WWE is able to give CM Punk something AEW wasn’t (2024)

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 to it.

December 9, 2023

• F4WOnline’s Dave Meltzer claims that Sami Zayn recently asked WWE for time off and it was granted. With that in mind, it’s possible Drew McIntyre’s attack on Zayn’s knee this week on Raw was a way to write Sami off TV. Zayn is not currently scheduled to work WWE’s Dec. 28 event in Quebec, which would normally be a show centered around him as the local hero.
• He worked the holiday tour. But he was off TV until the Royal Rumble. (1/2)
• This week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter says it looks like The Iron Claw movie has been edited in such a way that MJF’s role as Lance Von Erich “was pretty much dropped.” More specifically, the character gets “maybe ten seconds” and “has no speaking lines...unless you were looking for him, you’d never know he was in it.”
• He was a in blink or you’ll miss it role working a match. (1/1)
• Per Meltzer, CM Punk “won’t have the power he had in AEW” now that he’s back in WWE. In AEW, CM took advantage of the fact that Tony Khan “would do anything to pacify him.” However, WWE’s current leadership team “isn’t going to tolerate divisiveness the way AEW did.” One other difference is that WWE contracts “allow for termination with no just cause,” which makes it easier for WWE to move on from Punk if it’s not working out.
• This seems pretty obvious.
• Vince McMahon hasn’t been at WWE headquarters much this year, according to PW Insider. But the sites sources say he was there for the company’s holiday party this week. Employees at the party described McMahon as “approachable” and “friendly.”
• That’ll be his last holiday party in WWE for a long time.
• The Observer says the firing of Kevin Sullivan “blindsided many people” in AEW. Sullivan apparently “had no idea it was coming and was given no real explanation as to why, just that it was a [Mike] Mansury decision.” Kevin’s work was “heavily praised across the board,” and “there was criticism from some that Tony Khan didn’t step in and stop this from happening.”
• I don’t think we learned much more about this.
• PW Insider mentions that Cora Jade was spotted in Orlando on Friday “with the rest of the WWE NXT crew traveling North for NXT Deadline.” Insider heard that “Izzi Dame traveled up for the show as well.”
• She would return soon.
• Insider reports that Athena’s broken nose is legit. It happened during a brawl with Billie Starkz at the ROH taping in Montreal when she was “tossed into a guard rail or a ring post
• Ouch.

December 11, 2023

• PW Insider notes that CM Punk appearing at NXT’s Deadline event was pitched at SmackDown and he was “immediately up for it.” He was also “friendly to all the NXT talents backstage.”
• CM Punk spends a lot of time in NXT. He even was part of a backstage interview at last week’s Battleground show. It seems to be well received.
• They also say that while there is no update just yet on Charlotte Flair’s status after she was hurt on SmackDown, she was pulled from live events this weekend and there’s great concern that it’s a serious injury.
• It was announced as an injury that could take around nine months to return from. (1/1)
• The Dec. 25 episode of Monday Night Raw is expected to be a “Best Of” show, with the Wrestling Observer noting an executive at WWE told them that is accurate to their knowledge even though it hasn’t yet been announced by the company.
• That’s the case. (1/1)
• “There has at least been talk of Tyler Bate going to the main roster,” says the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• He made it to the main roster to team with Pete Dunne in January. (1/1)
• According to Fightful, Deonna Purrazzo will become a free agent on Jan. 1, 2024, and she wants to explore her options.
• Purrazzo signed with AEW.
• QT Marshall tried to quit AEW in August, per SEScoops. He agreed to stay on until the end of the year on the understanding “he’d get more ring time on television, but that never materialized.”
• He is back with them.
• Konnan on his K100 podcast while talking about Marshall’s exit (via Wrestling Inc): “Tony [Khan is] the type of guy who changes his mind last minute. ... He only listens to top guys, which some of them don’t have the best interests of the company at heart.”
• I’m not sure if the information Konnan seems to get about AEW is completely reliable. At least it often seems negative.

December 12, 2023

• Seth Rollins’ WWE contract is up in June of 2024 (as is his wife’s), per Fightful Select. While they haven’t started talks on a new contract, WWE is expected to make re-signing Rollins a priority.
• They did re-sign Seth, though Becky is taking some time off. (1/1)
• On his latest PW Insider Elite show Mike Johnson shared an update about how CM Punk is viewed backstage at WWE a couple weeks after his return: everything remains positive as Punk’s been relaxed and happy, with even people who dislike him saying he’s been pleasant.
• It would be a very bad sign if he was ornery less than a month in.
• Johnson also said that sales of Punk merchandise the night of his Survivor Series return exceeded expectations, reaching well into the six figures.
• That’s not too surprising.
• PW Insider’s latest update on Charlotte Flair’s injury is that she’s returned home to Florida. It’s not clear how long Flair will be out, but she’ll remain sidelined until she’s “completely evaluated medically” and her diagnosis can be confirmed. WWE is “working on setting that up right now.”
• The timeline puts her return later this summer if things are progressing as anticipated.
• While covering WWE’s holiday plan for Raw, the Wrestling Observer Newsletter also reported they’ll tape the Dec. 22 SmackDown along with this Friday’s show.
• That’s accurate. (1/1)
• On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer said that WWE is “really high on” NXT’s Lash Legend because “she’s got size” and is a “legit, top-level athlete.”
• She’s rather featured, even part of world title stories.

December 13, 2023

• Fightful Select says CM Punk was backstage at NXT this week and giving talent feedback on matches for their show this week. Meanwhile, WrestlePurists claims “Punk’s long term goal is to succeed Shawn Michaels in NXT.”
• I don’t know if that will happen but he seems to enjoy that aspect of the job. And it seems he maybe wanted more of that in AEW. Or maybe more people who were receptive to his advice. He cited “wanting to give back” as a reason he joined AEW. Even if his interpretation of the situation wasn’t how people felt about veteran advice, that perception was his realty. And he gets to fulfill that in NXT, which is set up as a developmental, which could mean more folks are receptive to advice in general there.
• SEScoops claims they have a source within WWE who told them there have been no talks between the company and Mercedes Mone about a new deal, and there have been no creative talks about her.
• She ended up signing with AEW.
• On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer reiterated that Sami Zayn asked for time off and that’s why he was announced as having an injury. Having said that, he also revealed the injury could very well be legitimate but either way he asked for the time off and it was granted.
• I don’t think we ever heard about a legitimate injury, but if he was banged up or it was something minor, he could have just needed a couple weeks of rest.
• Meltzer also speculated that WWE could do GUNTHER vs. Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 40, now that the current Intercontinental champion is over enough for such a match.
• Maybe they would have, but Brock being referred to (but not named) in the Janel Grant lawsuit nixed that. (0/1)
• For what it’s worth, Trent Seven told Cultaholic that he was “incredibly close” to signing with AEW at one point but it fell through.
• He’s in TNA now.
• PW Insider notes that “there is a lot of happiness among talents in MLW” after they heard about the settlement with WWE. They also say Court Bauer told the locker room that announcements are coming, and they plan to run shows more often in 2024.
• I checked with our MLW guru Manolo and it seems they do run more shows (once a month for live shows, which will come to about 12 this year outside 9 last year). But there were no significant announcements that came after this. (1/2)

December 14, 2023

• Dave Meltzer generated a lot of speculation about Raw’s next television contract when he posted on X that “things changed greatly with Raw negotiations from a few weeks ago. And Punk is a huge part of the selling point.”
• They landed a big deal with Netflix.
• There was “a massive genuine excitement” at the WWE Performance Center when CM Punk “surprised everyone” by showing up and working with wrestlers on Tuesday, according to PW Insider. The site also says Punk was there “training and holding court with NXT talents” yesterday as they taped upcoming shows.
• Hopefully he remains content with his WWE time.
• Regarding Ibou of WrestlePurists saying that Punk’s ultimate goal is to take over NXT from Shawn Michaels, a WWE source told Fightful Select “that would be a long way off,” as there are currently no plans “for Michaels to wrap up his run in NXT any time soon.”
• I believe Michaels is doing a dang good job with NXT.
• Ibou & Fightful noted that Punk was also observing all aspects of TV production at the PC, “something that he was known to do in OVW, and would often bend Paul Heyman’s ear about.”
• He seems like a guy who wants to know every corner of the business.
• Former WWE writer Brian Gewirtz responded to an aggregated report saying Raw’s CM Punk/Seth Rollins segment didn’t have a producer listed on an internal document to clarify that didn’t mean they weren’t scripted: “When there’s no physicality, there’s no producer assigned to segment. Been that way forever. Doesn’t mean there’s not a writer working with talent.”
• I’m sure there was some freedom, probably more than some folks get, but Gewirtz would know what he’s talking about.
• AEW had a talent meeting planned for their Dec. 3 Collision but cancelled it for unknown reasons, per Fightful. It’s not clear when it will be rescheduled.
• Hopefully it wasn’t that important.
• In addition to his recent filing for “Jungle Boy”, this week Jack Perry filed for trademarks on “Jurassic Express” and “A Boy and His Dinosaur”.
• Given his heel personal, he won’t be using any of those any time soon.

December 15, 2023

• Fightful’s Corey Brennan was told it was just “good acting” and not legitimate, regarding the controversial injury angle between Ridge Holland and Ilja Dragunov that WWE shot for a future NXT episode.
• Dragnunov was not actually injured. (1/1)
• F4WOnline’s Dave Meltzer heard that CM Punk “was a major part of the pitch” during the meeting this week between WWE and Warner Bros. Discovery regarding Raw’s next TV deal. The idea is that Punk will be a regular part of the Raw brand, with WWE emphasizing “his merchandise sales and social media views along with ratings of recent shows.”
• Warner did not get in the WWE business.
• Meltzer says it’s not a guarantee that AEW would be forced off WBD networks if Raw ends up there: “The new WWE ownership is not Vince McMahon, so the attempt to get brand exclusivity is likely not there.” Meltzer supported this claim by noting “It is believed the CW deal for NXT also didn’t call for exclusivity in the wrestling genre.”
• We’re still waiting to hear on AEW’s next TV deal.
• On the Rumor & Innuendo show, Nick Hausman said he is aware of multiple indicators “that things are not going maybe as Tony [Khan] has projected publicly, and I would not be surprised to see AEW and Warner maybe part ways next year.”
• We’ll have to wait and see on that one.
• Multiple outlets indicate that WBD’s top priority by far is its negotiations for the NBA TV rights, and everything in wrestling comes secondary to that. If WBD spends a ton of money on the NBA, that could take them out of the market for WWE Raw’s hefty asking price.
• Sounds like they may be losing the NBA.
• Cartoon Brew mentioned that “a U.S. release is planned for sometime in 2024” for the Rey Mysterio vs. The Darkness animated series.
• I don’t see it on anything yet. But we’re only half way through 2024.

This week: 9/12 - 75%

Overall: 5,122/8,902 - 57.5%

Have a great week, everyone!