During Monday Night Raw, Michael Cole broke the news that JBL was returning to WWE next Monday when the show airs live from JBL’s home state of Texas, specifically San Antonio. JBL hasn’t appeared on WWE television since February 2023, nearly two years ago. But in those two years, he’s kept busy, most recently popping up in GCW, MLW, and TNA. And that is where things get interesting. See, in 2024, IMPACT Women’s Champion Jordynne Grace shocked the world when she debuted in the Royal Rumble, officially opening WWE’s own Forbidden Door of sorts, the Prohibited Portal.
Grace’s arrival was not a one-off as WWE and TNA continued to partner throughout the year with various IMPACT stars participating in NXT matches. Namely, Grace, who returned at NXT Battleground, and Joe Hendry, whose name was said so he appeared to take on NXT Champion Ethan Page at No Mercy. Hendry’s appearance won NXT Moment of the Year and he’s since teased another appearance could be on the way. Perhaps one that requires a countdown and a new song about throwing 29 men out of a ring…
The Prohibited Portal remained open for a while but it has since died down a bit…Although, it’s possible a certain someone could be about to change all of that.
JBL Returns to WWE…Perhaps with an Announcement?
As noted, on Raw, Cole announced his former broadcast partner would be returning to WWE, but in what capacity remains to be seen. Most recently, JBL has been seen working the indies alongside Nic Nemeth, the former Dolph Ziggler. Once bitter rivals as JBL managed Baron Corbin during his feud with Ziggler in 2022, the two are now tied at the hip with JBL helping Nemeth win by hook or crook. JBL has returned as a manager, picking up where his career left off. He was a great and slippery heel, using his cunning and his wallet to help him win matches. Now, he’s putting that Clothesline from Hell to good use, only this time in service to Nemeth and others who ally with him.
Which brings us to Cole’s announcement. JBL is returning to Raw in his home state of Texas and while it could just be for one of those sideline interviews like Bayley gave today in her hometown of San Jose, it is likely it means so much more. Especially because in late December, JBL tweeted, “2024 sounded great @ThisisTNA. You will not believe what’s coming in 2025. See you soon.”
Very few things rise to the level of, “you will not believe what is coming,” but a bunch of TNA wrestlers showing up in WWE for some kind of cross-promotional angle kickstarting with the Royal Rumble, that would do it. When the Prohibited Portal first opened, fans hoped to see more TNA wrestlers in WWE and to see them on Raw and SmackDown, not just Netflix. They also hoped to see WWE wrestlers cross the portal into IMPACT, which has yet to happen. But 2025 is a new year and it’s safe to say while no one had the Prohibited Portal and openly mentioning TNA on WWE TV on their bingo card in 2024, that now, fans are clamoring for more of it.
We’ll have to wait a week to see what JBL has in store for Raw but if it has anything to do with the Prohibited Portal, it’s going to be an exciting time to be a wrestling fan yet again. A new dawn could be rising but only time will tell.
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on JBL’s Raw return and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world.
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