WWE Rumor Review: Roman Reigns' opponent, Spoiler on Brock Lesnar, Surprising name tabbed as future WWE Champion

Welcome to the latest edition of WWE Rumor Review, where we look back at some of the top rumors from a year ago and see how they have fared so far. In this edition, we'll take a look at the backstage reaction in WWE to Roman Reigns' opponent in September 2021.

Speaking of The Tribal Chief's opponents, we'll also discuss rumors regarding the plans of his fiercest rival, Brock Lesnar. We'll also learn about which superstar was tabbed as a future WWE Champion by the higher-ups in the company.

So without further ado, let's check out this week's WWE rumor review.

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#5. Update on Jacy Jayne's condition

In the build-up to the Halloween Havoc event last year, former NXT superstar Jacy Jayne went for a suicide dive during an episode of NXT and accidentally landed on her head at ringside after her feet got stuck on the ropes.

Jayne was scheduled to team up with fellow Toxic Attraction teammate Gigi Dolin to compete in a Scareway to Hell ladder match for the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship. In a report from Wrestling Observer Live, it was noted that Jayne passed a CT scan, potentially indicating that she did not suffer a concussion.

Jayne took to Twitter to declare herself fit and went on to compete in the ladder match at Halloween Havoc as advertised, ultimately winning the tag titles alongside Dolin. The two held the gold for 158 days before dropping it to Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez earlier this year.

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#4. Bronson Reed garnering interest from top promotions

Former WWE superstar Bronson Reed (aka JONAH) was released from the company last year as part of the budget cuts. His last match in the company was against former NXT Champion Adam Cole.

A couple of months after Reed's departure from WWE, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select reported that top companies like NJPW and IMPACT Wrestling were interested in signing the former NXT North American Champion.

JONAH went on to compete in both the companies and faced some of the top superstars like Josh Alexander, Kazuchika Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Tomohiro Ishii among others, thereby confirming Sapp's report.

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#3. Spoiler on Brock Lesnar's plans

Brock Lesnar made a stellar return to WWE at SummerSlam last year where he confronted Universal Champion Roman Reigns. Many believed it was a direct answer to CM Punk making his long-awaited pro wrestling return in All Elite Wrestling.

Reigns and Lesnar were scheduled to face each other at Crown Jewel for the Universal Championship. Ahead of the match, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter made it clear that the program between the two was scheduled to extend beyond a one-off match.

The Tribal Chief and The Beast Incarnate went on to engage in a lengthy rivalry that concluded after nearly a year at SummerSlam 2022 in a Last Man Standing match, thereby confirming the report.

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#2. Surprising name touted as a future WWE Champion

Ridge Holland made his main roster debut on the SmackDown brand last year and went on to form an alliance with Sheamus. Immediately after being drafted to the blue brand, reports circulated about WWE management's feelings towards Holland.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that Holland was seen as a future WWE champion by several officials. He also stated that Austin Theory is someone who had grabbed the attention of the top brass.

While Holland might not have scaled up to expectations as per the report, Theory did manage to win the Money In The Bank ladder match earlier this year and was also involved in a high profile angle leading up to WrestleMania featuring Vince McMahon himself.

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#1. Backstage reaction to Roman Reigns' opponent

In his stellar run as Universal Champion, Roman Reigns has faced legends such as Edge, John Cena, and Rey Mysterio as well as up-and-comers like Matt Riddle and Montez Ford.

On the September 24th edition of SmackDown last year, Ford had an impressive showing against Reigns in the main event. During that time, Louis Dangoor of GiveMeSport reported that the company's higher ups were considering a serious push for Ford.

In the weeks following the report, we saw a bit of dissension between The Street Profits that indicated a potential breakup of the team. Fast forward to a year and a regime change later, the tide seems to have turned with reports emerging that Dawkins could also receive a singles push. It will be interesting to see if the Profits split anytime soon.