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Welcome back to the Rumor Look Back, where we look back at the wrestling rumors from six months ago and see how they played out. Let’s jump right to it.
- According to the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, originally they were going to have Shane McMahon say that if he won at WrestleMania 32, he would fire Triple H and Stephanie McMahon on Raw. That was apparently changed to what we saw this past Monday night where Vince McMahon said they would probably quit and he would probably be gone.
- It doesn’t matter either way since Shane lost. I wonder why that was a big enough deal to be changed though.
- While he’s not schedule to be back in action until July, it is expected that John Cena will make an appearance at WrestleMania 32.
- He did make an appearance at Mania. In typical Cena fashion, he was back earlier than scheduled, returning in May. (1/1)
- It is expected Lana will wrestle at WrestleMania and another member will be added to the babyface side of the tag match to make a 5 on 5.
- Yes, Lana wrestled and Eva filled in the babyface role. She wasn’t received as babyface. (2/2)
- The New Day vs. League of Nations match at Mania apparently won’t be for the tag titles.
- It wasn’t so the League was able to go over. (1/1)
- The Observer notes that Roman Reigns changing his entrance "could be the sign of a turn." The plan is still for him to win the title at WrestleMania.
- He did win the title, but he never really turned. (1/2)
- There’s more talk about Bray Wyatt getting involved in the Dean Ambrose/Brock Lesnar, possibly a way to get to the finish.
- Thankfully, it didn’t go this way. I was really worried they would do some lame interference in the match. Even though they didn’t, the match ended up really disappointing me because I had some high expectations and the match was kind of whatever. (0/1)
- According to the Observer, while there was initially talk of Bobby Roode heading to WWE, apparently it's Eric Young who may be garnering more interest of the two.
- Both have ended up at NXT. The wording alludes to who WWE wanted more so I’m going to leave this one ungraded. Bobby Roode has been killing it though.
- Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows are scheduled to debut in WWE in April.
- That’s the case. They debuted on April 11 and attacked the Usos. They’ve recently been feuding with the New Day in a feud that they’ll never pick up a legit win in. (1/1)
- PW Insider reports WWE is currently planning to run three matches on the WrestleMania 32 pre-show.
- It was the Dudleys vs. Usos, Total Divas vs. Bad & Blonde, & Ryback vs. Kalisto. (1/1)
- It's expected that ESPN will have a major presence at WrestleMania 32 with a lot of coverage throughout the week leading up to the show.
- Googling “ESPN and WrestleMania 32” turns up a bunch of ESPN articles, so I’ll grade this as true. (1/1)
- Angelina Love is no longer with TNA and is expected to start wrestling again this summer.
- She is no longer at TNA and started taking bookings, according to her Twitter, in May. (2/2)
- With no word and less than a week to the show, it's believed Rock's role at WrestleMania will be like his last Raw appearance - backstage skits interacting with various talents and an in-ring promo, but no role in major angles.
- He had no backstage segments but had an in-ring promo which didn’t affect a major angle. I’ll go 2⁄3 on this one. (2/3)
- TNA's search for investors has found someone very interested in buying in - but only if they can purchase a majority stake, something Dixie Carter is not willing to do.
- The the drama continues to roll on.
- Per Wrestling Observer, however, she may not have a choice, as TNA has major cash flow issues and things like late payments to wrestlers and production staff are only going to get worse without new investment capital.
- It’s a bit funny that these rumors keep coming up over and over again and nothing seems to change. Will this time be the time? We’ll have to wait and see. I’ll let you know in six months.
- Velvet Sky’s contract may be coming up and she may follow the likes of Eric Young, Bobby Roode, and Angelina Love and leave TNA.
- Yes, she too left TNA. These more established stars leaving helped open up some spots for younger talent. (1/1)
- Stone Cold Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels, and Mick Foley are still scheduled for WrestleMania 32, but just for cameo appearances.
- They were all in the same segment. (3/3)
- Apparently there will be a big debut or return at WrestleMania.
- I suppose I’ll count Cena in this, though it wasn’t a full return but instead a one off. Corbin debuted, but I wouldn’t call that big. (1/1)
- It's expected that Sasha Banks is going to win the Divas championship at WrestleMania 32 and Becky Lynch will be moved away from the program so Sasha can feud with Charlotte.
- Charlotte retained the title and then Sasha disappeared from TV for a bit. (0/2)
- The Wyatt Family are expected to round out the field for the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
- They weren’t in it. (0/1)
- While TNA may be for sale, and the company is looking for outside investors, there isn’t anything expected to be announced on that front any time soon.
- Nothing has been announced officially by the company even now after the latest word on their financial difficulties. (1/1)
- WWE is apparently souring on Braun Strowman's big push and he may not be in the line to win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal anymore. What's more, his match with Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam that was previously planned may be off the books, according to the Observer.
- Both of these things match wise are true. He didn’t win the Andre (wasn’t even in it) and there was no SummerSlam match against Lesnar (he had no match there either). He is still getting the squash treatment on Raw so if the push was off, there’s a least a smaller one back on. (2/2)
- It's still expected, however, that The Wyatt Family will be involved in the finish in the Lesnar vs. Dean Ambrose match at WrestleMania.
- The change in the Strowman rumor did not effect this rumor so it is still incorrect. (0/1)
- Word has it that Snoop Dogg will perform during Sasha Banks’ entrance.
- This is the case. (1/1)
- There’s talk of Cesaro making a surprise return in the Andre the Giant Battle Royal.
- He did not return there but instead the next night on Raw. (0/1)
- PW Insider notes that John Cena is close to returning to WWE and he may have already been cleared by doctors. It's likely he makes an appearance at WrestleMania 32.
- While it wasn’t a full time return, he made the appearance at Mania. (1/1)
- Although WWE is keeping it secret, the Observer notes the belief is Luke Harper has a torn ACL, will be out six months, and he may have already undergone surgery.
- Turns out it was a patellar injury and not an ACL. He has been out at least six months though. (1/2)
- The latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports King Cuerno was offered a spot in the WWE Global Cruiserweight Series tournament but Lucha Underground wouldn't allow him to do it.
- That would have been an interesting addition, as would other LU talent such as Prince Puma.
This Week: 23/32 - 72%
(Rumors were pretty accurate heading into Mania.)
March Rumors: 71/114 - 62%
Overall: 1,108/2,061 - 53.8%
Have a great week, everybody!