WWE Rumor Roundup: Forgotten Superstar returning as a surprise Royal Rumble entrant, Brock Lesnar WrestleMania match not happening - 22nd January 2020

We are back again with Sportskeeda's latest edition of the daily WWE Rumor Roundup.

With Royal Rumble set to take place this Sunday, a majority of the rumors unsurprisingly revolved around the PPV.

In a spoiler of sorts, a forgotten former Women's Champion has been tipped to make her in-ring return at the show.

Potential Royal Rumble plans for Braun Strowman were also revealed and it seems like The Monster Among Men could be in for a busy night.

There was also a rumor killer regarding a reported WrestleMania match for Brock Lesnar. There was also some speculation on what lied ahead for Rey Mysterio after his unsuccessful pursuit in regaining the United States Championship.

We also have details about the Superstars Paul Heyman wishes to push on RAW as six exciting names have been earmarked to enjoy a fair share of the spotlight on Monday nights.

That's pretty much the gist of what to expect in today's lineup. On that note, we present the latest WWE Rumor Roundup:

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#5. Naomi returning at the Royal Rumble

Mike Johnson of PWInsider reports that Naomi could make her TV return after a six-month layoff at the Royal Rumble PPV in Houston, Texas.

The former SmackDown Women's Champion has not wrestled a match since facing Sarah Logan on the Main Event taping in July last year.

Naomi had revealed back in September last year that she needed some time off due to issues in her personal life. She needed some time to recuperate and was waiting for the right moment to return to the ring.

Royal Rumble is the ideal place for comebacks and Mike Johnson feels that she will be back as one of the surprise entrants in the Women's match.

He also added that the plan is to get her back on SmackDown:

"The word making the rounds is that she will be returning shortly and will be placed on the Smackdown brand. The Royal Rumble would be the most logical place for that return."

#4. Rumor killer on Brock Lesnar's WrestleMania opponent

Brock Lesnar is the talk of the town. He always is when he's around.

The Beast Incarnate is all set to enter the Royal Rumble match at #1 and it's easy to deduct that the Superstar who will eliminate him from the match will ideally face him for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 36.

However, there have also been reports about a potential Tyson Fury vs, Brock Lesnar match for the Show of Shows.

Dave Meltzer revealed in the Wrestling Observer Radio that when asked about the match, sources in the WWE specifically told him that it would not be happening.

That doesn't mean that the company won't work with Fury again as the Gypsy King is still a part of WWE's plans and they want the charismatic heavyweight boxer to do a match or two in the future,

Fury, who has been pushing for a big-money showdown against Lesnar, will not be able to fulfil his desire as the company is not leaning in that direction.

The Gypsy King is preparing to take on Deontay Wilder for the second time on February 22nd, and as revealed by WrestleVotesa a few weeks ago, Fury's 'Mania appearance hinges on him winning the highly-anticipated rematch.

Lots of speculation regarding Tyson Fury & WrestleMania. Source said his fight at MGM Grand vs. Deontay Wilder on February 22 is crucial to him appearing in Tampa. If Wilder wins, Vince isn’t throwing $$ at a guy who just lost on PPV. So to a degree, the ball is in Fury’s court.

#3. Possible Royal Rumble 2020 plans for Braun Strowman

Braun Strowman has already been announced to enter the Royal Rumble match, however, the Monster Among Men may be asked to do double duty at the show.

Dave Meltzer stated on the Wrestling Observer Radio that there is a big possibility of Braun Strowman taking on Shinsuke Nakamura for the Intercontinental Championship at the Royal Rumble.

Nakamura is also in the Royal Rumble match but he could be forced to put the title on the line against the man who he was originally scheduled to face at TLC.

Strowman got injured and the match was pushed back. WWE can always reserve the match for a PPV after the Rumble but the booking on SmackDown points towards the bout being added to the Rumble card.

Given below is what was discussed on the Wrestling Observer Radio:

Meltzer: I would think that they are probably going to add Nakamura and Braun Strowman but I don’t know if that is a fact

Alvarez: Well Nakamura and Strowman are both in the Rumble, so unless they do two matches just like Corbin and Roman Reigns. But I mean that’s like the whole gimmick with Corbin and Reigns, so I don’t know why you have to do it twice.

Meltzer: Okay, but then why would you keep having Strowman beat Nakamura now. You could have waited three weeks due to the next PPV.

Alvarez: Maybe that’s what they are doing.

Meltzer: So why would you beat him now?

Alvarez: Why would you beat Nakamura now?

Meltzer: if you're not going to do it until the next PPV?

Alvarez: Maybe they will add it.

Meltzer: Yeah, because originally, Nakamura and Strowman was supposed to be on the last PPV, except that’s when Strowman got hurt, and they have been building it up ever since Strowman got back, they have been building it up Nakamura for him.

#2. Superstars who are on Paul Heyman's push list

There is hope for every talented yet underutilized Superstar in the Paul Heyman era. Buddy Murphy was nothing but a glorified enhancement talent not too long ago.

These days, the Best Kept Secret of the WWE is part of a top heel faction and holds the Raw Tag Team Championship. The turnaround has a lot to with Paul Heyman taking a liking for him.

However, he isn't the only Superstar who Heyman wants to push on RAW.

On a recent edition of the Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer revealed the names of six Superstars who are in line for a big push on RAW.

They are Drew McIntyre, Ricochet, Buddy Murphy, Andrade, Humberto Carrillo and Aleister Black.

Meltzer explained:

The idea is, you know, Paul Heyman is really high on Buddy Murphy and by having him as a tag team with Rollins, I mean, you can watch this thing evolve and it’s pretty clearRicochet, Drew McIntyre, Humberto Carrillo, Andrade, Aleister Black and Buddy Murphy are like his guys. His projects. I mean that’s been the whole theme of the television show, I mean it’s always to get people over, but those are guys who are really being marked to get over.

#1. Rey Mysterio could align with the babyface entourage on RAW

With Buddy Murphy joining forces with Seth Rollins and the Authors of Pain, the top heel stable on RAW holds a numbers advantage over their babyface counterparts. Kevin Owens, Samoa Joe and Big Show would need another Superstar to level the playing field and a former WWE Champion could be added to the mix soon.

Dave Meltzer speculated that Rey Mysterio could join the babyfaces as he recently wrapped up his US title programme with Andrade on RAW.

The original plan was always to get Mysterio with Joe and Owens and WWE could be revisiting it now.

Meltzer also added that Aleister Black is also a potential candidate owing to his storyline with Buddy Murphy.

Here's what Meltzer had to say:

I don’t know if this is going to happen, I know it was the original plan, was now that Rey lost the ladder match, Rey would join in there with Samoa Joe and Kevin Owens against the AOP and Seth. If Buddy Murphy’s in there, they can add Aleister Black in there, because Aleister Black and Buddy Murphy had a natural programme and that kind of gets a lot of guys in sort of a main event programme.