Classic backstage Raw photos, new MMC team with Enzo's replacement, Interviews with Dreamer+Helms/Foley/X-Pac+Credible, Y2J starts new NJPW feud, ROH name works another NJPW show, Cena set for more shows, new ROH contracts, WOH press, ROH announces a lot of TV matches, Cornette no longer taking bookings, Raw 25 roster notes, Smackdown guests, more Raw 25 hype, WWE cancels cruiserweight house show, Dutt surgery, Impact audience, and Questions on negotiating while under contract, announcing Rumble entry, Kaitlyn returning, and women's Rumble commentary

WWE showcased behind-the-scenes photos from 25 years of Raw. They have an incredible archive.

Apollo Crews will replace Enzo Amore in the Mixed Match Challenge. He'll be teaming with Nia Jax. That could be an interesting pairing. I'm sure I'll enjoy it more than an Apollo/Dana teaming, as much sense as that would make.

Tommy Dreamer and Hurricane Helms were on the most recent Edge and Christian podcast, discussing how social media and technology have changed wrestling. They've definitely had a really big impact on making the business different from what it was in, say, 1999.

Mick Foley discussed a number of topics:
- Interesting note about how stars aren't as mainstream as they used to be. I DEFINITELY think there's a bigger focus on in-ring skills and less on the "it" factor than there was in previous eras. Today's names are largely really enjoyable workers, but aren't often as interesting as their predecessors. WWE TV used to be a lot more fun. Now the focus is more on the athleticism and winning matches/titles, so there's more of a niche crowd following it.

- I wouldn't object to the women's Rumble headlining the show.

- I hope they really protect Braun.

- Yes, people like Miz and Enzo are great entertainers.

- Y2J vs. Omega was a very big moment for both men, and for NJPW as a whole. I hope the company sees more big crossovers as they try to build themselves.

Chris Jericho attacked Tetsuya Naito at the January 5 NJPW event, starting a new feud. Y2J has a score of Fozzy dates in the months ahead, but we could see him work the NJPW California show on March 25, as he doesn't have a show that night.

- Cheeseburger worked the show, too, teaming with the former Tempura Boyz in a loss to The Elite.

John Cena is set for Fast Lane, the March 11 Smackdown-brand PPV before Wrestlemania. It will be interesting to see what he does then and what he does at WM34. He is figured into plans for that event, so he doesn't have any big outside commitments in the way of the show.

- Cena will also work a number of Raw events after Royal Rumble. He's still taking dates when he's able. I like it.

ROH has signed Beer City Bruiser and The Boys to contracts. I would expect to see the latter team in action more as a result.

The Women of Honor tournament was covered by CBS Sports:
- Interesting approach to starting the division.

- Wow. I'm glad they put so much work into the pitch for the division.

- It definitely took some serious time for the division to come together.

- I think WWE and ROH both have the goal of spotlighting women more. I don't think it's a case of one copying the other or anything.

ROH has announced the following matches for their January 20 TV taping:
- Dalton Castle vs. Punishment Martinez for the ROH World Championship
- The Hung Bucks vs. So Cal Uncensored (The Addiction and Scorpio Sky) for the ROH Six-Man Tag Team Championship
- Motor City Machine Guns vs. Best Friends for the ROH Tag Team Championship
- Marty Scurll vs. Shane Taylor
- Cody vs. Matt Taven
- Jay Lethal vs. Flip Gordon
-- That's a pretty good card.

X-Pac and Justin Credible discussed a number of topics. I hope Credible is able to become a wellness coach. That'd be incredible.

Jim Cornette recently announced he'll no longer be working wrestling shows beyond convention appearances. He'll still be active with podcasting and so forth. I mean, if he's not enjoying the business and he's financially able to move on, I can't say that's a bad move for him.

For Raw's 25th anniversary, John Cena and Brock Lesnar are set for the Barclays Center, while The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, and Kevin Nash will be advertised for the Manhattan Center.

Ricochet and Tessa Blanchard were at Tuesday's Smackdown. It's expected Ricochet will join NXT soon, and I could see Tessa ending up there, too, at some point.

WWE remade their 1996 Raw intro with the current roster. I love this idea. I hope it keeps going.

WWE has canceled the January 19 205 Live event due to "routing and scheduling issues." The January 20 and 21 events are still set. I expect this was a move to increase attendance for the other two nights. The cruiserweight experiment is underperforming. I hope this means further changes are in order, with undercard names being added to the mix instead of the same people doing the same spots each week.

Sonjay Dutt had surgery for a torn right Achilles' tendon. I hope he's able to rebound before too long. Thankfully he at least has his backstage job in the meantime.

Impact Wrestling drew 309,000 viewers for Thursday's show, their highest number since August. This was a pretty loaded show, so I'm glad it paid off for them. They had been taking a beating for a while there. We'll see if they're able to build momentum with what's taped in Orlando this coming week.

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
Nothing to add to 1.

2. I'm under the impression it's usually a case of someone in, say, WWE speaking to a friend of a sought-after talent and telling that friend that the company is interested in that talent. The friend then becomes an informal mediator between the two sides:
- Management to talent's friend: "We'd love to sign your friend when their contract is up."
- Talent's friend to talent: "Hey, WWE is interested in signing you."
- Talent to talent's friend: "I'd be willing to consider it. I'm currently making _____ a year. If they're offering something at that level, I'm in."
- Talent's friend to management: "They're interested. They want _______ a year."
- Management to talent's friend: "We'll offer them ______ for two years."

And so on until there's an offer waiting for them when they're legally able to take it. It's technically illegal, but it's done so frequently it's pretty much accepted practice. WWE does generally have talents take indie dates for a few months between contracts to make it more plausible they weren't talking to a talent while they were signed somewhere else.

Sometimes the case is:
- Talent to dirtsheet: "My contract's coming up soon."
- Dirtsheet report: _______'s contract is up in a few months.
- WWE management to dirtsheet: "We'd be interested in signing them."
- Dirtsheet report: WWE has interest in _______ when their contract comes due.
- Talent's current company to talent: "Here's an offer to keep you."

And so on. It's a great way to get companies bidding for your services, and gives more material for dirtsheets to accurately report!

3. The best explanation I have is that talents get it cleared with their bosses before they announce it on TV.  I'm sure everyone would love to announce they're challenging for titles, too, but it's ultimately the GM's call to approve that.

4. We'll see how things go as she gets back into the groove of things. Doing a show here and there is different from touring full-time, with all the stresses involved.

5. I'd like to see at least one female commentator for that match, but I can see how WWE would want to trust it to people who have more experience calling things at that stage.

More wrestling tomorrow.