Welcome to the weekly Rumor Look Back, where we look at the rumors from six months ago and see which played out as originally stated. Let’s jump right in it.
- According to WrestleVotes Radio, WWE is considering Charlotte Flair vs. Jade Cargill as one of the top matches for the return of the all-women’s Evolution PLE in July.
- That match did not happen. Cargill had a rematch with Naomi. Flair was in a multi team tag team match. It does look like they’re going to eventually get there as they’ve teased it a little. (0/1)
- Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer points out that CM Punk has been replaced by Seth Rollins in “the Riyadh season Night of Champions promotional video,” which is leading to more speculation about what Punk’s status really is for WWE’s upcoming trip to Saudi Arabia.
- Punk went.
- Hulk Hogan’s people told TMZ that he underwent neck surgery this week. Hogan apparently had a “little fusion procedure” on Wednesday and was back to work on Thursday.
- He died in July. Maybe it was related to this? I question if he was “back to work on Thursday” given all we know.
- Fightful Select indicates that many people in WWE are against The Rock’s idea for Cody Rhodes to turn heel, mostly because Cody is drawing so well as the top babyface in the company.
- There’s a sweet spot to doing a turn. Don’t want to do it too soon when the babyface is still drawing money and even worse, where they fans reject it. But you don’t want to draw it out too long when the babyface is too stale. I remember Triple H talking about his heel turn when he was with DX and how Billy Gunn thought it was too soon (but Billy also knew DX was a good meal ticket for him).
- WrestleVotes heard that WWE is “planning to run multiple live events in Mexico in the near future, all centered around a featured ‘SuperShow Mexico’ event.”
- There were two in July. (1/1)
- On Women’s Wrestling Talk, former AEW star Saraya mentioned that she is going to begin filming very soon on an acting project with “a big role that I never thought I would get.”
- Her imdb has one movie listed in the future. It’s called Fanatic, a horror movie starring David Howard Thornton (Art the Clown). Certainly could be what she’s referring to.
- Per PW Insider, Liv Morgan finished filming her scenes for Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo this week, and she’s expected back in WWE “very soon.”
- She returned within the next couple of weeks. (1/1)
- Sources close to the production say Liv was a natural in front of the camera and “crushed” it.
- I look forward to seeing how she does in that movie.
- TMZ notes that Nikki Bella will pay her ex-husband Artem Chigvintsev $3500 per month in child support as part of their divorce settlement. She will also pay him a lump sum of $200,000 before the end of 2025. However, Nikki is “walking away with all of the trusts in her name, including Stephanie Nicole Garcia Entertainment and Bonita Bonita.”
- This was all very ugly.
- Fightful Select says the Anarchy in the Arena match at AEW Double or Nothing will include Swerve Strickland, Kenny Omega, Willow Nightingale, Powerhouse Hobbs, and Samoa Joe against the Young Bucks, Marina Shafir, Gabe Kidd, and Jon Moxley. There is also a chance that Katsuyori Shibata and Claudio Castagnoli will be added to the match.
- No Gabe Kidd. But the last two were added to the match. (1/2)
- The Wrestling Observer Newsletter mentioned that WWE’s Crown Jewel PLE in Australia later this year will include “the annual Crown Jewel title matches previously scheduled as an annual thing in Saudi Arabia.” It is believed that “these matches will go back to being a regular thing in Saudi Arabia in 2026.”
- They did the Crown Jewel bit. We don’t know about 2026 yet. (1/1)
- On her Eyes Up Here podcast, ECW legend Francine said she spoke with Sabu at WrestleCon the day after his retirement match against Joey Janela, and Sabu denied that he was actually retiring. He told Francine, “They said I’m retiring. I never said I’m retiring. I’m not retiring…I don’t know if they’re trying to do ticket sales or what, but I’m not retiring. I’m gonna keep wrestling.”
- He unfortunately died soon after, meaning that was his last match.
- According to Business Insider, Hulk Hogan’s Real American Beer is planning to make a bid for Hooters’ intellectual property. If successful, it would allow Hogan’s company “to create Hooters-branded merchandise, such as food and beverages, that it could distribute at restaurants.” A person familiar with Hogan’s plan said, “Hooters has always been a big part of his life.”
- I don’t know how much if that would happen without Hogan.
- PW Insider is saying John Cena & Travis Scott are likely teaming up for the main event of Money in the Bank, likely with Cody Rhodes on the other side.
- That did not happen. (0/1)
- They also say WWE is saving Cena vs. CM Punk for later this year “when the timing is right.”
- They did it at Night of Champions. Felt like they went to it because Cena’s heel run was floundering and they felt Punk could give it some life. And it was maybe the best feud of Cena’s heel run but nothing really saved it. (1/1)
- Sheamus told The Daily Mail he pitched himself for the Intercontinental title picture at WrestleMania 41 but obviously was shut down. He still wants to do the Grand Slam thing.
- Cena got his but not Sheamus yet. And now that he’s out of the Last Chance Tournament due to injury, that is not where he’ll get it done. I trust he will win that belt before retiring though.
- Konnan claimed on his K100 with Konnan & Disco Inferno podcast that he was originally supposed to work with El Grande Americano but it never came to fruition.
- Could very well be true, but I question everything said on these wrestler podcasts.
- Fightful notes that Jazmyn Nyx has been pulled from in-ring action by WWE for NXT but it’s unclear why and the hope is she will be back at it soon.
- She ended up up getting written off when her contract ran out in September, but that was not this.
May 20,
2025
- Cody Rhodes will be headlining a major WWE show in Mexico, per Wrestling Observer Radio’s Dave Meltzer. The date isn’t confirmed, but Meltzer says it will be “relatively soon”.
- That did not happen. They did have house shows there that he participated, but none of them were major WWE shows. (0/1)
- WWE filed to trademark “King of the Luchadores” yesterday, which most assume will be used in relation to the AAA acquisition, Chad Gable’s El Grande Americano gimmick, or both.
- Dom has referred to himself as that, and his is AAA Mega champion. It is not related the Americano gimmick. (1/2)
- TKO-owned On Location is selling tickets to a meet & greet at Worlds Collide with Rey Fenix, El Hijo del Vikingo, Psycho Clown & Pagano, which has obviously led to speculation they’ll all be working the first AAA/WWE show in Los Angeles on June 7.
- They all worked that show. (3/3)
- The X account for Queen of the Ring posted and deleted that theirs was “The movie the WWE doesn’t want you to see”. They then replied to a follower that WWE “tried to block us from running TV ads during Raw (illegal)” and backed out of a sponsorship deal, which they said were just two examples of WWE’s “sabotaging behavior” toward the film.
- I never saw the flick. Did anyone? Any good?
- Fightful says Spanish star Zozaya has “significant interest” from WWE after impressing at a tryout in the UK recently.
- Looks like he is with them now. (1/1)
- PW Insider says Damian Priest has received a ton of praise within WWE for his toughness lately, especially with his tough matches with Drew McIntyre.
- He matches up with Drew well with their size & style.
- They also say there has been talk internally of NXT Europe finally getting off the ground later this year.
- It has not. (0/1)
- Cultaholic notes that WWE is finalizing deals with Frenchman Aigle Blanc and Belgian Mike D Vecchio, with both expected to report by September 2025.
- Both were are part of the latest class. (2/2)
- Fightful followed that up with more word that Zozaya is expected to be in by September as well.
- He was introduced in October. (0/1)
- However, they aren’t sure of any word on PROGRESS World Champion Luke Jacobs, with their sources both claiming he will be signing with WWE and others claiming he won’t.
- Not at this moment it looks like.
- Sean Ross Sapp said in a recent Q&A that he isn’t sure why Candice LeRae has been off television but she is still with WWE.
- I feel they could do more with her.
- Internal schedules at USA Network still have SmackDown as a three-hour show in early June, according to a PW Insider Elite report. The site notes that the schedules may be outdated, but shared them as there’s been talk the show’s planned move back to two hours would happen next month.
- It was in July. Sounds like it’s going back to three hours. (0/1)
- Roman Reigns is in talks to play Akuma in the Street Fighter movie, says Fightful Select. Akuma is a boss-level demon character introduced in the 1994 video game, Super Street Fighter II Turbo.
- He is in the movie playing Akuma. Lotta wrestlers in that movie. (1/1)
- Zoey Stark’s injury changed the second half of her match with Rhea Ripley and Kairi Sane on Raw. That from a discussion between Bryan Alvarez & Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio. WWE did not want Sane pinned in her first match back, but didn’t see any alternatives given the situation.
- Yeah, no good options there.
- Sportsbooks like BetOnline have John Cena, Seth Rollins & Bron Breakker, and Jey Uso as heavy favorites at Saturday Night’s Main Event, with odds giving each a better than 90% likelihood of winning. In the steel cage match, Damian Priest is favored but not as heavily.
- Accurate on all 4. (4/4)
- A feud between Sheamus & Rusev that will build on their shared history has been pitched in WWE creative, reports PW Insider Elite.
- They didn’t play too heavy into it but it was mentioned.
- NXT’s May 27 show at Tampa’s Yuengling Center was cancelled due to low ticket sales and concern about how that would look on television, according to PW Insider Elite.
- Ouch.
- Per Fightful Select, AEW is not expecting Darby Allin back by Double or Nothing.
- He finally returned at All In. (1/1)
- There will be no NXT PLE attached to SummerSlam, according to WrestleVotes on a WrestleBinge Q&A. NXT is planning a standalone event at the end of August, but Votes hadn’t heard an exact date or location.
- That is accurate. (1/1)
This week: 19/27 – 70%
Overall: 5,974/10,217 – 58.5%
Have a great week, everyone!
