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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. First some outstanding rumors.
- There’s been talk about a Triple H/Seth Rollins match down the road.
- It took awhile but it finally happened. “Down the road” was so broad that I didn’t feel this rumor really expired. (1/1)
- Based on the reaction for the Dudleys, WWE is willing to give the Hardys another look, despite the brothers’ past troubles.
- It happened. They’re already tag champions on Raw. (1/1)
- WWE is going straight to Rollins/Triple H when he returns, possibly for a SummerSlam match.
- It certainly wasn’t a SummerSlam match. But they planted the seeds soon after Rollins returned. (1/2)
- Jeff Hardy is apparently looking for a WWE return in 2017.
- He’s back. I wonder if the Boyz will be working singles at one point. (1/1)
OK, that’s enough for now. Let’s get to this week’s business.
- Seth Rollins will appear on Monday Night Raw tonight but likely won't get physical again this week while recovering from a rib injury.
- This is true. He showed up but didn’t have any contact. (1/1)
- After it was revealed Sara Lee was cut by WWE, word started going around that there will be more releases coming this week.
- There were just a couple developmental talents, but there were more. (1/1)
- Eric Bischoff may be trying to sue Matt Hardy over comments made about him on a shoot interview for RF Video that was recently released.
- I can’t find anything about this.
- WWE is expected to make a big pitch for Texans like Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels and possibly even Undertaker to work Royal Rumble in San Antonio, even if only in small, non-wrestling roles.
- Don’t know about the pitches. Undertaker was in the Rumble. HBK showed up to cut a promo on the pre-show. Austin wasn’t there are all.
- As you’d expect with three names reportedly released in short order, there are rumors of more cuts coming soon.
- That was it for the releases. (0/1)
- Not sure what this has to do with wrestling, but it’s making the rounds and we have very little shame... in a recent episode of his podcast, Ric Flair was asked about celebrities who’ve ridden "Space Mountain" and Naitch bragged he’d slept with Oscar winner Halle Berry.
- She completely denied this.
- Brock Lesnar may be returning to WWE before the end of the year, if not for the reported on match with Goldberg at Survivor Series then possibly for a house show in December.
- He returned for the Goldberg match. (1/1)
- According to the Observer, WWE is going to book Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte for the Raw women's title in a Hell in a Cell match at the PPV this month.
- They did. It was the main event. (1/1)
- Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that WWE may be getting more lax on verbiage thanks to ratings falling so far. This includes saying "fans" instead of "WWE Universe" every time. There may be other changes made in an attempt to help turn things around.
- I don’t know if they’ve been saying “fans” more. I don’t feel “WWE Universe” is shoved down our throats as much but not sure. What do you all think?
- Chris Jericho is expected to leave WWE again by the end of the year, which could be why they might rush a split with Kevin Owens and build to a match between the two.
- He’s still around, though expected to leave really soon to tour with Fozzy. (0/1)
- Kota Ibushi will not be signing a full time deal with WWE but will continue to do sporadic work with the company.
- He didn’t sign but hasn’t done any work for WWE since this rumor either. (1/2)
- "Backstage chatter" puts Dolph Ziggler as the likely loser of Sunday’s career vs. title match against Miz at No Mercy.
- He won the title but lost it soon back to the Miz. (0/1)
- It’s believed Ziggler might want to transition to a producer/agent job and focus more on his other interests like stand-up comedy & political commentary.
- He’s still wrestling full time. (0/1)
- Billy Corgan skipped Dixie Carter’s meeting with the TNA roster on Monday, a move that caused a good deal of discussion and speculation in the locker room.
- The Billy Corgan era was soon over in TNA.
- WWE filed for a trademark on "WWEmoji" and some sports entertainment-themed emoticons should be coming to your phone soon.
- Came out the next month. (1/1)
- The Observer is reporting the Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar match is indeed on for Survivor Series and the biggest reason is because they wanted it close to the release of the WWE 2K17 video game.
- It happened. They rematched at WrestleMania. (1/1)
- It's also noted that it isn't happening at WrestleMania 33 because Lesnar's opponent is already decided for that show and they didn't want to change it.
- That’s untrue. Whoever Lesnar’s opponent was, it was changed to Goldberg. (0/1)
- Vince McMahon was apparently "very upset" with the ratings for Raw when it hit a record low up against the first Presidential debate, according to the Observer. That could be why there are changes coming.
- They opened a SmackDown PPV with the main event in order to avoid going head to head with a debate.
- Despite the situation with his stabbing story, AAA is expected to continue booking Alberto El Patron going forward.
- I don’t see any matches with them after that date (0/1)
- Ricochet is apparently going to get a big push in New Japan going forward.
- I checked with my man Rev, who follows NJPW more than I, and he did not think this accurate at all. (0/1)
- Brock Lesnar vs. Shane McMahon could very well be the idea WWE has in mind for WrestleMania 33.
- It didn’t happen. Shane ended up fighting Styles in a great match. (0/1)
- WWE is apparently considering making the Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte Hell in a Cell match the main event of that pay-per-view.
- They did. (1/1)
- According to Dave Meltzer, Luke Harper is currently scheduled to return as a member of the Raw roster.
- He returned on SmackDown with Bray Wyatt. (0/1)
This Week: 8/18 - 44%
Overall: 1,445/2,658 - 54.4%
Have a great week, folks!