While the night after Raw is a night full of surprises and debuts, one superstar will not have to wait until Monday. A fresh face was announced to be one of the 30 participants in the “Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.”
Chinese Superstar Tian Bing was announced by WWE as one of the contestants entering the “Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.” He is not the first name to be announced, as several other superstars have been announced for the match as well. Several high profile names like Dolph Ziggler, Sami Zayn, Big Show, and Braun Strowman will be in the match as well. Several other workers such as Jinder Mahal, Fandango, Curtis Axel, Apollo Crews, and Mojo Rawley will be in the match as well.
[Image by WWE]
WWE also revealed some more superstars who would be joining the fray. Former World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry will be in the match, joining the likes of Jason Jordan and Chad Gable of American Alpha, Jimmy and Jey Uso, Heath Slater, and Rhyno in the fight.
The match is one of two matches to take place on the kick-off show, as the Smackdown Women’s Championship match where Alexa Bliss defends her title against “every available woman” was moved to the main card.
WWE says that the winner of the “Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal” will be able to “catapult their career to new heights” and allows the winner to “carve out their own WrestleMania moment.”
“The annual Battle Royal was introduced at WrestleMania 30 in honor of the late WWE Hall of Famer, Andre the Giant. Since then, the over-the-top-rope extravaganza has become an opportunity for the winner to carve out his very own WrestleMania moment while catapulting his career to new heights.”
“In the match’s inaugural showing, Cesaro walked out the winner after bringing 75,000-plus WWE fans in New Orleans to their feet as he hoisted Big Show over the top rope for the victory. Since then, The World’s Largest Athlete has joined the winner’s circle along with Baron Corbin. Which Superstar will join this still very elusive group in Orlando?”
[Image by WWE]
If Tian Bing is to win the match, then it would be a way to give him a lot of momentum. Since signing with the company in June of last year, Bing has made only one televised appearance. He and his tag team partner Ho Ho Lun lost to Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa at the first round of Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Tournament.
However, it is unlikely that Bing will win the match, as many suspect that either Braun Strowman or Mojo Rawley will walk away victorious as the winner of the fourth “Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.” Many think Bing is being used to pad the numbers, all while exposing him to the WWE style and give him experience working a crowd of WWE’s size.
Bing is also expected to go through NXT , as he has not made his official debut, having only had one match that he lost. Many think that as soon as he gains a strong command of the English language, Tian Bing will become a part of NXT television. NXT is no stranger to Asian wrestlers, as Japanese wrestlers Shinsuke Nakamura, Hideo Itami, and Asuka have all been part of the developmental brand. In fact, Asuka is the longest-reigning NXT Women’s Championship, while Nakamura is currently feuding with Bobby Roode over the NXT Championship.
WWE signed Bing in the hopes of tapping into the Chinese market. By signing Chinese wrestlers, WWE hopes to attract an audience in the most populated country on Earth. WWE Superstar Bo Dallas was given a small winning streak in order to lose to Bing.
