Two WWE SmackDown Dark Matches Including The Return Of Curtis Axel, JBL/Main Event, More

Birthdate: 11/29/1966 (age 47) Height: 6'6" Weight: 290 Ib JBL is a current color commentator in WWE, as p...

-- Curtis Axel made his first appearance in WWE in a while, losing a dark match to Kofi Kingston in between the Main Event and SmackDown tapings on Tuesday night.

Also read: Today's Wrestling Birthdays, Update On Tonight's WWE Main Event & SmackDown TV Tapings, More

-- Tyson Kidd defeated Adam Rose (and the Rosebuds) in the other dark match that took place before the WWE Main Event TV tapings.

-- It was announced at the WWE SmackDown tapings that WWE will return to the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas on January 18th. This will be a house show and tickets are on sale now.

-- JBL worked commentary for the WWE Main Event taping. Whether this was permanent or a one-off isn’t known.

The Axe Praises Curtis Axel, AJ Lee/Tamina/Ca...

-- Larry "The Axe" Hennig spoke to WWE.com following the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view and praised his grandson Curtis Axel as someone who has "natural talent." "The Axe" went on to say he thinks Axel will become World Heavyweight Champion within the next few years. Good luck with that!-- During an interview with WWE.com following her loss to Cameron at the Elimination Chamber, AJ Lee says Tamina Snuka "royally screwed up" by missing her kick. AJ continued that Tamina normally does a good...

The Rock At WM30?, Backstage Fear Over Curtis A...

Source: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter

-- As noted on Thursday here on the website, The Rock reportedly informed WWE in August that he would not working WrestleMania XXX this year, but has not yet ruled out the possibility of doing WrestleMania 31 in 2015. Additionally, WWE's merchandise department were recently told not to produce any singular merchandise featuring The Rock. They noted that The Rock could be used in group shots, but nothing individual.

-- WWE officials are under the impression that Curtis Axel, who is from the Minneapolis area and is part of the famous Hennig family (Larry Hennig, Curt "Mr. Perfect" Hennig), may receive a babyface reaction from the fans in attendance at this Sunday's WWE Elimination Chamber event.

As previously reported, Axel, along with Ryback, will take on Goldust and Cody Rhodes in a tag-team match during the Kickoff Show prior to the start of the pay-per-view.