Vince McMahon

The likelihood of Bray Wyatt returning to WWE is reportedly considered greater now that a change in leadership has occurred within the company.

According to Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp, WWE higher-ups believe it is "more likely" Wyatt will be back in WWE than it was when Vince McMahon was serving as CEO, chairman and head of creative.

McMahon retired from those positions last month amid an investigation by WWE's board of directors into millions of dollars in payments that he made to former female WWE employees in exchange for them remaining silent about alleged sexual encounters with McMahon.

In the wake of McMahon's retirement, his daughter Stephanie McMahon was elevated to the roles of co-CEO and chairwoman, while WWE president Nick Khan was named co-CEO as well.

Additionally, Triple H became vice president of talent relations and head of WWE creative, and he has already made his mark after only a few weeks on the job.

In addition to placing more emphasis on in-ring work, championships and the women's division, Triple H has brought back multiple talents who were released when McMahon was at the helm.

Dakota Kai returned at SummerSlam, Karrion Kross and Scarlett came back on last week's episode of SmackDown, and Dexter Lumis resurfaced this week on Raw.

All of them worked closely with Triple H when he was leading NXT, and that was the case with Wyatt as well, who developed his character with Triple H in NXT before getting called up to the main roster in 2013.

Wyatt went on to become one of WWE's top stars, holding the Universal Championship twice and the WWE Championship once, but he was shockingly released in July 2021.

While Wyatt has not appeared for nor signed with another company since getting cut, he has teased a return to wrestling from time to time.

Most recently, he tweeted his thoughts on pro wrestling, increasing speculation that a WWE return could be in his immediate future:

- Windham6 pic.twitter.com/lZaqeXGFIk

— WYATT 6 (@Windham6) August 7, 2022

Wyatt had a great first run in WWE, winning three world titles, getting ample television time and seemingly having a great deal of creative leeway compared to other Superstars.

Many have described McMahon as being somewhat stubborn and set in his ways at times, however, so it stands to reason that he and Wyatt may have butted heads from time to time.

Triple H seems more open to different ideas and ways of doing things, so the thought of collaborating with him could be of great interest to Wyatt.

It is safe to say that there is no bigger name on pro wrestling's free-agent market than Wyatt, and bringing him back into the fold would be a major coup for WWE, considering that AEW had been the company signing all of the big names for months on end.

Triple H has shifted the tide back in WWE's favor and made it an attractive destination once again, and re-signing Wyatt would likely be another signal to free agents that the opportunity for success exists in WWE.

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In an SEC filing Tuesday, WWE declared that former chairman and CEO Vince McMahon made two further previously undisclosed payments in 2007 and 2009 totaling $5 million to bring his total undeclared personal payments up to $19.6 million, per Todd Spangler of Variety.

The payments were discovered amid a WWE investigation into "allegations that [McMahon] paid millions of dollars in hush money to multiple women to keep quiet about alleged affairs and misconduct," per Spangler.

In late July, McMahon retired from WWE, releasing the following statement:

As I approach 77 years old, I feel it's time for me to retire as Chairman and CEO of WWE. Throughout the years, it's been a privilege to help WWE bring you joy, inspire you, thrill you, surprise you, and always entertain you. I would like to thank my family for mightily contributing to our success, and I would also like to thank all of our past and present Superstars and employees for their dedication and passion for our brand. Most importantly, I would like to thank our fans for allowing us into your homes every week and being your choice of entertainment. I hold the deepest appreciation and admiration for our generations of fans all over the world who have liked, currently like, and sometimes even love our form of Sports Entertainment.

At 77, time for me to retire.
Thank you, WWE Universe. 
Then. Now. Forever. Together. #WWE #thankful

— Vince McMahon (@VinceMcMahon) July 22, 2022

That followed the news of his alleged off-the-books, hush-money payouts, which first broke in June. According to Joe Palazzolo, Ted Mann and Joe Flint of the Wall Street Journal, the payments were meant to "suppress allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity" and involved four women previously affiliated with WWE.

WWE also fired head of talent relations John Laurinaitis this week, per PWInsider.com's Mike Johnson, and the Wall Street Journal report noted that the WWE board was investigating an alleged sexual relationship between Laurinaitis and a paralegal at the company.

The board was also investigating an alleged $1.5 million nondisclosure agreement meant to suppress misconduct claims made against Laurinaitis.

In the aftermath, Stephanie McMahon and WWE president Nick Khan are now serving as co-CEOs, while Stephanie McMahon is also serving as chairwoman. Vince McMahon remains a stockholder in the company. Triple H is serving as the head of WWE's creative team.

WWE has fired head of talent relations John Laurinaitis, according to PWInsider.com's Mike Johnson. Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com confirmed the report.

This comes after Laurinaitis was named in one of the Wall Street Journal reports detailing alleged hush money payments made by former WWE chairman Vince McMahon.

Joe Palazzolo, Ted Mann and Joe Flint of the WSJ reported July 8 the WWE board was investigating whether Laurinaitis had a sexual relationship with a paralegal at the company. The board was scrutinizing a $1.5 million nondisclosure agreement that centered around misconduct claims against him as well.

WWE announced June 17 following the first Wall Street Journal report that Laurinaitis and McMahon were the subjects of an internal investigation. According to Palazzolo, Mann and Flint, the 60-year-old had been placed on administrative leave prior to WWE cutting ties altogether.

The fallout from the WSJ investigations has caused major upheaval within WWE.

McMahon initially stepped back temporarily from his CEO and chairman duties as the investigation was ongoing but abruptly announced July 22 he was retiring altogether:

At 77, time for me to retire.
Thank you, WWE Universe. 
Then. Now. Forever. Together. #WWE #thankful

— Vince McMahon (@VinceMcMahon) July 22, 2022

WWE announced July 25 that McMahon's daughter, Stephanie, and Nick Khan will serve as co-CEOs moving forward, with Stephanie taking over as chairwoman of the board. Triple H became the head of WWE's creative team, another role Vince had occupied prior to his retirement.

Laurinaitis first joined WWE in 2001 following the demise of WCW. He was promoted to senior vice president of talent relations in 2007 and resigned from his post in 2012.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter's Dave Meltzer reported in March 2021 that Laurinaitis had returned as head of talent relations.

In addition to his work backstage, "Johnny Ace" began appearing on WWE programming in 2011 and played the role of the Raw general manager. He even got back inside the ring, beating John Cena in the main event of Over The Limit in 2012.

Kevin Owens hasn't been seen on WWE programming since Triple H took over creative from Vince McMahon, but that appears to be by design.

Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful reported creative is being "cooked up" for Owens behind the scenes.

The former Universal champion's most recent program was with Ezekiel, but that storyline was dropped midway through after Owens missed a couple of weeks because of injury. He has not wrestled since losing to Ezekiel nearly two months ago, so it's possible the injury, which was undisclosed, has been lingering.

Regardless, Owens should be among the wrestlers who benefit most from Triple H running creative. Triple H booked Owens strong throughout his run in NXT, giving him a vicious mean streak and dominance that has not always carried over to the main roster.

While Owens has found massive success since his call-up, he's been stuck in upper mid-card purgatory and has not held a championship since 2017.

It's past time for Owens to get a legitimate shot at being a champion again, and it's likely Triple H will find a way to make that happen.

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WWE's new creative direction under Triple H is starting to form, and talent is taking notice.

Fightful Select reported multiple wrestlers have met with the new head of creative to discuss their plans moving forward as Triple H settles into replacing Vince McMahon.

The WWE Hall of Famer has quickly worked to make his mark, with the most notable changes being the re-signings of Dakota Kai and Karrion Kross. Kai made her re-debut at SummerSlam, joining Bayley and IYO Sky (formerly Io Shirai) to form a new stable to feud with Bianca Belair. Kross made his impact Friday on SmackDown, attacking Drew McIntyre to close the program.

The report did not mention which talents met with Triple H, but it's likely the entire roster wants to hear what's in store for them moving forward.

Most fans and some talent found McMahon's creative direction lacking in recent years.

"We have the opportunity to change some things that maybe weren't so great that we didn't love," Becky Lynch told Mike Coppinger of ESPN. "I think everybody's very excited and optimistic because we know that the people in charge [are] some of the greatest minds in the business, you know. Having Triple H at the helm of the ship is phenomenal. What he's done with NXT speaks for itself. What he did with the women's division and how he allowed us to change the business forever speaks for itself."

Lynch will have to wait for her own new creative direction until after she recovers from a shoulder injury suffered at SummerSlam. That said, Triple H's creative team already planted the seeds of her return to being a babyface at the live event.

As far as the rest of the roster, it appears we'll just have to wait and see.

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Triple H is reportedly looking into bringing more former WWE talent back to the company in the wake of his elevation to head of WWE creative.

According to Fightful Select (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Triple H is just getting started and a "feeling-out process" has taken place regarding talk of reshaping the roster and adding depth in the form of past WWE talent that has either been released or didn't re-sign with the company.

Triple H took over as head of creative a couple of weeks ago after Vince McMahon retired from his positions of CEO, chairman and head of creative in the midst of an investigation into million-dollar payments he allegedly made to former female WWE employees to remain silent about sexual relationships with him and alleged sexual misconduct.

The Game was also named vice president of talent relations, plus his wife and McMahon's daughter, Stephanie McMahon, is now co-CEO and chairwoman. That likely means Triple H has plenty of freedom to pursue free-agent talent.

He has already made a significant impact in that regard, starting with SummerSlam, which saw Bayley return from injury after more than a year on the shelf, flanked by Dakota Kai and Iyo Sky.

Kai had been released by WWE in April when Vince McMahon was in charge, while Sky was reportedly in limbo before showing up at SummerSlam.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Wrestling Inc.'s Matthew Wilkinson) reported last month that Sky's WWE contract would be expiring soon and the belief was that she was planning to go back to her native Japan rather than re-signing.

Instead, Triple H elevated the former NXT women's champion from NXT to the main roster, and it seems likely that she signed a new deal.

Two more returns occurred on Friday night's episode of SmackDown during the main event segment involving The Bloodline and Drew McIntyre.

Just as McIntyre was about to rush the ring to attack Roman Reigns and The Usos, Karrion Kross appeared, accompanied by Scarlett.

Kross and Scarlett were a popular act in NXT, with Kross winning the NXT Championship twice, but they never appeared on screen together on the main roster and they were both released in November 2021 after Kross wasn't well-received when his look and gimmick were changed.

Now, Kross seems poised to enter the main event scene immediately, as he took out the No. 1 contender for the world title and put undisputed WWE universal champion Roman Reigns on notice.

Bray Wyatt, Johnny Gargano, John Morrison, Tegan Nox and Tyler Breeze are some of the most notable former WWE Superstars who are still believed to be free agents, and it wouldn't be a surprise if Triple H brings some or all of them back in the near future.

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Fans aren't the only people excited about Triple H's takeover of WWE Creative from Vince McMahon.

The talent seems thrilled with the change as well.

Becky Lynch went on record with Mike Coppinger of ESPN, calling the change "phenomenal" and expressing hope for improvement in the company's creative direction.

"We have the opportunity to change some things that maybe weren't so great that we didn't love," Lynch said. "I think everybody's very excited and optimistic because we know that the people in charge [are] some of the greatest minds in the business, you know. Having Triple H at the helm of the ship is phenomenal. What he's done with NXT speaks for itself. What he did with the women's division and how he allowed us to change the business forever speaks for itself."

Triple H, whose real name is Paul Levesque, was announced as WWE's new head of creative late last month when Vince McMahon announced his retirement. The WWE founder stepped down after two Wall Street Journal reports he paid $14.6 million to women amid allegations of sexual misconduct.

The company is facing investigations into the McMahon payments, which were categorized as "unrecorded expenses."

Triple H was previously the head of creative for NXT from 2010 until he suffered a cardiac event in September 2021. He stepped away from the company for several months to focus on his health and only returned on a full-time basis in July. Shawn Michaels, Triple H's longtime friend and DX running mate, has helmed NXT since its transition to NXT 2.0.

During the so-called "black-and-gold" era of NXT, the program was praised as a breath of fresh air in wrestling. The developmental brand also played a pivotal part in reshaping WWE's handling of women's wrestling, taking it from an afterthought to arguably the company's biggest strength.

"I mean, he's brilliant, he really is," Mark Calaway, better known as The Undertaker, said of his Attitude Era counterpart. "I don't think he gets enough credit for his wrestling acumen. I think he'll be a huge asset to the development of a lot of guys.

"And he's a no bulls--t kind of guy too. He's going to let you know what you're doing that's right and what you're doing that's wrong. I think it's going to be a step in the right direction with Hunter [another nickname for Levesque]."

Calaway said he expects WWE's programming to have a looser, potentially edgier feel than the one preferred by McMahon, who has long preferred a kid-friendlier product.

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Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

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Lynch Talks Trash on Rousey

Ahead of her Raw Women's Championship match against Bianca Belair at SummerSlam on Saturday, Becky Lynch had some strong words for another championship contender.

Appearing on ESPN's Courtside Club podcast (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Lynch expressed her belief that Rousey has regressed since returning from maternity leave earlier this year:

"I think [Rousey] doesn't respect [the wrestling business] as much as she should. I mean, she's gone off on tangents disrespecting the sport that I've given my life to, that I love, that I obsess about. Both of us have come back from having a child, and one has come back better than ever, and one has not.

"I'm the one who's come back better than ever, and I think that you need that respect for this business, that obsession for this business to be able to do that. I don’t think that she puts as much work in, she doesn't put as much work in as I do, and it shows."

Lynch was out for more than a year on maternity leave before returning one year ago at SummerSlam and beating Belair for the SmackDown women's title in 26 seconds.

Big Time Becks went on to have an entertaining reign as a top heel before dropping the Raw women's title to Belair at WrestleMania. Now, she will try to take the championship back in what may be the final installment of her rivalry with The EST.

Meanwhile, Rousey was gone from WWE for nearly three years before making a surprise return in the 2022 women's Royal Rumble and winning the match.

Until then, Rousey hadn't wrestled since competing in the main event of WrestleMania 35 against Lynch and Charlotte Flair.

Rousey eventually beat Charlotte for the SmackDown women's title, but she lost it at Money in the Bank when Liv Morgan successfully cashed in her Money in the Bank contract. Rousey will have her rematch against Morgan on Saturday at SummerSlam.

Given their history together, there has been plenty of speculation regarding an eventual singles match between Lynch and Rousey, perhaps at next year's WrestleMania.

Becky's trash talk may very well be her way of setting the stage for that clash.

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Reported Details on Lesnar Walking Out on SmackDown

Brock Lesnar reportedly didn't return to TD Garden in Boston until last week's episode of SmackDown was already in progress after allegedly walking out before the show.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t WrestlingInc's Sai Mohan), Lesnar left the arena as soon as Vince McMahon announced he was retiring as WWE's CEO, chairman and head of creative, and rumors of Lesnar's departure surfaced soon after.

Meltzer noted that Lesnar returned to the arena more than seven hours later at 8:30 p.m. ET after WWE officials remained in touch with him and "made a deal with him" to return.

It was also reported by Meltzer that it is unclear what led to Lesnar returning, as it could have been a creative change or an offer of more money.

While it is likely that only a small handful of people within WWE's inner circle know what truly happened with Lesnar, the reality is that he was present for his part of the show, which occurred after the main event.

The Beast Incarnate stormed the ring and decimated Theory with the Money in the Bank briefcase, much to the delight of the live crowd, who seemingly didn't expect Lesnar to be there.

Meltzer reported that WWE was making alternate plans for SummerSlam in case Lesnar didn't come back, but all signs point to his WWE Universal Championship match against Roman Reigns being on.

In what is being billed as their last match against each other, Lesnar will look to beat Reigns in a Last Man Standing match to become WWE's undisputed world champion.

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Edge Return Plans Reportedly Changed

WWE reportedly reversed course on its plans to have WWE Hall of Famer Edge return earlier this week on Raw.

According to PWInsider.com's Mike Johnson, there had been plans in place for Edge to appear on Monday's Raw along with his wife and fellow WWE Hall of Famer Beth Phoenix.

Those plans were reportedly nixed when McMahon stepped down as head of creative and was replaced by Triple H.

Raw seemingly would have been a logical time for Edge to return after being out for nearly two months since his former stable, The Judgment Day, faced Rey and Dominik Mysterio in a tag team match at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

The show was also a celebration of Rey's 20-year anniversary with WWE, but it was spoiled when The Judgment Day attacked him and Dominik later in the night.

Johnson noted that original plans also called for Edge and Phoenix to appear at SummerSlam, although it is now uncertain if that will happen.

The Judgment Day and The Mysterios are having a rematch at SummerSlam on Saturday, this time with a no disqualification stipulation.

That would seem to suggest that Rhea Ripley will be heavily involved in the match, so it would be logical for Edge and Phoenix to show up in order to help out The Mysterios.

If that happens, it could set the stage for a mixed tag team match further down the line, perhaps at Clash at the Castle in September.

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