WWE Rumors: Doctors stop Rikishi from doing a big move on Raw Reunion
What's the story?
Raw Reunion provided the fans with a decent dose of nostalgia. Now when we think about it, perhaps it would have been better if Rikishi was allowed to do the Stinkface.
As revealed by Dave Meltzer on the Wrestling Observer Radio after Raw, the WWE Hall of Famer was reportedly not medically cleared to perform his popular move, which was initially part of the plan.
In case you didn't know...
Raw Reunion was hyped to be the biggest show of the year, and it lived up to the expectations in bits and pieces. While there were segments that were perfectly executed, such as Stone Cold Steve Austin's unscripted promo, there were also a handful of angles that missed the mark.
The opening segment and match of the night fell in the latter category. Despite John Cena's energetic and partly emotional promo to kick things off, the WWE Universe was treated to an underwhelming match between The Usos and The Revival. The inclusions of Rikishi and D-Von Dudley at ringside didn't do much to improve the overall impact of the match. It was decent for what it was.
The heart of the matter
Dave Meltzer shared his thoughts and backstage updates regarding the Raw Reunion show and revealed that many Superstars were not given the green signal to get physical. Rikishi, who was initially booked to give a Stinkface to D-Von Dudley and The Revival, was not cleared by WWE doctors.
Meltzer said:
"Rikishi was not cleared. But that wasn't a big deal. Rikishi was supposed to do a Stinkface on D-Von and The Revival, I don't know what it is but you can get cleared to do a Stinkface, he was not cleared to do a Stinkface."
Even Pat Patterson was evidently advised not to get physical, which explains why the 78-year-old became the oldest Champion in WWE history by winning the 24/7 Championship without doing much. It's interesting to note that he lost the title to Gerald Brisco in what is known as a Phantom title change, which is when the title change is not aired on TV.
Interestingly, Ricochet was also not cleared to wrestle due to an elbow infection. He was initially scheduled to be a part of a massive segment.
What's next?
With the festivities of Raw Reunion done and dusted, WWE should shift its attention to building up the SummerSlam card, which will take place on August 12th, 2019.
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