3 Wrestling rumors we hope are true and 3 we hope aren't: Huge plans for WrestleMania 38 main event revealed, Bizarre reason why WWE wants Braun Strowman to return
Welcome to this week's edition of WWE/wrestling rumors we hope are true and those we hope aren't. It's been a big week for WWE post-Money in the Bank and the build-up to SummerSlam has begun.
While SummerSlam is normally the second-biggest pay-per-view of the WWE calendar year, it's going to be the biggest overall this year in terms of crowd attendance and the depth of the card.
It will be interesting to see how things play out. This week's edition features rumors about a few big returns to WWE, a babyface turn, backstage notes, and a major departure, among other things:
#3. Hope is true: The Rock's expected WWE return date and plans for his run
It's hard to imagine The Rock making his in-ring return to WWE as it's been a long time since we've seen him on television. His last "match" was against Erick Rowan at WrestleMania 32 in 2016, but that hardly counts since it was six seconds.
His actual last match in WWE, however, was at WrestleMania 29 when he lost to John Cena in the main event. During that match, he suffered a terrible injury that delayed the filming of Hercules, costing a lot of time and money.
After that, it's believed that his insurance company wouldn't allow him to wrestle anymore as it would create another such situation. But 2021 is a year where there have been more return rumors than any of the years before.
That's because there is reportedly serious talk about The Rock making a return to WWE, setting up an even bigger program in 2022. Andrew Zarain of the Mat Men podcast first reported that there are plans for The Rock to return at Survivor Series 2021.
He stated additionally that the USA Network wants The Rock so it isn't simply going to be a "RAW" or "SmackDown" storyline. The Rock could be everywhere:
“I can tell you, USA Network tentatively wants him on that Monday. By the way, he’s gonna go everywhere. This isn’t like a RAW storyline. He’s going to be on everything,” said Andrew Zarian.
To top it all off, The Rock's potential return could happen on the 25th anniversary of his debut. The ultimate objective of his return run? Set up the main event against Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 38. Since WrestleMania 38 will take place at the AT & T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, WWE needs to sell out 100,000 tickets.
Zarain stated that the penciled-in main event is Roman Reigns vs The Rock - a blockbuster bout and the biggest match WWE can book right now.
“By the way, Rock vs Roman, that is what is soft on paper for the main event in Dallas. I mean, Dallas, 100,000 people, you need the freaking Rock,” said Andrew Zarian.
We hope this is true because it's a massive dream match and the biggest that WWE can make. It would further serve to elevate Roman Reigns and although it may not sell as much, it could be better than The Rock-John Cena program from 2011-2013.