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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 stated. First, let’s knock off some old rumors.
- There are no plans for WrestleMania 37 to be a two-night event as of right now, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
- It was a two night event. I think they need to keep with those instead of going back to seven hour Mania. (0/1)
- Konnan apparently has some interest in bringing in Primo, Epico, and Lio Rush to AAA once that is possible.
- The Colóns did not work AAA but Lio worked a TripleMania. (1/3)
- The Wrestling Observer Newsletter notes that we probably won’t see Ronda Rousey again until at least WrestleMania next year, and maybe not even then.
- She did not because her plan to start a family came to fruition. (1/1)
- Randy Orton’s third match with Edge will now likely happen at next year’s Royal Rumble or WrestleMania. WrestlingNews.co says they’re considering having Orton enter that match as WWE champion.
- That match happened on a Raw. Edge won the Rumble and then was in the main event of WrestleMania against Roman Reigns & Daniel Bryan. Suffice it to say, Orton was not champion when they faced each other on that Raw. (0/1)
- Per the Observer, there could be more WWE releases coming, this time from the NXT roster.
- Eventually, but three months later. These rumors imply in the next few days. (0/1)
- The Wrestling Observer Newsletter says WWE believes there are three big money matches to be made with Roman Reigns and he’ll be protected until he can have them — The Rock, Brock Lesnar, and John Cena.
- We’ve had 2 of the 3.
- Fightful Select says the word is Kevin Dunn specifically “didn’t get Billie Kay” and he made sure to say he saw a ceiling for her, though they make clear it’s unsure if that had anything to do with her being fired by WWE.
- Kevin Dunn’s lack of vision sounds like a hinderance.
- According to Sports Illustrated, WWE plans to hold SummerSlam in front of a live crowd.
- That’s the case. (1/1)
- The MLW deal is apparently a television contract that should be announced in the next few weeks, says the WON.
- That’s the Vice TV deal that was announced just days later. (1/1)
- Dave Meltzer seemed to indicate on Wrestling Observer Radio that some of the recent WWE releases may have been due to some of the wrestlers complaining about their booking.
- I think it had more to do with a bloated roster. Those folks wouldn’t be complaining about their booking if they were being used well.
- He also claimed that WWE’s mentality on AEW shifted when Dynamite did such a high viewership for its first unopposed show.
- Unfortunately for the folks in WWE, AEW has proven to be legit competition.
- Sports Illustrated says that WWE’s plan for Pat McAfee is to let him be himself. That means not over-producing him.
- I don’t know how much he’s produced, but he sure seems himself and not a prototypical WWE announcer. (1/1)
- Fightful Select says there were plans in place for a women’s faction involving Chelsea Green, Vanessa Borne, and Santana Garrett but it was ultimately nixed.
- None of those women work there now.
- According to the Observer, Mickie James tried out as a TV announcer for WWE before her release.
- She even called an NXT Kickoff show.
- Vince McMahon was “significantly late” for Raw yesterday and missed the creative meeting, per Fightful Select. He made several changes when he got there, like nixing the announced Braun Strowman vs. Randy Orton match.
- That’s gotta be extra annoying. The boss shows up super late and just undoes everything that you’ve spent all day working on.
- Fightful also reports there were “tons of changes” to last week’s Raw as WWE was “short handed”. That was the case because there were “more wrestlers banged up or not cleared after WrestleMania than normal” and “a couple” were pulled as precaution due to COVID symptoms.
- That’s a more reasonable reason to having to rework a show than Vince just feeling like it.
- Regarding what was changed on April 12, it was specifically mentioned that Riddle was not originally planned to face Bobby Lashley.
- Riddle has gotten a lot of time on Raw.
- PW Insider reports MLW will serve as Dark Side of the Ring’s lead-in on Vice. Archived material will air on the network at first, to get fans introduced to the promotion and to ensure they don’t see empty arena footage. The company hopes to resume taping in front of a crowd in July.
- It looks like Dark Side of the Ring does not have MLW, which apparently airs on Saturday, as the lead in. (0/1)
- The Night One rain delay and Mandy Rose’s slip have both been edited from the WWE Network version of WrestleMania 37. Thus far they remain on Peacock’s stream.
- That rain delay took some time.
- For whatever it’s worth, Hugo Savinovich told Wrestling Inc he believes Charlotte Flair wasn’t booked for WrestleMania 37 because of Andrade and she’s legitimately got issues backstage in WWE.
- The way they book her, I really don’t believe this at all. I don’t know for sure, but the COVID situation makes more sense. They book her so well all the time. I can’t imagine that would have been different at WrestleMania if she were able to be there. Maybe there was some heat, but affecting WrestleMania? C’mon now. It was because she had COVID.
- Per PW Insider, Vince McMahon doesn’t want to do interviews anymore and he also doesn’t like doing company conference calls either.
- Maybe he’s getting tired. Maybe he doesn’t think he’ll get an interview that doesn’t have questions he has no desire to answer.
- Fightful Select says WWE management was happy with everyone who was asked to cut impromptu backstage promos during the WrestleMania 37 rain delay. They also note there was never any real consideration given to wrestling any of the matches backstage.
- Kevin Owens definitely took up some time and he’s very good at just talking.
- For what it’s worth, Jim Ross mentioned on his podcast that AEW plans on resuming touring in front of live crowds in July.
- This is correct. (1/1)
- PW Insider says NJPW turned down a deal with VICE TV in 2020, which is basically the deal MLW recently signed.
- NJPW doesn’t have a US deal right now.
- “Two WWE sources indicate that an event in Saudi Arabia prior to the end of 2021 is very much on the table,” says WrestleVotes.
- Just happened the other day. (1/1)
- Vince McMahon has always seen a physical WWE Hall of Fame as a “waste of money”, per Wrestling Observer Radio’s Dave Meltzer. Triple H supports the idea though, and Meltzer says the A&E WWE’s Most Wanted Treasures show could be to collect memorabilia for a Hall of Fame building or exhibit, but he doesn’t think it’ll happen any time soon.
- I don’t know if it’s something that would have real longevity. Having a moving exhibit for WrestleMania Axxess, which they already kind of do, seems like a better way. I don’t envision WWE fans traveling cross the country to see a ripped Hulk Hogan shirt.
- On Wrestling Daily, Alex McCarthy said Charlotte Flair’s kayfabe suspension was done so Flair can have “some dental work sorted out”. She isn’t expected to be gone long.
- She was wrestling matches before the month was up. (1/1)
- Natalya “pushed hard” backstage for the Tag Turmoil match to be added to WrestleMania 37 as a way to get more women on the card, according to Fightful Select.
- Nattie is a locker room leader.
- Chris Masters told Chris Van Vliet that he thinks John Cena shot down an angle they were supposed to work during Masters’ first WWE run because Cena thought he was too inexperienced.
- Doesn’t mean Cena was wrong.
- WrestleVotes says there is “serious internal WWE house cleaning going down” with “many people impacted.”
- Word has it this is a Nick Khan thing.
- PW Insider notes there have been multiple departures from WWE this week in the Talent Relations department and the Communications department. Some departures may be a result of WWE President Nick Khan “putting his own people in power.”
- I guess that makes sense when you take a big position? I wouldn’t know. I have zero business sense.
- According to Insider, there has been talk in WWE of running SummerSlam 2021 in a stadium in either Phoenix, Arizona, or somewhere in Texas.
- It was a stadium, but in Vegas. (1/2)
- On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer mentioned that one of the reasons why several WWE wrestlers have been missing from television since WrestleMania 37 is because of another COVID outbreak.
- WWE, and especially NXT, had a tough time keeping outbreaks under control.
- According to Fightful, while discussing his expiring WWE contract, Daniel Bryan said that he’s trying to find a way to wrestle for WWE and for other companies.
- In the end, it’s just other companies.
This week: 7/10 - 70%
Overall: 3,918/6,946 - 56.4%
Have a great week, everyone!