Rumor Roundup (June 9, 2023): CM Punk dream match, Mercedes Moné in AEW, Adam Cole, more!

Speculating on the rumors surrounding pro wrestling is a favored pastime of many fans, perhaps second only to actually watching the matches. In this daily column, we take a look at the latest rumors being churned out by the pro wrestling rumor mill.

Important reminder: Rumors are just that — rumors. None of this has been confirmed as fact, it’s just circulating around the pro wrestling rumor mill. We track rumor accuracy in a weekly feature called Rumor Look Back you can find here. Remember, take it all with a grain of salt.

Rumors for the Day:

• According to Fightful Select, the current plan is for KENTA to work the Forbidden Door pay-per-view (PPV) on June 25, and a dream match with CM Punk has been discussed.
• Fightful heard that AEW contacted NJPW in January about booking Mercedes Moné for the Forbidden Door PPV. Furthermore, AEW talent was under the impression that she would work the event, with Saraya rumored to be her potential opponent.
• WRKD Wrestling says WWE CEO Nick Khan wants to “solidify NXT as a major third brand,” and there will be multiple “tie-ins in the near future.” Not only will Bron Breakker challenge Seth Rollins for the world heavyweight championship, but NXT tag teams will be “getting mixed in with main roster matches.”
• Wrestling Observer Radio’s Dave Meltzer claims that AEW’s long term plan is for Konosuke Takeshita to be “one of the biggest babyfaces in the company.”
• Following up on the Adam Cole / MJF promo segment on this week’s Dynamite, Meltzer mentioned that Cole was never told about WWE’s plan for him to be a manager on the main roster until well after the fact. The reason why he signed with AEW is because their offer was “significantly better than the WWE offer. AEW really wanted him, and Vince [McMahon] didn’t see it in him.”
• Seth Rollins told Mark Andrews: My Love Letter to Wrestling that he thinks Drew McIntyre is on the injured list right now.

If you have heard of any interesting rumors that you’d like to add, feel free to post them in the comments section below. Just remember they are rumors and not confirmed as fact, so please take them as such. And check our weekly Rumor Look Back here to keep track of how often rumors turn out to be correct.