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Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.
WWE Reportedly Considering Reigns Working Both Nights of WrestleMania
WWE has reportedly discussed the possibility of having undisputed WWE universal champion Roman Reigns work both nights of WrestleMania 39 in April.
According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Andrew Ravens of WrestlingNews.co), the idea being considered would see Reigns face Cody Rhodes on one night of WrestleMania and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson on the other.
Meltzer noted that another idea that has been floated regarding Reigns is the possibility of breaking up the two world titles he is in possession of so that one can be featured on Raw and the other can be on SmackDown.
Despite the reported discussions, Meltzer cautioned that it is more likely Reigns wrestles only once rather than twice at WrestleMania.
A match between Reigns and his real-life cousin, The Rock, has long been rumored for WrestleMania, although WWE has yet to allude to the possibility of it happening.
While WWE would love for one of its biggest stars of all time to return and face its biggest current star, The Rock's availability for WrestleMania is likely dependent on his busy and successful Hollywood acting career.
Perhaps the more likely opponent for The Tribal Chief at next year's WrestleMania is Rhodes, who has been out since June with a torn pectoral muscle.
WWE provided a nine-month timetable for Rhodes' return after he underwent surgery, but most have assumed that he would make it back in time for the men's Royal Rumble match in January and perhaps win it.
If WWE has The Rock available, having Reigns work twice at WrestleMania would be a good way of avoiding having The Rock win the Royal Rumble.
The winner of the Rumble challenges for a world title at WrestleMania every year, and there is no indication that WWE plans to take the belts off Reigns before the biggest event of the year.
Having two nights of WrestleMania gives WWE some flexibility, and if WWE decides to have Reigns headline both shows, it is unlikely that many fans would complain.
WWE Reportedly Open to More One-Off Returns After Noble's Retirement
Following Jamie Noble's retirement match at a live event in his home state of West Virginia on Sunday, WWE is reportedly open to doing more things of that nature in the future.
According to Fightful Select (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), similar "one-off returns" like the one Noble had over the weekend are "on the table" in WWE moving forward.
Noble's first major exposure in pro wrestling came from 1999 to 2001 in WCW. After WWE bought WCW in 2001, Noble's contract was retained, and he remained with WWE until 2004.
He then enjoyed a successful run in Ring of Honor in 2005 as James Gibson, winning the ROH world title. Noble returned to WWE that same year and continued to wrestle regularly until 2009 when he transitioned into a backstage producer role.
While Noble has had some sporadic matches since then, including a few with Joey Mercury when they were J&J Security for Seth Rollins in 2014 and 2015, the 45-year-old's final match was on Sunday.
Noble teamed with Braun Strowman, Butch and Ridge Holland, defeating Bloodline members Sami Zayn, Solo Sikoa and The Usos in an eight-man tag team match. Noble scored the winning fall for his team by pinning Zayn.
The Noble match seemingly isn't something WWE would have done in past years, but with Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan taking over the leadership role that Vince McMahon vacated with his retirement in July, the running of the company has changed.
WWE has several other producers with extensive in-ring careers under contract, and Noble's match may have opened the door for them to wrestle at some point in the future as well.
Sting Says He Recently Underwent Knee Surgery
Sting continues to defy logic by wrestling for AEW at the age of 63, but he divulged this week that he recently underwent a procedure on his knee.
Appearing on The K&C Masterpiece (h/t Sunil Joseph of Ringside News) on Monday, Sting said he had surgery to clean out his knees "six or seven weeks ago."
Sting last wrestled at Full Gear on Nov. 19 when he teamed with Darby Allin in a winning effort against Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett.
That was less than one month ago, meaning Sting returned from the procedure in a relatively short amount of time. Prior to Full Gear, he hadn't wrestled in two months, which gave him the time off he needed to recover.
Sting retired from in-ring competition in 2015 after suffering a neck injury in 2015, but after receiving clearance, he returned to action with AEW in 2021.
The Icon has wrestled several matches in AEW, but he has largely been protected by being kept in tag team matches with Allin.
Sting is undefeated during his time in AEW, and he has been a success in terms of giving the company an attraction it can trot out in entertaining tag matches at pay-per-views.
Despite his age and a recent surgery, Sting continues to move well and deliver impressive performances, and every indication is that he will continue to be an asset for AEW moving forward.
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Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.
Rhodes Reportedly Expected Back Before Nine-Month Timetable
Cody Rhodes is reportedly expected to be back from his surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle more quickly than the timeline WWE announced.
Last week, WWE announced that Rhodes would be out for nine months after undergoing surgery, putting him on track for an early March 2023 return.
According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Michael Perry of Ringside News), Rhodes and most around him believe he will be back before then.
Meltzer noted that bringing Rhodes back for the Royal Rumble in late January would be an ideal scenario for WWE since Cody is perhaps the odds-on favorite to win it.
It was also reported by Meltzer that WWE is considering giving Rhodes the "Triple H 2001-2002 treatment," meaning they would hype up Cody's return and give him a huge victory out of the gates.
After missing several months with a torn quad, Triple H returned in January 2002 and went on to win the Royal Rumble before beating Chris Jericho for the WWE Championship in the main event of WrestleMania X8.
A similar situation for Rhodes would make sense given how much support he has garnered as a top babyface.
Despite tearing his pec off the bone, Rhodes faced Seth Rollins in a Hell in a Cell match at the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view a couple of weeks ago, battling through severe bruising.
The American Nightmare won the match and was then written off television the next night on Raw due to an attack at the hands of Rollins.
Rhodes figures to get a massive pop when he returns, especially if it is to announce his entry into the Rumble match or as a surprise entrant in the match itself.
WWE Reportedly Has Reigns Backup Plan if Orton Misses SummerSlam
Roman Reigns is reportedly slated to defend the undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Randy Orton at SummerSlam, but if Orton is unable to compete due to injury, WWE reportedly has another plan in place.
According to Meltzer (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), there is a backup plan, although it doesn't include Riddle, who is Orton's tag team partner.
Meltzer did not specify who the backup plan involves, but he opined that Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley and Gunther are among those who could fit as a challenger to Reigns.
While Meltzer was the first to report on the planned Reigns vs. Orton SummerSlam match, Fightful Select (h/t WrestlingInc's Dominic DeAngelo) reported Thursday that there is concern within WWE regarding Orton missing significant time due to a back injury.
Per Fightful, there is "fear" that Orton may need surgery, which would force him to miss the remainder of 2022.
Orton was written off TV last month when he and Riddle dropped the Raw Tag Team Championships to The Usos in a unification match on SmackDown. After the match, The Usos and Reigns brutally attacked RK-Bro.
Riddle was back on television quickly and cut a promo about Orton suffering a back injury and possibly missing an extended period of time, which led to speculation that the beatdown angle was done to set the stage for Reigns vs. Orton down the line.
During Orton's absence, Riddle has continued his feud with The Bloodline, and he is set to challenge Reigns for the title on Friday's episode of SmackDown, representing Reigns' first title defense since unifying the WWE and Universal Championships in a win over Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 38.
Wyatt Addresses Rumor of Childhood Photo with Sting
Former WWE Superstar Bray Wyatt took to Instagram on Thursday to shoot down a longstanding rumor regarding a childhood photo with legendary wrestler Sting.
Wyatt posted the photo, which fans have long assumed was of him and his brother, former WWE Superstar Bo Dallas, alongside Sting. Wyatt made it clear that he and Dallas weren't the children in the photo, however, writing:
"I never thought I would actually do this…. But I have seen this picture seemingly every time I check my social media for years now. I've seen it on wrestling news sites, I have even signed this picture for fans. One of my good friends sent me this TODAY, and he was far from the first to make the mistake. The truth is I have no idea who the hell these kids are, but I know for sure they are not me or Taylor. It's always been kind of a hilarious little joke to me but today my curiosity has gotten the best of me. So what say you, bowl cut brothers….. are you out there?? Is this a funny little joke to you too? I think it's high time you step up and take credit for this cool ass picture of you and prime Stinger."
The timeline could have worked out since Wyatt's father, Mike Rotunda, was in WCW at the same time as Sting under the name V.K. Wallstreet, following his run in WWE as Irwin R. Schyster.
Despite that, Wyatt has made it quite clear that it wasn't him or his brother, creating a true pro wrestling mystery.
Wyatt has now been a free agent for over a year since shockingly getting released by WWE in spite of his status as a top star and three-time world champion.
Meanwhile, Sting is still wrestling at the age of 63, often teaming with Darby Allin in AEW.
Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below.
