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Welcome to this week's edition of wrestling rumors we hope are true and those we hope aren't. It's been the most unfortunate week in wrestling in a long time, as two great names passed away in unfortunate and tragic circumstances.
We'd like to start by paying tribute to Shad Gaspard and Hana Kimura. Shad Gaspard passed away after drowning in the sea, but not before he ensured that his son's life was saved before his.
As for Hana Kimura, the 22-year old Japanese Stardom sensation tragically passed away. Stardom hasn't confirmed the exact cause of her death. She had posted a series of social media messages implying that she had been cyber-bullied. We would request anyone on social media to not misuse the platform and direct abuse at any human being, regardless of who they are.
With that said, the best we can do is offer a distraction in this tragic time and overall difficult year. Let's get into the rumors of the week and those which we hope are true and those we hope aren't.
#5. Hope is true: WWE's big plans for Austin Theory
Austin Theory was called up to the main roster from NXT after Andrade was forced to pull out of his WrestleMania 36 Tag Team title match. Replacing the United States Champion was the 22-year old, who effectively joined Zelina Vega's faction comprising of Andrade and Angel Garza.
He was kicked out of the group on the May 18th episode of RAW, with Seth Rollins taking the young star under his wing alongside Murphy. According to Tom Colohue on Dropkick DiSKussions, there's big backstage praise for Austin Theory:
Most wrestling fans and people who are listening to the podcast will be aware that Theory was going to be bounced straight back to NXT. That clearly was not the plan. We've called Theory lucky before but right now he's taken every opportunity and people backstage love this guy.
He said that backstage officials are 'desperate' for him to succeed and that he has many big names singing his praises:
They are desperate to see him succeed otherwise he wouldn't have even come up from NXT in the first place. It's not just Zelina Vega singing his praises, you've got Triple H and you've got Paul Heyman expecting great things. When you pair him with Seth Rollins, I think I do as well.
We hope this is true because Austin Theory is a Superstar with a lot of potential. The fact that he's on RAW in a prime spot before he even turned 23 means that he has many years to make it big. It's going to take a while, but hopefully, he goes in the right direction.
#5. Hope isn't true: Vince McMahon 'not sold' on top RAW heel?
Vince McMahon is the man to impress for any WWE Superstar who wants to make it big in the company. One of the rising stars from RAW's Women's division is Shayna Baszler, who was Becky Lynch's Championship challenger at WrestleMania 36.
While she fell short, she didn't look bad in defeat and it seemed as though she was going to continue to be Becky Lynch's opponent. However, rumors indicated that the original plan was for Becky Lynch to face Nia Jax at Money in the Bank instead.
However, both Baszler and Jax participated in the Women's MITB Ladder Match which was won by Asuka. Paul Davis of Wrestlingnews.co reported that Vince McMahon still isn't fully sold at the idea of Shayna Baszler being a top heel on RAW:
I was told that Baszler will eventually move into the title picture this year but McMahon is still not 100 per cent sold on her as a top heel.
We hope this isn't true because Baszler has everything it takes to be a top heel on RAW for years to come. It would be a big missed opportunity for WWE.
#4. Hope is true: WWE doesn't blame Kevin Owens for the ratings drop
RAW had a ratings drop recently, something that Vince McMahon said was because of the new talent on television. Tom Colohue explained on Dropkick DiSKussions that Owens was put in the last hour, which is the 'average ratings of the hour'. He said that it's a bad look on Kevin Owens because he was put in to hook the viewers and stick around, which many didn't do.
However, he explained that WWE doesn't think Kevin Owens was to blame here, as they understand that the current circumstances and expect record-low ratings in the coming weeks:
The company doesn't think it was Kevin Owens to blame here. They are not blaming anyone because of everything that's going on and they are expecting record-low ratings but if they are looking at key negatives, one thing that was mentioned to me was that a lot of people, unfortunately, turned off when it was the axe throwing contest, even though I personally thought it was alright.
We hope this is true because it shouldn't affect Kevin Owens' status. He's in a great position now having come off a win against Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 36 and taking a month-long hiatus. He deserves to climb up the card again.
#4. Hope isn't true: Another new member in Seth Rollins' faction?
Seth Rollins' faction on Monday Nights has been an important part of RAW programming since late December-early January. With the original members The AoP out of action for a long time, it's Murphy who has had to do the heavy lifting.
Austin Theory's addition to the faction on May 18th marked a big change. As per Sportskeeda's own Tom Colohue, Ruby Riott is in the front-running for a possible spot on the faction.
It's not impossible but you have to ask certain questions. For example, about a woman travelling alone in the big group of guys is uncommon, so there would be questions about comfort levels there.
Colohue believes that there might be too much of a similarity to The Straight Edge society:
The question does come up a lot. Ruby Riott is definitely the fan favorite for the spot but I don't think the education that Seth Rollins is offering to Murphy and Theory is necessary given the level of experience that Ruby Riott has and also I think that's just too close to being the Straight Edge Society because there are obvious similarities between Riott and Serena there.
We agree with Colohue and hope this isn't true because Riott doesn't need Rollins' faction to succeed. While she's undoubtedly one of the most underutilized stars in the company, joining Rollins' faction isn't an immediate solution.
#3. Hope is true: Drew Gulak to return on one condition
Drew Gulak came across as one of the more surprising names to recently depart from WWE. However, it wasn't an unfortunate circumstance like the releases mid-April - it was due to Gulak's contract expiring and the two parties not coming to terms for a new contract.
He quietly left WWE and Bryan Alvarez on the Wrestling Observer Live indicated that Gulak is interested in returning to WWE as long as the two parties can work out a deal:
We have an update as of a moment ago. Gulak's contract expired after Friday's show, both sides had not reached a deal on the money. The belief is he is gone but it has been hinted to Dave that it's not a dead issue. He is being represented by Barry Bloom in his negotiation. So it does appear that Drew Gulak is interested in returning if he gets a good deal.
We hope this is true because Gulak was having a great year in 2020 with Daniel Bryan and he deserves to get constant television time.
#3. Hope isn't true: More new title designs coming soon?
WWE is a company that's constantly trying to become younger, according to Hall of Famer and legend Jim Ross. While that was one of the things that drove him out of the company and into AEW, there's a lot of truth to what he said.
The fact that WWE decided to stop 'numbering' WrestleMania every year since 2015 is an indication that staying fresh and relevant is extremely important to the company. As a result, constant changes are needed in everything, from Superstars' characters to storylines, to overall creative direction, the weekly set for RAW and SmackDown, and more.
One of the things included in that list is Championship belts. Earlier this year, a new Intercontinental title was introduced, ending the old school design that was brought back years before.
BeltFanDan reported on Twitter that WWE intends to come up with two new designs - one entirely fresh and the other a slight modification:
We hope this isn't true as the Championships don't need any new changes or modifications. WWE's top titles all have a similar design with different colors, which makes us believe that they could do the same for the other titles as well.
#2. Hope is true: WWE keeping a backstage secret about The Undertaker's retirement
The Undertaker's return run in 2020 has been met with heavy praise - a big change from the last six years where fans have been clamoring for the legend to retire. The Last Ride documentary on the WWE Network revealed why The Undertaker returned from his retirement in 2017.
Paul Davis of Wrestlingnews.co revealed that even the creative team hasn't been given any details regarding plans for The Undertaker's retirement.
Sportskeeda's Lennard Surrao wrote:
Paul Davis of WrestlingNews.co was told that the writing staff has not been provided with hints or details about The Undertaker's retirement. The reason why WWE has chosen to keep everyone in the dark is that they don't want their potential retirement plans for the Undertaker to get leaked.
We hope this is true because this is the best way to keep a major storyline hidden and give it a sense of mystique. There will be a day when The Undertaker retires and when he does, he deserves to go out in the best way possible.
#2. Hope isn't true: Why WWE decided to go with Otis as the official MITB winner over AJ Styles
Otis has been having the best year in 2020. Not only did he have a great singles match at WrestleMania that saw him begin his on-screen pairing with Mandy Rose, but he started rising as a singles star and shocked the WWE Universe by becoming Mr. Money in the Bank 2020.
Wade Keller of PWTorch addressed the controversial finish of the match and why WWE chose to go with Otis as the official winner of Money in the Bank:
AJ Styles has an argument, they didn't make it last night though. So, I think they are going to stick with this. The argument is like the NFL, did he ever have sole possession of the briefcase or was he fumbling with it since the moment Corbin lost grip after Elias hit him from behind.
We hope this isn't true as AJ Styles was a better choice to win the briefcase. While he certainly didn't need it, Otis doesn't seem ready for the spot just yet.
#1. Hope is true: WWE shortlisting names to re-hire
WWE went on a mass releasing spree of employees, ranging from talent to agents to various backstage staff and many working in offices. While nothing is known about the people working behind the scenes, Tom Colohue revealed on his video that WWE has a shortlist of Superstars they plan to re-hire post-COVID-19:
The WWE, including what's happening with Drew Gulak, have a shortlist prepared of names of people that have been released who they may want to rehire in the future after the coronavirus pandemic is lessened or at least is not so prevalent that they are able to do that without affecting their bottom line.
Colohue added that there are Superstars who won't be re-hired under any circumstances and that there are no plans to re-hire any of the NXT names released. However, we hope that the above-stated rumor is true because WWE owes it to the released Superstars who didn't want to leave to eventually re-hire them. However, this was something always expected to happen.
#1. Hope isn't true: WWE preparing for a future without Roman Reigns?
Roman Reigns abruptly pulled out of WrestleMania 36, where he was scheduled to face Goldberg in one of the main events. While initial rumors suggested that it was a health issue and COVID-19 concern, Reigns indicated that those rumors were rubbish, revealing that his wife Galina Becker is pregnant with twins and that family was his priority.
Tom Colohue revealed from an inside source that WWE is preparing for a future without Roman Reigns:
My final note will be on Roman Reigns and it's a bit of an addition to what I've been reporting on the podcast regularly. After he chose not to return to the company and compete at WrestleMania, and of course, the weeks advancing, the WWE has since then have been creating storylines without factoring him in at all. I have been told and I quote, 'The WWE is preparing for a future without Roman Reigns.'
He also emphasized that it doesn't mean Roman Reigns is leaving WWE - it just means that we won't be seeing him for the foreseeable future. We hope this isn't true because SmackDown will suffer quite a bit without Reigns as a top babyface.
However, we understand his priorities and believe that he's right in taking personal time away for his family. Given how hard he's worked to be the top star of the company for over 5-6 years, he certainly deserves the hiatus.
