Backstage News On WWE's Reaction To Royal Rumble 2021
Who was instrumental in putting the Royal Rumble together, and which major name was missing?
Though he didn't wrestle on the show, as originally confirmed before the bait-and-switch angle wrote him out of it, producer and non-specific onscreen authority figure Adam Pearce did have a notable impact on it, Fightful Select has reported.
Pearce was reportedly instrumental in putting the Royal Rumble matches together, which were well-received backstage. WWE delivered a pair of winners that intersected what many fans want to see from their babyfaces, at least according to a positive social media outpouring.
In Bianca Belair, WWE went all in on a new star, and in Edge, a man who has spent nearly three hours in just four matches following his return in 2020, creative plotted a grizzled comeback trail on behalf of the rare part-timer willing to put in the hard graft. Between the forward-thinking star creation and sentimentality, WWE delivered a feel-good show.
Fightful Select also confirmed that Vince McMahon, who recently lost his brother Rod, was not present at the event.
And, while it might not have appeared that way, gauging by complaints about the build and several recent reports of yet more last-minute tinkering, WWE stuck with the original plan, accounting only for the enforced absences of Keith Lee and Reckoning (Mia Yim).