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Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.
WWE Not Prepping Employees for Lesnar’s Return
With WWE set to resume touring in front of fans next month, speculation has increased regarding the return of Brock Lesnar.
While The Beast Incarnate may indeed re-sign with WWE at some point, Fightful Select (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News) reported that workers within WWE “have not been prepped to ready any promotional materials” for Lesnar’s return.
That would seem to suggest Lesnar’s return isn’t imminent, although it doesn’t mean it won’t happen at some point.
Fightful Select (h/t H Jenkins of Ringside News) previously reported WWE and Lesnar were in talks and that WWE hoped he could return “imminently.”
Lesnar has not appeared on WWE programming since dropping the WWE Championship to Drew McIntyre at WrestleMania 36 last year.
It was reported a few months after the event that Lesnar’s contract with WWE had expired and he was a free agent.
Given that WWE has had no fans in attendance at almost every event for more than a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it made sense to let Lesnar’s contract run out before potentially bringing him back upon the return of fans.
Aside from WrestleMania 37, which was a one-time exception, the first pay-per-view with fans back in the crowd will be Money in the Bank next month. WWE will then hold SummerSlam at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas in August.
Having Lesnar for either of those events would be huge in terms of generating further interest, especially since a dream match against WWE champion Bobby Lashley could be on the table.
Lesnar has had his fair share of detractors over the years because of his part-time schedule, but he is a major attraction, and the product tends to be more interesting when he is around.
Woods Possibly Written Off WWE Programming
Xavier Woods’ loss to Lashley in a Hell in a Cell match on Raw reportedly may have been WWE’s way of writing him off television for a period of time.
According to Bryan Alvarez of Wrestling Observer Live (h/t Jenkins), a source informed him Woods was being “written out of the storyline.”
On Monday’s Raw, Kofi Kingston challenged Lashley to a WWE Championship match at Money in the Bank. Lashley also challenged Kofi’s New Day teammate, Woods, to a Hell in a Cell match on Raw.
Woods accepted and took the fight to Lashley for stretches of the match, but Lashley ultimately scored the victory and proceeded to brutalize Woods inside the cell while Kingston was forced to watch in horror from the outside.
It is unclear why Woods would be written off television, but as a host for the relaunching G4 gaming network, it could have something to do with his outside ventures.
Woods and fellow WWE Superstars Ember Moon, Mace and Tyler Breeze are taking part in the Dungeons & Dragons event D&D Live 2021 on July 16 and 17.
Also, EA announced Tuesday that Woods will serve as the host for EA Play Live on July 22.
One thing writing Woods off television could accomplish from a storyline perspective is forcing Kingston to go up against Lashley one-on-one without anyone there to help him.
Kofi is the underdog and fan favorite regardless, but having him challenge the MVP-backed Lashley will likely only serve to get fans on Kingston’s side even more.
More on Owens Taking Time Off from WWE
There is reportedly a concrete reason for Kevin Owens apparently taking some time off from WWE programming.
After losing to Sami Zayn at Hell in a Cell, Owens tweeted the following, which suggested he was preparing to step away for a period of time.
Kevin @FightOwensFight
I fought like hell.
Now, I need a little break.
I’ll be back soon.Thank you, guys.
According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Owens’ hiatus will be “storyline related.”
The reported rationale makes sense given what KO has gone through from a storyline perspective in recent weeks.
Owens was portrayed as being at less than 100 percent at Hell in a Cell after taking a Nigerian Nail to the throat at the hands of Commander Azeez on SmackDown.
Then, Owens sold an arm or shoulder injury during the match, and the cumulative effects allowed Zayn to score the pinfall victory.
With the return of fans still a few weeks away, now is the ideal time to take Owens off of television for a bit before bringing him back when fans are in attendance.
Owens is a beloved figure among the WWE audience, and if he appears in front of them after not being on television for a while, he promises to receive a huge pop.
KO hasn’t exactly been on a roll lately with losses to Zayn, Commander Azeez and Apollo Crews, but a short hiatus could go a long way toward refreshing him and allowing him to move his way back up the card once he returns.
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