NXT

WWE Superstar Keith Lee announced Thursday he contracted COVID-19 and was diagnosed with heart inflammation earlier this year. 

In a video posted on his YouTube channel, Lee said he missed three weeks of WWE programming in January after testing positive for the virus. 

He also noted after he wrestled one match upon returning, he received a phone call "that there was something off" in his blood that showed inflammation in his heart that prevented him from "doing any activity outside of a light walk."

Lee defeated Sheamus in a one-on-one match on the Jan. 11 episode of Raw. He was off television for three weeks before defeating Riddle on Feb. 8. 

The former NXT heavyweight champion was scheduled to fight Riddle and Bobby Lashley for the United States title at Elimination Chamber on Feb. 21, but he was pulled from the card on the day of the show. 

WWE publicly announced Lee was recovering from injuries sustained from an attack by Lashley. John Morrison won a Fatal Four Way match on the preshow to replace Lee in the title bout on the main card. 

After a five-month absence, Lee returned to television July 19 when he answered Lashley's call for a championship contenders match. The Almighty pinned Lee after hitting him with a spear. 

Lee traded wins with current NXT champion Karrion Kross on the July 26 and Aug. 2 episodes of Raw. 

WWE signed Lee in 2018 and assigned him to NXT. The 36-year-old was a featured superstar in NXT for most of his time on the brand. He ended the 403-day title reign by Adam Cole at the Great American Bash in July 2020 to become the first double-champion in NXT history, as the heavyweight and North American champion.

Lee was called up to the main roster after last year's SummerSlam pay-per-view.    

WWE continued its mass releasing of talent Friday, with Bronson Reed, Bobby Fish and Mercedes Martinez leading a group of 12 names cut from the NXT brand. 

Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful reported the full list of names. 

WWE has spent most of 2021 slashing its roster, with nearly 50 wrestlers and several more behind-the-scenes employees being released since April. The NXT releases come in the same week the company released legend Ric Flair and a week after the shocking departure of Bray Wyatt.

WWE has given little to no notice behind the scenes on many of these releases. Several wrestlers have been cut midway through a storyline and even made appearances on television in the same week they were let go.

Tyler Rust was on television Wednesday as part of the Diamond Mine stable that was just debuted in June. Fish lost a match to former Undisputed Era stablemate Roderick Strong of Diamond Mine in the same episode.

Reed is by far the most shocking of the releases. When Reed dropped the North American championship to Isaiah "Swerve" Scott in June, most assumed he was doing so to prepare for a main-roster callup. WWE had Reed wrestling matches on Main Event and backstage at SmackDown.

The release of Reed and Ruff means two of the last four North American champions are no longer with WWE, within a year of them winning the championship. While it's not quite as surprising as Wyatt—the Universal champion at this point last year—it shows no one is safe in WWE.

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

Dain Talks Differences Between Triple H and Vince

Killian Dain was released as part of WWE's latest round of roster cuts last month after spending time both in NXT and on the main roster.

While Dain's main roster run as part of Sanity in 2018 and 2019 was brief, it gave him the unique opportunity to work with WWE Chairman Vince McMahon after having already worked alongside NXT founder Triple H.

In an interview with SportsKeeda's UnSKripted (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News) on Tuesday, Dain compared the management styles of McMahon and Triple H:

"So, I would say Triple H is a little more hands-on a regular basis. So like, you will have way more access to Triple H for NXT than you would have Vince because Vince is--you take away the fact that like he is going to be the head of the shows and whatever like that--he is also the CEO of the company. So, you're asking; there's a very small window that he is going to be available to be seen. That is problematic, I guess, for some people because they want to barge in, and he might not be there. So, I understand that might be difficult for people.

"At the same time, it's like I can't imagine any other place in the world where you could actually go and have a conversation with the CEO of a company on a regular basis. So, you know, that's me coming at it from a different perspective. But for me, working under Triple H was great because I find it really easy talking to him. Easy to understand what he was looking for."

Dain's comments seem to echo what many have said about McMahon and Triple H, which comes as little surprise given their respective roles.

As Dain alluded to, McMahon is overseeing the entire company, which makes it difficult to get much face time with him. Conversely, Triple H is primarily focused on NXT, giving him more time to work closely with the talent on the black-and-gold brand.

Dain's greatest success undoubtedly came in NXT, where he held the NXT Tag Team Championships with Sanity teammates Eric Young and Alexander Wolfe before getting called up.

He returned to NXT in 2019 and had some memorable matches and moments during his second stint, including his odd-couple tag team with Drake Maverick.

The Northern Ireland native is now waiting to see what is next for him in pro wrestling, although he still has a link to WWE, as his wife, Nikki Cross, is part of the Raw roster.

Dreamer Provides Positive Update on Funk

ECW legend Tommy Dreamer took to Twitter on Tuesday to ease some of the concern that has built up for Terry Funk in recent days.

It was first reported by WWE Hall of Famer Don Muraco on Don Muraco's Magnificent Podcast (h/t H Jenkins of Ringside News) this week that Funk was in an assisted living home in Amarillo, Texas, and had been diagnosed with dementia.

The person who runs Funk's Twitter account later confirmed that the WWE Hall of Famer has been receiving residential care:

That led to an outpouring of support from concerned wrestlers and fans on social media, but Dreamer wanted to make it clear that the situation wasn't as bad as many assumed.

As part of a tweet Dreamer posted Tuesday, he noted that Funk is "not in bad health" after speaking to him on the phone:

Dreamer is one of many wrestlers who got the chance to work alongside Funk over the years, as they were both key figures in the rise of ECW.

The 77-year-old Funk is referred to by many as a hardcore legend, although he wrestled essentially every style imaginable and worked for almost every major company during his lengthy career.

After making his in-ring debut in 1965, Funk worked for the NWA, WWE, All Japan Pro Wrestling, WCW and ECW among other promotions.

Among his greatest accomplishments were holding the ECW and NWA World Heavyweight Championships, as well as the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship. He was also one half of the WWE tag team champions while working with Cactus Jack under the Chainsaw Charlie gimmick.

Funk wrestled matches as recently as 2017, giving him one of the longest and most storied careers in the history of pro wrestling.

While Dreamer wanted to assure everyone that Funk's situation isn't as dire as initially thought, some positives came out of the concern, as a wrestling legend was properly appreciated.

WWE Reportedly Has Major Plans for Strong

On the heels of his return to NXT two weeks ago as part of Diamond Mine, there are reportedly major plans in place for Roderick Strong.

According to Fightful Select (h/t WrestlingInc.com's Marc Middleton), Strong recently agreed to a new contract with WWE, and there are plans in place to make him a featured part of the cruiserweight division.

NXT reportedly wants to make the cruiserweight division a big part of the show moving forward, and using bigger names like Strong is part of the vision.

Strong and Diamond Mine debuted by attacking cruiserweight champion Kushida following his match against Kyle O'Reilly.

Along with Strong, Diamond Mine is comprised of Tyler Rust, Hideki Suzuki and manager Malcolm Bivens, who figures to serve as the mouthpiece for the group.

Strong achieved great success as part of a stable in NXT previously, holding the NXT Tag Team and North American Championships while he was in Undisputed Era.

Working with a great talker like Adam Cole helped hide any deficiencies Strong may have had in that area, and pairing him with Bivens should have a similar impact.

Strong and Kushida are widely regarded as two of the best in-ring workers in the world, and a feud between them for the Cruiserweight Championship could go a long way toward elevating the division.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).

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

Batista Clarifies Comments on Rock, Cena

WWE legend Batista took to Twitter to clarify comments he made about the possibility of teaming up with The Rock and John Cena in a movie. 

The Animal showed off a collage of his film roles, adding that he would "prefer not to be lumped in" and his initial comments were "nothing personal" against either superstar. 

Batista's clarification came after he said "nah, I'm good" when someone tweeted the trio of WWE legends should team up in a future movie. 

All three men have gone on to have successful film careers in recent years. Cena has followed in The Rock's footsteps as playing an antagonist in a Fast and Furious film.

It does seem unlikely that Batista will follow that path. He tweeted after Cena's casting in F9 two years ago that he would "rather do good films.”

Batista has alternated between starring roles and being a prominent supporting player in several features. The 52-year-old most recently played the lead role in Army of the Dead. 

Regardless of the divergent path their acting careers have taken, The Rock, Batista and Cena's crossover appeal speaks to how big their star power was throughout their WWE careers. 

Batista officially retired from WWE in April 2019 after losing to Triple H at WrestleMania 35. 

Eddie Kingston Shoots on WWE

After AEW Dynamite went off the air on Saturday night, Eddie Kingston stepped into the ring to cut a promo on WWE. 

Speaking to the live crowd in Jacksonville, Kingston said he was "burning another bridge" in reference to what he was going to say about WWE. 

Ladies and gentlemen, AEW cares about their fans. Because we are not here just to get ourselves a paycheck. We're here every week —with you people, without you people—and we come out here and we bust our asses. We love professional wrestling!

You saw a match between Kenny Omega and my dude, Jungle Boy, that you will not see on the other channel. You will not see legends who are respected on the other channel. You will not see people like me and my best friend (Penta) on the other channel. And you will not see the heart that everybody in that locker room has on the other channel.

AEW has established itself as a prominent wrestling promotion since its official launch in January 2019. 

One reason that AEW has found success so early in its run is because it's an alternative to the WWE product. The matches, storylines and presentation are different to what WWE does. 

Of course, WWE's formula has led to tremendous success for the company. 

Kingston has never officially worked for WWE, though he did have a tryout at the performance center in 2016. 

Things have certainly worked out well for Kingston since he made his AEW debut in July. The 39-year-old had a terrific feud with Jon Moxley for the AEW world title last year before teaming up with his rival for a showdown with the Young Bucks at Double or Nothing on May 30. 

Even though Moxley and Kingston were defeated, the match was one of the best AEW bouts of the year so far. 

Scarlett Reportedly Makes In-Ring Debut

WWE's main roster could be in for a shakeup with the draft reportedly set to take place later this summer. 

One potentially significant change would see Scarlett stepping into the ring as a regular wrestler. 

Per PW Insider (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), Scarlett received a main roster tryout prior to SmackDown on Friday against Shotzi Blackheart. 

The move to put Scarlett in the ring as a wrestler is a significant change from her current role as Karrion Kross' manager since debuting in NXT last year. 

Even though NXT hasn't used Scarlett as a wrestler, she has in-ring experience from her time in Ring of Honor, Impact Wrestling and Lucha Libre USA.  

According to Andrew Zarian of the Mat Men Pro Wrestling Podcast, WWE is targeting Aug. 30 and Sept. 3 for the draft this year. 

Zarian added the company has "big plans" for some Superstars changing brands. 

Kross and Scarlett have been pushed as the top stars on NXT since making their debuts. He originally won the NXT championship at NXT TakeOver: XXX by defeating Keith Lee, but a shoulder injury suffered during the match forced him to vacate the title four days later. 

During night two of NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver on April 8, Kross beat Finn Balor to regain the NXT title. 

There are no shortage of opportunities for WWE to develop new superstars on television. Scarlett has shown herself to be a talented performer as a manager. Giving her more to do if she moves up to the main roster makes sense for everyone involved. 

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).

LA Knight beat Cameron Grimes in a ladder match at NXT TakeOver: In Your House on Sunday night to win the Million Dollar Championship.

Grimes was making his way toward the glass case holding the title belt before Knight tipped over the giant gold ladder to send his opponent to the outside. That cleared his path toward victory.

The wheels were set in motion for Sunday's highly anticipated bout a few months ago when Grimes debuted a new character. Grimes claimed he invested in GameStop stock and cryptocurrency, thus making him filthy rich.

Grimes threw his money and status around in subsequent weeks until he met his match in the form of WWE Hall of Famer "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase.

Every time Grimes would attempt to show off, DiBiase would show up and outshine him. That included DiBiase buying a nicer and more expensive watch than Grimes, as well as DiBiase outbidding Grimes in an auction for a house.

Eventually, DiBiase admitted that he saw some of himself in Grimes and wanted to give him an opportunity to follow in his footsteps, which is when Knight stepped in and suggested he was more deserving of carrying on the Million Dollar Man legacy.

Both Grimes and Knight impressed DiBiase on occasion, but they also lost matches to Jake Atlas due to distracting each other or getting distracted by DiBiase.

Ultimately, DiBiase decided to give both Grimes and Knight an enormous opportunity, as he announced on the go-home episode of NXT prior to TakeOver: In Your House that they would do battle in a ladder match at the pay-per-view.

When a confused Grimes asked what they would be vying for, DiBiase revealed the Million Dollar Championship, which is a title he created during his WWE heyday in 1989.

Prior to Sunday, only four Superstars in WWE history had technically held the Million Dollar title: DiBiase, Virgil, "The Ringmaster" Steve Austin and Ted DiBiase Jr.

DiBiase's son last held it in 2010, meaning Sunday ended more than a decadelong hiatus for the title on WWE programming.

With the win, Knight is the new Million Dollar champion and DiBiase's protege, while Grimes is left to wonder what could have been.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).