Either way, Takeover is behind us and this edition is all set to look at what lies ahead of us. Naturally, the immediate interest is in WWE SummerSlam 2019 and you can read some of the rumours we hope are true and those that aren’t right over here.

It’s been an extremely interesting week in the world of wrestling and the rumour mill has been abuzz with all sorts of things. From WWE potentially making another big buy, a former champion not being allowed to enter Canada for SummerSlam, huge payouts, Survivor Series plans and more - here are the rumours we hope are true and those we hope aren’t!

#6. We hope is true: Goldberg’s massive Super ShowDown payday

We all know by now that Goldberg had a rather embarassing showing at WWE Super ShowDown 2019 when he had a botched-filled match with The Undertaker. However, the Saudi Arabian officials seem to love having legends of the past on their show, viewing them as a big novelty.

As a result, these legends are given massive 7-figure paydays even to compete in relatively short matches. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Goldberg was paid a handsome fee of $1 million for his appearance at WWE Super ShowDown. They wrote

While we hated the match, we certainly do hope it’s true because anyone who can negotiate that kind of a payday certainly deserves it. Good for Goldberg!

#5. We hope isn’t true: Vince McMahon had no plans for the Women’s Tag Team titles when creating them

This is a rumour in WWE that we hope isn’t true but from the way things have been run - it seems to be absolutely true in every sense of the word. As you know, the Women’s Tag Team titles have been neglected since their creation and it took a long time for The IIconics to even make a legitimate defence of the belts.

When they did, they were eliminated right away and lost their position as champions. Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross are now the third champions in the lineage, but Sportskeeda’s own Tom Colohue has revealed that Vince McMahon never really had any plans for the tag team titles when he created them. A source told him:

It makes a lot of sense because even Sasha Banks spoke about how much she had to pester McMahon to make it happen. We hope this rumour isn’t true, but it seems to be completely true.

#5. We hope is true: A huge champion vs champion match was actually planned for Survivor Series 2019

Sasha Banks vs Bayley has been a marquee big-PPV match that fans have been vying for ever since their all-time classic at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn back in 2015. The two trailblazers got off to a great start this year but they dropped the Tag Team titles at WrestleMania 35, after which an alleged backstage meltdown led WWE to grant Sasha Banks an extended period of time off.

Bayley has certainly benefited from this, winning the MITB briefcase and the SmackDown Women’s Championship. According to Tom Colohue, the plan for WWE was to have Sasha Banks vs Bayley face each other in a chamion vs champion match at Survivor Series. They were reportedly split up intentionally with the goal in mind being Survivor Series. He said:

While it’s a shame that we probably won’t get it now, we hope it is true because it would have made for a fascinating storyline.

#4. We hope isn’t true: NXT to FS1

One of the biggest charms about NXT is the fact that it’s a simple, one-hour pre-taped show that is always easy to get through. However, with SmackDown moving to FOX in October, there have been huge discussions about NXT going to FS1 and a complete change in format.

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the idea is for the show to go on Wednesday Nights to compete with AEW and changing it to a two-hour live show. While we do understand the business side of things from WWE, it could be detrimental to NXT in the long-run. The current format makes it feel special and whatever that makes NXT stand out now could change with more TV executives having their hands on the show.

Moreover, it’s one of the biggest selling points of the WWE Network.

#4. We hope is true: Chris Jericho’s mystery tag team partner revealed

As you probably know, All Elite Wrestling will begin its weekly television show in early October. The debut show already has a few matches announced - one of which will see Chris Jericho and two mystery partners against Kenny Omega & The Young Bucks.

That is presumably going to be the main event of the show and it’s quite a good one. There has been a lot of speculation as to who Jericho’s mystery partners are going to be. Dave Meltzer on the Wrestling Observer Radio stated that one of Chris Jericho’s partners is ‘heavily rumoured’ to be none other than PAC, fka Neville in WWE.

PAC was supposed to compete at AEW Double or Nothing but pulled out due to various complications. We hope this is true because he would be a huge addition to their roster.

#3. We hope isn’t true: WWE in talks to buy out FITE TV

WWE and Vince McMahon have a history of a rather ruthless approach to competition or any semblance of it. In the 1980s and 1990s, Vince McMahon essentially killed off all the territories and currently, there’s a huge international expansion move going on, with WWE cornering the British market and aiming to enter Japan and many other countries as well.

Where does FITE TV fit into all of this? If you don’t know, they are basically the main streaming partners for AEW’s PPV. They were even the home to ALL IN last year and they are streaming partners with many big promotions including AEW, NJPW, ROH and more.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter is reporting that WWE and FITE TV are in talks for the former making a big purchase of the company. This would mean that AEW would need a new streaming partner and things could get messy, which is why we hope it isn’t true.

#3. We hope is true: Andrade has “people in power” behind him

Andrade is one of WWE’s biggest prospects and they know exactly what value he has for the company. He’s not just any other Superstar. Apart from being arguably one of the top 5 in-ring workers in the company, he holds the key to WWE’s most sought-out market - the Latino market.

They tried and failed with Alberto Del Rio and Andrade presents a much fresher, younger and far more exciting prospect than Del Rio ever was in WWE. While he hasn’t been pushed heavily since his debut last year, it’s ok because there is still a lot of time for him.

Dave Meltzer on the Wrestling Observer Radio stated that there are “people in power” behind him in WWE. While they haven’t done much with him yet, they seem like they’re going to and him getting a huge push is practically a guarantee at this point - particularly because he’s also well-loved backstage.

#2. We hope isn’t true: Backstage reason for Ziggler vs Goldberg at SummerSlam

Dolph Ziggler vs Goldberg was a heavily rumoured match for the SummerSlam card and as expected, it was made official on the go-home episode of RAW before WWE SummerSlam 2019.

According to Tom Colohue, Dolph Ziggler was the one chosen to give Goldberg his redemption from Saudi Arabia, simply because he makes everyone look good. A source told Colohue:

Moreover, Ziggler is a much lighter Superstar than The Undertaker so it certainly helps that he can take a jackhammer much easier. But ultimately, this marquee match is not expected to last more than a minute or two. We’re glad that Goldberg gets an easy payday, but we hope this isn’t true because it just seems like unnecessary space on the card.

#2. We hope is true: Vince McMahon rewarding Kevin Owens with a push

Kevin Owens has had an interesting 2019 - returning as a babyface, turning heel for a couple of months and now being the hottest babyface on SmackDown Live. He’s in the midst of a feud with Shane McMahon and according to Tom Colohue, Vince McMahon is a huge fan of Kevin Owens and is probably the biggest in the company:

He elaborated as to how Kevin Owens was one of the Superstars who was unfortunately affected by the Kofi Kingston rise in early 2019.

Colohue then stated that creative is now trying to “right a wrong” in that Owens should never have turned heel in the first place. It seems as though McMahon has a new favourite superstar and we couldn’t be more excited for Owens.

#1. We hope isn’t true: Jimmy Uso barred from entering Canada for SummerSlam

Jimmy Uso has been in a lot of legal trouble this year and that includes multiple arrests for DUI. Despite this, it hasn’t affected his or his brothers’ push and the last time that it happened in February, they were rewarded with a Tag Team title win.

Either way, while they weren’t advertised for any match on the card, they were advertsied for a signing. They’ve since been pulled from it and according to PWInsider, it’s because Jimmy Uso has been barred from entering Canada due to his history with DUIs - particularly the one from July.

We hope this isn’t true but ultimately, nothing can be done when Canada is extremely strict about their laws when it comes to driving. Hopefully, this isn’t true but in all likeliness, it probably is.

#1. We hope is true: Paul Heyman doesn’t want Brock Lesnar as Universal Champion

Paul Heyman may brag about his client Brock Lesnar week in and week out, but now that he’s an Executive Director, he’s smart enough to know that having the title appear and disappear every other week makes little sense from a television quality standpoint.

Tom Colohue on Dropkick DiSKussions podcast revealed that Heyman isn’t a big fan of the idea of Lesnar as Universal Champion and wants other superstars in that position instead. He said:

It might sound surprising to some, especially given their on-screen pairing. But Colohue reminded us that ultimately, it’s an on-screen pairing and not something that’s up to Heyman. He continued, saying:

We sincerely hope this is true because it makes it clear that Heyman has a far clearer vision of the show on the long run. We hope that he is allowed to implement this vision and that Lesnar stops winning Universal title after Universal title.

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