Brian Damage
It’s Saturday and today we have ’This Week in Wrestling’, the 4th entry of 2022. Today Brian looks at the 2022 Royal Rumble and how unpredictable this year’s event seemingly will be. Is that a good thing or bad? It might not be all that great and shares all the best wrestling content from this week.
The 2022 Royal Rumble: Unpredictable And Maybe Not in a Good Way
The Royal Rumble was always a WWE event I looked forward to….much more than Wrestlemania or any other premier WWE show. I loved the unpredictability of it all and of course all the surprise entrants. This year, however, it will certainly be unpredictable….but perhaps not in the best way. First of all, the booking in recent years has been erratic at best. There have been so many moving parts with wrestlers being released, others being pushed and then never to be heard from again…etc, etc.
Secondly, WWE who has for the most part been a separate entity from the rest of the wrestling world has added Impact Wrestling’s Mickie James to the Rumble match. This after the much publicized release and then having her belongings shipped to her in a garbage bag. The WWE also invited the formerly known IIconics aka The IInspiration to compete in the Rumble only to be turned down. There are rumors that Asuka, Ronda Rousey and maybe even Paige will compete in the women’s Royal Rumble. None of that is bad, but inviting wrestlers from another company you once considered expendable doesn’t make much sense. And oh yeah WWE legend Summer Rae is back.
On the men’s side of the Rumble you have Jackass star Johnny Knoxville entered to compete which I think is just awful and a waste of a space for another qualified entrant. I get WWE is a business and I am sure they are being paid a nice sum of money to have Knoxville in the Rumble….I just don’t like it personally. I have zero idea who will win this year’s Royal Rumble which is a good thing.
Then there’s the “Dream Match” between Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley for the WWE title. This has definitely been a match in the making for a number of years and it is finally going to happen at the Royal Rumble. The question is though…how good will it actually be? Lesnar’s matches have been on the short side in recent years and as good as Lashley has been as of late…can he and Lesnar put together a memorable match? The jury is out on that one.
Then there is the Universal title match between Roman Reigns and his former Shield partner Seth Rollins. We have seen this match in the past….this time it will be heel vs heel. The two do work well together, it just doesn’t excite me. Hopefully, they can put together something special in the ring.
Lastly, let’s talk about the actual venue for the event…The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Don’t get me wrong, St. Louis is a great wrestling town. The fans there appreciate the business like few other cities do. With that said though, reports have been that ticket sales for the Royal Rumble were not that great. Was it due to all the bad booking? The ongoing pandemic? Lack of overall interest? Whatever the case, it will be interesting to see if WWE is able to sell out the place or come close to that or will we see a slew of empty seats?
The 2022 Royal Rumble has a lot of question marks attached to it. I hope the event will be entertaining and filled with some jaw dropping moments. The company can certainly use a solid show to help them move forward into Wrestlemania season. We shall see.
Photo Gallery
If this doesn’t describe Mondays…what does?
Hook is a breakout star for AEW…
Early face paint for the Road Warriors. Animal’s face says it all.
RIP Meatloaf
I miss Gorilla Monsoon.
Check out this dugout filled with legends.
Awesome artwork
AEW’s Ricky Starks
Cole Vs Cole
Great sketch of Jim Cornette!
Mick Foley and Terry Funk then and now.
Thunder Rosa and a a Giant Peach lol
NXT’s Gigi Dolin
Scarlett Bordeaux
A recent pic of Kristina Laum aka ECW’s Kimona Wannaleya
Will Adult Film star Kendra Lust be entered into the 2022 Women’s Royal Rumble?
Ruthless Aggression…Candice Michelle and Kelly Kelly
Okay….that’s it…I’m out!
Video Gallery
Here’s a throwback for you. Who remembers the show that came on right after Monday Night Raw during the 1990’s? If your answer is Silk Stalkings…..you win!
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Ring the Damn Bell 
Aww man Silk Stockings, now THAT takes me back. Cheesy as hell and the very definition of softcore porn, but for a young teen like I was back then, you certainly weren’t watching for the gripping storylines. Le Femme Nikita was another one that had a respectable run following Raw for awhile. Then there was a music show that came on but that didn’t last long, had Matt Pinfield on it. Farmclub I think it was. Good times.
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Loved silk stalkings
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Silk Stockings was written by Stephen J Canal
The man who created the A Team
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Wrestling fans hate the cross promotion stuff like Knoxville but it’s great for the company. Like the Zombies and the Egg, it’s an easy million for them. And it gets mainstream publicity that could bring eyes. There is a reason the company has a market cap of over 3.8 BILLION and it’s a joke when fans claim they are going out of business. Like everyone I get frustrated at the product they put out at times but you can’t argue what they are doing is working financially.
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I thought the rumble was good. Actually the female matches and rumble were great.
Reigns v Rollins was an awful finish. Maybe go double dq vs the final finish.
While i don’t watch wwe regularly the storylines are still boring and predictable. I think most of us figured after Lesnar lost he was winning the rumble. But going in as 30? I get save himself for it but if he’s the beast go and squash everyone to send the message.
As usual the Miz does great work as does Edge. That was an exciting match.
But this is why I prefer aew over sports entertainment
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The Best part of Prime Time Wresting in the 1980’s, where Gorilla and the Brain
Also, I’ve written a promo introducing The Great Leader
A heel wresting manager I’ve created and posted it on my blog
I would love to know what real professional wrestling fans think of it, sorry for the shameless plug.
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