WWE Brings Back Iconic Royal Rumble Tradition on SmackDown 01/26; Multiple Superstars Pick Their Appearance Numbers

There is a reason why the Royal Rumble is dubbed one of the “Big Four” of the WWE, alongside WrestleMania, SummerSlam, and Survivor Series. Ever since its debut in 1988, it has become one of the most sought-after PPVs by fans due to how exciting the stipulation is. With 30 men fighting it out, the last man or woman standing in the ring will be headling WrestleMania; no wonder fans love it.

However, there is another aspect of the PPV that the fans love, and that is guessing who potential entrants and what number they may come out. On TV, WWE actually had a unique way of giving superstars their entrant numbers. This was through the Royal Rumble raffle tumbler, where the superstars would spin the wheel and pick out a number. While this practice has been missing for a few years, the Triple H run promotion has finally brought the old tradition back.

WWE brings back the dearly missed tradition

On tonight’s edition of SmackDown, WWE General Manager Nick Aldis and NXT General Manager Ava Raine had backstage segments where WWE superstars would make an appearance and pick out their names from a golden raffle tumbler.

So far, Bayley, Jimmy Uso, Bobby Lashley, R. Truth, and Bianca Belair have been the ones to pick out their numbers. And from what it looks like so far, R-Truth is probably number 19 in the Rumble. Bobby Lashley and Bianca Belair seemed pretty confident with their numbers while it appeared Jimmy Uso and Bayley did not particularly like their picks.

With the return of the raffle tumbler and WWE also celebrating 40 years of WrestleMania, fans love this blast-to-the-past theme that the WWE is offering.

Fans share their excitement

As soon as the segment was aired, fans couldn’t help but share their excitement towards getting another dose of nostalgia after WWE already introduced several long-lost elements in their virtual realm as well, in WWE 2K24. Now with this addition on tonight’s SmackDown, fans stormed to the comment sections. Here are some of the fan reactions:

One fan loved how it feels like it is the 2000’s again with this tradition being brought back.

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Another user was taken back to the early 2000’s as well.

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A user found this awesome.

One user couldn’t help but express his ‘love’ for this.

These two couldn’t help but be all excited.

WWE is playing all its cards right. They are aware of the fact that everyone loves nostalgia, and when you run a promotion that has been a part of everyone’s childhood, what better than taking them back in time with such small gestures? What do you think? Did you feel nostalgic as well? Let us know in the comments.

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