Rumor Look Back: June 3 - 9, 2017

Welcome to the weekly Rumor Look Back, where we look at the rumors from six months ago and see which played out as originally predicted. Let’s get right to it.

Two weeks ago I marked a rumor about Braun Strowman returning mid-July as correct. He returned in June, so have adjusted the overall numbers.

June 3, 2017

• Big bets have been coming in on Samoa Joe to win the Fatal 5-Way at Extreme Rules, leading to speculation he's been chosen as the next challenger to Brock Lesnar.
• That’s how it went down. Joe looked like a star in that feud (1/1)
• The Observer notes there has been some talk of Vince McMahon doing an episode of Table for 3.
• He has not been on the show. (0/1)
• WWE may be working more with PROGRESS and ICW going forward, including deals to put its programming on the Network.
• They have a working relationship but the promotions aren’t on the Network. (1/2)

June 5, 2017

• The tag title change and the finish of the Hardys match at Extreme Rules could lead to a break-up, with Matt unhappy with Jeff’s high risk offense.
• That didn’t happen. Jeff got injured in October but prior to that, there was no break up. (0/1)
• It doesn’t look like Cody Rhodes is headed back to Impact, as his wife indicates he’s fulfilled all his dates there and Ring of Honor and New Japan will be keeping him busy.
• Cody hasn’t been in Impact for awhile. (1/1)
• Even though it’s still a couple years away, WWE officials are worried their ratings slump will hurt their negotiating position on their next TV deal.
• Possibly. Declining ratings isn’t something they want to bring to the bargaining table, though I believe they’re still one of the higher rated USA shows.
• Seth Rollins is said to be up for the cover of WWE 2K18, which would break from the recent trend of using the game to push an older/returning star.
• It was indeed the Kingslayer. (1/1)

June 6, 2017

• There were numerous names notably missing from Raw last night, but in the case of the Hardys, it was a planned day off due to how close Reby is to giving birth to her & Matt’s second child.
• Lord Wolfgang!
• Officials are very pleased with Elias Samson’s rollout, and are planning his first main roster feud with Dean Ambrose after Samson helps Miz end his program with Ambrose.
• Elias fka Samson didn’t really have a feud with Dean from this point on. In fact, he feuded more with Finn Bálor. And of course there’s the fruit assault he dealt with from Jason Jordan. (0/1)
• The Women’s Money in the Bank briefcase will be white with gold trim.
• It was revealed the next night to be such. Better looking case than the men’s. (1/1)

June 7, 2017

• There is some word going around that Braun Strowman could return as early as later this month, at least to house shows.
• June 19 he returned on television. (1/1)
• The Hardy Boyz are expected to work a "reduced" schedule over the next few weeks due to Matt's wife giving birth soon, according to PW Insider.
• That’s true. Matt spoke about how good WWE was giving him time. (1/1)
• WWE is happy with the reception to the Fashion Files and there are no plans on stopping it anytime soon.
• It certainly hadn’t stopped any time soon. Like all comedy, they’re not all home runs, but they’re consistently fun. (1/1)
• WWE will be doing another show in Japan in September and it could be a special.
• They did a show, but it wasn’t a Network special. (1/2)

June 8, 2017

• Kurt Angle’s mystery text may be a way to bring back not only Stephanie McMahon, but Triple H, too.
• It was not used for that. (0/1)
• Hideo Itami’s contract with WWE is up later this year, and there’s speculation that may be the end of his injury-plagued run with the company. This rumor seemed to trigger the interview on this week’s NXT where Itami denied he would return to Japan after losing at TakeOver: Chicago.
• He’s still with the company and will soon be on 205 Live. (0/1)
• WWE held mandatory trainings for talent focused on cyber security at this week’s tapings, according to PWInsider. These were basically “how not to get hacked” classes.
• Kevin Owens and his wife recently had some hacking issues but there hasn’t been any major incidents otherwise.

June 9, 2017

• Brock Lesnar is scheduled to wrestle Samoa Joe, Braun Strowman, Seth Rollins, and Finn Bálor in title matches leading up to the planned Roman Reigns match at WrestleMania 34.
• I think this will end up being a 2/4 , but we’ll give them a little time for Seth and Finn.
• Great Balls of Fire is likely to feature multiple rematches from Extreme Rules.
• There were two. A rematch between the Bar and Hardyz and a rematch between Dean Ambrose and the Miz. Technically, that’s multiple. (1/1)
• Lana's role on SmackDown Live will be something similar to what WWE was doing with Eva Marie before she left.
• I wouldn’t say it equates. After a couple matches, she’s pretty much a manager for Tamina. (0/1)
• The reason Sasha Banks is working on 205 Live is to draw interest to that show and the Observer notes there's an idea for more women to appear on it for the same reason.
• More women have not appeared on it. We may see Nia Jax on it but for the six months after this rumor, it was only Sasha. (0/1)
• According to the Observer, the Ric Flair “30 for 30” documentary is planned to run in January of next year.
• It was actually last month. (0/1)

This week: 10/20 - 50%

Overall: 1,869/3,429 - 54.5%

Have a great week, everyone!