WWE Royal Rumble, Monday 1st February 2021

[Cleavy]

 

[Cleavy]

Ugh, Tamina vs Natalya for #30. (feels like the chance of the winning getting attacked backstage for a surprise entrant?) And spoiling 1 & 2 for men’s rumble.

 

[ULTIMATE_WARRIOR]

So who are we thinking of for surprise entrants?

Seth Rollins
Brock Lesnar
John Cena
Carlito
Aleister Black
Booker T
Jimmy Uso

 

[nobbyiscool]

Jay White, cos they'll think he'll get AJ Styles debut treatment, when in reality he needs to go through NXT.

 

[Cleavy]

Spoiler: numbers 1 & 2 for Men's Royal Rumble

Randy Orton and Edge

Spoiler: number 30 for Women's Royal Rumble

Natalya

 

[Cleavy]

So who are we thinking of for surprise entrants?

Seth Rollins
Brock Lesnar
John Cena
Carlito
Aleister Black
Booker T
Jimmy Uso

one of the Indian wrestlers from the show that just did.
Bella Twins

 

[nobbyiscool]

I don't know where he's at with his health - but unless I'm missing somone really obvious, I reckon it must've been at least 8 or so years since we got the commentator-enters-the-rumble spot. I'd love to see Joe wreak some havoc. I haven't watched Raw in weeks, but last time I saw it he had Retribution and Aleister Black in his face?

This might have something to do with the fact that I've had a very quiet weekend, and my attempt to find my match of 2020 instead morphed into watching the Unbreakable 3-way - still the greatest 3-way of all time, and I'll fight anyone who wants to argue for WM20 - as well as some Joe vs Angle in TNA, some Styles/Daniels vs LAX... and then, weirdly, Savage/Steamboat, a Flair/Steamboat from 89, and then Flair/Funk.

I've had a really weird pre-Rumble weekend... (I think it was motivated by the discussion about work rate yesterday morning, and in the case of Flair/Funk someone explicitly mentioning it.)

 

[Millky95]

I don't know where he's at with his health - but unless I'm missing somone really obvious, I reckon it must've been at least 8 or so years since we got the commentator-enters-the-rumble spot. I'd love to see Joe wreak some havoc. I haven't watched Raw in weeks, but last time I saw it he had Retribution and Aleister Black in his face?

This might have something to do with the fact that I've had a very quiet weekend, and my attempt to find my match of 2020 instead morphed into watching the Unbreakable 3-way - still the greatest 3-way of all time, and I'll fight anyone who wants to argue for WM20 - as well as some Joe vs Angle in TNA, some Styles/Daniels vs LAX... and then, weirdly, Savage/Steamboat, a Flair/Steamboat from 89, and then Flair/Funk.

I've had a really weird pre-Rumble weekend... (I think it was motivated by the discussion about work rate yesterday morning, and in the case of Flair/Funk someone explicitly mentioning it.)

If you are into your workrate wrestling old school TNA had some absolute bangers

 

[nobbyiscool]

Spoiler: numbers 1 & 2 for Men's Royal Rumble

Randy Orton and Edge

Spoiler: number 30 for Women's Royal Rumble

Natalya

Downvote, only cos I hate them pre-announcing anything.

I know they don't have crowds to react this year, but I still like the surprise.

Is Randy Orton still playing a bootleg conquistador?

 

[nobbyiscool]

If you are into your workrate wrestling old school TNA had some absolute bangers

I said on this board recently, that first 16 months or so that they were on Spike TV (October 2005 onwards) was as good a wrestling product as I've ever had the pleasure of watching. Smackdown 6 era comes close, but didn't last that long; I really enjoy AEW, but they put out too many Wednesday night stinkers and waste too much talent to really compare; and I'm one of those who leans to wards the shock and awe bullshit of the Attitude era being horribly overrated, Austin vs McMahon aside.

Edit: that said, I'm not sure I've ever been as annoyed by a storyline being dropped as I was in October 2005 when the whole Jarrett/AMW/Raven storyline kept being explained by "what happened in Canada"... and they never told us.

Still shits me 16 years later.

 

[Millky95]

I said on this board recently, that first 16 months or so that they were on Spike TV (October 2005 onwards) was as good a wrestling product as I've ever had the pleasure of watching. Smackdown 6 era comes close, but didn't last that long; I really enjoy AEW, but they put out too many Wednesday night stinkers and waste too much talent to really compare; and I'm one of those who leans to wards the shock and awe bullshit of the Attitude era being horribly overrated, Austin vs McMahon aside.

Ultimate X is still one of my favourite stipulations. I only got into TNA during the MEM original days but even then some of the matches were killer. And some of the talent then had so much personality compared to WWE and even what little I have seen of AEW

 

[nobbyiscool]

Ultimate X is still one of my favourite stipulations. I only got into TNA during the MEM original days but even then some of the matches were killer. And some of the talent then had so much personality compared to WWE and even what little I have seen of AEW

Interesting history with the Ultimate X - it was their first cool, original concept. Some of the early matches involving Styles, Michael Shane, Kaz, Petey Williams were absolute ball tearers. And I think it was it's first big showing - the Bound for Glory a month after the Spike debut - that it absolutely died a death. Without a belt on the line, they hung a stupid red x that kept falling, the second time Petey Williams caught it without it hitting the mat so they said "to hell with it" and called the match. But cos it wasn't the planned finished they essentially scrubbed it from the record books and held a rematch on Spike a couple of weeks later.

I think everyone thought the concept was kind of dead after that... but the next 2 Ultimate X matches were title matches - Styles vs Daniels vs Joe, and Styles/Daniels vs LAX (which is one of the matches I watched today) more than rehabbed the match straight away, cos both were amazing. Makes me wonder about WWE in that situation - I really think they'd just scrub the concept until Triple H revived it in NXT 5 years later.

 

[nobbyiscool]

Anyway, the rumble hey?

There's going to have to be a hell of a lot of surprises/NXT women just to fill out the numbers. I know the whole thing at the time was about equality and womens revolution at the time - which I was absolutely in favour of (aside from the part where Steph invented women's wrestling) - but I wonder if they just set themselves an impossible task in establishing it with 30 women. I think they really could've gotten away with 20 and no one would've minded. Especially if you still allowed for the "iron woman" and kayfabe have 2 minute breaks between entrants instead of 90 seconds.

I know (obviously) that wrestling is pre-determined - but you wanna suspend your disbelief. And I have a bit of a problem with the notion that Aliyah or Kacy Catenzaro might, in kayfabe, get the opportunity to challenge for a major title at Wrestlemania.

There's not even a lot of women that you can bring back and get a big pop, cos they've already used them all. And Trish, Lita, and oddly Mighty Molly (in that gimmick) seem to be the only ones who get a pop.

 

[Cleavy]

There's not even a lot of women that you can bring back and get a big pop, cos they've already used them all. And Trish, Lita, and oddly Mighty Molly (in that gimmick) seem to be the only ones who get a pop.

I hope that doesn't mean Stephanie will be an official entrant

 

[MadMundy]

Edge or a surprise like John Cena or Brock Lesnar need to win this. I don't wanna see Daniel Bryan in the main event of WM, he doesn't belong anywhere near the world title, Nakamura and Cesaro aren't getting near it, and I hope to god Rollins doesn't come back and win either.

 

[Lynchy04]

Safe to assume number 1 and 2 entrants won’t win it this year...

One of the best rumbles in years on paper because there is no clear favorites Smackdown have done a good job of building tension / issues with a few guys and reigns. They have mentioned Nakamura and Cesaro both stating they would go after Roman, the story with Bryan is sitting there and the possibility of Strowman after losing the belt to Roman.

I have a gut feel with the quality of guys that have been built up recently to have some potential issues with Roman I reckon they will do a chamber match with those guys where Bryan or Rollins will get the W and face Roman.

I reckon it’ll be a Raw star who wins the rumble either Sheamus , Lee or AJ most likely Sheamus.

 

[Stevi_Tigers]

Reckon Goldberg will win the rumble

 

[MadMundy]

Still going with Edge since he makes the most sense but the heavy swing in the betting odds has me terrified.

 

[Stevi_Tigers]

Just checked betting odds if it goes that way I’d be disappointed

 

[Millky95]

Really torn about getting this. I love Goldberg and the Rumble but I hate wrestling with no fans

 

[Flapjacks]

This was taped yesterday. Seth Rollins wins.

 

[NotAMagpieBogan]

Those shorts on Goldberg were embarrassing

 

[Raveneyes]

Embracing like they shared a 5-star classic. Really? Result is fine though, did what it had to do.

 

[Stevi_Tigers]

As a self admitted Goldberg mark I thought that match and story with drew was executed perfectly

Not a hard story to sell Goldberg thought drew was condescending to the legends and that he even though not what he was still had enough gas to put the young lion down and in his place


Match shows that while Goldberg still hits hard enough to beat most he can’t match it with the top of the tree anymore


But he isn’t disgraced by taking Drew’s best shots as well as his own move



End of the match both earn each other’s respect

 

[HereIam86]

Any one else think their going to have Goldberg come out at number 30 win the Rumble than challenge Reigns at WM?