It’s Thursday, January 26 and we are just two days out from the 2023 WWE Royal Rumble from San Antonio, Texas. SEScoops will have live results of the Rumble on Saturday night. We’ll also be hosting a live discussion in the comments section of our Results post – we hope to see you there. Here’s a rundown of some odds-and-ends news items:
Bray Wyatt’s Role on SmackDown
Bray Wyatt is having a big week. On Monday’s Raw is XXX anniversary special, the Eater of Worlds shared a memorable encounter with The Undertaker. Each of them commented on the moment, with Wyatt stating, “This moment justified a lifetime of sacrifices for me.”
According to the latest Wrestling Observer Radio, WWE officials have Wyatt slotted as the #1 babyface on SmackDown brand. He’ll face LA Knight in a Lights Out match (stipulation details TBA) at the Rumble.
As the top babyface on SmackDown, it’s probably only a matter of time before he’s in the title picture for either Roman Reigns’ Undisputed Universal Championship, or the Intercontinental title held by Gunther.
Royal Rumble Favorites & Participants
The Royal Rumble premium live event will be headlined by two 30-person Rumble matches (men’s and women’s), with the winners going on to challenge a champion of their choosing at WrestleMania Goes Hollywood. The current favorites, based on leading online sports betting sites, are Cody Rhodes and Rhea Ripley.
As of this writing, 15 people are confirmed for the Men’s Rumble match and only seven confirmed for the Women’s Rumble. WWE.com has a running tally of all the participants.
Rhea Training with Dominik:
WWE has published several videos to get fans hyped for the Royal Rumble. As seen below, Rhea Ripley has been training with Dominik Mysterio.
Ripley was in the news earlier this week for her comments about wanting to compete in the men’s Royal Rumble match.
Zoey Stark Throws Shade at Nikkita Lyons
NXT star Nikkita Lyons announced that she’s dealing with a serious knee injury (a torn ACL and meniscus). Rival Zoey Stark has little sympathy for Lyons, who will be out of the ring for several months.
Naomi and Natalya’s New Looks
Finally, two female Superstars are sporting new looks. Naomi (Trinity Fatu) continues to branch out into modeling with a new photo shoot for L’Officiel Baltic Sports.
Natalya has been out of action since November, when she underwent nasal surgery to move her dislocated nose “back to the center of my face where it belongs.” During her time away, she’s decided to tryout a new hairstyle.
