3-time champion's major move outside WWE hints at potential return

Roman Reigns may have been defeated by Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania XL, but the new Undisputed WWE Universal Champion is only one of the few stars who have pinned him in the last five years. One unusual name on that list is Erick Rowan.

The original member of The Wyatt Family was released by the Stamford-based promotion in April 2020 owing to the budget cuts during COVID-19. He flew to Louisville, Kentucky, for WWE SmackDown in August last year to pay respect to the death of his real-life friend and former on-screen stablemate, Bray Wyatt.

After Uncle Howdy's return was teased in Bray Wyatt's documentary and over WrestleMania weekend, could a new version of The Wyatt Family be making its way back to WWE?

East Coast Pro Wrestling has reported that Erick Rowan will not be able to make his scheduled appearance at their event, or any other, owing to "new contractual commitments." This has sent the WWE Universe into a frenzy online.

Check out the report by ECPW below:

"We have just received word this evening from Erick Rowan that unfortunately he will not be able to make his scheduled appearance next week at Coal Town Carnage. Erick stated that new contractual obligations are preventing him from making several dates including ours. This is the first time in ECPW history that one of our scheduled stars cancelled and it is out of our control."

The former SmackDown Tag Team Champion had worked for the Stamford-based promotion for nine years before parting ways during the pandemic. He also was the last opponent of The Rock before the latter's in-ring return last weekend.

Be that as it may, Rowan has mentioned that it is not something worth remembering as he lost the bout to the legendary star in six seconds.

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Erick Rowan's win over Roman Reigns in WWE was special to him

The Wyatt Family is often cited as one of the best visual stories the sports entertainment giant has ever produced in the modern era.

During an interview with Chris Van Vliet last year, Rowan touched upon a lot of things, including his time with The Wyatt Family, and his contributions. Along with that, an important moment in his career was his win over "The Big Dog" of WWE in 2019. However, it was not for that reason itself:

"Well I did enjoy that match and only because at the end of it, was a surprise, and the surprise was Jon [Huber] coming back and knowing I'd get to tag with him at the next, you know, pay-per-view and have at least one last quick run before he left. So, that to me was a cool special moment because that you could see the real brotherhood there, you know what I mean, the last few weeks we had together was probably the most fun I've ever had wrestling, you know what I mean," Erick Rowan said.

Meanwhile, Sami Zayn recently spoke highly of Bo Dallas, claiming that the latter never got his fair shot in WWE yet. It is not completely out of the realm of possibility that Dallas, Erick Rowan, and possibly Braun Strowman, reform in some capacity.