Who are your picks to win the 2021 Royal Rumble matches?
To predict Royal Rumble winners we have to give consideration to what WWE plans to do at WrestleMania 37 next year. Matches that have been discussed include Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton vs. Edge and Drew McIntyre vs. Tyson Fury. As for the women’s title pictures, WWE expects both Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch to be back. So it depends on where the titles are. I don’t see Reigns dropping the Universal Championship prior to WrestleMania, so there is a chance for Lesnar to make a surprise return to WWE at the show in January and go over in the match. This would be especially true if WWE has a live audience. How about a surprise Edge return at Royal Rumble? That’s another route WWE could take. It’s unlikely McIntyre defends the WWE Championship against Tyson Fury at WrestleMania. As of mid-October, with much unknown with the COVID-19 pandemic, I am going with Edge returning and winning. Charlotte Flair is my pick for the women’s match.
Do you feel that with AEW ratings still below the one million mark, that it’s proven that mainstream TV ratings shouldn’t be scrutinized as much?
Tony Khan is very much in tune with how many people are watching Dynamite each week. I totally agree viewing habits have changed and the weekly numbers are not 100% indicative of the success of a promotion. However, AEW wants to be doing over one million viewers each week on TNT and the feeling backstage is had it not been for the COVID-19 pandemic, they would be.
Was the former WWE NXT talent that leaked Eric Bischoff’s AEW debut ever discovered?
The back story on this is Eric Bischoff’s surprise debut with AEW as the special guest moderator in a debate segment between Chris Jericho and Orange Cassidy leaked online before it happened. Jericho stated it was revealed by an NXT reject. Everyone believes it was Tino Sabbatelli. I do not believe that has been confirmed but that has been the belief for months.
With the 2020 WWE Draft behind us do you have any final musings?
Overall the draft is a tired and overdone concept. WWE sets rules for the draft, only to change them ignore them as the draft is happening. Superstars end up getting “traded” for nothing or cross-appearing due to some illogical stipulation that is actually Vince moving talent around to pop viewership. This year’s Draft was underwhelming. It is time to come up with a new way to explain how talent is exchanged between the brands. If you missed any of the moves, we have an updated ticker available at this link.
The next installment of Ask WNC is scheduled to run on Wednesday, October 21, 2020.
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