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From possible last-minute changes to the Money in the Bank match card to the recent events on SmackDown, there’s a lot that has kept the pro-wrestling universe buzzing with speculations. Last week, we saw a few title matches being confirmed for MITB. In addition, Triple H celebrated his 25th anniversary in WWE in a somewhat bizarre segment.
Today’s rumor round-up will focus on the backstage details about Vince McMahon’s strange behavior as well as the possible interference by Seth Rollins’ ally.
In addition, there have also been stories about the Universal Champion Braun Strowman’s future, a former Intercontinental Champion’s descent to mid-card, and the lesser-known details about the unusual MITB matches planned for this year.
So, without further ado, let’s begin.
#1 What’s next for Braun Strowman?
After Roman Reigns decided to pull out of WrestleMania 36 at the last minute, WWE called Braun Strowman in as a replacement. The ‘Monster Among Men’ defeated Goldberg to become the WWE Champion. However, the latest reports suggest that WWE’s approach towards Strowman is mixed
Sportskeeda’s Tom Colohue told Korey Gunz on Dropkick DiSKussions that although the creatives have shown faith in Strowman, he might still be used as a transitional champion while they wait for the ‘Big Dog’ to return. Here’s what he had to say,
"They've shown faith in Braun Strowman, but there's a lack of depth at the top of SmackDown. And that's why they've been bringing in John Cena and Goldberg. Now without Roman Reigns, there aren't many people left that Strowman can face, especially on the heel side. You've technically got Daniel Bryan, but he's a face and he's involved in something else. So there aren't that many opportunities. This, to me, looks like they're trying to revert back to what their plan was in January - to put the title on Bray Wyatt, again, and wait for Roman Reigns to be ready."
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#2 Two-time champion to interfere in Seth Rollins vs Drew McIntyre at Money in the Bank?
Drew McIntyre defeated Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 36 to become the WWE Universal Champion. He is now set to defend his title against Seth Rollins at Money in the Bank, scheduled to take place next month.
Although the Monday Night Messiah seemed to be all by himself, Sportskeeda’s Tom Colohue believes that Rollins' tag team partner Murphy would interfere in his friend’s match title match at the upcoming PPV. Discussing this possibility, Tom further clarified:
"It's a difficult one because we don't know much going on backstage. We don't know if Buddy Murphy didn't want to go to the Corporate Headquarters. I would have liked to see Murphy in that match. We know how much he has to offer. But at the same time, it didn't happen. I have faith in WWE to work well with Murphy because they already have been. We're seeing the disintegration of this faction built around Seth Rollins."
"They didn't help each other, they didn't support each other, but Murphy made sure to worship at the altar of Seth Rollins. It leaves the door open for Murphy to potentially get involved in Seth Rollins' WWE Championship match against Drew McIntyre and hopefully, start a feud between the two men"
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#3 What is the reason behind Vince McMahon’s strange behavior?
On the last episode of SmackDown, we saw Triple H celebrating his 25th Anniversary. The segment featured his best friend Shawn Michaels, who did not shy away from poking fun at his long-time friend. Things appeared to take a strange turn when Vince McMahon walked out and continued doing the same.
While the WWE boss did praise his son-in-law for everything that he has done for the company, he also took the opportunity to take shots at one of his most trusted people backstage.
From bringing up the infamous ‘This is your life’ segment featuring Bayley and Alexa Bliss to the earliest memories of D-Generation X, Vince brought up a lot of things that took many by surprise.
Soon after that, WrestleVotes was asked by a fan to elaborate on this side of Vince. The official Twitter handle of the website then shared a screenshot in which they explained the possible reason behind Vince’s strange behavior on SmackDown.
According to them, there are several things going on backstage and in Vince’s personal life. With XFL being canceled, the COVID-19 crisis, and WrestleMania plans derailed, there’s been a lot of pressure on him. Hence, Vince has been acting in the same manner for the last couple of weeks.
You can take a look at the screenshot below:
WrestleVotes also claimed that this could turn the situation ‘wild’. While Vince has frequently taken shots at people, it looked quite strange when he did the same during the 25th-Anniversary celebrations of Triple H.
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#4 Possible reason for Shinsuke Nakamura’s slow descent to midcard
WWE Superstar Shinsuke Nakamura has been popular amidst the pro-wrestling fans for long. His much-anticipated main roster debut and the reaction of the crowd spoke volumes about how over he is with the crowd.
However, this former Royal Rumble winner has somehow found himself stuck in the midcard for quite some time now.
Dormer WWE Superstar Matt Morgan, Glenn Rubenstein, and Justin LaBar discussed the same on the WreslingInc podcast and concluded that consistent weak booking caused Nakamura’s descent to the midcard. They specifically singled out his feud with Dolph Ziggler and stated that the creatives should’ve used him more.
"He is over. You could tell by the way people reacted to him coming out for the first few weeks during SmackDown. People would lose their sh**. It's a company's job to maintain the pop with how they book him."
"It was Dolph Ziggler, man. It was him comparing him (Nakamura) to Michael Jackson. When they had him doing the paintings and talk about doing his masterpiece. It was a slow-motion descent into the mid-card."
#5 How much time did it take to film the MITB matches?
After a successful WrestleMania, WWE is now gearing up for their next PPV – Money in the Bank. The upcoming pay-per-view will feature two unique MITB matches in the men’s and women’s categories. For the first time, the participants will begin their battle on the ground floor of WWE headquarters, and they will have to go all the way to the roof in their search for the coveted briefcase.
Given the fact that two WrestleMania matches – the Boneyard match and the Firefly Fun House match – were pre-taped and accounted for brilliant segments, it is quite possible that WWE will do the same for the MITB matches.
As per Sportskeeda’s Tom Colohue, it took them a full day to simply shoot the entire segment, and the final editing is still not done. Here’s what Tom had to say on the Dropkick DiSKussions podcast.
"They've already recorded the Money in the Bank matches. They have been in and out when it comes to it, so you have a selection of people there."
"They spent an entire day planning it out, doing their spots, taking their bumps. It got quite late and dark. They were essentially putting the match together, and now it's gone to be edited. There may be some reshoots, but they did a few pick-ups there at the time like extra shots they may not use."
