WWE Rumor Review: Roman Reigns' match canceled, John Cena's return, Reason for Double Champion's absence

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 Welcome to the inaugural edition of Sportskeeda Wrestling's WWE Rumor Review. Here, we'll go through past rumors related to the world of WWE and analyze their outcomes.

We take a look back at Universal Champion Roman Reigns having one of his top matches canceled. Former double champion Keith Lee missed months of television time, which led to much speculation about his status with the company.

One of the greatest superstars of all time, John Cena, returned earlier this year. We'll take a look back at the original plan for his return. So without further ado, let's dive into some of the top rumors and see how they have fared.

#5 Keith Lee's absence from WWE

Former NXT and North American Champion Keith Lee had a fantastic run in the black and gold brand before heading to the main roster in August 2020. He gained significant momentum before he was forced to miss several months of action.

During Lee's absence, there was a lot of speculation about his status with the company. Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful cleared the rumors and confirmed he was still contracted to WWE.

"WWE officials and talent have both confirmed to me that Keith Lee has not been released, debunking a vague rumor that was gaining steam this afternoon," Sean Ross Sapp tweeted.

 Dave Meltzer later reported on the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that the former NXT star had been absent because he was not medically cleared to compete.

Lee uploaded a video in August where he revealed that he had been facing health issues that led to his hiatus from the company, which confirmed both reports.

 The Limitless One returned to in-ring competition on the July 19, 2021, episode of RAW, where he suffered a loss against Bobby Lashley. He competed in a good number of dark matches before his eventual release due to budget cuts.

#4 WWE's plans for Eva Marie


 Eva Marie returned to WWE programming earlier this year, and the company aired many vignettes hyping her debut. During this time, several reports emerged, including one from Fightful Select stating that she would not be used in a wrestling role but rather as someone who would elevate another talent.

Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez discussed on an episode of Wrestling Observer Radio that she would be positioned as a babyface manager, and her character would be similar to Emma's 'Emmalution' gimmick.

Eva Marie returned to RAW alongside NXT UK star Piper Niven (renamed as Doudrop) for her scheduled match against Naomi. However, she did not participate in the match and instead made Niven do her bidding. The latter secured a win over the former SmackDown Women's Champion.


 Eva Marie was released from the promotion on November 4, but she wrestled a few matches before that, contrary to the reports. She also had a heel run as opposed to a babyface run.

Marie did put Doudrop over by taking two losses before departing the company.

#3 WWE was under pressure from TV partners to have live crowds back

 The COVID-19 pandemic forced WWE to host their shows without a live audience for months before they devised the unique concept of ThunderDome, which allowed fans to connect virtually to the action.

It was a fairly successful idea but could not match the value that a live crowd adds in. Naturally, as the pandemic slowed down a little, higher-ups decided to bring back fans in attendance. WrestleVotes reported back in May that FOX was pushing WWE to fasten up the process:

"Heard from a very reliable source that FOX has privately pushed for a return to live crowds over the past few weeks, actively seeking updates on timeframes, etc. They’d like their billion dollar investment on the same playing field as the MLB, NBA & others."

 

 Live crowds eventually returned on the July 16, 2021, episode of SmackDown, suggesting the reports proved to be true. The company also brought back some of its biggest stars like John Cena and Brock Lesnar to spike up the ratings.

#2 Note on John Cena's return to WWE in July


 John Cena has been one of the cornerstones of WWE, and his return is always a spectacle for the fans. As soon as the company announced that they would have fans back in attendance, the rumor mill started speculating on all the big names that could return.

During this time, the Wrestling Observer reported that WWE had planned to bring the 16-time world champion to the first show back with a live audience. The Leader of the Cenation did return in July during the Money in the Bank pay-per-view. However, contrary to the reports, it wasn't technically WWE's first show back with a live crowd.

Cena entered a program with Universal Champion Roman Reigns, and the two delivered some brilliant promos during the build-up to their eventual clash. The Tribal Chief retained his title at SummerSlam, but his celebration was cut short by the returning Brock Lesnar.


 John Cena was also scheduled to appear on an episode of Stone Cold Steve Austin's Broken Skull Sessions but was later replaced by Seth Rollins.

#1 Rumor killer on Roman Reigns vs. Jimmy Uso at WWE Hell in a Cell 2021



 Before The Bloodline ruled over WWE SmackDown, Jimmy Uso had a conflict with Universal Champion Roman Reigns while Jey Uso had pledged his allegiance to The Tribal Chief. It was heavily speculated that Jimmy and Reigns would battle inside Hell in a Cell at the namesake pay-per-view this year.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter put an end to those rumors by stating that there were no such plans for The Head of The Table.

"The Roman Reigns main issue seems to be with Jimmy Uso but we are told that match is not scheduled for the PPV," wrote Meltzer.

 The report proved to be accurate as Roman Reigns did not wrestle at the June 2021 pay-per-view. Instead, he battled Rey Mysterio inside Hell in a Cell on SmackDown before the event.

The Universal Champion is currently set to defend his title against Brock Lesnar at the upcoming Day 1 pay-per-view.

 Reigns has had an incredible title reign so far, nearing the 500-day mark. It would be interesting to see if he can go on to beat The Beast Incarnate's record of 503 days as Universal Champion.


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