Jerry Lawler Set To Call The WWE Royal Rumble Main Event
Just when you thought The King was out, they pulled him back in...
It looked like Jerry Lawler's WWE career was coming to an end in December. Having been removed from SmackDown's commentary team in July, WWE announced that Lawler had been pulled from all PPV pre-show duties, and would only be used for special events like the Hall of Fame ceremony.
While it's extremely unlikely that Lawler will ever play a full-time role again, he returned to last night's SmackDown Live in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. Reviving his old "King's Court" interview segment, Lawler took a torrent of abuse from guest Dolph Ziggler, who laid him out with a Superkick towards the end.
Lawler's night wasn't over, however, and Renee Young announced on Talking Smack that King will return to commentary at the Royal Rumble on January 29th. Lawler will be joined by Corey Graves and Michael Cole in calling the 30-man main event, but isn't expected to commentate on the night's other matches.
WWE retained Lawler's contract when they removed him from the Kickoff shows, and it's unlikely that he'll ever truly "end" his 25-year affiliation with the company. Lawler's inclusion opens up the possibility of another confrontation between him and Ziggler, but his presence should make for a refreshing change after so many years away from pay-per-view announcing.