WWE has the first Monday Night Raw for 2016 tonight with a huge WWE World Heavyweight Title match.
Vince McMahon has booked Roman Reigns to defend against Sheamus – in a match where Vince himself will be the special guest referee.
Update:Huge name backstage for Raw [Spoilers]
WWE.com on the match:
Raw kicks off 2016 with a blockbuster main event, pitting WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns against Sheamus, with WWE Chairman Mr. McMahon serving as special guest referee. Will The Chairman’s personal vendetta against The Big Dog seal a victory for The Celtic Warrior? WWE.com has some theories.
In addition, giving this match away twice on Raw seems to indicate that it will not be the title match at the Royal Rumble, but that remains to be seen.
Elsewhere, the other major storylines will continue on Raw as well.
John Cena has vowed revenge on the League of Nations as well as Alberto Del Rio, and there is a tease of another US Title match, but that seems unlikely with the focus on the World Title match.
In the tag team division, there are a number of babyface tag team challengers lining up for the New Day. The Usos and Lucha Dragons have been hot on the heels of the champs for the last few months, but don’t count out the Dudley Boys.
On Twitter this weekend, Bubba Ray teased bringing back the classic title belts if they were to win the titles:
@WWE @WWEUniverse Next time we win them, we are bringin these bad boys back!! 👌👌 pic.twitter.com/tKv9Yp6kAU
— Bully Ray (@bullyray5150) January 2, 2016
Charlotte returns to Raw after working a house show last week during the show. There should be a continuation of the split with her friend Becky Lynch, as well as possible involvement from Paige. We should get a pretty good idea of what match the Diva’s Title will be at the Royal Rumble PPV.
Tyler Breeze and Summer Rae announced that they would be splitting up for 2016. This doesn’t seem to bode well for Prince Pretty who has been pretty much buried since joining the main roster from NXT. Could this be a positive for Breeze?
WWE has announced the second official entrant in this year’s Royal Rumble match.
It is none other than CURTIS AXEL, who was never officially eliminated from the 2015 Royal Rumble.
Here is the official list of entrants thusfar, with more expected to be announced on Raw.
- Big Show
- Curtis Axel
Here is the WWE.com Five Points Preview:
- “No Chance in Hell” for Reigns? – Given all that Reigns is up against, will the first Raw of 2016 be his last with the WWE World Heavyweight Championship?
- Does another U.S. Title opportunity await Cena? – will Cena head to SmackDown on USA Network next Thursday night with the U.S. Title slung around his shoulder?
- Royal Rumblings – Which other Superstars will announce their participation in the weeks ahead?
- From Cuteville to Splitsville – Prince Pretty revealed that he and Summer would no longer be an item in the New Year.
- No respect for The New Day? – After their 2015 ended on a sour note, how will The New Day embrace the “Power of Positivity” in the first Raw of 2016?
Vote in our new poll!
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Check out this video:
Capturing a Stone Cold journey: Canvas 2 Canvas
Watch as Rob Schamberger commemorates “Stone Cold” Steve Austin’s career on the artist canvas.
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