The Royal Rumble is going down in Tropicana Field tonight, and fans are likely to see many surprises. Although Brock Lesnar’s name has come up in some troubling ways over the past couple of days, we have the latest update on his status.
Brock Lesnar’s Royal Rumble Status
Brock Lesnar hasn’t been seen on WWE television since SummerSlam, where he lost to Cody Rhodes. The Beast Incarnate then decided to put Cody over in a big way as he raised his hand to the Ford Field crowd in Detroit.
Sean Ross Sapp reported on Fightful Select that, as of earlier this week, Brock Lesnar was slated to be at the Royal Rumble event. It is currently unknown if those plans have changed after he was strongly alluded to in Janel Grant’s lawsuit.
We’ve confirmed that as of earlier this week, Brock Lesnar was scheduled to travel to Tampa for the Royal Rumble. We aren’t sure if that has changed,
Brock Lesnar Update Doesn’t Look Good For Royal Rumble
PW Insider provided an update on Brock Lesnar’s situation. It was noted after noon that, as of the report, the Beast Incarnate had not started traveling to the Royal Rumble event yet.
It is now the belief that Brock Lesnar has been pulled from their Royal Rumble, because of how he was involved in the Janel Grant’s lawsuit against Vince McMahon.
The terminology one source used was that Lesnar had been “withdrawn” from tonight’s event and the belief was that a WWE NXT talent would be used in Lesnar’s place tonight.
It is also believed that Vince McMahon would have used Lesnar, no matter what. Then again, this whole situation is to blame on Vince. Since TKO is running the show now, Lesnar may not appear at the Royal Rumble at all. It is unclear who that may change his WrestleMania plans.
The latest on Brock Lesnar ahead of the #RoyalRumble tonight:
‘As of this morning, Lesnar had not traveled to Florida for the event. The word making the rounds at last night's SmackDown was that Lesnar, who was at one point slated to return for WrestleMania season, would not be… pic.twitter.com/QiKYHMyNNQ
— Wrestle Ops (@WrestleOps) January 27, 2024
Allegation Involving Brock Lesnar
In the blockbuster lawsuit from Janel Grant, it was noted that Vince McMahon allegedly used her as a bargaining chip to secure a contract renewal. The Superstar in question was not named, but they were referred to as a former UFC Heavyweight Champion.
In March 2020, McMahon began sharing sexually explicit photographs and videos of Ms. Grant (including pornographic content he recorded) with other men both inside and outside the company, including with members of the television production “tech” team, executive(s), 4 producer(s), and a world-famous athlete and former UFC Heavyweight Champion with whom WWE was actively trying to sign to a new contract (and ultimately did sign that contract).
Aftermath of the Allegations
TKO reacted to the lawsuit against Vince McMahon, and they made it clear that they are going to take action. These allegations took place prior to Endeavor’s takeover of the company, but this is a matter that they are taking seriously.
“Mr. McMahon does not control TKO nor does he oversee the day-to-day operations of WWE. While this matter predates our TKO executive team’s tenure at the company, we take Ms. Grant’s horrific allegations very seriously and are addressing this matter internally.”
Vince McMahon Resigns
Vince McMahon resigned from WWE on Friday night, while making it clear that he will defend himself against these allegations. WWE CEO Nick Khan then sent out an email to everyone in the company to inform them of Mr. McMahon’s resignation.
“I wanted to inform you that Vince McMahon has tendered his resignation from his positions as TKO Executive Chairman and on the TKO Board of Directors. He will no longer have a role with TKO Group Holdings or WWE.”
WrestleMania Update:
Brock Lesnar’s planned WrestleMania match against GUNTHER is now up in the air. He was removed from Elimination Chamber plans to face Dominik Mysterio. It is unknown if he will wrestle at the show of shows.
We will have continued coverage of the 2024 Royal Rumble, and everything involving Vince McMahon’s latest controversy, at SE Scoops.