Professional Wrestling

At a critical time for WWE, just ahead of WrestleMania 41, the company seems to be reverting back to some of its old, sloppy booking ways.

This time, though, the just throw them in a Triple Threat match has tied up CM Punk, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins.

It's a staggering thing for WWE to do, really. It seems that Triple H and those in charge of creative are doubling down on mistakes, rather than attempting to right some previous wrongs.

The first misstep was wasting the long-awaited blood feud between Punk and Rollins on the debut episode of Raw on Netflix. What should have been a WrestleMania main event match and landmark moment in the career of both men instead got broadcast on a weird, celebrity and corporate-filled streaming debut highlighted by things like The Rock retconning and tearing up long-term plans.

Now? The Jey Uso-sized elephant in the room.

Triple H and Co. shocked at the Royal Rumble with Jey's upset win. Barring a change from tradition and totally choosing to ignore the man's "Main Event" nickname, Uso will main event 'Mania against Gunther while Cody Rhodes' match takes the other top slotting.

That leaves Punk and Reigns out to dry with Rollins tagging along with nothing to do.

It's just an odd turn of events, really. With Punk aging and so many good Reigns-Rollins stories to tell (and other things like John Cena's retirement tour), it's downright staggering to see that this is the year WWE finally chose to elevate a Superstar with a Royal Rumble win.

All of it becomes a poorly diluted mixture in a triple threat, too. Frankly, it borders on lazy. Now, fans have already seen the Punk-Rollins feud and match.

The build that started with Punk's shocking return to WWE after public jabs for years from Rollins in the media was wasted on the Netflix debut. It should have received the build that Punk's feud with Drew McIntyre did. Instead, it got thrown out essentially for free on an episode of Raw and now isn't even the primary focus of a 'Mania match.

Punk-Reigns now gets wasted, too. There was that whole "favor" thing hanging in the backdrop between the two Superstars thanks to Paul Heyman's scheming character lurking in the background. That could have been used interestingly in the rumble.

Now? It's hard to care about the "favor" wrinkle at all. And any compelling storytelling that could have unfolded with Heyman in the middle goes to waste as they attempt to figure out ways to keep Rollins meaningfully involved.

Same vibes for Rollins-Reigns. Yes, we've seen it before, like that amazing time a Joker-inspired, cackling Rollins entered the ring to The Shield's entrance music just to play mind games with the Tribal Chief.

But slapping Punk in the mix just because they don't know what else to do with him on short notice just makes things awkward. Unless they skew really meta and loop in some of Punk's notorious "make Roman look strong" comments and such that many fans won't even understand, it isn't going to work—and even if it did...it won't main event.

As it stands, it's almost impressive to waste three blood feuds that could main-event 'Mania without a belt and get year-long builds like the McIntyre-Punk drama in one go. All while, it seems, sidelining them for Jey Uso, who is over with crowds, but perhaps not the best pick at the current moment.

If that's how things go, it's going to be hard to eventually loop back to solo feuds between Reigns-Punk-Rollins in the future and keep fans similarly engaged, which is a shame.

And no, elevating the triple threat match to main-event status and putting Jey-Gunther as a Night 1 or Night 2 opener doesn't really fix things, either. The core issue is the match itself, with the placement just a sort of extra weird ingredient atop a bad mixture.

Oddly enough, the Triple H era has been defined in its early stages for a strong commitment to continuity and measured storytelling. To see three of the biggest names in the sport and three of the best of all time railroaded into a triple threat that diminishes more deserving solo feuds is, in a word, disappointing.

WWE's excellent production and revisionist history will attempt to mask over these problems and do a so-so job at it. But the problems are there, obvious and easily avoidable, with repeated self-inflicted mistakes creating a bitter road to 'Mania this year.

After the surprise announcement that Triple H would headline the 2025 WWE Hall of Fame class, wrestling fans have turned their attention to the other Superstars likely to be inducted in April.

Many fans will focus on The Game's friend and former stablemate, Batista, as another addition to the class, but there are several marquee names who would make this year's ceremony one to remember.

Here are the other performers possibly joining Triple H in the 2025 Hall of Fame.

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Batista

Triple H feigned modesty when Shawn Michaels and Undertaker surprised him with his Hall of Fame induction, but one way to ensure he is not the main act would be to split the spotlight with Batista.

After retiring at WrestleMania 35 in 2019, it's time for the 56-year-old's induction.

Batista signed with WWE in 2000 and eventually found his place as the enforcer of the Evolution stable.

During his time with the company, he won the WWE Championship twice, the World Heavyweight Championship four times, the World Tag Team Championship three times, the WWE Tag Team Championship once, and the 2005 and 2014 Royal Rumble matches.

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Bray Wyatt

While it's always sad to posthumously induct someone into the WWE Hall of Fame, Bray Wyatt deserves the honor. While his career was not as long as other legends, his impact was monumental.

Windham Rotunda debuted with The Wyatt Family in 2013, creating a character that will live forever with fans. As any true artist, he reinvented himself on several occasions, including the creation of the beloved Fiend.

During his time on the main roster, Wyatt was a one-time WWE champion, two-time WWE universal champion, one-time SmackDown tag team champion, and one-time Raw tag team champion. For his family, the induction would be closure on his decorated career.

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Mickie James

The WWE has been adding a female legend to the Hall of Fame each year, and 2025 should be no exception. This time, however, it should be a veteran who will garner a major reaction from the fans in attendance at the event.

Look no further than Mickie James.

She debuted in October 2005 and won her first WWE Women's Championship at WrestleMania 22. During her time with the company, she held the Women's Championship five times and was a previous winner of the Divas Championship.

In TNA—which is now affiliated with WWE—she won the Knockouts Championship five times, making her an 11-time women's world champion between the two promotions.

Few women deserve the Hall of Fame nod more than the popular James.

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Demolition

Another staple of WWE Hall of Fame classes is tag teams or stables. In 2025, the company should go back to the late 1980s and early 1990s and finally give Demolition the accolades they deserve.

Consisting of Ax (Bill Eadie) and Smash (Barry Darsow)—and later Crush (Brian Adams)—Demolition were three-time WWF world tag team champions, and they hold the record for the most combined days as reigning titleholders.

In addition, the tag team's first reign with the WWF World Tag Team Championship is the fourth longest with any tag team championship in WWE history. After so many years of being passed over, it's time for Demolition to get their moment of glory.

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Johnny Knoxville

WWE loves the mainstream buzz it generates by inducting a celebrity into the Hall of Fame, and this year will be no different. The 2025 celebrity inductee should be Johnny Knoxville, star of Jackass and a veteran of WWE.

Knoxville first appeared in WWE On the October 13, 2008 episode of Raw, and later appeared as the guest star on the October 4, 2010 edition. The guest appearances were fun, but his feud with Sami Zayn makes him Hall of Fame-worthy.

After entering the 2022 men's Rumble match and being eliminated by Zayn, Knoxville cost the then-champion his title, setting up their match at WrestleMania 38.

The resulting bout was a comedic classic, securing Knoxville's place in WWE history.

For more wrestling talk, listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot topics or catch the latest episode in the player above (some language NSFW).

Jey Uso eliminated John Cena to win the 2025 men's Royal Rumble match Saturday night in Indianapolis.

What should have been a momentous occasion for one of wrestling's legitimate feel-good stories instead became a reminder of how fickle the internet wrestling community can be, as his victory and trip to WrestleMania 41 quickly became the industry's most polarizing story.

And it shouldn't be.

Uso spent a decade working as a tag team specialist, elevating the quality of the division in WWE with his twin brother, Jimmy Uso. He has had classic matches with The New Day, The Miz and John Morrison, The Wyatt Family, The Bar, Cesaro and Tyson Kidd, and countless other tandems that have rolled through the company since 2010.

Then he broke out during the pandemic, capitalizing on an opportunity to work with his cousin, Roman Reigns, in a main event storyline while his brother was out with a knee injury.

During that program, he cut an incredibly personal promo reliving fans celebrating Reigns while asking him, "Which one are you?"

“There goes The Big Dog, there goes Roman Reigns, there goes Mr. Main Event, Mr. Wrestle Mania , you know what they say when they see me Uce? Which one are you?” - Jey Uso…

Not anymore!!!! 🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼 pic.twitter.com/RWlCWcgnB4

— 𝐻𝒶𝓃𝒹𝓎 ⸜❤︎⸝‍ (@_RomansLegacy) December 31, 2024

It was the first indication that there was more to Jey than just being a voiceless tag team wrestler with his brother.

We witnessed it further in a Match of the Year candidate against Reigns at Hell in a Cell 2020 and beyond as one of the focal points of The Bloodline story.

When he finally broke free of his cousin's tyrannical rule, Jey became the breakout singles star and one of the most popular Superstars on the roster. The introduction of the "Yeet" catchphrase only enhanced the reaction.

And there is one of the biggest sticking points with the anti-Uso crowd: the catchphrase.

It's as if no other Superstar in WWE has had an immensely popular saying that was at least partially responsible for them reaching the level of popularity they did. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin was clearly the most over guy in wrestling before he uttered the words "Austin 3:16" at the 1996 King of the Ring.

The Rock was already over before he ever asked if the crowd could smell what he was cooking.

The idea Jey only got over because of his catchphrase is ridiculous because it suggests the crowd's response to the years-long build to his betrayal of Reigns and pinfall victory over The Tribal Chief at Money in the Bank to a thunderous ovation did not exist.

https://twitter.com/mercerallins/status/1675272562698334220

The reason fans are invested in him and chanted "you deserve it" as he stood in the center of the squared circle on Monday's WWE Raw is because of the work he has put in to prove himself, first as a singles star and then as a main event-worthy competitor.

Some fans suggest he was the wrong choice to win the men's Rumble because we had only just watched him lose a world title match to Gunther at Saturday Night's Main Event a week earlier. While this is true, it is hardly unique to Jey or fan-chosen top babyfaces.

Daniel Bryan lost countless times to Randy Orton and The Authority, leading to his defining moment at WrestleMania 30. Kofi Kingston dropped two matches to Bryan as part of the story leading to his title opportunity at WrestleMania 35.

And don't forget about Bryan's catchphrase or KofiMania.

Part of Jey's ongoing story is that he knows he can beat Gunther for the world title. Although he has yet to choose who he will challenge at The Show of Shows on April 19-20, all signs point to him selecting The Ring General and seeking to prove he is not a "mascot" or "cartoon character" but a world champion.

Some hang onto the idea he is not "skilled enough" a wrestler to shine in the high-profile spot he is going to have on the 'Mania card. Those fans still grasp tightly to the uber-disappointing match he had with his brother a year ago while ignoring the great contests he has had with Bron Breakker, Ilja Dragunov, Damian Priest, The Judgment Day and Gunther.

Uso's journey to the top of WWE is suddenly a polarizing topic, mostly because some foresaw someone else winning the men's Rumble and the only way to cope with the fact that an established star such as John Cena, Roman Reigns,or CM Punk did not get their arm raised in victory is to tear down the guy who did.

Those fickle keyboard warriors.

Take it in, JEY! 👏#RawOnNetflix pic.twitter.com/ZG3XOX6BT0

— WWE (@WWE) February 4, 2025

The fans in Cleveland for Monday's Raw 48 hours after the Royal Rumble greeted Uso with a hero's welcome and showed him the kind of respect reserved only for those who have earned their appreciation.

He is one of their guys, a Superstar singles performer who spent 15 years earning his way to the top of the industry and now has an opportunity to pay off his journey with the most important night of his career and a trip to the main event of WrestleMania.