In WWE news, the action at WrestleMania 33 started during the free pre-show when Rob Gronkowski, of the NFL’s New England Patriots, decided to join in on the festivities. When WWE superstar Mojo Rawley discussed his close friendship with Gronkowski last October, and that “The Gronk” would love to wrestle one day, it made news headlines everywhere. And tonight, for a brief moment at least, Gronkowski stepped into the WWE ring at WrestleMania 33 .
There were three matches during the WrestleMania 33 pre-show including the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal . Over the last few weeks on Raw , the WWE had mainly been focused on highlighting the awesome power of the Big Show and Braun Strowman (in regards to the favorites to win the battle royal). So it came as a shock to some of the WWE universe when the powerful pair was eliminated somewhat early.
The last three participants of the match were Jinder Mahal, Killian Dain (from NXT), and Mojo Rawley. Mahal was outside the ring and started an altercation with “The Gronk” which seemingly ended with Jinder throwing beer on the All-Pro. But as seen in the video below, Gronkowski decided to make his WWE debut.
The #AndreBattleRoyal just got a dose of @Patriots ‘ @RobGronkowski . Watch #WrestleMania streaming LIVE at 7e/4p on @WWENetwork ! pic.twitter.com/fpoMaJAEHw
— WWE (@WWE) April 2, 2017
After delivering a powerful shoulder block, Gronkowski left the ring. Mojo Rowley won the battle royal and “The Gronk” returned to the ring to celebrate with his longtime friend.
There is a strong possibility that this won’t be the last of Gronkowski’s WWE in-ring appearances; in addition to the Patriot expressing interest in wrestling one day, WWE Chief Brand Officer, and on-screen personality, Stephanie McMahon is also interested in the NFL player. As Wrestling Inc. reported, McMahon appeared on ESPN to promote WWE’s WrestleMania 33 , and the news and rumors regarding “The Gronk.”
“Stephanie also commented on NFL player Rob Gronkowski of The New England Patriots and the recent Twitter video of The Gronk hyping friend Mojo Rawley for the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 33. Stephanie, who is a Patriots fan, said she would love to recruit Gronk once his football days are over. She said you never know what will happen in WWE and recalled Gronk having fun in the crowd at last week’s SmackDown, noting they love to see that energy transition to the ring.”
This wouldn’t be out of the norm for a football player to transition into professional wrestling and the WWE. Many NFL superstars have made the transition into professional wrestling including, William “The Refrigerator” Perry, Steve “Mongo” McMichael, and Kevin Greene had a short-term angle in WCW. Many others have arrived to the WWE from the NFL, including Mojo Rawley, and most of them find it to be a natural fit. Time will tell if the WWE universe will ever see the NFL tight end enter a WWE ring, but one thing is for sure, Gronkowski has already made an impact in the WWE at WrestleM ania 33 .
With the assist from @RobGronkowski , @MojoRawleyWWE TAKES the #AndreTheGiant Memorial Battle Royal trophy! #WrestleMania pic.twitter.com/fRqTHR6iE5
— WWE (@WWE) April 2, 2017
There were two other contests during the WWE WrestleMania 33 pre-show. Dean Ambrose successfully defended the WWE Intercontinental Championship against Baron Corbin. And Neville also had a successful title defense (WWE Cruiserweight Championship) when he beat Austin Aries. This solidifies Neville as a dominate champion even more and puts Austin in the position to become a huge face. This was Aries’ first big WWE match and the audience loved it. By the end of WrestleMania 33 , it won’t be surprising if the WWE universe thinks that the Aries and Neville match stole the show.
INSIDE OUT goes @AustinAries as #WrestleMania Kickoff streams LIVE on @WWENetwork ! Is @WWENeville about to finish him off? pic.twitter.com/3HbaqaoUNP
— WWE Network (@WWENetwork) April 2, 2017
[Featured Image by WWE]