WWE Rumor Review: Huge plans for Roman Reigns, The Undertaker's return, Cancelled plans for The Rock
Welcome to the latest edition of WWE Rumor Review. Here, we'll take a look back at some of the top rumors from a few months ago and analyze how they have fared so far.
In this edition, we'll talk about the rumors surrounding the historic Universal Championship reign of Roman Reigns. Speaking of The Tribal Chief, one prominent rumor that did the rounds was about him facing The Rock at WrestleMania. We'll learn about the canceled plans for The Great One's potential return to the company.
Ever since hanging up his boots in 2020, there have been several rumors about The Undertaker possibly returning to WWE. We'll discuss the rumors surrounding that as well. So without further ado, let's check out the top five rumors.
#5 - Plans for Finn Balor
Finn Balor was drafted to Monday Night RAW as part of the WWE Draft 2021 as the #8 pick for the red brand. Drew McIntyre was one of the top stars on the red brand at the time and was drafted to SmackDown. This led to speculation that Balor could be positioned at the top of the card on RAW upon his return.
WrestleVotes reported that a certain RAW writer pushed for Balor to be used in McIntyre's spot.
"WWE has done a better job this go around of keeping draft results wrapped up. Good job by them. Only speculation I heard over the weekend included a story about how a RAW writer “banged the table” for Finn Balor, to be used in McIntyre’s role now on Monday nights. We shall see," WrestleVotes tweeted.
Prior to moving to RAW, Balor was involved in a feud with Roman Reigns and competed for the Universal Championship. However, on RAW, he didn't earn a shot at the WWE Title and was mostly in the picture for the United States Championship.
#4 The Undertaker's rumored return
The Undertaker is one of the greatest WWE Superstars of all time, if not the greatest. So, despite officially announcing his retirement, many fans still expect him to return in some capacity. Rumors of a potential return ran rampant ahead of last year's Crown Jewel.
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter clarified the rumors, stating that The Phenom wouldn't be making an appearance on the show.
The report turned out to be true as The Deadman was notably absent from Crown Jewel, which marked the first occasion where he wasn't part of a WWE Premium Live Event in Saudi Arabia since 2018.
#3 Spoilers for WWE Crown Jewel
Crown Jewel featured a stacked card with four championship matches, a No Holds Barred match between Bobby Lashley and Goldberg, the finals of the Queen's Crown and the King of the Ring Tournament. It also featured the Hell In a Cell match between Seth Rollins and Edge to cap off their feud.
Ahead of the Premium Live Event, Cageside Seats reported that no titles were expected to change hands at the show.
RK-Bro successfully defended their tag titles while Big E defeated Drew McIntyre to retain the WWE Championship. The most intriguing title match of the night was the triple threat match for the SmackDown Women's Championship featuring two RAW Superstars.
Despite being drafted to RAW, Becky Lynch retained the SmackDown Women's Championship. In the main event of the night, Roman Reigns defeated Brock Lesnar to retain the Universal Championship, thereby marking no title change on the night.
#2 Canceled plans for The Rock
Perhaps the biggest rumor over the course of the months leading up to Survivor Series last year was the potential return of The Rock. There was speculation that he would appear to confront Roman Reigns and set up a mega clash between the two at WrestleMania.
The buzz continued to grow as the event marked 25 years of The Great One's WWE debut. However, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that despite Vince McMahon wanting The Rock to make an appearance at the event, it wouldn't be possible due to the latter being in Australia at the time.
The report turned out to be true as The Rock did not make an appearance at Survivor Series. In the main event of the show, Reigns defeated WWE Champion Big E in a Champion vs Champion match.
#1 Huge plans for Roman Reigns
Ever since winning the Universal Championship in 2020, Roman Reigns has been on a path of destruction as he took out all comers, including legendary names like John Cena, Edge, Rey Mysterio, Daniel Bryan and many more. However, the only man he was yet to conquer in his title reign was Brock Lesnar.
Once The Tribal Chief conquered The Beast Incarnate at Crown Jewel, it was speculated that The Head of the Table would hold the title for an extended period of time. WrestlingNews.co reported that WWE's plan was to build Reigns into the greatest champion of all-time and he wouldn't be dropping the title in 2021.
Fast forward to the present day, The Tribal Chief not only surpassed The Beast to become the longest reigning Universal Champion of all time but most recently, he also completed two years as the champion. He also won the WWE Championship at WrestleMania and has held it ever since.