Will McIntyre be out of Rumble?
It was announced last Monday that WWE champion Drew McIntyre had tested positive for Covid-19 and would be out of action.
The Royal Rumble, WWE’s second-biggest show of the year, takes place two weeks from today and several readers have emailed asking if McIntyre will still be defending the title against Goldberg.
While no one can say for sure, the belief is that McIntyre will be cleared and ready to go for the show.
If McIntyre were not able to compete, I would anticipate Goldberg entering, and winning, the Rumble so the pair could square off at WrestleMania.
It is unlikely WWE would put Goldberg in a one-on-one match considering his deal only calls for two matches per year, and one is expected to be saved for Mania.
Austin to appear on Dark Side
Word broke Thursday that Stone Cold Steve Austin will appear during the third season of Dark Side of the Ring, a show that airs on Vice. Austin will appear on the episode that will look at the life, career and death of Brian Pillman.
The show is not considered a major mainstream-type of show, so getting Austin to appear is huge for the show and there is no doubt the Pillman episode will be the highest-rated in the history of the series because of Austin’s appearance.
More Austin
Speaking of Austin, his show on the USA Network, Straight Up Steve Austin, aired the first episode of its new season Monday. It airs after Raw each week.
Former WWE champ out
Kofi Kingston has been out with a jaw injury and the extent of the injury has not been officially announced. There is word that it may be broke, but it has not been confirmed.
If Kingston is out of the Rumble, it will take away on of the yearly highlights as he usually avoids elimination in a unique way almost every year.
This Day in History
In 1991, Big Van Vader defeated Tatsumi Fujinami to win the IWGP heavyweight title.
In 1992, The Mountie shocked the pro wrestling world when he defeated Bret Hart to win the Intercontinental title. The storyline was that Hart had a high fever, but the title change took place because of issues pertaining to contract negotiations with Hart.
This week’s question
I follow Japanese wrestling and I see where a new strand of Covid-19 may affect American wrestlers traveling there. How long could this last? Bob from Uniontown.
That is a question for medical experts and Japanese government officials, but I can see it lasting for a while if it fully goes into effect.
Traveling abroad is what brought the pandemic to America, so the less travel, the better, for all aspects of life and not just pro wrestling.
Email questions/comments to powerhousehughes@gmail.com or tweet them to @BillHughes_III.