Greatest Royal Rumble?

[Mrzfn]

 

 

Sounds like they are going for some attitude era nostalgia in this though. Wonder how many fans there may be in Saudi Arabia that would remember?

I don't know if it's that as much as "Holy shit, we have to fill this match with 50 people - let's get anyone and everyone even remotely recognizable into this thing."

Right. Lol More thinking out loud than anything else, and trying to understand the decision making process. I guess if the wrestlers that have matches besides the Rumble pull double duty, plus if they bring some NXT guys along too, they probably have 50 men in the company.

 

 

Even completely excluding NXT, 205 Live, UK guys, and anyone who could possibly be considered a part timer, by my count WWE has 61 active men on the roster. Add in Cena, Kane, Lesnar, Bryan, Taker, Mysterio, Jericho, Triple H, and Big Show, and you're up to 70 right there, and they haven't even tapped into those reserves.

 

The WWE roster is ridiculous right now.

[Strummer]

AJ v Nak for the title announced for the show

[C.S.]

I heard Kane was pulled from the GRR because of his political duties. If that was posted in this very thread, please accept my apologies for re-heating old news.

[iamthedoctor]

If its a random house show televised I hope a Legend wins it.

[El-P]

FWIW, from the French TV timeframe, this is gonna be a 4h 40 mn show (this include a commercial break or two here). Insane.

[Richeyedwards]

Sky has it as 5 hours on box office

 

Edit: the network schedule has it as going 5 hours plus a one hour preshow

[khawk20]

Sky has it as 5 hours on box office

 

Edit: the network schedule has it as going 5 hours plus a one hour preshow

 

That's nuts.

[sek69]

All the socio-political issues aside, another reason to skip this show is not needing another marathon slog less than a month after Mania.

[Seabs]

In fairness I assume the Rumble goes on last and lasts a good 90 minutes. A Rumble with all the stars its going to have in it is as good as anything to round out a 5-6 hour show.

 

Top banter if they open with Reigns/Lesnar so they get the crowd at their hottest.

[Jmare007]

I wonder what the reaction would be if WM 35 is main evented by women for the first time with Ronda headlining....only for 3 weeks later the "real" main event is booked for 2nd annual Saudi show?

[Victator]

I wonder what the reaction would be if WM 35 is main evented by women for the first time with Ronda headlining....only for 3 weeks later the "real" main event is booked for 2nd annual Saudi show?

Mania is so long now, they might be doing the old SNME gimmick of real main event mid show. I think that is why the mixed tag was relatively early this year.

[C.S.]

Excerpts from a Triple H interview about women not appearing at GRR (transcript courtesy of Wrestling Inc.):

 

Women not wrestling at the event this Friday:

"I understand that people are questioning it, but you have to understand that every culture is different and just because you don't agree with a certain aspect of it, it doesn't mean it's not a relevant culture. You can't dictate to a country or a religion about how they handle things but, having said that, WWE is at the forefront of a women's evolution in the world and what you can't do is affect change anywhere by staying away from it."

Women eventually wrestling in Saudi Arabia:

"While, right now, women are not competing in the event, we have had discussions about that and we believe and hope that, in the next few years they will be. That is a significant cultural shift in Saudi Arabia.

"The country is in the middle of a shift in how it is dealing with that – the position is changing, and rights are changing, as are the way women are handled and treated in society. We think that's a great thing and we're excited to be at the forefront of that change."

Full interview:

https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/wwe-mma-wrestling/wwe-greatest-royal-rumble-saudi-arabia-triple-h-interview-defends-no-women-wrestlers-a8319446.html

[El-P]

"I understand that people are questioning it, but you have to understand that every culture is different and just because you don't agree with a certain aspect of it, it doesn't mean it's not a relevant culture. You can't dictate to a country or a religion about how they handle things but, having said that, WWE is at the forefront of a women's evolution in the world and what you can't do is affect change anywhere by staying away from it."

 

Gently go fuck yourself, TriPaul.

[FMKK]

A women's evolution in the world lol.

 

As if women haven't succeeded in music, film, sport, politics etc for the last century before Stephanie McMahon came along and invented feminism in 2016.

[sek69]

Not to mention the logic doesn't make sense. They're going to affect change by going to a country with a horrible record toward women's rights and.....do exactly what that country would do any other time? Yeah that will certainly show them by taking their fat checks and telling the women to stay home.

 

Plus I love how he makes it sound like it's just a weird culture thing, like eating strange instead of keeping half the population in the stone age.

 

Fun fact: if you ever look into why women are treated the way they are, it's because the belief is if women were allowed to go freely and dress however they like then men wouldn't be able to control themselves.

[Robert S]

What a pity that Noam Dar is not a pushed wrestler because that could have been a really "fun" 1-2 punch.

[sek69]

He's out with a knee injury anyway. What's the second punch, btw? I know he's Israeli, is he gay as well (that's the only other thing I could guess would bother the Saudis)?

[Robert S]

With punch 1 I meant the women's stuff that was talked about here. Though at least the women could have gotten into the country, which I doubt Dar would have been able to (I don't know if he has a UK or an Israel passport, but for countries like Saudi Arabia it would have even been enough if there was a Israel stamp in Dar's passport for him not to be able to get into the country).

[Cornette's racket]

I wonder what would happen to a wrestler if they said they objected to going to the event due to the obvious issues in the KSA ? Could WWE fire them ?

[Mrzfn]

Just ask Neville what happens if you rock the boat.

[C.S.]

What a pity that Noam Dar is not a pushed wrestler because that could have been a really "fun" 1-2 punch.

 

Pretty sure he hasn't been pushed as Israeli since the Cruiserweight Classic. All I've heard emphasized since then is the Scottish part of his upbringing.

 

I could have missed something though, as I thought Noam Dar was the drizzling shits in the CWC and I haven't exactly been glued to my seat for his matches since then.

 

Edit: Someone brought up Israel being stamped on Dar's passport, which is presumably an issue when it comes to getting into Saudi Arabia.

 

I wonder what would've happened if a real star like Goldberg was still with the company.

[sek69]

Somewhere Colt Cobana is waiting for his phone to ring.....

[gordi]

Is Paul Heyman going?

[Cornette's racket]

Is Paul Heyman going?

No.

[sek69]

That's going to be kind of weird for them to explain why the champion's manager wasn't at such a big show, especially if Brock loses there.

 

I mean, other than just coming out and saying "Jews aren't particularly welcome there" that is.