The Royal Rumble goes a long way when it comes to setting the stage for WrestleMania. Over the years fans have seen a number of memorable Royal Rumble matches, but the 2022 women’s Royal Rumble match was heavily criticized at the time. The match didn’t turn out as some had expected, but it sounds like it could have potentially been much worse.
Fightful Select reports that TJ Wilson (Tyson Kidd) walked away for a period of time ahead of the event. One reason given was that Vince McMahon’s vision was said to have been so off the wall that there was trouble coexisting with it. That and other things led to TJ Wilson stepping away, and Fit Finlay stepping in to produce.
Early on in the planning stages for the 2022 women’s Royal Rumble, Vince McMahon pitched the idea to have Ronda Rousey eliminate the entire Royal Rumble field. It’s being said that Vince was very steadfast in wanting to do something like that because Ronda was on an advanced, full-time schedule for 2022. Ultimately Ronda Rousey entered at number 28 and won the match after eliminating four people.
There was also frustration with Vince regarding no plan for the cameos in the match. McMahon had instructed them to “get in and get out” which led to names like Kelly Kelly, Molly Holly, Melina and Ivory spending one minute or less in the ring.
Billie Kay, Peyton Royce and Nia Jax were among the names who rejected offers to appear in the match. At least one talent cited TJ Wilson’s lack of excitement as a reason for turning the appearance down.