4 Wrestling Rumors we hope are true & 3 we hope aren't: 24-Time Champion returns to major backstage role, Popular WWE star suffering from a concussion?

Welcome to this week's edition of WWE/Wrestling rumors we hope are true, and those we hope aren't. It's been a big week in the wrestling world, as The Forbidden Door has closed and Money in the Bank 2022 is coming up.

Admittedly, things have slowed down in the past week where there was a whirlwind of rumors surrounding Sasha Banks' status and Vince McMahon stepping back from his role as WWE Chairman and CEO.

This week's edition features rumors about future storyline plans for a few top stars, injury updates, significant returns, and a little bit more about the fallout from the Vince McMahon incident and the current impact:

#4. Hope is true: Triple H is back in a major backstage role

Triple H is a highly-accomplished superstar and is one of the greatest in WWE history. With 14 world championships and ten other title runs, The Game is a 24-time champion.

He has been out of in-ring action for a few years now and had to step back from his backstage role after a cardiac event that reportedly put his life in danger. He confirmed that he would never wrestle again, but it was a matter of time before he returned to his influential and important backstage role.

According to a tweet from John Pollock of POST-Wrestling, The Game announced his return, presumably to his big backstage role:

"According to multiple sources, Paul Levesque was in Orlando today and spoke at the Performance Center. Of the people I heard from, Levesque stated "he's back" - it is unknown what that entails but that was the wording I was given," John Pollock of POST Wrestling said in a tweet.

We hope this is true because Triple H has been crucial in the developmental process. With NXT taking a new direction while he was gone, he can be one of the architects of change in the company.

#3. Hope isn't true: Rhea Ripley out due to a concussion?

Rhea Ripley has become one of the most important women on the WWE roster

Rhea Ripley was supposed to be in an all-important RAW Women's Championship match against Bianca Belair at Money in the Bank 2022. However, Belair revealed on RAW last week that Ripley wasn't medically cleared to compete, and she had to find a replacement as a result.

Carmella stepped up to the plate, but there was a lot of speculation about what happened to Rhea Ripley. According to a report from Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, The Nightmare may have indirectly disclosed having a concussion:

"Her teeth were knocked loose in a match and she had braces put in. The braces were evident on her the last time she was on TV. The other thing must've been when she says her brain that usually means a concussion. As we've said before, we said it on Monday when we announced it."

He continued:

"The two things that WWE doesn’t like to talk about are COVID and concussions. I've known people in WWE who have both who have [said] outright, 'We're told not to say that.' She said it. She didn't quite use the word concussion, but she had a brain injury is what she said." (H/T WrestlingNews)

We hope this isn't true, although Meltzer noted that he doesn't expect her to be out of action for too long.

#3. Hope is true: The new favorite to win the Royal Rumble 2023

The Royal Rumble is one of the most highly-anticipated events of the year. There is a reason why the show is often praised as a great one, or completely trashed as a bad one, as was the case in 2022.

However, one thing remains certain - fans will always tune into the Rumble when it's time. There is also a lot of speculation about who the winners of the men's and women's Rumble matches could be.

According to BetOnline, Cody Rhodes is currently the frontrunner to return and win the Royal Rumble. Sportskeeda's Vatsal Rathod wrote:

"Here are the current betting odds (via BetOnline) for the top 10 favorites to win the 2023 men's Royal Rumble match. As mentioned, Cody Rhodes is the favorite, followed by The Rock in second place and Big E in third. Current Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns follows next at number four."

We hope this is true because he is currently the best option to win the Royal Rumble, as WWE doesn't need the Universal Championship to be on the line if The Rock vs Roman Reigns is to happen.

#2. Hope isn't true: Severe changes made to RAW

Monday Night RAW saw the classic script being torn up

WWE fans are used to hearing news about Vince McMahon tearing up the script at the last minute and rewriting an entire episode of RAW or SmackDown. The same was the case for the June 20th episode of RAW as there were reportedly some big changes.

According to a report on Fightful Select, a few major changes were made to the show:

"While Chad Gable ended up facing Mustafa Ali in a singles match, neither was originally scheduled to compete on the show. Sapp stated that Gable and Otis were scheduled to accompany Kevin Owens for his matchup against Ezekiel. Meanwhile, Ali was scheduled to face Shelton Benjamin on WWE Main Event. The closing pose-down segment of last week's show was also altered as R-Truth was initially pitched to be involved so he could provide some comedic relief."

We hope this isn't true, although adding R-Truth to the main event segment may have made it better.

#2. Hope is true: The reason why WWE has delayed the RK-Bro break-up story

RK-Bro began their story together in 2021

WWE hit the jackpot with the RK-Bro storyline. While odd-paired tag teams have been a staple of storylines for years, few have hit the stride that Randy Orton and Riddle have.

Orton has admitted to this run being the most fun of his career, while Riddle has benefited instantly, going from upper midcarder to legitimate world title challenger. With Randy Orton's injury set to keep him out for the rest of 2022, Dave Meltzer explained on the Wrestling Observer Radio how the RK-Bro storyline could pan out:

"You dedicated a match to me and you blew it. You never won the big one, yeah. I could see that being a direction, and not a bad one either. I think Orton and Riddle if they do the thing, and the way it looks now, with Orton being out so long, we’re not doing it until 2023. So, by that time, you know what? Inevitably, that was the idea and it’s a hell of a lot better doing it in 2023 than 2021." (H/T Ringside News)

We hope this is true because it was the right call to not break the duo up in 2022 as many had expected them to do.

#1. Hope isn't true: The backstage environment in WWE

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There have been a lot of changes happening within WWE, with the most significant one being that of Mr. McMahon stepping back from his role as Chairman and CEO. At the same time, Stephanie McMahon took his spot on an interim basis.

There has also been a lot of speculation about what the backstage environment is like, with the story becoming as big as it did. According to a report from PWInsider, there is still a lot of silence and tension backstage in WWE:

"There is a lot of silence among employees as they are all waiting to see how bad this situation can get...There's been a real concern among some to keep their heads down and not get caught up in the mess, especially since they don't know what executives will end up with larger amounts of power when the dust settles," the report stated.

We hope this isn't true because a tense backstage environment is a breeding ground for a lot of negativity that can trickle into every part of the company.

#1. Hope is true: WWE's plans for Seth Rollins at SummerSlam

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Seth Rollins is enjoying one of the better runs of his career despite last holding a world title in 2019. His ability to reinvent himself has paid dividends, and some believe that he is currently on a superior run than Reigns despite the latter always being the focal point of the company.

So what does WWE have in store for Seth Rollins at SummerSlam? Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio gave his thoughts on the Riddle-Omos match on June 20th and the possible plans for Seth Rollins at SummerSlam:

"I didn’t think he was going to win, but, I didn’t think that it was going to be, tree slam and then another tree slam, and then Rollins would lay him out and obviously the idea is, with Cody out, that Rollins who is, you know, top heel on the brand, probably is going to be doing a program with Riddle, and there’s nothing wrong with that."

We hope this is true because it's a great match between two great superstars, and it can also help to facilitate the rise of Riddle.