Welcome to the Grapevine! This section of Smark Henry is where we round up all the founded and unfounded rumors abound the pro wrestling scene that you may have missed over the week. Remember to take everything with a grain of salt!
What a Royal Rumble, huh?
- Edge's return to wrestling is not a one-off. The Rated-R Superstar, who was a surprise entrant in this year's men's Royal Rumble match, reportedly signed a three-year contract with WWE worth a lot of money, although there are no rumors yet on what the company has planned for him moving forward. There are also no updates yet on his health and the status of his spinal stenosis. (Source: Wrestling Inc, @Wrestlevotes on Twitter)
We say: We're still reeling. The assumption must be he's either cured or the condition isn't too bad enough to keep him away from the ring. It's not one of those lame-duck legends signings, too, as Edge is in even better shape now than he was when he retired. We can't wait to see where this heads.
- Sasha Banks may be injured, and her Royal Rumble spot was given to Kelly Kelly. The unspecified injury may have been the cause of her scheduled matches with Lacey Evans getting cancelled and her absence at the PPV. (Source: PWInsider)
We say: That's really unfortunate, as she had a chance for a great showing on this show. We hope she's all right.
- Vic Joseph has apparently been replaced by Tom Philips on the RAW announce team. This was reportedly a decision by the WWE, and it's not clear yet where Joseph will go. Prior to joining the RAW team last September, Joseph was calling play-by-play on 205 Live and NXT UK, so it's likely he will return there. (Source: @Wrestlevotes on Twitter)
We say: While Vic Joseph isn't a terrible play-by-play commentator by any means, at this point he and Tom Philips are sort of interchangeable, so... we don't quite get why they had to make this move. Perhaps it might have been a matter of pressure. We won't know until we get some more updates.
Let us know what you think of today's news in the comments!
Photo from WWE
