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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 world of WWE and wrestling in general. The next WWE pay-per-view is Money in the Bank 2021 and it will have a huge main event.
This week's rumors feature backstage updates on big moves in the upcoming WWE Draft, a return from injury, more updates about releases, storyline updates, and more. Let's begin:
#4. Hope is true: WWE's plans for Edge at SummerSlam
Edge is back in WWE for the first time since WrestleMania 37. In his second-ever main event at the grandest stage, he lost to Roman Reigns in a Triple Threat match involving Daniel Bryan.
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On the 25th June episode of SmackDown, Reigns was confronted by the 11-time World Champion, and a match between them for the Universal Championship is official for Money in the Bank 2021.
It's the perfect main event since Money in the Bank will be WWE's second pay-per-view with a crowd this year. It will be two days after the company restarts live touring. With a blockbuster main event set, it will play right into SummerSlam 2021 - a month after Money in the Bank.
Edge isn't expected to defeat Roman Reigns and win the Universal Championship at Money in the Bank 2021. With Seth Rollins recently getting a big win over Cesaro, he teased entering Universal title contention as well.
According to WrestleVotes, the backstage talk in WWE is that The Rated-R Superstar will face Rollins at SummerSlam 2021.
To add fuel to the rumor, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter stated that the company is "grooming" Seth Rollins to be an opponent to Edge.
We hope this is true because Edge vs. Seth Rollins is a great match to have at SummerSlam 2021, especially if WWE is planning a Roman Reigns-John Cena match in the main event.
#4. Hope isn't true: Plans for Big E in the upcoming WWE Draft
Big E was separated from The New Day in the 2020 WWE Draft. It marked the end of an incredible six-year tenure for The New Day - the longest-reigning faction in WWE history. It was clear that the company had other plans for Big E and his journey to singles stardom began.
On Christmas Day in 2020 (the episode was pre-taped before, however), he won the Intercontinental Championship and held onto it until WrestleMania 37, where he lost to Apollo Crews.
Big E will be one of the favorites to win the Money in the Bank ladder match. If he does, his journey to WWE World Championship glory will be fast-tracked. According to a tweet from WrestleVotes, WWE is potentially planning to shift Big E over to RAW, but still feature him as a singles star separate from The New Day:
We hope this isn't true because SmackDown is the perfect place for Big E right now. There's no need for WWE to move him over to RAW, even if they need fresh babyfaces.
Since SmackDown is the company's priority now, it would be the better brand to push Big E and keep him away from Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods.
#3. Hope is true: WWE could bring back a surprising name to RAW to challenge Bobby Lashley
Bobby Lashley has been the WWE Champion for 119 days as of this writing. He has mainly feuded with Drew McIntyre in that time, but that finally concluded at Hell in a Cell 2021.
Lashley is now set to defend the WWE Championship against Kofi Kingston at Money in the Bank. Fans will hope that he retains the title and it sets up a dream clash against Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam 2021.
While there's still no update on that front, there are still a few names that could challenge Bobby Lashley in the future, according to Dave Meltzer of WON. Meltzer revealed a few names that WWE could use as his opponent and named Daniel Bryan as a star on that list:
"The RAW brand doesn’t have any challenger set up but they can always elevate Randy Orton, or really anyone if they so choose. Bray Wyatt and Bill Goldberg are always on the bench and the idea is an all top hands on deck show. Bryan Danielson, if he does come back and it would likely be for RAW," stated Dave Meltzer.
We hope this is true because Bryan would be a fresh face on RAW and a fresh challenger for the WWE Championship. Bobby Lashley vs. Daniel Bryan could work well and if the Brock Lesnar match doesn't work out at SummerSlam, this is a surprisingly good alternative WWE Championship match.
#3. Hope isn't true: WWE reverting to traditional hiring ways?
WWE drastically changed their approach to the types of wrestlers that they hire. In the past decade, the company has shifted away from focusing on only larger-sized talent to a wide variety of superstars. In the last few years, it's undeniable that WWE pushed a lot of "smaller" stars.
With that said, Vince McMahon still seems to prefer larger-sized wrestlers, which perhaps explains his choice of the two current World Champions in WWE. With the mass releases happening on a more frequent basis, there are several gaps to fill.
There was a rumor that WWE will fill that gap with call-ups from NXT, but that will only work up to an extent. Dave Meltzer revealed on Wrestling Observer Radio that there has been another shift and the promotion is now focusing on hiring younger and bigger superstars:
"Yeah, I haven't finished my story on it, but the one thing I noticed, and there are a couple of exceptions, is that I mean, they gutted the 205 Live guys that had been around for a long time. The guys that they got rid of were the guys they weren't going to, you know, they weren't going to do anything with the guys, and they were mostly older guys," stated Dave Meltzer.
Meltzer explained the logic behind Vince McMahon and WWE's decision:
"I know that there is a movement to bring in younger and bigger guys, you know, that's like the big thing right now there. 26 and under, over 220 (pounds), that type of mentality again. Whenever business is bad, or whatever you want to call it, let's say popularity is so-so at this point. You can't say business is bad. I mean, in traditional metrics, it's not great, but whenever that happens, Vince is always going to go back to his intuition, which is always, 'We need bigger guys,'" added Dave Meltzer.
We hope this isn't true because bigger wrestlers won't amount to higher ratings if they're booked the same way. WWE hasn't been great with the handling of traditional "big men", but this change in mentality could be a setback.
#2. Hope is true: Backstage update on Damian Priest's return to WWE
Damian Priest has been away from WWE for a little while now. He concluded his feud with The Miz and John Morrison at WrestleMania Backlash and the night after. A week later, he was involved in a tag team match that meant nothing.
While Dave Meltzer reported that the WWE main roster newcomer had a bad back and was told to rest, Fightful Select reported that this wasn't the case:
"Fightful Select claims that this is not the case, and he should be back next week if the creative team has plans for him. They report that Damian Priest is not carrying any injuries, and it was just the lack of creative direction that has kept him out."
We hope this is true because a few weeks away because of no creative direction is better than dealing with an injury. Damian Priest carried a lot of momentum in WWE post-WrestleMania, thanks in part to Bad Bunny's incredible performance at The Grandest Stage of Them All.
Priest seems to be a superstar that the company is interested in pushing. When he returns, he will hopefully be involved in a storyline. WWE creative should always have something ready for rising stars like Damian Priest.
#2. Hope isn't true: Recently-released WWE star wasn't a Vince McMahon type of guy
The recent set of WWE releases wasn't as shocking as the previous two this year, but it's still unfortunate. There was a lot of talent that was released, many of whom belonged to the "smaller" category.
One of the exceptions to this rule, however, was NXT superstar Killian Dain. Now going by his old name Big Damo, Dain got his breakthrough in the Black and Gold brand as a part of the faction "Sanity".
Many felt that Killian Dain may have been a superstar who Vince McMahon was interested in, but that wasn't the case. Dave Meltzer stated on WOR that they had been through it already:
"Yeah, but that's not Vince's type of guy, and he had been through it, and I think that just, obviously, they didn't just think, you know they have got 300-pound guys, and I think they just didn't feel he was one that they were going to push," Meltzer noted.
We hope this isn't true, but in all likeliness, it is. Nikki Cross has outlasted all her Sanity members in WWE now.
#1. Hope is true: Former WWE Champion to move to SmackDown to challenge Roman Reigns?
In only two months, Roman Reigns could complete a full year as the WWE Universal Champion. It's his longest and greatest title reign by far and it doesn't feel stale at all.
The biggest problem that WWE has with Reigns now is that he's simply too good. There's no doubt that he is WWE's top star now and the best character in the company. His 2020 resurgence will likely lead him to a reign that surpasses a year in length.
Roman Reigns is set to face Edge at Money in the Bank 2021 and is rumored to go head-to-head against John Cena at SummerSlam 2021. He will be expected to defeat both WWE legends, meaning that his reign as the Universal Champion will continue for a long time. According to Dave Meltzer of WON, WWE could move two-time World Champion Drew McIntyre to SmackDown to challenge Roman Reigns:
"Bobby Lashley retained the WWE title in the Hell in a Cell match main event over Drew McIntyre. The stipulation was that if McIntyre lost, he could never challenge for the title as long as Lashley is champion. This could easily build to a brand switch, which also gives Roman Reigns a fresh new opponent since he obviously needs one," said Dave Meltzer.
We hope this is true because the Roman Reigns-Drew McIntyre match at Survivor Series last year proved that both men have great chemistry in the ring (despite previously underwhelming encounters).
McIntyre moving to SmackDown in the WWE Draft would be a good idea and the rivalry seems like one that could be vital for both men.
#1. Hope isn't true: Kevin Owens' break from WWE only for his storyline?
Kevin Owens revealed that he was taking a small break from WWE following his loss to Sami Zayn at Hell in a Cell 2021:
Despite the announcement, he has been booked for a Last Man Standing Money in the Bank qualifying match against Zayn later this week.
It isn't the case of Owens having a bad run in WWE recently. He was a Universal Championship challenger earlier this year and even got a victory over Sami Zayn at WrestleMania 37.
He was looming around the Intercontinental title picture, but he deviated and many assumed that this would be a real hiatus. While there's no news of that, Dave Meltzer revealed on WON that the hiatus is storyline-related.
Sportskeeda Wrestling's Vatsal Rathod wrote:
On the latest Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer claimed that Owens taking time off is all storyline-related. There is no update yet on when he will return to WWE television.
We hope this isn't true because Kevin Owens should take a legitimate hiatus for a while. He has been regularly featured on WWE TV for a while now, but with no clear direction going forward, some time away might help. Maybe a loss to Zayn will see Owens written out of WWE TV for a while.
In fact, one could argue that he should be away from WWE TV until the crowds return at the very least. Some time away might do him good.
Ex WWE writer blasts Liv Morgan HERE
