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Welcome to another column on AEW rumors that we hope are true and some we hope aren't.
Wrestling fans have been pondering Brandi Rhodes' wrestling future ever since Cody Rhodes returned to WWE a few months ago. Finally, we have a big update on her in-ring career. Meanwhile, a top IMPACT Wrestling star has confirmed she's not heading to All Elite Wrestling off the back of rampant rumors.
And speaking of jumping ship to Tony Khan's promotion, Claudio Castagnoli (fka Cesaro) recently became the newest member of the roster. We have insider information on the WWE locker room's reaction to The Swiss star's stunning move.
With all these lead stories, we'll dive straight into the top six rumors of the week.
#6. Hopefully true: Former AEW star Brandi Rhodes is training hard for a potential in-ring return
Brandi Rhodes wrestled a handful of matches for AEW before she and Cody Rhodes left the promotion earlier this year. While The American Nightmare jumped ship to WWE at WrestleMania 38, Brandi didn't return alongside her spouse.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful recently reported that the 39-year-old has been training in the ring since departing from All Elite Wrestling. Furthermore, her relationship with WWE is said to be "cordial." The two parties have held numerous discussions, including partnering up with KultureCity, with whom Rhodes is a board member.
We hope this report is true. With an AEW return seemingly far-fetched, Brandi Rhodes could be preparing to ink a deal with WWE down the road.
#5. Hopefully true: IMPACT Wrestling star Jordynne Grace isn't heading to AEW
Fightful Select recently implied that Jordynne Grace could be heading to AEW after the company's music producer Mike Rukus produced a theme song for her.
Sean Ross Sapp quashed those speculations when he reached out to Grace, who divulged that Rukus had produced theme songs for her even before AEW's inception.
We hope this rumor is true. Given that Grace is the current IMPACT Knockouts World Champion, it is unlikely that she will be leaving the promotion anytime soon. On top of that, Mike Rukus took to Twitter to clarify that his connection with the female star has nothing to do with the latter's potentially signing with Tony Khan's company.
Regardless, the AEW women's roster is too stacked to welcome any other member right now.
#4. Hopefully true: WWE backstage reaction to Claudio Castagnoli's signing with AEW
Claudio Castagnoli (fka Cesaro) stunned the wrestling world when he showed up at the AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door pay-per-view.
The Swiss star debuted as a replacement for the injured Bryan Danielson and defeated Zack Sabre Jr. that night. He also played a pivotal role in helping The Blackpool Combat Club defeat The Jericho Appreciation Society in a Blood & Guts match the following week on Dynamite.
Dave Meltzer recently reported that the WWE locker room was "shocked" to see Castagnoli sign with Mr. Khan's promotion. The word making the rounds is that the talents thought the rival promotion might not match WWE's offer.
"A lot of talent in WWE was shocked that Castagnoli signed with AEW, based on the size of the offer WWE gave him. It was noted that this wasn’t a big deal with fans, but was a very big deal with a lot of the talent. The feeling is [Mr. Khan] must have matched or topped it and in WWE, the feeling was that AEW was no longer doing that and that Castagnoli could have made a very substantial amount of money in WWE even though there was little chance of a push.”
We hope this rumor is true because AEW has offered many lucrative deals to bring in former WWE stars like Jon Moxley, CM Punk, and Bryan Danielson, to name a few.
Tony Khan is one of the richest billionaires in the world today. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that he gave Claudio Castagnoli a better deal than what WWE offered him. It's important to note that the money may not have been the most important part of the offer. AEW is already pushing Castagnoli, whereas WWE hadn't been doing much with Cesaro.
#3. Hopefully not true: CM Punk was set to feud with Will Ospreay on the road to AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door?
CM Punk's untimely injury not only scrapped his AEW World Championship headliner against Hiroshi Tanahashi but also his clash with Will Ospreay.
Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio reported that the original idea was to book a trios match pitting Punk and the FTR against Ospreay and Aussie Open for the June 10 episode of Rampage. but Trent Beretta ended up taking The Second City Saint's spot and helped his team triumph over the NJPW stars.
Interestingly, the saga could have ignited a feud between Punk and Ospreay, though it's unknown what the plans were after Mr. Khan inserted Orange Cassidy into that rivalry.
We hope this rumor is not true. While Punk vs. Ospreay is a blockbuster dream match, it would have felt like a random bout, especially when the former was penciled in to face Tanahashi at Forbidden Door.
#2. Hopefully not true: Uncertainty looming over Bryan Danielson's return timetable
Bryan Danielson reportedly suffered a concussion during the Anarchy in the Arena match at Double or Nothing.
The mistimed injury forced him to miss two major AEW events in Forbidden Door and Blood & Guts last month. While The American Dragon has asserted that he'll be back stronger than ever, his return timeline doesn't look promising.
The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that Danielson's return timeframe is "uncertain," though the internal belief is that he will be back by the fall of this year:
"The silver lining is that the ratings this summer are probably not as important as in the fall, winter and spring, when the new distribution contract is being negotiated. Punk should be back by then. Danielson is unknown because if it is a concussion, and with his history, there is no timetable, but one certainly hopes he would be back," (H/t- Bodyslam)
We hope this isn't true because the former WWE Superstar's prolonged absence could affect major storylines involving The Blackpool Combat Club down the road.
#1. Hopefully true: The Acclaimed potentially turning babyface
During the Blood and Guts episode of Dynamite, Billy Gunn sided with The Acclaimed after tension mounted between Bowens and Austin Gunn.
Dave Meltzer recently reported on the possible endgame of this storyline, noting that Anthony Bowens and Max Caster could end up turning babyface:
"They’ve been sort of building to that, where the whole comedy of the pairing was that Billy treated The Acclaimed like they were his sons and the other guys were like, you know, he was just annoyed by their stupidity throughout the whole thing. Yeah, so it looks like Billy Gunn with The Acclaimed… In the end, The Acclaimed are going to end up as babyfaces. I mean, it’s very clear," Meltzer said.
We hope this is true because The Acclaimed has become one of the most entertaining acts in AEW. Max Caster, who cuts rap-style promos to poke fun at his opponents, is particularly compelling.
The two men have been garnering positive reactions from fans despite portraying heel characters. It would make sense for the company to turn them face and have fans rally behind their quest to become the tag team champions.
