WWE Rumor Roundup - Former IC Champion to return, Liv Morgan's status, Shane McMahon reportedly wants a Superstar to be pushed - 13th June 2020

It's time for another edition of the daily WWE Rumor Roundup. While Paul Heyman continues to dominate the lion's share of the news, the day that passed also had stories about other Superstars

Liv Morgan's push has cooled down in recent weeks and WWE reportedly also nixed a segment of her's from the latest episode of WWE RAW. There is also an update about how she is viewed backstage.

More details regarding AJ Styles' move to SmackDown have been revealed and they are quite surprising, to say the least.

Shane McMahon has reportedly been advocating for a top WWE RAW Superstar backstage along with Paul Heyman amid speculation about the star's future.

A Superstar, who's been out of action due to the COVID-19 risk, is also expected to return. There are reports of him being inserted into the Jeff Hardy-Sheamus storyline.

There was also a story about how The Miz is respected in WWE due to something that he overcame backstage.

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#5. Sami Zayn to return soon

While Sami Zayn has not been seen on WWE TV since WrestleMania 36, the former Intercontinental Champion has been quite vocal about his displeasure regarding WWE's move to strip him of the title.

He even sent a warning AJ Styles recently, and the Superstar is reportedly set to make his TV return soon on SmackDown. However, he may not go after the IC title right away as there could be plans to insert him in the ongoing storyline between Jeff Hardy and Sheamus.

Paul Davis of WrestlingNews.co stated that Sami Zayn is scheduled to return soon and there are hints about his possible involvement in the attack angle on Elias and Jeff Hardy from a few weeks ago.

How will WWE use Sami Zayn after his return?

The WWE announcers and the production team have been instructed to push the fact that the attacks were carried out by a man with red hair and a red beard. It's interesting to note that Sami Zayn fits the description. It was further added that Corey Graves also alluded to the fact that the attack could have been orchestrated by another Superstar and not Sheamus on SmackDown.

The fact that both Hardy and Elias were in the IC title tournament is another hint towards Sami Zayn's possible involvement in the angle.

With the COVID-19 restrictions starting to be lifted, WWE could expect to see a few more Superstars to return soon in addition to Sami Zayn.

#4. Liv Morgan's nixed segment, backstage perception

With Paul Heyman being removed from the Executive Director's position, Vince McMahon is back at the wheel on RAW and he has already made a few big changes backstage.

Tom Colohue revealed that a Liv Morgan segment was pulled last-minute from the most recent episode of RAW by Vince McMahon. The segment was similar to the vignettes that Morgan has had in recent weeks in which she is out to find herself.

Tom noted that Vince McMahon had pulled several other pre-taped segments in recent weeks. Vince McMahon had been in direct touch with the editing team and various segments were said to have been 'left on the cutting room', without direct communication at the Executive Director's level.

On the recent Fightful Q&A podcast, Sean Ross Sapp was asked about whether the creative team had lost interest in Liv Morgan. SRS stated that Morgan is still liked backstage, but the lack of a long-term plan has hurt her run on RAW. Here's what he had to say:

"I think her ceiling is multiple-time world champion. She works her a** off! Everybody that I talked to likes her, and yeah, I do think that it's died down because they didn't have s*** planned out for her long-term and it's frustrating. They give these people vignettes, so that they can bring them back and then they don't have plans for them."

#3. Impact of Paul Heyman's ouster on Drew McIntyre's WWE title reign, Shane McMahon's reported support

Paul Heyman's ouster from his backstage role has raised doubts over Drew McIntyre's WWE Championship reign.

Tom Colohue revealed that Paul Heyman was relentlessly pushing Drew McIntyre backstage. Vince McMahon was also eventually on board as he wanted to see his prophecy of McIntyre becoming the World Champion come true.

However, with the creative changes backstage and Vince McMahon's infamous habit of altering plans, Tom noted that the WWE Boss could pivot the WWE title sooner rather than later.

It was added that in addition to Paul Heyman, Shane McMahon has also reportedly been a big advocate of Drew McIntyre behind the scenes.

"Paul Heyman was of course behind the push for Drew McIntyre, someone that he has pushed relentlessly backstage even though Vince McMahon really didn't really push him that hard. At the same time, Vince McMahon really did want to see his declaration that Drew McIntyre was a future World Champion come true, so he went with it then.That said, it is possible now that Vince McMahon would look to pivot the Championship sooner rather than later. We've been told a lot of times that there is a lot of faith shown in Drew McIntyre, and that comes down to Shane McMahon as well who has been advocating for Drew in the same way as Paul Heyman."

#2. Details about AJ Styles' move to SmackDown, reported issues with Paul Heyman

AJ Styles won the Intercontinental Championship for the first time in his career on SmackDown and he is set to have another fruitful stint on the Blue brand.

Tom Colohue revealed that AJ Styles didn't feel at home on RAW and he was also mocked for his worldviews. It was also added that the higher-ups in the WWE were not pleased with Heyman's inability to utilize AJ Styles on RAW properly.

"There was a lot of disappointment higher up, that Paul Heyman was not able to do more with AJ Styles when AJ Styles was on RAW... Really outside of the Undertaker feud, he spent a while in the U.S. Title scene and didn't really have that many great storylines to sink his teeth into."

"Apparently backstage right now with everything going on (in the World), CM Punk is not the only person really getting on AJ Styles case... AJ Styles' views, and a lot of them, have been seriously questioned more now than ever by a lot of people backstage."

"There has apparently been a lot of situations where AJ Styles has been mocked, and he has said to not be feeling particularly at home."

Another reason why WWE moved AJ Styles to SmackDown

Dave Meltzer also reported on the Wrestling Observer forum that AJ Styles was reportedly furious over the WWE releases of Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson and he blamed Paul Heyman for not standing up for his former teammates.

Styles allegedly moved to SmackDown to work with someone who wasn't in a fight with Vince McMahon.

"Actually the reason was that he was furious that Gallows & Anderson were fired. Blamed Heyman. Classic case of JR/JJ/Laurinaitis syndrome. Vince is the one who made the decision, but I suppose he felt Heyman could have fought him on it. So he wanted to go to the side where the guy in charge isn't fighting Vince on something like that either."

#1. Backstage respect for The Miz

The Miz came to WWE from the world of Reality Television, and it's a known fact now that the A-Lister had to go through a lot of mistreatment backstage due to his background.

However, Miz stuck to his guns and went on to become a WWE Champion, and he is quite respected for his attitude towards the business.

On the Fightful Select Q&A podcast, Sean Ross Sapp was asked whether there were any current talents who have been praised continuously backstage by their peers.

SRS was quick to note The Miz's example, stating that one person higher up in the company said that The Miz had to go through a lot of trouble early on in his career. He, however, stuck around and is always respected for being an ultimate team player.

SRS noted the following:

I'll give you an example this week. I wouldn't say constantly, but I was talking to somebody about Lio Rush's tweet and if there was a bullying culture in the WWE, and I won't go into specifics about that because I'm still working on a story, but I had one person specifically put over The Miz, and they said, 'I was around when The Miz was around, and he got more s*** than anybody I've ever seen, and he stuck around, and I'll always respect him for that because he should not have gone through that, and the locker room should not have been like that.

I had a person very high up that really complimented Miz an awful lot in that regard, and I think that said a lot because he is an ultimate team player.