Thanks to a foot injury, Samoa Joe saw his mission of taking down John Cena evaporate the same night he issued the challenge. However, Joe’s lost opportunities continue to pile up as now it appears he will miss the Royal Rumble.
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer reports that Joe could miss anywhere from 2-8 weeks, making his first ever Royal Rumble appearance highly questionable. the good news is that Joe won’t be missing WrestleMania, however, he will miss a chunk of WrestleMania season which could leave him empty-handed come April 8th. By being on the sidelines, WWE will have to move on without him, putting Joe on the fast track for a dubious appearance in Andre the Giant Battle Royal.
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EXCLUSIVE: @SamoaJoe gets checked out after suffering a foot injury on #RAW. pic.twitter.com/QRRC38lZtW
— WWE (@WWE) January 9, 2018
“During his match, [Samoa Joe] felt a pop at the bottom of his [right] foot,” said WWE Senior Ringside Physician Dr. Chris Amann. “We took a look and believe he has a plantar fascia rupture, which is a thick tissue rupture under the foot. We will get an MRI to confirm. Treatment includes a period of immobilization in a boot with crutches and platelet-rich plasma injections.”
This comes as yet another tough-luck injury to Joe, ironically occurring right before a program with John Cena. This past summer, Joe was rumored to be entering a program with the 16-time WWE Champion but suffered a knee injury that cost him most of the fall. Since returning, Joe has put in exceptional work, but it’s all been undone this new injury.
Joe missing the Rumble would be unfortunate, but by no means a death sentence. However, if he needs 2 months to get back, then Joe will have missed precious time and could stay on WWE’s back burners until after WrestleMania season.
We will have more Joe updates in the near future.
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NEW YORK CITY – DECEMBER 19: "Toil and Trouble" – Elsbeth is thrown into the world of television after the showrunner of a long-running police procedural is brutally murdered in his office, and although it appears to be the act of a disgruntled fan, she begins to suspect the show's longtime star Regina Coburn (Laurie Metcalf) who yearns for artistic fulfillment. Meanwhile, Judge Crawford (Michael Emerson) continues to be a thorn in Elsbeth's side, on the CBS original series ELSBETH, Thursday, Dec. 19 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs). Pictured (L-R): Carrie Preston as Elsbeth Tascioni and Carra Patterson as Kaya Blanke. (Photo by Michael Parmelee/CBS via Getty Images)
