What Triple H did to make sure Royce Keys’ WWE debut at the Royal Rumble was kept a secret

As seen during the 2026 WWE Royal Rumble PLE, Royce Keys (formerly Powerhouse Hobbs in AEW) made his debut with the company in the men’s Rumble match. While speaking to Stephanie McMahon, Keys commented on how his appearance was kept a secret…

“I love working out. It’s a stress reliever for me. I was telling Paul [Triple H] when he came into my hidden room in Saudi [Arabia], I was like, ‘Do you think I can maybe use the hotel gym?’ And it’s just like, I knew what was coming next. I asked him. About five seconds of silence. And then he’s like, ‘Well…’ And it was more silence. I’m like, ‘damn.’ He’s like, ‘well, we don’t want you to be seen. You’re a surprise.’ And I’m like, ‘man, okay.’ I know this whole silence thing growing up. Silence means no.

But he was cool. I had a bench delivered to my room, some bands and some other things. He took care of me.”