4 wrestling rumors we hope are true and 4 we hope aren't: Vince McMahon "really likes" popular WWE star, SmackDown star loses push because of Roman Reigns?
Welcome to this week's edition of WWE/wrestling rumors we hope are true, and those we hope aren't. As always, a WWE pay-per-view means that we delay the edition by a day. But it's got some of the most interesting scoops of the week in the world of WWE, so let's begin:
#4. Hope is true: Vince McMahon's perception of a popular WWE star
Vince McMahon's perception of a WWE Superstar is everything when it comes to their standing in the company. Mick Foley once famously said that to get pushed by Vince McMahon, the boss has to be a big fan.
In this case, we're talking about a WWE star who has been slightly controversial backstage - [Matt] Riddle. However, he has a solid position on RAW and, as of this writing, is expected to be in a United States Championship feud with Bobby Lashley.
That isn't a bad position to be in by any means, and according to Dave Meltzer on The Wrestling Observer Radio, Vince McMahon "really likes" Riddle. However, there's a catch.
Sportskeeda's Vatsal Rathod wrote:
In the recent Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer reported that Vince McMahon "really likes" Matt Riddle. The WWE Chairman apparently thinks Riddle is "very funny in his own weird way". Meltzer, interestingly, also added that even though Vince McMahon likes Matt Riddle, he doesn't understand his gimmick and the entire "Bro" thing. Sadly, Vince McMahon just considers Riddle worthy of regular TV time, but doesn't see him as a main-event Superstar.
We hope the part about Vince McMahon liking Riddle is true. While he may not see him as main event material, there are two possibilities. First, Riddle could end up being an upper mid-carder and have a good but consistent role on WWE TV.
The other is that Vince McMahon changes his perception of Riddle. It isn't uncommon in WWE for Superstars to get pushed despite Vince McMahon not perceiving them as main event material. A good, solid feud and the right timing can lead to something big.