The Wrestling Thread has much larger nipples

[Hunter Rider]

 

[Lobo]

Well damn Jackie

 

[Lobo]

These two have known each other a long time

 

[Dr. Evil]

WWE could have easily ignored any references to AJ Lee but they haven't. I posted earlier that Big E said in the Clash in Paris Post Show that CM Punk has a wife, and that Jackie Redmond mentioned her by name. And also Becky's responses to the chats of AJ Lee. If she wasn't in the plans, Jackie and Big E would not have referenced her and Becky would not have responded to those chants with "she doesn't work here anymore."

Also, Punk would not have had the reaction he had to the answer from Pearce about Smackdown in Chicago if AJ Lee wasn't coming back. There's no doubt that he would have been there as it is Chicago, but if his wife wasn't in the plans, he would not have had that reaction. Instead he would have been there in a random backstage appearance with Cena or Orton.

While there's no doubt that Rhea Ripley will be at Crown Jewel, it will be her facing the winner of Stephanie vs. Iyo and as much as I like both of them, Iyo will walk out of WrestlePalooza as a three-time champion so she can face Rhea and Rhea can finish her story.

Plus being on the same night as an AEW's All Out, WWE needs some major buzz heading into WrestlePalooza, and what better way to do that then to have AJ Lee's WWE return being there.

 

[Hunter Rider]

 

[Dr. Evil]

WWE has done this a lot since Triple H took over: a match between two superstars I like and therefore conflicted. However, it makes sense storyline wise for Iyo to win the match because of the PLE after this: Crown Jewel. Crown Jewel is in Australia this year and that is Rhea Ripley's home country. It's time for Rhea to finally beat Iyo......unless a monkey wrench named Asuka is thrown into the mix to make it a triple threat, with Rhea still coming out on top in her home country but still not having pinned Iyo.

A quick three week reign losing to Rhea in Australia does more harm to Stephanie than it does to Iyo. Iyo can afford a short three week reign, because we all know that she will get a 4th sometime down the road and her last reign was actually pretty good. Stephanie will get her chance if she wins the Rumble.

 

[Hunter Rider]

WWE has done this a lot since Triple H took over: a match between two superstars I like and therefore conflicted. However, it makes sense storyline wise for Iyo to win the match because of the PLE after this: Crown Jewel. Crown Jewel is in Australia this year and that is Rhea Ripley's home country. It's time for Rhea to finally beat Iyo......unless a monkey wrench named Asuka is thrown into the mix to make it a triple threat, with Rhea still coming out on top in her home country but still not having pinned Iyo.

A quick three week reign losing to Rhea in Australia does more harm to Stephanie than it does to Iyo. Iyo can afford a short three week reign, because we all know that she will get a 4th sometime down the road and her last reign was actually pretty good. Stephanie will get her chance if she wins the Rumble.

Don't the Champions from each brand face each other at Crown Jewel? I expect Asuka to cost Iyo the match and it'll be Rhea & Iyo vs the Kabuki Warriors at Crown Jewel, or it might become a TLC Match for the tag titles, with Charlotte & Alexa also in the mix.

 

[Hunter Rider]

I'm sure there'll be several women on the roster who would like to work with AJ when she returns, I mean she's definitely gotta do something with her wrestling daughter Roxy.

 

[Dr. Evil]

Don't the Champions from each brand face each other at Crown Jewel? I expect Asuka to cost Iyo the match and it'll be Rhea & Iyo vs the Kabuki Warriors at Crown Jewel, or it might become a TLC Match for the tag titles, with Charlotte & Alexa also in the mix.

Only a Saudi thing.

 

[Lobo]

I definitely want to see AJ work with Roxanne and Alexa if she comes back for more than a one off.

 

[blueharvest]

‘Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling’ Coming to WWE Vault YouTube Channel (EXCLUSIVE)

The animated series "Hulk Hogan's Rock'n'Wrestling" is coming to the WWE Vault YouTube channel.

variety.com

 

[AndrewGilkison]

View attachment 147118

‘Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling’ Coming to WWE Vault YouTube Channel (EXCLUSIVE)

The animated series "Hulk Hogan's Rock'n'Wrestling" is coming to the WWE Vault YouTube channel.

variety.com

I loved when William Regal cut a promo on this cartoon when he wrestled Hogan in 2002 on RAW.

 

[Hunter Rider]

 

[Hunter Rider]

 

[Hunter Rider]

 

[Dr. Evil]

Smackdown preview for tonight is basically.....we'll probably hear this:

 

[Hunter Rider]

As well as the anticipated return of AJ Lee and expected appearance from Brock Lesnar, two matches have been announced for Smackdown tonight in Chicago.

 

[Hunter Rider]

Well Smackdown has certainly gotten off to a huge start, good match between Sami and Cena before Brock arrived to demolish them both. I actually wondered if Kurt Angle might be part of the opening promo bit, as he was Cena’s opponent the night he debuted in Chicago.

 

[Hunter Rider]

Really good, physical match between Black and Priest, the story throughout of Priest already being knocked loopy from the pre-match attack by Black was sold really well, and the finish was spot on.

 

[Shinobi Shaw]

Welp.

What did we think of AJ Lee’s return?

 

[Hunter Rider]

That was executed perfectly, they built up to AJ's music hitting with Becky getting more and more heat and Seth gloating, and then the thunderous pop when "light it up" hit, and AJ Lee is just a Superstar, she absolutely owned it from the moment she stepped through the entrance, working the crowd every step of the way, and then when it got to the phyiscal moment, Becky did exactly what a great heel does, she sold the face like a million bucks, and AJ was looking sharp, bravo to both Ladies!

 

[Dr. Evil]

In her mind, Becky thought AJ Lee had retired for good, hence the shock face when "Light it Up" hit.

There are reports that WrestlePalooza with CM Punk isn't going to be a one off match for her. If that is the case, it will be interesting to see if she can hang with the current WWE women, which she most likely can.

Also interactions with her wrestling daughter Roxanne Perez please.

 

[Hunter Rider]

 

[Dr. Evil]

Since Punk came back to WWE at Survivor Series 2023, it was inevitable that AJ Lee was going to go back there as well, but I had thought that she would come back under a legends deal. I spent most of the night watching the Chiefs vs. Chargers NFL game, but when I saw that Becky was going to go on for the final segment, I watched the entire segment.

Too late to put her in WWE 2K26 but she's in WWE 2K27 for sure.

Oh I noticed that the WWE Vault YouTube channel put up a "Rise of AJ Lee" video a month ago.

 

[Dr. Evil]

The clues to her return were there.

- It was posted here around the time of Evolution that AJ Lee had posted a picture of her ring gear on her Instagram. It was most likely because she had been training at the time and Evolution would not have been right for her to return. People wanted her and/or Paige (I will talk about her later) to return at Evolution. That did not happen.
- WWE Vault (run by WWE) posted a Rise of AJ Lee video last month.
- Last week during the Clash in Paris post show, WWE could have told Jackie Redmond and Big E to ignore Punk holding an AJ Lee sign but WWE did not, with Jackie mentioning her by name.
- On Monday, again WWE could have told Becky to ignore the chants for AJ Lee, but twice she said that AJ Lee was no longer working there. Punk said something unusual in response to Smackdown being in Chicago afterwards.
- Before she came out, AJ Lee chants were prevalent in the building. Becky told them to shut up but Punk allowed them to chant her name.

The WWE response to AJ Lee mentions in the last two weeks has been unusual, but that's a good thing because normally they would ignore the WWE Universe chanting the name of a wrestler who hasn't been here in years, as they ignored the Punk chants for years until he came back.