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Welcome to today's edition of the WWE Rumor Roundup where we bring you the very best rumors and news of the day. We take a look at why WWE delayed Bayley's heel turn on Sasha Banks and also some bad news on Ivar's injury on Monday Night RAW.
Adding to that, some inside details on how WWE are still making money off John Cena and more. We start with the unfortunate news of a Hall of Famer getting fired by WWE:
Vince McMahon fired WWE Hall of Famer after 36 years of service
PWInsider reported that there were going to be some more cuts in WWE yesterday, but it was all going to be in the office and the backstage section of the company. Wrestling Observer Newsletter added to the report later and claimed that 70 people lost their jobs in WWE by last night.
WWE Hall of Famer Gerald Brisco has confirmed that he is one of the 70 people who were fired by WWE. He added that Vince McMahon had made the call to him directly to inform that he was no longer needed in the company. He tweeted:
"Ok, want to get this out the right way. Last night I received a call from @wwe Chairman Of The board @VinceMcMahon to let me know after 36 years of dedication to @wwe i am (sic) no longer needed. I'm ok with this. I will still be around to help talent. More info will follow. Thanks."
Just over an hour later, Gerald Brisco tweeted once again to thank everyone for their messages while also requesting the media to not ask for an interview right now.
"I appreciate all the well wishes I would also like to add that I need a little space so everyone asking for an interview at this time I need to step back take a deep breath just remember I have no anger just emotions at this time."
Apart from Gerald Brisco, Mike Rotunda and Sarah Stock were also released by WWE yesterday in the second phase of the mass exodus.
When The Fiend will win the WWE title again
'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt dropping the title to Goldberg was not a decision that the WWE Universe appreciated but Roman Reigns winning the title off him after just a week into the reign was not highly criticized.
Reigns is now set to defend his title against Jey Uso at Clash of Champions later this year, and Tom Colohue claims that it is just a 'filler feud'. WWE still view 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt vs Roman Reigns as the next big feud on SmackDown.
Talking on the Dropkick DiSKussions podcast, Colohue said:
"Well, it has been made clear to me that The Fiend is endgame material so this is the real big feud that they want to put together between these two. That said, we could see the match at any point, such is the way of long-term planning in the WWE right now. If they need to pull the trigger ahead of time if someone is injured or someone is unavailable, and they just need a big feud to fill the spot, it could be that we see this match very soon, even as soon as Hell in a Cell. I would be surprised though to see it happen before the Royal Rumble. I think they want to keep The Fiend out of Hell in a Cell after what happened last year and when it comes to the Hell in a Cell, The Fiend is not really made to step into that particular match."
It looks like WWE could keep Roman Reigns occupied with multiple small feuds before putting him up against The Fiend at Royal Rumble at the start of the next year.
Ivar's injury on WWE RAW worse than expected?
Ivar suffered an injury on Monday Night RAW this week while attempting a Viking Dive. WWE confirmed that he was taken to a local hospital straightaway but have not followed up on it ever since.
Ivar posted about the same on his Twitter and Instagram and informed his fans that he was 'still trying to figure it out'
Dave Meltzer spoke about it on the Wrestling Observer Radio and added that the injury could be worse than first feared. He said:
"Nothing is for sure, but it has not been determined whether or not he will need surgery. It's a significant injury. Once you say that, it tells you that it's just not like a stinger where you're gonna come back in two weeks. It's probably a lot worse than that. So, it's not determined yet, but it's absolutely as of today a possibility."
Ivar's injury, unfortunately, details the push for The Viking Raiders, and Erik will also be off WWE TV for some time unless the company decides to give him a singles push for the time being.
How WWE are making money off John Cena's name
WWE have asked all their Superstars to end third-party deals by the end of the month. That has led to to a lot of controversies and the WWE Universe is confused about the main reasoning.
One important question raised regarding the 'intellectual property' claims was what happens when a Superstar is using his real name inside the ring as well. Tom Colohue addressed this on the latest episode of Dropkick DiSKussions and highlighted John Cena as an example. He said:
“To cite an example, the WWE owns the name John Cena and that is John Cena’s actual name. That means whenever John Cena is filming, whenever he is credited in a film, the WWE gets a pay cut. They get a cut of the profits. There are some people currently working for the WWE whose names are owned by the WWE. I don’t know who, I don’t have a distinctive list. I haven’t read everybody’s contract but those people know who they are.”
Paige was using his ring name on his Twitch profile but has now changed it to Saraya, her original name. Similarly, other starts who have streams are likely to make the changes soon.
Why Sasha Banks vs. Bayley was delayed by WWE
After weeks of waiting, the WWE Universe finally saw Bayley turn on Sasha Banks and attack her best friend following their match on SmackDown last week. She is now set to address her actions on tonight's episode of WWE SmackDown.
One question that has been on everyone's mind is why the feud was delayed so much. Tom Colohue has the answer to that, and he claims that WWE wanted a big match for Hell in a Cell and thus decided that now was the right time for the feud to begin. He said on the latest edition of the Dropkick DiSKussion podcast:
"I think there was a fear that it was just too late or it was very much becoming too late, so they just want to get it done. I am not aware that this was the original plan as it were, I don't know what the original plan was, I do know that they need a big match, particularly a women's match for Hell in a Cell. Last I heard, they wanted one big men's match and one big women's match, so this would certainly fill that spot, wouldn't it? We don't really have an intense feud on RAW in the women's division, and until this, we didn't really have one on the SmackDown side either. So it's good that it finally happened. Outside of that, both women have done pretty much everything they possibly could as a tag team. So it was more than time. They have been teasing this for years and constantly pulling back. I'm just glad it's finally happening."
Before Hell in a Cell next month, WWE do have Clash of Champions happening this month and it would be interesting to see if Bayley faces someone at the PPV.
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