Erick Rowan Addresses Potentially Appearing In The 2023 WWE Royal Rumble

WWE fans have come to expect the unexpected each January when the Royal Rumble rolls around, with former WWE stars or wrestlers from other promotions making surprise entrances in the annual Royal Rumble match.

This past year's return of Bray Wyatt has many fans hoping his former ally Erick Rowan might follow suit and rejoin his side in WWE. In a recent appearance on the "Ten Count" podcast, Rowan said he doesn't know if WWE wants him to come back for the upcoming Royal Rumble match.

"As far as appearing [at the Royal Rumble], I would be the last to know," Rowan told Fall. "I feel like fans figure out [about returns] through [dirt sheets] ... and I sometimes feel like you'll hear rumors and then all of a sudden they come true. That's why I always say, I always laugh, 'I'll probably hear a rumor,' I don't know."

Rowan made his last appearance in WWE in March 2020, on the last "WWE Raw" before COVID-19 lockdowns began. The two-time WWE SmackDown Tag Team champion was later released from his contract as part of the company's pandemic layoffs and has gone on to wrestle on and off on the independent circuit. Rowan has made several appearances in AEW in recent years as Erick Redbeard following the death of his former Wyatt Family partner Luke Harper, a.k.a. AEW's Brodie Lee.

Wyatt was also released from WWE during the pandemic but made his return to the company this past October in the final moments of the Extreme Rules Premium Live Event. Since then, WWE has teased an impending stable with Wyatt at the center which could include Alexa Bliss, an unidentified "Uncle Howdy," and several other masked figures who appeared alongside Wyatt when he first returned.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Ten Count," with a H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.