Rumor Look Back: Jun. 10 - 16, 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.

June 10, 2017

• Brock Lesnar is expected to be at every episode of Monday Night Raw but one leading up to his match against Samoa Joe at Great Balls of Fire.
• This one is tough Brock was definitely not at one and was definitely at two of them. But at the go home show, the Brock/Joe confrontation was entirely a backstage video bit. Looks like Brock wasn’t part of the dark match either. Makes me wonder if this wasn’t taped the week prior? I’m going to grade this as incorrect because there’s no evidence he was actually at the show. If you have something to show “Oh he was there,” drop it in the comments and I will reverse the decision (0/1)
• One of the reasons WWE has gone into the Alexa Bliss-Nia Jax feud is for Total Divas.
• It was a feud that didn’t really last long.
• It looks like WWE will be doing more to promote 205 Live going forward.
• Man another tough call. I’ll say that moving Enzo over can be considered that, though that was two months from this rumor. (1/1)
• There's apparently been some talk of Booker T staying in the booth on Monday Night Raweven when David Otunga is ready to come back.
• Yes, he is still on commentary. I kind of liked this booth with him at first but I’m at the point that Booker is starting to distract me from the show. (1/1)
• Although Bryan Alvarez apparently suggested TJ Perkins started going by "TJP" because Vince McMahon hates the "Perkins" restaurant chain, TJP himself says it's simply because he requested it.
• My favorite part of this is that Vince rumor is totally believable.

June 12, 2017

• There have been some rumors floating about Undertaker not being retired due to a reference on Raw by Michael Cole but there are no plans for him to return to wrestle again.
• Man, I hope so.
• Emma is expected to return to television as early as tonight, possibly back in a storyline with Mickie James and Dana Brooke.
• She did return and was part of a big six woman tag. Mickie and Dana were in that match as well, but she didn’t return to actively feud with them. Emma has since been released. (1/2)
• It's been noted by PW Insider that WWE pursued Thea Trinidad for months before finally signing her.
• I’m glad they did. She’s doing great work.
• Pro wrestling is still fun. Big if true.
• Hmmm... tough one. I mean I can see it going either way and the rumor is kind of vague. I think I’m going to put it on ice for a bit.

June 13, 2017

• WWE is thinking of having John Cena feud with Jinder Mahal sometime between his July 4 return and SummerSlam, according to SportsKeeda.
• This did not happen. (0/1)
• Officials are happy with the start of the Samoa Joe vs. Brock Lesnar feud and are open to extending it past Great Balls of Fire if ratings and other factors indicate there’s fan interest in a longer program.
• I don’t know how ratings and other interest factors were, but Samoa Joe was part of the SummerSlam fatal 4-way as well.
• The other title fights on Great Balls of Fire’s card are expected to be rematches of Extreme Rules tag and Intercontinental championship matches, Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss and Neville vs. Akira Tozawa.
• It was actually Alexa vs. Sasha Banks, but the others were correct. (3/4)
• Talk of Ronda Rousey doing something with WWE has heated up... because she followed a bunch of company and Superstar Twitter accounts.
• It continues to heat up but we’re not there yet. And even now, we have rumor ranging from “She’s already training” to “Negotiations haven’t gotten off the ground.”
• Pro Wrestling Sheet says they’ve confirmed what many folks thought when they saw Dash Wilder in Raw’s show-opening brawl between Joe and Brock - he’s medically cleared to return to the ring.
• He had his first match back a couple weeks later. Unfortunately, Scott Dawson was soon hurt and that kept him off TV. But he should be back soon and hopefully that’s it for Revival injuries. (1/1)

June 14, 2017

• The Observer has noted John Cena vs. Roman Reigns is not the current plan for SummerSlam.
• This is true. John Cena faced Baron Corbin while Roman was part of the Universal title fatal 4-way. He and Roman faced off at No Mercy. (1/1)
• It does look like the plan is for Shinsuke Nakamura to win the Money in the Bank briefcase.
• It was Corbin. (0/1)
• That the Brock Lesnar-Samoa Joe brawl is doing so well on YouTube has become a topic of discussion within WWE, and there could be an even bigger angle set to follow it.
• I wouldn’t say there was a bigger angle than the brawl. (0/1)
• PW Insider noted that there was talk American Alpha would return to SmackDown Live this week with a big angle to reintroduce them. That obviously didn't happen, but that would seem to indicate where WWE is at on the team right now.
• They are no longer a team. Jason Jordan is on Raw as Kurt Angle’s whiny son while Chad Gable is in a tag team with Shelton Benjamin on SmackDown.

June 15, 2017

• One option under consideration for Roman Reigns announcement next week is to have Braun Strowman attack him before he can make it. This would set-up a match at Great Balls of Fire and possibly another at SummerSlam if WWE opts to continue Samoa Joe vs. Brock Lesnar.
• His announcement was that he’s going to challenge for the title at SummerSlam before he was interrupted by Samoa Joe. Braun did return this episode, but at the end of the night while the Big Dog was battling Joe. (0/1)
• There are some whispers Triple H is frustrated with Vince McMahon over how some NXT talents are being handled on the main roster, as he is said to feel their hard work is being squandered.
• I can definitely believe this.
• Rusev is expected to return to TV on SmackDown after Money in the Bank.
• He returned July 4, a couple weeks after the PPV. He had an epic flag match with John Cena. (1/1)

June 16, 2017

• The plan is to make SummerSlam as big as possible this year, which could mean the Triple H vs. Kurt Angle match happens there, according to the Observer.
• Kurt didn’t wrestle until he had to fill in short notice at TLC. However given the issues they had heading into Survivor Series, I bet the match happens at the Rumble or Mania. (0/1)
• Braun Strowman may or may not be cleared yet, something that differs depending on who you ask, but he is currently scheduled for the Great Balls of Fire event.
• He was at Balls. He beat Roman but then was murdered by Reigns via ambulance. (1/1)
• According to the Observer, there will be a legends segment at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view.
• Yes, they were at ringside for the Mahal/Orton match and were involved in the finish. (1/1)
• Ric Flair, Bob Orton Jr., Larry Hennig, Baron Von Raschke, Greg Gagne are all appearing, per the Observer, and Gerald Brisco, Rocky Johnson, and Ted DiBiase could all appear as well.
• The top 5 appeared but the other 3 did not. (5/8)
• WWE may be considering running a WrestleMania in London, as a survey sent out to WrestleMania attendees indicates. Toronto is another city being asked about.
• London Mania would be pretty frickin’ cool.

This week: 16/27 - 59%

Overall: 1,885/3,456 - 54.5%

Have a great week, everyone!