The beginning of the year is arguable the busiest time for the WWE. Aside from organizing a 30-man Royal Rumble match, this time of the year also official marks the "Road to WrestleMania." As a wrestling fan, here are just some of the things you should watch out for from the WWE in the coming weeks.
Paige is one of the most exciting female wrestlers to come out of the WWE in recent memory. However, she recently suffered a legitimate neck injury that put her out for a number of months. She recently got surgery - including three screws in her neck - to reveal the problem, but now she is not expected to return until at least the summer of 2017, according to Cageside Seats.
With many of their best talent past their respective peaks and nearing retirement, the WWE could look to independent circuits to search for their next superstar. Former Ring of Honor (ROH) wrestler Kyle O'Reilly is rumored to be heading to the WWE. If this were true then he would join the ranks of AJ Styles, Dean Ambrose, and Seth Rollins - former competitors on the independent circuits who made it big in the WWE.
"Expect O'Reilly to be heading for WWE," ROH officials told Wrestling Inc. Although O'Reilly's move to the WWE is now all but confirmed, it is not clear whether he would debut as a member of one of the main rosters - either Raw or Smackdown - or if he would be shipped out to NXT first. Either way, he would be a welcome addition to the organization.
Finally, the rumor mill surrounding the Undertaker's next WrestleMania opposition is once again in the works. One of the most viable wrestlers for him to face at the "grandest stage of them all" is Braun Strowman. If this matchup were to happen though, it means that the Undertaker's chances of winning the 2017 Royal Rumble are slim at best.
This is because it is highly unlikely that Strowman will win a world championship with the WWE between now and WrestleMania, so a potential bout with the Undertaker would be a mere singles match with nothing on the line. If the Undertaker were to win the Royal Rumble this year, it would mean that the WWE would have to pull some strings to make Strowman a world champion. This is the only way for a Strowman vs. Undertaker contest to appear on the WrestleMania 33 card if the latter were to win this year's Royal Rumble.
Watch the highlights from the Jan. 10 edition of WWE Smackdown below: