Royal Rumble 2022: Why WWE is using star-studded lineup for Women’s Rumble

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Bengaluru, January 10: The second WWE Network Specials for this month will take place on January 29 and it will be the annual Royal Rumble PPV.

The 35th edition of this exciting chronology has just got bigger with some huge announcements on this past episode of Smackdown.

The reigning Women’s Champion from the blue brand, a few former WWE Divas Champions along with some bonafide Hall of Famers were added to the 30-Woman Rumble match, making it a larger-than-ever experience.

While these returns will garner more mainstream attention for the upcoming event, it exposes the lack of depth of the current female roster of the WWE.

Throughout 2020 and 2021, the company released female talents irrespective of their status and hence they don’t even have the strength of filling up the quota for the Women’s Rumble match.

According to the reports of Wrestling Observer, WWE is being forced to use a lot of NXT wrestlers and Legends for the Women’s Royal Rumble 2022 match because they don’t have talents on the main roster to fill up the 30 available slots.

“You really don’t need two 1-hour pay-per-view matches on the same show, but the whole thing that it’s got to be equal and it’s go to be 30 I’m pretty sure that it’s going to be 30.

"The other thing is that when it’s a bunch of people that the fans don’t know it kinda makes the match dead. 20 would be 30 on that match, for sure, but for traditional reasons I’m relatively certain that they’re gonna go 30.”

As per the video package aired on Smackdown, the following superstars have been confirmed for the over-the-top-rope melee:

• Impact Knockouts Champion Mickie James

• Smackdown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair

• Rhea Ripley

• Nikki A.S.H.

• WWE Hall of Famer Nikki Bella

• WWE Hall of Famer Brie Bella

• Shotzi

• Natalya

• Michelle McCool

• WWE 24/7 Champion Dana Brooke

• WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Carmella

• WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Queen Zelina Vega

• Tamina Snuka

• Kelly Kelly

• Aliyah

• Summer Rae

• Naomi

• Shayna Baszler

• WWE Hall of Famer Lita

Following these confirmations, another former WWE Divas Champion, Paige’s name started trending on the internet. This happened despite her name never being mentioned on Smackdown.

Paige noticed this and pointed out how it is January, the month of the Rumble, and then also teased how it’d feel great to make an in-ring comeback.

“Wait I was trending again? I mean, it is January. I tell ya what though, it does feel f**king awesome to see so many people even after 4 years, miss me wrestling. [red-heart emoji]”

Paige injured her neck at a house show in December 2017 and due to this injury, she wasn’t cleared to compete in the first-ever Women’s Royal Rumble match in January 2018.

Later that year, she announced her retirement on the post-WrestleMania 34 episode of RAW. But throughout the year 2021, the popular female wrestler from the UK teased coming out of her retirement with numerous tweets.

In a Twitch stream in September, she wanted her return to be a surprise and hence denied to provide any timeframe on the same.

So it seems only herself and WWE know the whereabouts of this impending return which could eventually go down at Royal Rumble 2022.