Bleacher Report brings you the latest news from the WWE Universe.
WWE’s reported initial plan for Bad Bunny at Backlash
WWE reportedly planned to have Bad Bunny compete in a tag team match at Backlash in his native Puerto Rico before switching to a one-on-one match.
According to Fightful Select (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), the original plan called for Bad Bunny to face WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio against The Judgment Day’s Damian Priest and Dominik Mysterio.
Eventually, WWE officials were reportedly “comfortable with Bunny’s ability to have a good one-on-one match instead,” so Saturday’s match was changed to a San Juan street fight between Bad Bunny and Priest.
Based on the events at WrestleMania 39, all signs initially pointed to a tag team match.
During the father-son match between Rey and Dominik, Bad Bunny left the Spanish commentary table to prevent Dominik from using a chain. This allowed Rey to recover and win the match.
The next night on Raw, Dominik got into an altercation with Bad Bunny in the crowd, and Priest physically assaulted the music star.
A few weeks later, Bad Bunny came to Raw to stop Priest from attacking Rey. Bad Bunny brought Priest the fight with a kendo stick and then challenged him to a San Juan Street Fight at Backlash.
Bad Bunny has never been in a one-on-one match as he and Priest defeated The Miz and John Morrison in a tag team match at WrestleMania 37 in his debut match. Bunny competed in the 2022 Men’s Royal Rumble match.
While Backlash will be new territory for Bad Bunny, both The Judgment Day and the LWO character will be heavily involved, so there will be enough smoke and mirrors to ensure he’s part of a fun competition.
McIntyre is reportedly preparing for a possible WWE exit
Two-time WWE Champion Drew McIntyre could reportedly be leaving the company in the near future.
According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Upton), McIntyre “is working with the idea that there’s a good chance he’ll be done with WWE” once his contract expires.
Fightful Select (Miles Schneiderman of h/t WrestlingInc) reported last month that McIntyre’s WWE contract is up in nine months. Fightful added that McIntyre would likely wait until the end of his deal before potentially negotiating a new one.
Since beginning his second stint with WWE in 2017, the 37-year-old has been one of the company’s top stars.
His real breakthrough moment came when he won the 2020 Men’s Royal Rumble match and went on to defeat Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 36.
The Scottish warrior has held the title twice but it has been over two years since he has held a championship of any kind, raising the question of whether McIntyre could be unhappy in his current place.
Roman Reigns has dominated the main event scene on SmackDown as the undisputed WWE Universal Champion, making it difficult for McIntyre or anyone else to rise to that level.
However, McIntyre was transferred to Raw as part of the WWE draft, and a new world title was recently introduced with the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Perhaps putting McIntyre in that mix and making him a big cash offer would be enough to make him stay rather than testing the free hand and exploring other options like All Elite Wrestling.
Rousey Set for Celebrity Reality Contest
Ronda Rousey is on duty with WWE due to an injury, but she is said to be part of an outside project.
According to PWInsider.com’s Mike Johnson, Fox announced Thursday that Rousey will be starring in Stars on Mars, an unscripted series hosted by legendary actor William Shatner.
Rousey and other celebrities will don a space suit and take part in a variety of solo and team missions.
Some of the other celebrities on the show will include legendary cyclist Lance Armstrong and former Seattle Seahawks teammates Marshawn Lynch and Richard Sherman.
Rousey made her last appearance in WWE programming at WrestleMania 39 last month when she and Shayna Baszler won a Fatal 4-Way Tag Team Showcase.
While Rousey won the match for her team with a submission, she was physically doing little else due to an arm injury.
After WrestleMania, it was widely expected that Rousey and Baszler would compete for and win the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship, but those plans were put on hold.
Meanwhile, Rousey will be featured on Stars on Mars, which airs June 5 on Fox.
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