Official Monday Night Raw & Smackdown Thread

[Zeppelin1985]

With the announcement last night on Raw, I'm officially worried that this year's Rumble is going to suck.

- Reigns is #1. I'd be completely surprised if he isn't there to the end. So, gonna have to watch him out there the whole match. Which means, IMO, the whole Rumble is being booked around him (AGAIN, see last year, ugh).
- If I got it right from last night, The League of Nations, Social Outcasts and The Wyatt Family are all going to be in the Royal Rumble. That's 12 spots gone.

[ajcorleone]

WWE seems to be under more scrutiny

Sean Morley, best known for his original Val Venis porn star character during WWE’s Attitude Era, recently appeared as a guest on The Two Man Power Trip Of Wrestling podcast and spoke about being an advocate for the legal
On Using Medical Marijuana In Light Of his Friends Dying From Pain Meds:

“I was still taking pharmaceutical drugs and was always on pain pills and every time I got injured, whether it was my elbows, my neck, my shoulder I would always go back to what the doctor would prescribe me and that was anti inflammatories and still my friends were dying from it. As time went on I started to notice that we have been lied to about this plan and my friends are dying left, right and center from big pharmaceutical pills and I think the straw that broke the camel’s back was when one of my best friends, Andrew “Test” Martin passed away from pharmaceutical pain meds.
That’s when I said okay enough is enough and that’s when I really took a stand, came off the pills and I didn’t have to go to rehab. My body was addicted to the pills and did have to go through two weeks of horrible withdrawals. But the second week of those withdrawals I started utilizing marijuana on the advice of a friend. It didn’t get rid of the sickness of the withdrawals but what it did was make the withdraws bearable. It made it easy to just wait out the withdrawals and when I came out on the other end I never looked back and that was in 2008.”

On How WWE’s Talent Wellness Program Handles Marijuana vs. Prescription Narcotic Painkillers:

“To me it’s not a stringent Wellness Policy at all. I could drive a Mack Truck through their Wellness Policy. The reality of the situation is I was on those pills and I was testing positive for those pills yet I passed my drug test every single time. The reason I passed my drug test every single time was because as soon as I’d test positive for Hydrocodone, Dr. Black from [Aegis Sciences] who is the main Doctor at the testing facility would call me up and ask for a valid prescription for Hydrocodone pills. I would send him a valid prescription and two weeks later I would get a letter in the mail saying CONGRATULATIONS you passed your wellness exam.
The fact that you have a valid prescription for these pills doesn’t change the fact that people get addicted to them and die. Test had a prescription for them. Almost every wrestler has had a prescription for them. They don’t test for it, they say they test for the quantity of hydrocodone in your system. That’s bullsh*t, they don’t test for the quantity they test for the presence. Even though you may have a prescription for 90 (pills) you may have 1000 sitting in your house right now. The testing policy is a step in the right direction, but still we are allowing WWE talent to utilize Heroin in a pill, yet we will fine them $2,500 every time they test positive for THC.”

[Greengoblin782]

Anyone watching the Royal Rumble PPV?

[Greengoblin782]

AJ Styles officially makes his debut, hopefully they don't have Roman Reigns take him out quickly.

[scottkoz20]

i almost ordered the WWE Network tonight to watch the Rumble....

[Greengoblin782]

Nice surprise entrant with Sami Zayn. I thought he was still injured from recent reports.

[Greengoblin782]

Terrible outcome for this years Royal Rumble.

[toddsr]

HHH really!

[Greengoblin782]

HHH really!

My thoughts exactly.

[Zeppelin1985]

Trips' second Royal Rumble victory and his 14th World Title reign. And he's going to be main eventing WM32 in Dallas.

Congratulations Steph and Vinny-mac you're the only marks happy.

- Reigns vs. Trips for the World Title
- Brock vs. Someone from the Wyatts
- Charlotte vs. Sasha for the Divas Title (slight chance it's a triple threat w/ Becky)
- Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
- I think another Ladder match for the IC Title w/ several guys.
- The Rock's surprise.

Something with Undertaker. Will Cena magically heal up in time?