotte Flair believes that the company doesn\’t need the former UFC star.

The Queen recently had an interview with Vicente Beltrán of ViBe & Wrestling where she talked about a number of things and also shared her thoughts on the former MMA star.

Flair was asked about Rousey\’s impact on WWE\’s women\’s roster and whether the company needs her. Responding to it, Charlotte explained that need is a very strong word:

‘Need’ is a very strong word. Do I think Ronda would add to the division? 100% but ‘need’? No, we have an incredible roster of already established stars and some of them are on the rise so ‘need’ I think is a strong word, but do I think she brings a lot to the table? 100%.”

• Ronda Rousey Reacts To Being A Favorite To Win The Royal Rumble

While there has been no official update on Ronda Rousey\’s return, the former women\’s champion was spotted training in the ring last year and despite not being announced for the bout, she is still one of the favorites to win this year\’s women\’s Royal Rumble.

Charlotte Flair has previously competed against the former UFC Champion on multiple occasions and if Rousey does return to the company at some point, it\’s almost certain that we will see these two sharing a ring once again.

Former World Champion Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson recently took part in NBCUniversal’s Winter Press Tour event on Tuesday to discuss the new Young Rock comedy series based on the Hollywood star\’s childhood days.

During the press event, the former WWE star talked about things like being pitched the idea for the show, how he had a tough childhood and more.

The Rock was also asked what were the roughest times of his life and the Great One replied to the question explaining that it\’s a multi-layered answer:

“There’s a few layers to that answer…At 13, I veered off the tracks to do things I shouldn’t be doing. I got arrested at 13 in Hawaii,”

The Rock added that getting passed over for NFL was another rough patch in his life “that was a pretty big loss; when you’re done with your college career, you’re done. There was no NFL for me,”

• The Rock Reveals Who Will Play Him On “Young Rock” TV Series

Young Rock series will chronicle the formative years of the former wrestling star. The new series will be premiering on Tuesday, February 16 at 8pm ET. You can check out the official trailer for it below:

Roman Reigns has been WWE\’s marquee star for over half a decade now and in the time he has main evented WrestleMania for not one but four times against opponents like Triple H and The Undertaker.

The current Universal Champion recently had a detailed interview with Bleacher Report where he shared thoughts on a wide variety of topics.

During the interview, Reigns also revealed his favorite match of the Grandest Stage Of Them All and he picked up his WrestleMania 31 match with Brock Lesnar as the one:

\”I\’d probably not want to do it again because it was brutal; I was a much younger man back then. But that match, to me, was an instant classic unlike, really, any other sports-entertainment match.\”

• Roman Reigns Believes It Makes Sense For Him To Face The Rock At WrestleMania 39 In Hollywood

Reigns explained that the bout had a bit of something for everybody and while his other WrestleMania matches have all been great, there was something special about his fight with The Beast Incarnate:

\”The matches we had as The Shield, and then the match I had coming back against Drew McIntyre after some time off to handle my health, that was very special, too. But there\’s something very special about WrestleMania 31 in Santa Clara. And I was in the 49ers stadium, so that was kind of the cherry on top.\”

Roman Reigns won the 2015 Royal Rumble to earn a shot at Brock Lesnar\’s WWE championship. However, he wasn\’t able to win the title at WrestleMania. Seth Rollins cashed in his Money In The Bank contract in the middle of the bout and went on to win the championship.

Madusa (WWE Hall Of Famer Alundra Blayze) wants the company to give her a retirement match and she has decided to go public with her request.

WWE\’s official twitter account recently made a post asking fans who is the one superstar they would like to show up at this year\’s Royal Rumble PPV.

Madusa interestingly replied to this tweet from the company and the former champion asked the promotion when are they gonna give their golden era Hall Of Famer a retirement match.

The former WWE star\’s tweet suggested that she has been lobbying for one final opportunity for a while and the former WCW star indicated that she is done asking for it after her latest post:

Madusa made her wrestling debut back in 1984. She competed for promotions such as AWA, All Japan Women\’s Pro Wrestling and WCW during her career.

• New Topic For Third Season Of Dark Side Of The Ring

She had a stint with WWE from 1993 to 1995 but she was blacklisted by the promotion after the former champion jumped ships to WCW following her release from the company.

Madusa finally returned to WWE in 2015 when she was announced as an inductee of the company\’s Hall Of Fame class of the year and she has made some sporadic appearances for the promotion since then.

WWE\’s chief brand officer Stephanie McMahon recently confirmed plans for having fans in attendance for WrestleMania 37 and now the WWE champion Drew McIntyre has reacted to the news.

The Scottish psychopath recently had an interview with WFLA where he talked about the COVID-19 pandemic and how he headlined WrestleMania 36 without any fans in attendance.

When asked about the news of fans\’ return, the WWE Champion said that it\’s the one thing they have been missing all year and McIntyre called the WWE Universe their number one superstar:

“It’s the one thing we’ve been missing all year. It’s our number one Superstar, our secret sauce, what makes WWE special is how passionate and loud, and knowledgeable our fanbase are.

They can change the pace of a match. They can make an average match good, a good match great, or if an interview is going on in the ring that they don’t like, they’ll crap all over it,”

Drew McIntyre continued by saying that while they do see the reaction of people on social media among other places they still miss the live interaction:

\”And we miss them. We miss the live interaction. We see everything on social media. We hear the reactions live in the ThunderDome. But to have the fans there in person, that’s what I’m looking forward to the most.”

The WWE Champion Drew McIntyre is currently set to defend his title against Goldberg at next Sunday\’s Royal Rumble PPV on January 31.

While Nikki Cross is a former two times women\’s tag team champion, the female star hasn\’t been featured much on WWE programming since her partnership with Alexa Bliss ended.

The former NXT star recently vented about her current position in WWE and she cut a promo about her struggles in a video posted on her Twitter account.

Cross told the interviewer who tried to talk to her that he will not get the fake smile from her because she is angry and annoyed at not having any momentum heading into the Royal Rumble PPV:

\”I’m angry and I’m annoyed and I don’t want to talk about new year’s resolutions or feign happiness. The Royal Rumble is right around the corner and I have zero momentum going into it! I have no momentum to even want to!\”

Nikki Cross then explained that the only thing that is stopping her from getting angry is focusing on the ring before saying that one day people will realise her potential and the reason behind the success she has achieved so far:

\”I swore that I wasn’t going to be like my mom and dad; struggling and working so hard and working 60-hour shifts, night shifts, just tryin’ to keep our bellies full. I swore that wouldn’t to be me. It’s not going to be me. It’s not. Because there is a reason why I was the first-ever Scottish woman to be signed by WWE!

It may not be now, it may not even be in the near future, but one day, you’re all going to realize what exactly it is about me that got me to this point. So let me finish with this. I’m gonna be around in this industry for a very long time and I’m gonna go down as one of the best. And I am so done and I am so finished with not realizing that myself!”

• Nikki Cross Talks Teaming With Alexa Bliss in WWE

Nikki Cross made her main roster debut back in 2018 and she started teaming with Alexa Bliss in May 2019. Though this team disbanded last year and the female star was drafted to Raw from SmackDown.

WWE has been heavily criticised in the recent times for putting part timers in the main event spot for big shows including WrestleMania while ignoring the full time stars people want to see getting a push such as Big E.

The former New Day member recently appeared on Busted Open Radio where he discussed a number of things and also talked about WWE\’s booking decisions for their marquee shows.

Big E was speaking about his recent transition to singles competition and people\’s high expectations for him. He opened up about how the management prioritizes \’big money guys\’ while booking shows such as WrestleMania.

Big E on Part-Time Stars

\”You also know how it is man, they\’re going to go through a list of part-timers, the big names the big money guys who work once a year, and they\’re gonna go through that list and if they if they can\’t get all those guys booked for that Roman spot for WrestleMania.

Then it\’s kind of like now, who do we look to that works here on a weekly basis,\” said Big E, \”Who\’s actually been grinding. And now maybe we give them an opportunity.\” Apart from this, the IC Champion also discussed how it does not make sense for NXT call-ups to be given title shot right after their main roster debut.

Big E went on to explain how losing to Sheamus was the best thing that happened to Daniel Bryan as it made people realise his potential.

Other Stars Comment on Part-Timers

Many other WWE Superstars have spoken about part-time legends taking top spots:

• Finn Balor Defends WWE Using Part-Time Legends In Top Roles
• Roman Reigns Explains How Part-Timers Hold Full-Timers’ Potential Back
• Sheamus On Being Skeptical About Part-Time Champions
• AJ Styles On Brock Lesnar Being Part-Time WWE Champion
• Seth Rollins Explains Disadvantage Of Having Part-Time Stars As Champions
• Ryback Shoots On Steroids & Brock Lesnar: Part-Timers Need To Be Tested

One of the main complains people have about the current WWE product is that the programming has lost its edge compared to the Attitude Era and it appears that the Undertaker who has lived through this change believes the same.

The Dead Man recently appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience where he talked about a wide variety of topics such as his retirement from competition and more.

During the interview, Taker was asked if still follows the WWE product and whether he enjoys the current programming. Replying to it, The Phenom said that it\’s tough for him to enjoy it because the product has changed:

\”I try. It\’s tough right now for me [to enjoy the product]. Cause the product has changed so much and it\’s kind of soft. I\’ll probably piss a lot of people off but they need to hear it. It is what it is.

To the young guys [who think] \’he\’s a bitter old guy.\’ I am not bitter. I did my time. I am good. I walked away when I wanted to walk away.\”

• The Undertaker On Watching WWE: It’s Hard To Be Just A Straight Fan

The Undertaker Believes The Current Product Is A Bit Soft

The Undertaker admitted that while there are some guys who have an edge to them, the product is ultimately a little too soft for his taste:

\”I just think the product is a little soft. There is obviously guys here and there that have an edge to them but there\’s too much pretty and not enough substance I think right now.\”

The Undertaker was also asked if he has something left in the tank and the former World Champion said that while he still has the passion for wrestling, the reality is that he is physically not able to perform at the level he wants to.

What do you think about the wrestling veteran\’s assessment of the current WWE product? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.

One-half of the current SmackDown tag team champions Dolph Ziggler recently appeared on WWE\’s The Bump where he talked about things like winning the tag titles with Robert Roode and more.

With the Royal Rumble event being less than two weeks away, everybody is talking about the event and sharing their predictions and memories of the show.

During the interview, Ziggler also revealed his own favorite Royal Rumble moment and he recalled the time he challenged Edge for the world title at the event in 2011:

“There was a Royal Rumble where I fought against Edge for the World Heavyweight title once; we went one-on-one to open up the Royal Rumble. I went in knowing and the entire audience knowing that I had no chance of winning.

Because Edge is so awesome at what he does because that rivalry became so great because I learned so much in the past from traveling with him,\” said Dolph Ziggler, \”[I knew] I was a formable opponent to him at the time.\”

• The Rock Thinks Dolph Ziggler Should Become WWE Champion

The former world champion continued by saying that the entire crowd started realising that there was a star in the making in that match, 10 minutes into the bout.

According to Dolph Ziggler, they stole the show with the opening match and he doesn\’t even remember who won the Royal Rumble afterwards. You can check out his full interview in the video below: