– Randy Orton will put the WWE World Heavyweight championship on the line in the Elimination Chamber match at next month’s pay-per-view.
John Cena, Daniel Bryan and Sheamus all qualified for the match during the 6-man tag team elimination main event of RAW. During their match against The Shield, the lights went out and The Wyatt Family began attacking John Cena, disqualifying The Shield.
With Orton, Cena, Bryan and Sheamus confirmed for the match, two more spots remain.
– WWE Superstar Christian will be returning to action on Friday’s SmackDown. He tweeted during RAW:
Seems a lot of superstars are making their returns on #Raw lately.. I'm throwing a curve.. See you Friday night #Smackdown#OneMoreMatch
– Prior to Monday’s WWE RAW, WWE taped the following matches from Cleveland, Ohio for this week’s episode of Superstars:
Natalya vs. Summer Rae
Los Matadores vs. Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre
– WWE has launched a new Twitter account for Sin Cara at @SinCaraWWE. The account is not yet “Verified” but is followed by the official WWE Twitter account and is posted on WWE.com.
It’s worth noting that the ‘original’ Sin Cara is still using the verified @TheSinCaraWWE account and his account description still reads, “WWE Superstar.”
– Last week’s episode of SmackDown averaged 3.03 million viewers, up over 100,000 from the previous week. It was the first time SmackDown topped 3 million viewers since February 8, 2013.
– WWE Superstar Seth Rollins took a spill on Monday’s RAW during The Shield’s entrance. Rollins jumped over the guard rail and slipped on the floor at ringside. Here’s a video of the fall:
RAW opens with The Authority coming to the ring. Stephanie starts things off on the mic. The “Yes! Yes! Yes!” chants cut her off almost immediately. Triple H mocks the fans in a little kiddie voice and says “did someone not get what they wanted?” The crowd boo’s him like crazy. HHH barrels on to run down some of the good things that actually took place at Royal Rumble last night. Stephanie brings up the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view. She says Randy Orton will defend the title inside the Elimination Chamber itself. As soon as she says that, Daniel Bryan’s music hits.
Daniel Bryan comes out smiling and the fans get crazy with “Yes!” chants as he comes to the ring. As soon as he gets into the ring there’s a loud mixture of “Daniel Bryan” and “Yes!” chants. Bryan says “please stop the Yes’ing, they don’t like it.” He continues, “Stop chanting for Daniel Bryan. They don’t like it. We don’t wanna make The Authority mad.” They respond with a loud mixture of “Yes!” and “Daniel Bryan” chants. Stephanie mocks the crowd for falling for Bryan’s “cheap parlor tricks.” Bryan says he had one of the toughest matches of his career last night. HHH says “I’ll be the first to give you all the credit in the world. It was a good little effort.” Bryan says a big disappointment last night was him not being in the Royal Rumble. He says he came to them time and again and said he wanted to be in the Rumble. He tells them to listen to the people, they wanted him to be in the Royal Rumble. He says there’s a “Yes! Movement” going on. He says listen to the people. Stephanie says they have to look out for the well-being of their Superstars and Divas and they didn’t want to put him in that type of danger. The crowd responds by chanting “You Suck!” Bryan says they’ve made him wrestle all three members of The Shield, all three members of The Wyatt Family. He’s wrestled more than once on RAW countless times. HHH said exactly, that’s why we didn’t want to make you work twice at the Rumble. Bryan says they don’t care about what’s best for business, they just care about what’s worst for Daniel Bryan. Stephanie says Bryan is only thinking about himself. She says did all these people only come to see him. The crowd responds by chanting “Yes! Yes! Yes!”
Bryan says he wants in the Elimination Chamber. The crowd chants “Yes!” He says the people want him in that match too. He tells Stephanie to step aside. He tells Hunter that neither of them should leave the ring until he gets what he wants. He and HHH go nose-to-nose. HHH says it’s not just them two in the ring. He says it sounds like he’s got company. The Shield come to the ring. Bryan quickly jumps out of the ring and grabs a chair as The Shield comes to ringside. Eventually the numbers game is too much and The Shield beat down Bryan in the ring.
Sheamus’ music hits and Sheamus comes out to help Bryan. The Shield eventually is too much for him. John Cena’s music hits. Cena runs to the ring as well. Now it’s three on three. D-Bry, Sheamus and Cena eventually get the upper hand and throw all three members of The Shield out of the ring. Bryan’s music hits as The Shield retreats through the crowd. We head to a commercial on that note.
Rey Mysterio & Sin Cara vs. The Real Americans
When we return from commercial, Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara are standing in the ring. Michael Cole talks about Randy Orton having to defend his title at the Elimination Chamber. He reveals that tonight’s main event will be Daniel Bryan, John Cena and Sheamus vs. The Shield in a six-man tag match. Whoever wins the match, all three members will be entered into the Elimination Chamber match. The Real Americans make their way to the ring for tag-team action in our first match of the evening on RAW. Zeb Colter cuts a promo. Typical Zeb stuff.
The bell rings and Mysterio and Antonio Cesaro start things off for their respective teams. Mysterio gets Cesaro on the mat and then tags in Sin Cara. Sin Cara huricanrana’s Cesaro down. Cesaro regroups and tags in Swagger. Sin Cara quickly gets the upper-hand on Swagger. Cara hits Swagger with a springboard back-elbow off the ropes for a near fall. Swagger over-shoots a move on Sin Cara and ends up on the floor. Cara dives through the ropes and splashes onto Swagger. Zeb Colter gets in Swagger’s face and yells at him. Zeb slaps Swagger in the face. Swagger freaks out.
Swagger gets back in the ring and is now even more aggressive after being slapped. Swagger is dominating the crap out of Sin Cara now. We head to a mid-match commercial on that note.
When we return from commercial, Cesaro is beating up Sin Cara. Sin Cara blasts Cesaro with a kick. Cesaro tags in Swagger. Sin Cara quickly gets Swagger down. Swagger ends up on the floor. Cara goes to tag Mysterio but Cesaro ends up yanking him off the apron and onto the floor. Back in the ring, Cara reverses a Cesaro move into a roll-up for a close near fall. Cesaro manhandles Cara down and seems to be back in control of the match. He tags Swagger back in and they hit a big scoop-slam style double-team move. Swagger makes the tag and goes for a Swagger Bomb. Cara rolls out of the way.
Cesaro goes to get Cara but Cara kicks him to buy some time. He makes the tag to Mysterio. Mysterio makes the hot tag and is flying all over the place. He hits a seated-senton on Cesaro for a near fall. Mysterio gets Cesaro in position for the 6-1-9 and hits it. He tags Sin Cara and dives onto Swagger on the floor. Cesaro slows Cara down by catching him in mid-air with an uppercut. He follows it up with the Nuetralizer. 1-2-3. The Real Americans win.
Winners: The Real Americans
Bad News Barrett Segment
Bad News Barrett pops up on his big podium. He tells us that he’s afraid he’s got some bad news for the television viewers. He says later on we have a match that features The Miz against Dolph Ziggler. He talks trash about Cleveland, where RAW is tonight. That’s about it.
The following are highlights from a new online Q&A update posted by WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross:
On whether or not not including Daniel Bryan in the Royal Rumble will hurt his popularity: “How does one judge an entire storyline while it is still being played out? I’m not smart enough to do such. I do think that Daniel Bryan is more popular today and is getting much more fan attention than at any time in his career. I’m curious to see what WWE does with this matter. It’s far from over in my view.”
On if he’d like to see a special attraction six-man tag between The Wyatt Family and Hulk Hogan, John Cena & Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania XXX: “That might work. As usual, it all depends on presentation and execution. What sounds good on paper isn’t always a guaranteed hit.”
On if they should include Daniel Bryan in the WMXXX main event to avoid a bad crowd reaction: “You might be right but the landscape can change drastically between now and April 6. I’d consider closing the PPV with Undertaker’s match assuming that he’s working on WM30.”
On the school-letter grade he would give the Royal Rumble: “Overall…B- or a C+.”
Check out more from JR’s latest Q&A update at JRsBarBQ.com.
– WWE legend Jake “The Sanke” Roberts, who had been campaigning for an appearance in the 2014 Royal Rumble for several months, recently shared his comments on not being included in the Royal Rumble on Sunday night. Jake tweeted:
I'm clean, sober, mentally/ physically healthy, excited for the future and most of all happy. Great day no matter what did or didn't happen.
Sunday’s WWE Royal Rumble show finished at number three on Nielsen’s Twitter TV rankings, trailing only CBS’s Grammy Awards Show and ABC’s “The Bachelor” reality show.
Nielsen calculated a unique audience of 2.430 million for the Rumble, meaning that many distinct Twitter accounts generated at least one tweet related to the Rumble.
The total number of impressions, which is the number of times any tweets about the Rumble were generated, was 27.082 million, which was even higher than the overall second place “The Bachelor.”
For the entire week of January 20-26, the Rumble ranked number eight on all of television based on the “unique audience” figure. However, the total impressions for the Rumble for the entire week ranked WWE at number three.
You can check out the complete chart at SocialGuide.com.
– As noted earlier today, the Daniel Bryan/Royal Rumble story was covered by the BBC News website in the United Kingdom. According to web statistics, the story was actually the most viewed article on the entire website at one point. As of right now, the article is the fourth most viewed on the site.
– Mick Foley continues to make his feelings about Sunday’s Royal Rumble known. The WWE Hall Of Famer changed his official Twitter bio to read: “Not happy with the Royal Rumble.”
– WWE officially added a match featuring “WWE World Heavyweight Champion vs. Batista” to their WrestleMania XXX section on Monday.
– WWE Superstar Mark Henry is scheduled to appear at the Showtime and Food Network’s “Ultimate Tailgate Experience” in New York City on January 29th.
– In addition to Ben Roethlisberger, a number of other members of the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers were in attendance at the Royal Rumble show on Sunday night.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here are some highlights of what JR said about:
Feedback He Got After The Royal Rumble: “I don’t think that I have received as much impassioned feedback on a WWE PPV event in recent memory as I have over the past several hours after the Royal Rumble ended. Many fans were downright pissed and shared their venom with yours truly.”
Daniel Bryan’s Exclusion From The Rumble: “Firstly, the vast majority of fans wanted Daniel Bryan to win the Royal Rumble so that he would be in line for a WWE World Title match at WM30. That did not happen. Yet. Obviously, Daniel Bryan has made an amazing connection with the WWE fans and I’d venture to say that today, 24 hours after the Royal Rumble, that Daniel Bryan has NEVER been more popular in his entire career.”
“At this point, Daniel Bryan becoming WWE World Champion would be great but it certainly isn’t definitively necessary for DB to be ‘over.’ Daniel Bryan is ‘over’ and his fans are seemingly rallying behind him in a verbal show of solidarity and support. If Bryan embraces this support, then a happier ending is more likely to occur. Will all this soap opera-esque content actually lead to happier days for Daniel Bryan fans? My guess is yes unless the sports entertainment business has changed even more than I perceive. However, I do think that patience needs to be infused here and that’s something that many of us aren’t long on.”
“Personally, I’m happy to stay tuned and enjoy the Daniel Bryan bullet train ride to wherever its destination may be. I am a firm believer that great talents cannot be suppressed permanently and that there is a method to what is perceived to be the madness that is on going. The Daniel Bryan phenomenon will likely result into a spirited and emotional Monday Night RAW that will also include a healthy TV rating. How WWE addresses the DB ‘conspiracy’ and creates an interest in the Elimination Chamber on PPV has my curiosity.”
Roman Reigns’ Big Night: “Huge night in Pittsburgh for Roman Reigns who set a record with 12 eliminations of which I guessed might happen. Of course, some think that I received inside info on that matter but if they only knew how little I communicate with anyone in WWE they would change their tune. It was a creative calculation that made sense to me. Today, it still makes sense. Reigns is a future star and if he had won the Royal Rumble that would have been just fine with me. However, Reigns, as a fan favorite, chasing either villains Orton or Batista would be money matches. Reigns era is rapidly approaching. The foundation is being laid.”
Bray Wyatt’s Performance: “Bray Wyatt was another of the younger talents who had a break through night and was a bigger star after the Rumble than before it. The 300 pounder with a 2nd gear athletically rose to the occasion vs. Bryan and then got more ‘stretch’ being involved in Cena’s loss to Orton.”
His Overall Thoughts On The PPV: “I’d give the PPV a B- or C+ grade and I paid retail for it just like most fans and I am not clamoring for a ‘refund.’ In hindsight, could things have been executed differently? Absolutely. But isn’t that the case with any show biz entity or even most sporting events?”
– TMZ picked up Mick Foley’s negative reaction to Sunday’s WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view show in Pittsburgh. You can check out their coverage at TMZ.com.
– The Cleveland Plain Dealer has a new interview up on their website with WWE Superstar The Miz to promote tonight’s WWE RAW show. You can check that out at Cleveland.com.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Gerald Brisco will be holding a wrestling talent evaluation at this year’s George Tragos/Lou Thesz Hall Of Fame weekend in Waterloo, Iowa on Friday, July 18th. For more information, contact Troy Peterson at [email protected].
Mick Foley will be bringing his comedy tour to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, the home of fellow former WWE Superstar Chris Jericho, on February 19th. In promoting the appearance to the Winnipeg Sun, Foley mentioned that he plans to crack a couple of jokes at Jericho’s expense during the show.
“He and I have a very friendly rivalry,” said Foley. “I never once defeated him during my career — a fact he made obvious dozens of times during the course of his last book, so I have to win moral victories on stage over him.”
The following are highlights of a recent interview with Kurt Angle from The Sun newspaper in the UK:
On his desire to return to WWE: “I can’t say when. My (TNA) contract is up in September and I’ve left my options open. I’m very happy in TNA. Dixie Carter has treated me very well and always been there for me. But, I can’t lie to myself anymore. I can’t lie to TNA or WWE. Yeah, there is that desire to go back. I just don’t know when. It could be this year. It could be next year. I don’t know when.”
“It’s not a bad thing to stay in TNA at all. I just have some unfinished business in WWE. Whether it’s this year or three years from now.”
On Hulk Hogan: “Hulk Hogan’s a good friend of mine. It was disappointing, but we had to make a company decision. It was, ‘Do we keep Hulk Hogan on without the physicality of wrestling?’ Because it seemed like Hogan wasn’t going to wrestle anymore. And, ‘Will he benefit the company?’ I believe he was benefiting the company,”
“I think that any amount of money he wanted was worth getting him, but the company at the same time had to make a business decision and decide if they wanted to keep him and pay him the big money or if they wanted to get rid of him and find some younger talent.”
On Sting’s departure from TNA: “Sting is the cornerstone of the company. Kurt Angle is not. A.J. Styles is not, as much as people want to say is the Face of the Company or Kurt Angle has helped the company more than anyone. Sting has always been our cornerstone and the man. He’s your go-to guy. To lose him is about as bad as it can get.”
– WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin noted he will be addressing the Daniel Bryan crowd reactions at the Royal Rumble on his next edition of the “Steve Austin Show” podcast. Austin tweeted:
– Following his return at the WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view on Sunday night, WWE has already released new Sheamus t-shirts.
– The cast of Educating Yorkshire did the Daniel Bryan “Yes!” chant on stage this past week after winning an award at the UK National Television Awards Show.
– The entire crowd at the Michigan State vs. Michigan college basketball game this past weekend did the “Yes!” chant once again. It has become a tradition at Michigan State basketball games for the fans to do the “Yes!” chant.
– Apparently Batista upset some company officials within WWE with the way he handled the reaction he received in Pittsburgh on Sunday night following his Royal Rumble victory. As noted, Batista yelled at fans and flipped them off after the show went off the air on Sunday night.
– Randy Orton was said to be angry backstage following his match with John Cena at the Royal Rumble. Apparently the crowd reactions on Sunday didn’t only get under Batista’s skin, but “The Viper’s” as well.
– Former WWE Diva Kaitlyn will be making a personal appearance at George’s Cards & Collectibles in Langhorne, Pennsylvania at the Oxford Valley Mall on February 15th from 12-3pm.
– Kevin Nash posted some comments about his surprise Royal Rumble appearance on Twitter on Sunday night. Nash tweeted:
Great to see my buddies and the boys.Pittsburgh thanks for the love. WWE thanks for letting me be apart of the Rumble. Kodiak insane spot
The exclusion of Daniel Bryan in the Royal Rumble match on Sunday night continues to be a hot topic in the wrestling world. The following are some Twitter comments from current and former WWE Superstars giving their take on the subject:
– For those keeping track, the Reddit user “Dolphins1925” again correctly predicted all of the matches for the 2014 WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view on Sunday night.
– Future WWE Hall Of Famer The Ultimate Warrior shared his thoughts on the 2014 Royal Rumble. Warrior tweeted the following on Sunday night:
Running 18yrs to end up back at WWE home, now they say run into Pittsburg, shake a few ropes, RUMBLE..DAMN! Blew a boot! Running past exit..
CNN.com ran a piece looking at five companies that are pushing the boundaries of television. First on their list is the upcoming WWE Network. CNN wrote:
“WWE: With its forthcoming WWE (WWE) Network, the pro wrestling monolith will be the biggest and most influential company to completely circumvent traditional television. With its $10-a-month streaming network, content from its cable offerings will also be available through the service. There will also be new original series developed exclusively for the network, and all 12 of its pay-per-view shows will be live-streamed to subscribers at no additional cost.
You can check out the complete article at Money.CNN.com.
WWE has added their post-Royal Rumble video interviews, which features comments from a number of participants in the actual Royal Rumble match, as well as others involved in the pay-per-view on Sunday night.
The New Age Outlaws are interviewed about their WWE Tag-Team Championship victory in the Royal Rumble Kickoff Show. Kevin Nash talks about his return and gives his endorsement of Roman Reigns. Paul Heyman talks about what’s next for Brock Lesnar. Kane explains why he eliminated CM Punk after he was already eliminated from the match.
The playlist features comments from several other participants in the actual Royal Rumble match, including Dolph Ziggler, Fandango, Big E. Langston and The Usos.
Check out the post-Royal Rumble video playlist at WWE.com.
