• Special Start Time For Royal Rumble 2026 Revealed
WWE Royal Rumble 2026 will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This will be the first time the annual Royal Rumble PLE is taking place outside of North America.
According to WrestleVotes on Fightful Select, the PLE will have a start time of 2 PM ET on Saturday, January 31.
The Wrestling Observer previously reported that WWE plans to have only four matches on the entire event. While the two traditional Men’s and Women’s Royal Rumble matches are obvious, the company has not yet internally finalized the other two matches, but these two matches are scheduled to be championship matches.
The official poster for Royal Rumble 2026 has been released:
As seen above, the following 21 WWE Superstars have been confirmed for this PLE:
– Bronson Reed
– IYO SKY
– Jey Uso
– Dominik Mysterio
– Jade Cargill
– Penta
– Gunther
– Maxxine Dupri
– Drew McIntyre
– Tiffany Stratton
– Becky Lynch
– CM Punk
– Charlotte Flair
– AJ Styles
– Bron Breakker
– Rhea Ripley
– Cody Rhodes
– Stephanie Vaquer
– Roman Reigns
– Brock Lesnar
– Liv Morgan
• Gunther Reacts To Backstage Backlash In WWE Over Making John Cena Tap Out
Gunther isn’t losing any sleep over how his actions are being received behind the scenes, making it clear during his appearance on TMZ’s Inside The Ring podcast that locker room backlash means little to him after retiring John Cena.
Addressing the intense reaction surrounding Cena being forced to tap out, Gunther acknowledged that not everyone within WWE was happy with how the match ended, but he showed no concern about it.
“I know a lot of people were not happy with what happened on Saturday and how it happened. I know a lot of people in the company were not happy with that,” Gunther admitted. Rather than backing down, he leaned into the controversy, adding, “That’s fine. If anybody’s got an issue with that, I think I’m very easy to find.”
Gunther explained that he deliberately avoided the backstage environment immediately after the match, choosing not to engage with Cena’s longtime friends or colleagues. “To be honest, I kind of like disappeared. I didn’t really speak to many people,” he said.
According to Gunther, once the moment was over, there was no reason to linger. “Sometimes when the damage is done, you leave and you don’t take a bath in it anymore,” he explained, noting that he addressed the fallout publicly on RAW instead.
The former World Heavyweight Champion also made it clear that maintaining personal relationships backstage has never been a priority for him. When asked whether he has allies behind the scenes or people quietly rooting for him, Gunther shrugged off the idea entirely. “I don’t talk to many people backstage to be honest. I try to do my own thing and do my work and go home.”
Ultimately, Gunther emphasized that outside opinions, whether from fans or fellow wrestlers, don’t affect how he views his career or decisions. “It doesn’t really matter to me what other people think or how they judge it. I know what I did right and I know what I do wrong, and whatever, if they like it or not doesn’t change anything for me.”
Gunther said the controversy is part of the job and anyone who doesn’t like it knows exactly where to find him.
