
WWE Star Returns After Four Years Away In 2026 Royal Rumble Match
A WWE star returned to the company during the 2026 women's Royal Rumble match after being away for four years since their last match.
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A WWE star returned to the company during the 2026 women's Royal Rumble match after being away for four years since their last match.

WWE Hall of Famer Brie Bella returned to WWE during the Women's Royal Rumble 2026, entering the match at #29. This marked her return to a WWE ring.

Tiffany Stratton made her return to WWE at the 2026 Women's Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia on January 31, entering as the #30 entrant and immediately taking out multiple competitors. This marked her first appearance since losing the WWE Women's Championship to Jade Cargill on November 1, 2025, at Saturday Night's Main Event, with Wrestling Observer Newsletter's Dave Meltzer confirming she had been dealing with an undisclosed injury during her absence.

Stephanie Vaquer, the Women's World Champion, was not included on the WWE Royal Rumble card in Saudi Arabia despite traveling to the event. Vaquer responded on Twitter by posting photos from inside the venue and stating that she will be watching the Royal Rumble participants because "the real challenge begins when they want to face the Women's World Champion." She is scheduled to defend her title against Raquel Rodriguez on next week's Monday Night Raw.

A WWE star's name change was officially confirmed during their entry in the Royal Rumble match at today's premium live event. The name change took place at Royal Rumble 2026.

Former WWE star Nixon Newell, formerly known as Tegan Nox, revealed she was supposed to wrestle Toni Storm at WWE Evolution 2018. The match would have been in the finals of the Mae Young Classic tournament.

CM Punk took a jab at Hulk Hogan during the Royal Rumble kickoff show panel when Peter Rosenberg mentioned that "everyone loved Hulk Hogan" as kids, with Punk responding "Where did you grow up?" The panel featured Punk alongside Peter Rosenberg, Jackie Redmond, and Big E discussing the Royal Rumble. This continues Punk's history of criticizing Hogan, as he has previously threatened to throw Hogan out of the Royal Rumble and has stated he liked Hogan even less after meeting him.

WWE NXT saw increased viewership for its January 27 episode. A ladder match is scheduled for February 3 to determine a new NXT Champion.

A WWE Hall of Famer is reportedly set to return during the 2026 Royal Rumble premium live event. The specific Hall of Famer was not identified in the report.

Former WWE star Damien Sandow revealed he had a "come to Jesus moment" during the 2015 Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania. Sandow described this as an epiphany that occurred during the match.

WWE Royal Rumble is scheduled for January 31, 2026, featuring both Men's and Women's Royal Rumble matches, AJ Styles vs. GUNTHER with Styles' career on the line, and Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn for the Undisputed WWE Championship. Bron Breakker has been confirmed as the #2 entrant in the Royal Rumble following a countdown pre-show confrontation.

The planned match order for the 2026 WWE Royal Rumble premium live event has emerged just over an hour before the show. No specific details about the actual match order were provided in the report.