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YOU WILL NEVER GUESS WHO IS CHALLENGING ROMAN REIGNS AT THE ROYAL RUMBLE

After being added to the Gauntlet match that headlined tonight's episode of WWE Friday Night Smackdown, former NWA Champion Adam Pearce defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to earn a WWE Universal Championship match against Roman Reigns at the 1/31 WWE Royal Rumble PPV.

While Pearce, 42, has wrestled all over the world, this would be the first time he's ever wrestled as a pushed character on WWE TV, having signed there in 2014 as a Producer and Coach for the WWE NXT brand.  He later moved to work as a Producer for the Raw and Smackdown roster and has appeared regularly as an authority figure for WWE over the last year.

The last time Pearce wrestled on WWE TV, he worked as an enhancement talent, losing to Tiger Ali Singh in 1997 on an episode of Shotgun Saturday Night.  That is a heck of a rebound.

WWE has several weeks until the Rumble PPV, so obviously there could be more twists and turns coming.  But, as of tonight, Reigns vs. Pearce is set.

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