Batson's Blog

Surprise entrants in the Royal Rumble are always one of the highlights of that event. Sometimes, WWE management lets the fans down by failing miserably at the booking. 2020, in particular, was an awful year for the men's Royal Rumble. Edge was the big surprise return, and that was definitely awesome, but no other surprises (big or small) happened in that match. I'm not entirely sure what will happen at this year's Royal Rumble. It's the first Rumble under Triple H's management (assuming that Vince McMahon doesn't regain creative control before then). Really, anything could happen. I'm assuming Shane McMahon won't be an entrant or involved in any of the planning, but Bad Bunny, Logan Paul, The Rock, or John Cena could all show up. I'm assuming Cody Rhodes returns, but that's more of an expected surprise. I would honestly not mind if he didn't take part in the Rumble and showed up the following night on Raw, or a few days later on Smackdown, t...

It's that time of year again. Yes, it's almost time to point at the Wrestlemania sign ad nauseam. Unfortunately that is actually a fact, but what I'm looking forward to is the usually exciting, sometimes career-making Royal Rumble match ... hopefully with some jaw-dropping surprises. It's those surprises that I really look forward to. After two decades of booking the Rumble, WWE producers and matchmakers now realize the importance of surprise returns and Easter eggs sprinkled throughout the match. However, they don't always live up to my expectations. Granted, my expectations can sometimes be too high, but usually WWE just falls short on things that they should've and could've booked. Maybe I'm a glutton for punishment, but I have a full list of expectations this year. I, like some of the Internet Wrestling Community, am a little upset that WWE ruined some of the surprise entrants in the women's rumble this year. Summer Rae isn't someone I was an...

The Royal Rumble is one of my favorite matches of the year.  It's kind of like an Avengers movie.  You see all kinds of interactions (and surprise returns) that you don't see any other time of year in any other match. I blogged about some potential female returns yesterday, so today let's talk about the guys. It's interesting that I had a little bit of trouble coming up with this list.  Several former female superstars could easily return for one more match. A lot of the former male superstars are, sadly, deceased.  Or they are with another company (John Morrison, Cody Rhodes, etc.). That makes it a little tricky to get a good list of possible surprise Rumble entrants. I assume we'll see some returns at the Rumble since there are several Superstars who are currently injured (and may be ready to go by January 27). Braun Strowman Kevin Owens Sami Zayn Fandango Roman Reigns Harper Rowan Matt Hardy Sin Cara Tye Dillinger I'm not sure how likel...