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Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.
Rollins Says He Has Been Nursing Back Injuries for Years
Seth Rollins is the reigning WWE world heavyweight champion and one of the company’s true workhorses, but The Visionary revealed this week that he has been dealing with nagging injuries for quite some time.
During an appearance on the Impaulsive podcast with fellow WWE Superstar Logan Paul (h/t Andrew Thompson of Post Wrestling), Rollins discussed his recent injury history, particularly with regard to his back:
“My knee’s been bugging me since before WrestleMania. I was having issues with that. My neck’s been acting up, my lower back has been at me since 2019. Probably should get some surgery on that, but trying to just do whatever I can to make sure I don’t need it because I have a couple of stress fractures back there.
“So I tried some stem cells. I’ve done a couple of stem cell treatments and I found that they were temporarily helpful, and I wasn’t taking time off, so I wasn’t just idling while I was on the stem cells. I was still working pretty much a full-time schedule with WWE, so I found that temporarily helpful, but long-term, it kind of had faded off a little bit. So I’d say I got about maybe four, five months of okay, alright.”
While undisputed WWE universal champion Roman Reigns is the unquestioned face of WWE currently, Rollins isn’t far behind, and he has been a far more consistent presence on WWE programming in recent years.
Rollins was finally rewarded for his efforts in May when he beat AJ Styles in the final of a tournament at Night of Champions to become the inaugural WWE world heavyweight champion.
Unlike Reigns, who only defends his title on occasions, Rollins has been a fighting champion, putting the title on the line multiple times on premium live events, Raw and even NXT.
After beating Finn Balor to retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Money in the Bank, Rollins is set to face him again in a rematch at SummerSlam next month.
Rollins seems content to continue pushing through his injuries, but if some time off to heal would be beneficial, it isn’t outside the realm of possibility that he could drop the title to Balor.
Rollins Says He and Riddle Have Buried the Hatchet
Rollins and Matt Riddle had some real-life issues with each other in the past, but Rollins divulged this week that they have since squashed their beef.
During an appearance on the Impaulsive podcast (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Rollins said Riddle apologized for their conflict, allowing them to both move forward without any ill will toward each other:
“We had a bit of a real-life beef, if you will, I had a bit of an issue with him, so you kind of got to see that play out on live television a little bit, so we worked it to our favor because now we have a moment that’s viral and something you remember that affected you, so win-win-win I would say.
“Fine. Fine yeah, totally good. Look, I’m a professional so like if we can work together, we can work together, things that happen outside of here, that is what it is. But like, he apologized and we mended fences and I’m all about like, I don’t write anybody off, I’m not one of those guys that’s like ‘no second chances, you do wrong by me I hate you forever,’ like I’m not that stubborn, it’s not that serious.”
It seemed the division between Rollins and Riddle began in 2020 when Riddle’s now-ex-wife body shamed Rollins’ wife, WWE Superstar Becky Lynch, on Instagram.
Rollins later said he had “no interest” in working an on-screen program with Riddle, but the time eventually came for them to feud.
Last summer and fall, Rollins and Riddle faced each other in a series of matches, and they engaged in a memorable rivalry thanks to some of the personal shots they took at each other, including Rollins alluding to Riddle’s divorce.
Despite the real-life undertones of their on-screen feud, it seems Rollins and Riddle gained a healthy respect for each other by working together and put their problems in the past.
Logan Paul Gives Details Regarding SummerSlam Match
All signs point toward Logan Paul facing Ricochet at SummerSlam next month, and Paul provided some behind-the-scenes details regarding that match this week.
Speaking on his Impaulsive podcast (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), Paul said Ricochet and LA Knight were the two Superstars he had interest in facing at SummerSlam.
It seems Knight has transitioned toward going after Austin Theory and the United States Championship, leaving the door open for Paul vs. Ricochet to take place.
Paul and Ricochet had a viral moment at Royal Rumble earlier this year when they collided in midair, and they did it again this month at Money in the Bank when they did a Spanish Fly through some tables, which was the catalyst for their feud.
Paul mentioned wanting to put on an athletic display with Ricochet at SummerSlam, saying:
“So Ricochet is obviously, I think he’s probably one of the most athletic guys in WWE. I would consider myself also extremely athletic in the WWE, and a part of me wants to—I wanna show him who the better athlete is, I wanna out-athlete the athlete in the WWE.
“I think we could have one of the most physically spectacular phenomenon shows of all time. I would love to absolutely melt the house down with Ricochet.”
Paul also revealed [h/t Thompson] that he made a special request to WWE’s decision-makers for his match to go on first at SummerSlam due to his desire to accompany his brother, Jake Paul, to the ring for a boxing match against former UFC star Nate Diaz later that night:
“After SummerSlam, my brother who is fighting on the same night in Dallas, as soon as my match ends, I’m gonna hop on a [private jet], fly to Dallas in my gear, walk in the ring with my brother for his fight against Nate Diaz. I’m gonna try to. I don’t know if I’m gonna make it, but I think if I do, it’ll be minutes.
“Like I walk into the venue, round one, Jake Paul-Nate Diaz starts. It’s on Aug. 5. It is barely possible. I requested first match [at SummerSlam]. … It takes two-and-a-half hours [to get from Detroit to Dallas]. One hour time difference, Jake will go on at 11. We did the math. It’s barely doable.”
Regardless of Paul’s request, there was likely a good chance that his match against Ricochet would have been the opener anyway since their high-flying styles should succeed in getting the crowd excited right out of the gate.
No matter where on the card Paul and Ricochet ultimately do clash, they have a legitimate chance to put on the best match of the entire night.
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