The 5 Juiciest Rumors in WWE This Week

It’s Saturday, and here at Pop Culture, it’s the perfect day for speculation. Mulling over WWE‘s rumors is the closest thing we’ll ever get to sitting down and playing poker with Vince McMahon. And every time a rumor leaks, it’s like getting a free peek at his hand.

Luckily for us, WWE shows its cards quite a bit and we’ve been collecting the best grumblings, whispers, and spoilers of the week.

We’re in good time for rumors, too. With John Cena and Brock Lesnar on hiatus, WWE has to get creative with their ideas to fill their collective void. And for whatever reason, some of those ideas slip through the cracks and into the Internet – and we can’t wait to take a whiff.

So here they are, the 5 Juiciest Rumors in WWE This Week:

Paige Return in Next Few Weeks?

Last week, we reported that Paige would be joining the SmackDown roster whenever she was able to return to WWE action. We now know when that will be. According to a report from PWInsider, Paige will be coming to the Blue Brand next month.

Seeing that “next month” is only 4 days away, we could technically see Paige on next week’s episode of SmackDown. However, it’s better to anticipate her return after the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view.

Probability: 3.32/5

Beast vs. Demon

Having already taken care of WWE‘s Monster Among Men, Brock Lesnar‘s next Universal Championship defense may come against yet another mythological WWE character.

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Brock Lesnar’s next challenger will be Finn Balor. However, it’s uncertain when that will happen. The current thought it that Brock likely will not wrestle again in 2017, which makes his next logical defense coming at the 2018 Royal Rumble in Philadelphia. The Observer speculated that it is possible that Lensar comes back to put his title on the line at Survivor Series, but that will likely depend on several other circumstances, like John Cena’s availability or a possible Undertaker return.

For Balor, this marks a rapid elevation. It’s unsure how his opportunity will come to pass, but right now the best guess lies with him winning some kind of qualifying match at TLC next month.

Probability: 4.66/5

Stephanie Back to RAW?

Stephanie McMahon used to be ubiquitous on RAW programming. Yet, she’s been absent from Monday night cameras since April of this year. However, she may be coming back.

In a report from CageSideSeats, WWE is considering bringing in Stephanie’s cold-hearted services back to the RAW brand. Her arrival is contingent upon RAW’s ratings, per the report. If the Monday night flagship were to suffer a loss of viewership, then WWE will trot out Stephanie to help stop the bleeding.

While Stephanie is still technically RAW’s commissioner, her name is rarely ever mentioned on the program. We did see her during the infamous segment between Kevin Owens and Vince McMahon where Stephanie gave Owens quite the disgusted look en route to helping her bloodied father. But other than that, she’s all be disappeared.

Probability: 4.4/5

 

Shield vs. Miztourage is Fake News?

After the Miztourage struck the iconic Shield pose over the corpse of Roman Reigns this past Monday, it looked like an all too obvious act of war. However, while it’s likely that the Shield vs. Miztourage may happen, WWE may have a different set of foes for the Hounds of Justice at TLC.

According to Ryan Satin of Pro Wrestling Sheet, the Miztourage may be just the vehicle that reunites the Shield for something bigger at the October pay-per-view. While nothing has been finalized, there still is the chance that The Miz, Curtis Axel, and Bo Dallas remain the Shield’s full time villains.

That said, if it’s not Miztourgae vs. The Shield, then what it is? First guesses have Braun Strowman being involved. He and Roman Reigns have had 2017’s best rivalry and now that Brock Lesnar is gone, Strowman doesn’t have great direction. However, Strowman already beat down Dean Ambrose this past RAW. Even more, he’s already booked to fight Seth Rollins next week. That’s a pretty clear trend an one that indicates something bigger at play.

Probability: 3.96/5

Cena’s Short Break

When John Cena left No Mercy, it certainly felt like we wouldn’t be seeing him for a while. Cena actually joined RAW Talk after the show and addressed his future saying that things will be different for him moving forward in WWE. While we’re still not sure what that means, we now do at least know when he’ll be coming back.

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, John Cena will be at November’s Survivor Series. It’s still unknown if he’d be showing up at the preceding RAW event before the big show, but we can imagine he’d make at least one RAW appearance.

Cena is set to film a Transformers spin-off, Bumblebee. At this moment, it will keep him out of WWE through all of October and most of November. However, the 16-time WWE Champion is actually being advertised for November 19th’s Survivor Series in Houston.

Probability: 4.1/5

***Bonus Rumors***

As mentioned, we’re in a good window for rumors – so on top of the requisite 5, here’s a couple that simmered on the Internet this week. 

Neville Possibly Moving to SmackDown

Per GiveMeSport and StillRealToUs, Neville may be heading to SmackDown. Thanks to violating Kurt Angle’s no-contact agreement with Enzo Amore Neville cost himself his re-match and possibly his job. 

Angle fires Neville who then signs with SmackDown. 

Probability (2/5)

 

Kevin Owens Going to RAW

We reported this at length this morning. Check it out here. 

Probability (3/5)