NEWS

Monday Night Raw
Date: January 9, 2023
Location: Legacy Arena, Birmingham, Alabama
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves
We’re back to the red show and closing in on the Royal Rumble. There are only three names announced for the Royal Rumbles so far and that means some spots need to be filled. Odds are some of that is done tonight but there is the chance that they’re leaving some surprises this year. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Here is Kevin Owens to get things going and the fans seem to like him. Before he can say much though, here is JBL to interrupt. After insulting the crowd, JBL says no one is buying Owens having a chance against Roman Reigns. JBL brings out Baron Corbin to insult the fans even more, including some University of Alabama insults. Owens buries his face in the turnbuckle as Corbin gets in every standard insult you can imagine. He says he was in a “JBL and Baron Corbin were talking for three minutes but didn’t say anything” coma but for now he’s willing ..

Welcome back. There are so many wrestlers on the WWE roster that it is almost impossible to keep all of them on television at the same time. At some point some of them have to go and that makes for some timely absences. It also sets up some nice returns down the line though, as you can get see someone come back, often in a surprise. That was the situation again this week in a big way.
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Bobby Lashley made a surprise return this week on Monday Night Raw, announcing that his suspension was over and that he would be entering the 2023 Men’s Royal Rumble match. Later in the show, MVP tried to convince Lashley to rejoin the Hurt Business but was turned down. This was Lashley’s first appearance on television since the December 12, 2022 Monday Night Raw, when he was suspended for attacking WWE officials.
Lashley is a force. Check out what is back on Monday Night Raw:
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That could be bad. Injuries are one of the worst things that can happen in wrestling. Not only do they put a wrestler on the shelf for an undetermined period of time, but they also can happen out of nowhere. Some injuries are built up over time and then flare up during a match, which appears to have been the case with a national star who was appearing for a major independent show.

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Over the weekend, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla presented its annual Battle Of Los Angeles tournament. According to Wrestling Observer Radio, Bandido was injured during the two night event, though he was still able to wrestle both of his matches. Bandido is said to have injured his neck in a match with Black Taurus and El Hijo de Vikingo and was slowed down during his match the following night with Kommander. The injury is described as something that has “flared up” multiple times over the last few..

That’s a special status. There are all kinds of wrestlers in WWE but only a handful of them reach the top level. Those are the names who can get away with quite a bit more than the rest and are given a good bit of leeway. You can see them in various special situations which feel very different from anything else. Now we have another legend suggesting that a current star has such a different status.
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WWE Hall Of Famer appeared on the Strictly Business podcast where he discussed the idea of wrestlers having creative control in their contracts. Bischoff alleged that Brock Lesnar has such control in his WWE contract and “exercises the hell out of it”. Lesnar wrestles a limited schedule for WWE and reportedly gets to hand pick his opponents. There is no word on when he will be wrestling next.
Lesnar has been a force in WWE. Check out some of his recent exploits:
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That’s a lot going on. Wrestlers have a lot of difficulties throughout their careers and many of them can be rather complicated to deal with on a regular basis. In some cases that is even more difficult than others, as you will occasionally find a wrestler who has more issues than their colleagues. One suck wrestler is having that kind of a problem and has a good deal to say about it.
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AEW’s Kyle O’Reilly has not wrestled a match since June 8, 2022 on Dynamite. Since then, O’Reilly has been dealing with an unspecified health issue that has kept him out of action for over seven months. O’Reilly made a post to Instagram over the weekend, talking about how he has to come back better than he left. He also discusses working with a specialist to deal with his Type-1 diabetes and a transmitter to monitor his blood sugar. There is no word on when O’Reilly will be returning to the ring.
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The sincerest form of flattery. There are several stories taking place in WWE at the moment, but almost all of them pale in comparison to the Bloodline. The biggest story in the company, the Bloodline saga has seen people come and go, with everything revolving around Roman Reigns. This includes Sami Zayn, who showed what kind of a fan he was over the weekend.
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On Saturday night, WWE ran a live even in Jackson, Mississippi, featuring a main event of the Bloodline facing Braun Strowman/the Brawling Brutes. During the match, Zayn used Roman Reigns’ Superman Punch on Strowman and tried a spear, though Strowman countered the latter. Zayn used Reigns’ traditional poses before both moves. This is something Zayn has done occasionally since joining the team.
This is something that Reigns has earned. Check out Zayn’s imitation and the two on better terms:
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The big time. We are in a new year and that means it is time to start doing new things in WWE. That can include all kinds of new concepts, or perhaps doing something in a different way. WWE has a lot of options open to it and some of those can be rather interesting. One such change has already been announced and now we know a good bit more about how the plan came into being.
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Last week, WWE announced that it would be holding its annual Money In The Bank event this year at the 02 Arena in London, England, marking the first time the event has been held outside of North America. According to Fightful Select, WWE could have held the show in a stadium and sold it out, but they felt that the 02 is the “Madison Square Garden of England” and wanted to run the venue. In addition, running Money In The Bank in England makes the event feel like one of the biggest of the year.
There have been some big ones. Check out ..

They might be next. NXT is in a unique situation in the wrestling world as its purpose is to repopulate the WWE main roster. Therefore, despite being a wrestling show on national television, NXT exists for its wrestlers to move up to the next level. You can occasionally see a sign that a wrestler is moving up and that might be taking place again with a pair of NXT stars.
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According to PWInsider.com, Pretty Deadly (Kit Wilson/Elton Prince) will be working this weekend’s WWE live events. This will be the team’s main roster debut, though there is no word on if they will be called up anytime soon. Pretty Deadly are currently feuding with New Day over the NXT Tag Team Titles, having lost the titles to New Day last month at Deadline.
The team is rather unique. Check out the two of them at their best:
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It got his attention. Wrestlers have to be in the ring quite a few times every week, many of which are not going to be seen by a majority of the fans. With several events taking place just in front of the live fans, wrestlers need to do something to keep things interesting, or at least entertaining. That is something that was done at one point between two legends, one of whom was not pleased.
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During a recent edition of the Kurt Angle Show, Kurt Angle told a story of a match with the Undertaker in Japan. Following the match, Angle told Undertaker that they should hug, which Undertaker did. As they did, Angle kissed Undertaker on the lips, leaving Undertaker livid as Angle left. Undertaker said that it was a long flight home, with Angle saying that it was the only time he saw Undertaker laugh.
This was a weird one. Check out what happened, plus the two in more natural circumstances:
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On the market. The wrestling world moves very fast as wrestlers are often going from one promotion to another. Contracts have slowed some of this movement down, but those deals eventually expire, meaning things can get interesting again. That is the case again, as a former WWE wrestler is a free agent, despite being a reigning champion in another promotion.

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According to Fightful Select, reigning MLW Tag Team Champion EJ Nduka is officially a free agent and has been since January 1. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Nduka has drawn interest from WWE, AEW and various Japanese promotions. Nduka formerly wrestled for WWE as part of NXT, under the name Ezra Stone. There is no word on where Nduka will sign next or when he will announce his move.
He has done this for a bit. Check out some of Nduka in action:
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That’s a new one. There have been a lot of wrestlers throughout the years but very few are able to make much of a lasting impact for one reason or another. Some of the wrestlers will do something outside of the ring that makes them more noteworthy, but those are often going to be rather unique situations. Now a former WWE star is playing off of his reputation in more of a fun way.

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WWE Hall Of Famer Tony Atlas, 68 years old, has released a video (safe for work) showing a woman hitting him and eventually stomping on his face. The video ends with a surprising message from Atlas, who says nothing else throughout. Atlas’ obsession with women’s feet has been known over the years, with several wrestlers and wrestling personalities commenting on it.
This is different. Check out the video, plus some more traditional Atlas wrestling:
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One more? Wrestling is a unique sport in that you will occasionally see people who are not normally wrestlers getting in the ring for a match. You don’t often see a coach or a broadcaster taking part in other sports, but wrestling is not exactly normal. It can be a special moment when someone gets back in the ring after a long absence though and now we are set to see it again.

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During a recent edition of his After 83 Weeks podcast, WWE Hall Of Famer Eric Bischoff, 67, announced that he will be returning to the ring at a show in Florida on February 11. Bischoff said that his son Garrett, Gerald Brisco, Wes Brisco and Bischoff himself will be in the same ring, though he did not specify who would be wrestling whom. Bischoff’s most recent match took place on the April 26, 2012 edition of Impact Wrestling, though the match only lasted three seconds.
Bischoff has had quite a histo..