Days after her father, Vince McMahon, ended his retirement and returned as executive chair of the WWE board, Stephanie McMahon has resigned from the company. Stephanie McMahon had been serving as co-CEO, along with Nick Khan, since Vince McMahon announced his retirement amid allegations of decades of sexual misconduct.
Stephanie tweeted out an image of a statement announcing her retirement with the WWE slogan of “Then. Now. Forever. Together.”
“About eight months ago, I took a leave of absence and within a few weeks, unexpectedly had the opportunity of a lifetime. I had the privilege to return as co-CEO and chairwoman of the board of WWE. I cannot put into words how proud I am to have led what I consider to be the greatest company in the world, working alongside a remarkable leadership team and one of the strongest executives I have known in my co-CEO, Nick Khan.
“Our founder, Vince McMahon, has returned as Executive Chair and is leading an exciting process regarding strategic alternatives. And with Nick’s leadership and Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque as Chief Content Officer, I am confident WWE is in the perfect place to continue to provide unparalleled creative content and drive maximum value for shareholders.”
Stephanie McMahon had, indeed, announced a leave prior to being called into action as Vince McMahon resigned after multiple reports surfaced involving allegedly paying hush money to several women throughout his time running WWE.
Later in the statement, she said she was going further than a leave and instead announcing a full resignation.
Stephanie McMahon is married to Levesque, who suffered a cardiac issue in 2022. The couple have three children.
One of the most anticipated days of the year for wrestling fans comes Saturday as the WWE Royal Rumble comes to San Antonio. The event features the beloved Royal Rumble matches for both the men and women and signifies the start to “WrestleMania Season.”
The winners of the Royal Rumble matches punch their ticket to a main event slot at WrestleMania, challenging for a world title. WrestleMania takes place April 1 and 2 from Inglewood, California.
Both matches will feature 30 entrants, each entering in specific time intervals. The event typically sees wild action with superstars trying to avoid being tossed over the top rope and landing outside the ring. It also sees some shocking surprise entrants with legends of the past coming back for a cameo appearance. This year should be interesting as Cody Rhodes is expected to make his return after suffering a torn pectoral muscle last year that has kept him out of action.
In addition to the Rumble matches, there are two major title matches scheduled for the event. Roman Reigns will defend his undisputed WWE universal championship against Kevin Owens and Bianca Belair will put her Raw women’s championship on the line against Alexa Bliss.
Let’s take a closer look at who our CBS Sports experts predict will come out on top at WWE Royal Rumble, which begins Saturday at 8 p.m. ET from Alamodome in San Antonio and streams live on Peacock.
2023 WWE Royal Rumble predictions Men’s Royal Rumble Match
The Royal Rumble is always interesting because every entrant is exciting in their own way but so very few people in the match have a legitimate shot of winning. Still, it remains one of the most entertaining events in all of wrestling because of the variety of personalities and interactions in the mix. Were I to pick who I think should win, the answer would be Sami Zayn. The story of The Bloodline has become very compelling again and Zayn — not Roman Reigns — is the reason why. But I don’t know that WWE higher-ups would view Zayn as someone they want main eventing WrestleMania. There is, of course, the usual buzz that The Rock could return, win and face Reigns at the biggest show of the year. But it just feels as though the most realistic option is Cody Rhodes as the last man standing. His return to WWE was so focused in on his need to win the belt his father never held and then everything was derailed by his injury. But that injury only built his story and grew the Cody Rhodes mythology when he faced Seth Rollins inside Hell in a Cell with his chest a grotesque purple hue. All the video packages ahead of his return have focused on getting his redemption and it only makes sense for that return to see him triumph in the Rumble. Pick: Cody Rhodes wins (Brent Brookhouse)
I anticipate WWE originally planned for hometown hero Zayn to challenge Reigns at the Elimination Chamber event in Montreal, but this storyline deserves even more. The Bloodline angle is lightning in a bottle and Zayn deserves to have his crowning moment. WWE has heavily promoted Cody Rhodes ahead of his Rumble return, making him the favorite and opening the door for great misdirection. Zayn should win the Rumble, team with estranged best friend Kevin Owens at Elimination Chamber and win the world championship in an all-time WrestleMania moment against Reigns. A fantastic underdog story. Pick: Sami Zayn wins (Shakiel Mahjouri)
Women’s Royal Rumble Match
Your mileage may vary on The Judgement Day, but Ripley has been a standout for the group. Her “Mami” shtick with Dominik Mysterio is amusing, she can certainly hold her own between the ropes and she has been positioned as something of a modern-day Chyna — an enforcer that can topple anyone on the roster, male or female. Ripley’s talent was overshadowed by poor booking for far too long. Her almost cartoonish villainy and comparative power make her a perfect foil for Raw women’s champion Bianca Belair, a champion in need of a new challenge as WrestleMania season approaches. Pick: Rhea Ripley wins — Mahouri (also Brookhouse)
Undisputed WWE universal championship — Roman Reigns (c) vs. Kevin Owens
Reigns’ record-breaking run as champion has often felt like it lost steam only for inspiration to strike the writers’ room and get a needed twist, such as Sami Zayn’s emergence as a major player in The Bloodline. Owens would be a great choice to end Reigns’ time as champion, but WrestleMania overshadows every possible result in this match. Reigns is not going to drop the title ahead of WrestleMania. Owens will put up his usual blood and guts fight but come up short, likely as a result of The Bloodline’s numbers simply being too much — even if Zayn has a misstep that leaves “The Tribal Chief” fuming. Pick: Roman Reigns wins — Brookhouse (also Mahjouri)
Raw women’s championship — Bianca Belair (c) vs. Alexa Bliss
Belair is approaching one year as Raw women’s champion. It has been a well-deserved run after her initial reign was cut criminally short in favor of a returning Becky Lynch. Bliss hasn’t returned quite to her former glory and Belair remains a fantastic ambassador for the company. I’d recommend the promotion keep the title on Belair, let her celebrate the one-year anniversary of her reign at WrestleMania, and take the fall for Ripley on the grandest stage. Pick: Bianca Belair wins — Mahjouri (also Brookhouse)
Bray Wyatt vs. LA Knight (Lights Out Match)
WWE has stretched out Wyatt’s on-camera in-ring return far too long. Fortunately, the interactions between Wyatt and Knight have mostly been gold. The only circumstance in which Wyatt loses this match is some weird Uncle Howdy-related swerve. The match is tailored made for him, after all. Knight doesn’t need the win here. Knight was afforded an opportunity to showcase his world-class mic skills after shedding that awful Max Dupri skin. Expect Wyatt to win rather convincingly and move on to a bigger feud, allowing Knight the space to grow into a fantastic midcard act. Pick: Wyatt wins — Mahjouri (also Brookhouse)
One of the tent-pole events of the WWE calendar is here. Typically considered among the “majors” is the Royal Rumble. The annual event draws many fans in as there is always potential for shocking results and entrants into the match. It all goes down on Saturday night inside the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
The modern version of the Royal Rumble features two matches: a men’s and women’s match, each featuring 30 participants. Two superstars begin the match with entrants arriving one by one in timed intervals. Superstars are eliminated once thrown over the top rope and both feet touch the floor. The winner is declared only once their 29 opponents have all been eliminated. Generally, the winners of the Rumbles are guaranteed a world championship match against the champion of their choosing at the upcoming WrestleMania. The matches generally feature surprise entrants: returning superstars, debutants, one-off appearances from retired wrestlers and celebrity guest spots.
Expectations are relatively high for this year’s event following an abysmal men’s Royal Rumble last year that ranked among the worst in the company’s history. WWE has undergone a change in creative leadership since last year’s match, but the future is unpredictable following news of Vince McMahon’s return from a brief retirement.
Two championship bouts have also been announced for the Royal Rumble event. Reigns puts his WWE and universal championships at stake in order to rid himself of Kevin Owens. Raw women’s champion Bianca Belair defends her crown against Alexa Bliss. Plus, Bray Wyatt will participate in his first match since returning to the promotion when he takes on LA Knight in a “Pitch Black” match.
Take a look below at the confirmed matches for the 2023 Royal Rumble. Check back for updates and predictions.
2023 WWE Royal Rumble matches Undisputed WWE Universal Championship — Roman Reigns (c) vs. Kevin Owens: Owens’ interjection into Survivor Series WarGames set him on a path with Reigns. Owens was moments away from defeating The Bloodline at Survivor Series, but Sami Zayn betrayed his friendship with Owens in favor of fully aligning with the faction. Owens further positioned himself as Reigns’ biggest threat on the final SmackDown of 2022. Owens enlisted John Cena in a winning effort against Reigns and Zayn in a tag team match. Owens goaded an emotional Reigns into a title match the following week.
Raw Women’s Championship — Bianca Belair (c) vs. Alexa Bliss: Bliss won two matches in one night to earn her title shot. She then immediately turned on Belair, a woman she stood side-by-side with against Bayley and Damage CTRL, first threatening to hit the champion with Sister Abigail — seemingly starting a turn to the dark side in the wake of Bray Wyatt’s return — and then hitting Belair with a vase during a sit-down interview. After getting herself disqualified in a match with Belair on Raw, Bliss said that she had already won by getting in Belair’s head. Fed up with Bliss, Belair laid out a challenge for the two to battle at the Rumble.
Men’s Royal Rumble: 30 male superstars will compete for the right to challenge for the world championships currently held by Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 39. Among those named to participate this year are Brock Lesnar, Kofi Kingston, intercontinental champion Gunter, United States champion Austin Theory, and many more. But the biggest name set to make his return in the match is Cody Rhodes, who was on a title challenging trajectory before he suffered a torn pectoral muscle last year.
Women’s Royal Rumble: 30 women will compete to challenge for the Raw women’s championship or the SmackDown women’s champion at WrestleMania 39. Reigning titleholders — currently Raw women’s champion Bianca Belair and SmackDown women’s champion Charlotte Flair — are usually omitted from the match. Occasionally, a championship will be on the line or a champion may include themselves in the match like Flair did last year. Liv Morgan was the first superstar to announce her participation in the match.
Bray Wyatt vs. LA Knight (Pitch Black match): Wyatt and Knight have traded barbs on the microphone ever since Wyatt’s return to WWE programming at Extreme Rules in October. The braggadocious Knight was repeatedly assaulted backstage in recent weeks, suspecting Wyatt as the culprit. Wyatt’s steadfast denial led to the revelation that Uncle Howdy is not Wyatt’s alter-ego, but a separate entity entirely. Knight challenged Wyatt to a match at the Royal Rumble. Wyatt accepted and chose an unusual Pitch Black match as the stipulation.
One male and one female superstar will punch their ticket to WrestleMania 39 by winning their respective Royal Rumble matches. The fan-favorite spectacle takes place inside the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas on Saturday night.
The Royal Rumble match traditionally features 30 superstars entering one-by-one in timed intervals. The only way to be eliminated from the match is to physically go over the top rope and have both feet touch the floor. Once 29 superstars have been eliminated, the remaining competitor is announced the winner. At stake is a shot for a world championship at WrestleMania.
Thirty men — including Cody Rhodes, Brock Lesnar, Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre — will compete to challenge for the undisputed WWE universal championship currently held by Roman Reigns. The winner of the women’s Royal Rumble match, which boasts Rhea Ripley and Liv Morgan as participants, will choose either the Raw women’s or SmackDown women’s title to challenge for at WrestleMania 39.
Two championship bouts have also been announced for the Royal Rumble event. Reigns puts his WWE and universal championships at stake in order to rid himself of Kevin Owens. Raw women’s champion Bianca Belair defends her crown against Alexa Bliss.
Below is how you can catch all the action on Saturday night in San Antonio.
Watch 2023 WWE Royal Rumble Date: Jan. 28 Location: Alamadome — San Antonio, Texas Start time: 8 p.m. ET (kickoff show starts at 7 p.m. ET) Watch live: Peacock
2023 WWE Royal Rumble match card Men’s Royal Rumble match Women’s Royal Rumble match Undisputed WWE universal championship — Roman Reigns (c) vs. Kevin Owens Raw Women’s championship — Bianca Belair (c) vs. Alexa Bliss Bray Wyatt vs. LA Knight (Pitch Black match)
WWE SummerSlam is set to take over Ford Field in Detroit. Long considered one of WWE’s biggest annual events, SummerSlam returns to the state of Michigan for the first time in 30 years.
WWE announced the date and location for the 2023 SummerSlam on Tuesday. SummerSlam is one of WWE’s classic big four events, alongside the Royal Rumble, WrestleMania and Survivor Series. The news marks not only Michigan’s first SummerSlam in three decades but also the company’s first visit to Ford Field since WrestleMania 23 was held in 2007.
1993 SummerSlam was headlined by Lex Luger vs. Yokozuna for the WWF championship. The event — held in front of a reported 23, 954 fans — also featured legends like Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Shawn Michaels, Razor Ramon and The Undertaker. WrestleMania 23 was headlined by John Cena vs. Shawn Michaels for the WWE championship, featured The Undertaker vs. Batista and infamously saw Donald Trump shave Vince McMahon bald in a match dubbed “Battle of the Billionaires.”
It’s unclear which superstars will headline this year’s event as the road to WrestleMania rolls on with the Elimination Chamber in February before heading to Hollywood for the biggest event of the year in April.
Superstars from Raw and SmackDown will be confined inside one of WWE’s most physically demanding structures on Saturday, Feb. 18. WWE will erect the Elimination Chamber in front of what should be a raucous Montreal crowd for their final major show before WrestleMania 39.
Two Elimination Chamber matches have been announced for the annual event. United States champion Austin Theory will defend his title against familiar foes, such as Seth Rollins, and new nemeses like Bronson Reed. The winner of the other Elimination Chamber match will determine who will challenge Raw women’s champion Bianca Belair on the grandest stage. Raquel Rodriguez, Asuka, Liv Morgan and Nikki Kross have all been confirmed as contenders.
A long-awaited undisputed WWE universal championship match between Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn is also expected to take place in Zayn’s hometown. The supremely entertaining rise of Zayn through the ranks of The Bloodline hit its dramatic fall at the Royal Rumble. Tasked with a nearly impossible decision, Zayn sided with estranged best friend Kevin Owens over Reigns and the family.
Plus, a showdown between Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley is also set for the card. The pair have faced each other twice in singles matches, splitting the meetings, though Lashley has gotten the better of several brawls as well as eliminating Lesnar from January’s Royal Rumble match.
Take a look below at the confirmed and predicted matches for the 2023 Elimination Chamber. Check back for updates and predictions.
2023 WWE Elimination Chamber matches Undisputed WWE Universal championship — Roman Reigns (c) vs. Sami Zayn: The wheels were finally set in motion for a long-anticipated match between Reigns and Zayn when Zayn struck Reigns with a chair at Royal Rumble. The Bloodline’s adoption of “Honorary Uce” Zayn is one of the best storylines WWE has produced in a long time. At the Rumble, Reigns demanded that Zayn blast estranged best friend Owens with a chair shot to the head. Unable to deliver a career-ending blow, Zayn instead struck Reigns with the chair. Zayn made it clear he was now gunning for Reigns and his titles but received a beat-down from Reigns, who said he’d give Zayn the match in front of Zayn’s family in Montreal.
United States championship — Austin Theory (c) vs. Seth Rollins vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Bronson Reed vs. Damian Priest vs. Montez Ford (Elimination Chamber match): It was announced on the Jan. 30 episode of Monday Night Raw that Theory will defend his U.S. championship inside the Elimination Chamber. Qualifier matches took place over the next few weeks, putting many familiar names in the mix. Ford is an especially interesting dark horse candidate to take the title but much of the attention will be on the standing rivalry between Theory and Rollins as the match unfolds.
Raquel Rodriguez vs. Nikki Kross vs. Liv Morgan vs. Asuka vs. Natalya vs. Carmella (Elimination Chamber match): Rhea Ripley, the women’s Royal Rumble winner, revealed that she would challenge for the SmackDown women’s championship. Authority figure Adam Pearce subsequently announced that Belair would defend the Raw women’s championship at WrestleMania 39 against the winner of a No. 1 contender’s Elimination Chamber match. The four runner-ups from the Rumble match — Rodriguez, Morgan, Asuka and Kross — were chosen as the first four participants in the Elimination Chamber. Natalya and Carmella won their way into the match via qualifiers.
Edge & Beth Phoenix vs. Finn Balor & Rhea Ripley: Ripley delivered a Con-Chair-To to Phoenix last year, forcing Edge to say “I quit” and lose a match to Balor. Payback has been long in coming but appears as though it will finally happen at Elimination Chamber. Phoenix has twice speared Ripley — who will be challenging Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown women’s title at WrestleMania — and she and Edge laid out the challenge for the match on Raw, with Balor accepting.
Brock Lesnar vs. Bobby Lashley: Lesnar and Lashley are split 1-1 in their series. Lashley won their first meeting at the 2022 Royal Rumble and Lesnar evened the score at Crown Jewel in November. An irate Lashley laid out Lesnar following their sophomore encounter. Lesnar reignited the feud in the lead-up to this year’s Rumble match and the pair have been at odds since. Lesnar attacked Lashley multiple times on Raw; meanwhile, Lashley eliminated the former UFC champion from the 2023 men’s Royal Rumble match. The two plan on concluding their trilogy at Elimination Chamber.
