Andrade makes WWE return in Royal Rumble

Andrade is back in WWE.

The former AEW star made his WWE return Saturday during the Royal Rumble match, entering at number 4. During the match, he briefly had an encounter with Santos Escobar, who did the Los Ingobernables hand gesture. Andrade was uninterested and instead attacked Escobar. He ended up being the eighth person eliminated from the match, being tossed out by Bronson Reed.

Andrade had wrestled for the WWE previously from 2015 through 2021, when he was granted his release from the company. After leaving, he signed with AEW and wrestled there until last December, when Tony Khan announced that his contract was expiring at the end of the year and was unlikely to be renewed. He was last seen losing to Miro at AEW’s Worlds End pay-per-view on December 30.

During Saturday’s Royal Rumble match, Sami Zayn made his return to television, going after the man who put him out of action in storyline, Drew McIntyre. Bron Breakker from NXT also made an appearance, looking strong until he was eliminated by Dominik Mysterio.