WWE News Roundup: 734-day streak ends; released star breaks silence; Bobby Lashley on beating Brock Lesnar (January 30, 2022)

Welcome to the latest edition of WWE News Roundup.

Following the recently-concluded Royal Rumble event, a few intriguing developments related to the show have emerged. One of the most prominent streaks in the company's modern history came to an end.

Meanwhile, a 26-year-old talent has broken her silence after being released from WWE. Bobby Lashley defeated Brock Lesnar on January 29, and he also spoke about his newsworthy achievement afterward.

Mickie James reacted to her appearance in the Women's Rumble as well. After the show went off the air, a multi-time world champion appeared to send the live crowd home happy.

With that in mind, let's take a closer look at these topics.

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#5. WWE Royal Rumble features the end of Roman Reigns' 734-day streak

The Royal Rumble saw a heated battle between Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins for the Universal Championship. The latter initiated a few mind games throughout the bout to frustrate his former Shield teammate.

As a result, matters escalated to a point where The Tribal Chief locked in a Guillotine choke on Rollins. Even when his opponent grabbed the rope, Reigns refused to let go of the hold, leaving the referee with no other choice but to stop the contest. So despite his successful title retention, the Universal Champion lost this match via disqualification.

Therefore, Royal Rumble marked the end of Reigns' winning streak for premium live events (f.k.a. pay-per-views) at 734 days. Before that, he came up short in the 2020 Rumble match, and his previous loss in a one-on-one pay-per-view bout occurred against the former King Corbin at TLC 2019.

Roman Reigns is also the longest-reigning Universal Champion of all time. Keeping in mind the events that unfolded on January 29, Brock Lesnar will likely look to end The Tribal Chief's dominant title run soon.

Additionally, it would be interesting to see what WWE has planned for Seth Rollins on the road to WrestleMania 38.

#4. Toni Storm makes a move on her post-WWE career

Toni Storm's WWE run concluded abruptly towards the end of 2021, as the one-time NXT UK Women's Champion asked for her release. "Burnout" was cited as the reported reason why she left Vince McMahon's company.

After departing the promotion on December 29, Storm recently took to Instagram to share a photo of herself. In the caption, she provided an update regarding her post-WWE career.

The 26-year-old is now accepting bookings via email, and you can check out her Instagram post here.

"bookings [email protected] 🍻," Storm wrote on Instagram.

Not only did she receive support from fans in the comments, but a few names from the industry also sent out their reactions. Former NXT General Manager William Regal heaped praise on Storm and encouraged promoters to book her for their shows moving forward.

"Toni Storm is a great lady and talent. Book her, she knows what she’s doing and is a Pro," Regal stated on Twitter.

Regal is no longer part of Vince McMahon's company as well. The veteran received his release on January 5, 2022, just a few days after the former NXT UK Women's Champion departed the promotion.

#3. Bobby Lashley comments on his "beautiful" WWE Championship victory over Brock Lesnar

At WWE Royal Rumble 2022, Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley's dream match featured a significant world title change. Thanks to Roman Reigns' interference and a betrayal by Paul Heyman, Lesnar lost the gold to his opponent.

Speaking to Ariel Helwani of BT Sport after the bout, Lashley described the win from his point of view, without mentioning Reigns and Heyman's involvement.

"It was one of the greatest moments. We talked about it this week, beating Brock Lesnar is a big step in my career. And going out there, the main thing I wanted to do as a fighter, I wanted to see what he had. Everybody knows Brock's gonna throw you around a lot, he's gonna hit the F5. He's gonna try to beat you up, he's gonna try to beat you down. I wanted to see if I can take everything that he had. And I did. I took everything he had and then I pinned him at the end. So, of course this is a beautiful victory for me." [0:19-0:46]

Bobby Lashley added that the first suplex he received from Brock Lesnar almost knocked him out, but he soon recovered to triumph over The Beast Incarnate.

Lesnar, however, would not sit back after the loss and went on to win the Royal Rumble match at the end of the night.

#2. Mickie James reacts to making history at WWE Royal Rumble

Mickie James' WWE return saw her enter the Women's Rumble at No. 20 and last for almost 12 minutes in the match. Unlike most participants, the veteran's affiliation with IMPACT Wrestling allowed her to stand out from the rest of the pack.

WWE's opening of the 'Forbidden Door' is not something many expected to happen in the first place. So after the 30-woman contest, James highlighted the significance of her Rumble appearance in a backstage interview:

"Unbelievable. If you would have said to me that this moment [being in the Rumble] would be happening right now, I would've said you're insane. And here we are, we went out there and made history." [0:11-0:21]

While the IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Champion had aimed to win the multi-woman match, she thought she still had "a heck of a showing."

"Just to go out there as WWE family, as Mickie James - the legend, also as Hardcore Country Mickie, something that the WWE Universe never saw and to represent IMPACT as the Knockouts World Champion, I thought I did a great job. I had a heck of a showing. I'm sorry guys, I didn't win, but in my heart the world won because we just broke down one of the biggest ceilings you've ever seen. And we did it for the women." said James. [0:30-0:56]

During her stay in the bout, the 42-year-old eliminated a fellow legend, Michelle McCool. Mickie James was eventually taken out of the equation by Lita, another prominent name from the past.

#1. Randy Orton appeared again after WWE Royal Rumble went off the air

WWE fans in attendance reacted to Randy Orton's Royal Rumble entrance with one of the loudest pops of the night. Despite being the hometown hero in St. Louis, Orton entered late in the 30-man match and lasted less than three minutes.

Eventual winner Brock Lesnar was responsible for The Viper's elimination. And while that moment might have soured the experience of many a spectator, the 14-time world champion made a post-show appearance to satisfy the crowd.

Soon after, the WWE on BT Sport Twitter handle put out a video of it, where one can see Orton posing for the St. Louis audience. Check out the clip below:

Randy Orton and his tag team partner, Riddle, eliminated two other participants as a unit during the Rumble. RK-Bro pushed Otis — one of their recent rivals — and Big E out of the equation.

Had Orton emerged victoriously, he would have joined Stone Cold Steve Austin as a three-time Royal Rumble winner in WWE. While he could not accomplish this in St. Louis, The Viper still has several years left in the business to match Steve Austin's record at some point.