One Match, One Moment, One Promo: 01/30/26 by Darkstar Shady

One Match, One Moment, One Promo:

January 30-Feruary 2, 2026

This month has just flown by, hasn’t it? I almost forgot this needed to be done today because I feel like I just finished writing the last one. Alas, I remembered, and in the middle of the night I typed out this recap so you all could enjoy it. 

First, let’s get one piece of news out of the way:

• Chelsea Green is understandably hurt by the words of Michael Hayes in the new season of Unreal. First, I hope this is some meta-work that is going to lead to a Chelsea Green push. But, I don’t think WWE is quite that smart. Chelsea Green is an incredible talent, and she does great in the role she has been given. She absolutely can (and should) be allowed to fully showcase her talents. She would do great with the Money in the Bank briefcase, and either title picture would be elevated with her involvement. Justice for Chelsea Green. Also, let’s get Michael Hayes out of WWE.

Anyways, on to the good stuff. And stick around to the end for my Royal Rumble thoughts.

One Match

Stephanie Vaquer and Raquel Rodriguez was an absolute banger. Raquel has really upped her game over the last year (though I have always been a fan). Stephanie Vaquer can definitely go in the ring, but seeing Raquel shine has been incredible to watch.

I wish WWE had pulled the trigger on Raquel winning, but Liv coming out to her aid (and ultimately helping cost her the match) is going to make the Judgment Day Implosion all the better when it finally happens. Raquel will have the title by Elimination Chamber, at the latest.

One Moment

MYSTERIIOOO!

Daddy Dom has finally returned. And I’m not sure if the moment for this week is his return, or my friend asking “am I a hot girl?” when he saw Liv’s shirt. (Hey WWE Shop, can we get the Hot Girls Love Dominik Mysterio shirts in men’s sizes?)

I’ve been waiting for Dominik to make his return to the ring. Having the double champ, and greatest Mysterio of all time, back on television is one of the best things that could happen to WWE.

One Promo

I did not care enough about any of the promos. That’s right. There is no best promo this week.

SmackDown felt unnecessary overall. What should have been a month+ of Rumble build has been condensed into two weeks, and the promos for SmackDown were a let down. Some felt rushed, and others felt unnecessary.

Raw’s promos were somewhat better. Honestly, I could give the spot to Liv and Dom, but it feels redundant after giving Dom’s return the Moment this week.

And Roman…more on that in the Rumble section.

Royal Rumble

I’m going to skip any honorable mentions this week, and go right into the Royal Rumble:

• The women’s rumble was genuinely good. Charlotte and Alexa gave us the cutest Rumble start you could imagine. They’re the perfect friends and tag team partners, and I want them to stay that way. Kiana James didn’t make sense at first at number three, but she really proved herself in the Rumble in a way that she hadn’t been allowed. Liv was absolutely the right winner for the match. The only miss was that Blake Monroe should have had her main roster soft launch at the Rumble. 

• AJ Styles lost to Gunther. I wish it wasn’t Gunther getting to retire everyone, but this is what I expected. I really hope it isn’t a work and AJ really is done—with WWE. I 100% expect to see him in AEW, or maybe straight to NJPW. Either way, he’s not done until he’s on the Forbidden Door card.

• I really did not give a single shit about Drew and Sami. It was obvious that Drew wasn’t giving up the title yet; Sami had yet another meaningless championship match.

• The men’s Rumble was both amazing and the worst, all at once. I was pleasantly surprised by how not White the men’s Rumble was. The first half especially was dominated by Black and Latino superstars. There was a good mix of new superstars, as well. Je’Von Evans did great, and Oba Femi was absolutely dominant. And then it was all ruined when Roman Reigns won the Rumble. I could not care less about Roman vs Punk. Drew vs Roman would be even worse. Roman’s shitty promo about how he’s the best and could beat either of them felt so tired. We do not need another Roman WrestleMania. Roman has no compelling story going into the next few months, and I have no care to see it unfold. 

Anyways, that’s another week in the books. Let me know what y’all think about my picks this week.