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On-screen, many of the biggest WWE moments of the week have revolved around Bayley and Sasha Banks, who have started appearing on RAW, SmackDown and NXT over the last month.
Elsewhere, the build-up to Extreme Rules: The Horror Show has continued, with Drew McIntyre vs. Dolph Ziggler (WWE Championship) and Braun Strowman vs. Bray Wyatt (Wyatt Swamp Fight) among the matches that have been announced so far.
Behind the scenes this week, we learned that one “disrespected” WWE Hall of Famer once told Vince McMahon that he wanted to quit after a prank was played on him, while a story emerged about John Cena dismissing the idea of WWE signing AJ Styles.
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Let’s take a look at the full details behind those stories, plus eight others, as we count down 10 of the most interesting real-life stories that have been revealed about WWE Superstars and storylines this week.
#10 Mark Henry wanted to quit WWE after a Vince McMahon prank
Last week’s round-up included a story about Vince McMahon pranking AJ Styles by telling him that The Undertaker wanted to return for one more match against “some kid from Tennessee” instead of him.
Well, it seems that McMahon is quite the prankster, as Mark Henry told a story on WWE Network show Broken Skull Sessions about the WWE Chairman playing a joke on him in front of a live audience.
Henry waited in the ring as he prepared to face Sin Cara, but it turned out that he did not even have an opponent and McMahon sent him out in front of the crowd just to joke around.
The prank almost backfired spectacularly when a disrespected Henry tore apart a WWE set backstage and said, "Man, I quit, this is the last time."
Thankfully, McMahon issued a remorseful apology and the two men were able to make amends.
#9 John Cena felt WWE did not need AJ Styles
Former WWE producer Arn Anderson said on his ARN podcast that he once suggested to John Cena that the company should sign AJ Styles, Bobby Roode and James Storm from Impact Wrestling.
Cena, who worked closely with Anderson on many of his WWE matches, told the Hall of Famer that WWE did not need any of the three men because the NXT system is where future Superstars come from.
Anderson clarified that the 16-time World Champion was not necessarily speaking negatively about Styles, Roode and Storm, and he was likely just transferring Vince McMahon’s psychology to him.
#8 Dolph Ziggler expected to be fired by WWE
Dolph Ziggler signed with WWE in 2004 and went on to debut on the main roster in 2005 as a golf caddy for Chavo Guerrero (then known as Kerwin White).
Reflecting on his WWE career with Sports Illustrated, Ziggler said this week that he expected to be fired once the storyline came to an end. However, WWE’s decision-makers opted to keep him on television as a member of The Spirit Squad.
Again, the two-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion thought he would lose his job following the five-man group’s separation, but he ended up becoming a prominent Superstar on WWE television for the next 14 years.
#7 Rusev’s most nerve-racking WWE moments
Rusev (now known by his real name, Miro) has been very open about his WWE career since he left the company and began communicating with his fans on Twitch and YouTube.
“The Bulgarian Brute” discussed his most nerve-racking WWE moments in one of his latest videos, which included his 2014 Royal Rumble debut and his WrestleMania 31 match against John Cena.
He added that he was also nervous when he fought The Undertaker and The Big Show for the first time, as both men did not have plans for the match and simply said, “I’ll see you in the ring.”
#6 Original plan for Maria Kanellis’ WWE RAW storyline
One of the most outlandish WWE stories of the Paul Heyman RAW era saw Maria Kanellis announce that her husband, Mike Kanellis, was not the father of her child.
Writing on Twitter, Maria said that the angle was supposed to result in Mike being revealed as the father, leading to a story about his real-life recovery from addiction.
However, the storyline was quickly dropped and both Superstars were released from WWE in April 2020 as a cost-cutting measure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
#5 Hulk Hogan vs. John Cena almost happened in WWE
Hulk Hogan faced up-and-coming Superstars including Brock Lesnar and Randy Orton during the final few years of his in-ring career, but did you know that he almost battled John Cena?
WWE director Bruce Prichard said on his Something To Wrestle With podcast that Hogan was always looking for the next Superstar to conquer, and he remembers the WWE icon saying, “Holy cow, this is going to be good,” when the possibility of a match with Cena was discussed.
Hogan left WWE after his SummerSlam 2005 match against Shawn Michaels, meaning the dream match with Cena never happened.
#4 The logic behind Dolph Ziggler’s WWE RAW move
AJ Styles recently moved from WWE RAW to WWE SmackDown, with Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode switching to the red brand as part of the deal.
In another story from Dolph Ziggler’s out-of-character interview with Sports Illustrated, he admitted that his storyline with Otis, Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville on SmackDown had run its course, and he completely understands why WWE management decided to move him away from the Blue brand following the conclusion of the story.
#3 Becky Lynch’s future WWE plans
Becky Lynch announced in May that she is pregnant and she will be taking an indefinite break from WWE, but what does that mean for her in-ring future?
Seth Rollins, Lynch’s fiancé, told The Post’s Joseph Staszewski that Lynch has aspirations to return to the ring, but he cannot say for sure because he does not know if her mind will change when she has a child.
He did, however, add that the former RAW Women’s Champion would like to leave WWE on her own terms, as opposed to stepping away forever due to her pregnancy.
#2 Backstage details on Steve Austin’s WrestleMania 32 Stunner
Following The League of Nations’ victory over The New Day at WrestleMania 32, three WWE legends – Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels, and Mick Foley – came down to the ring and hit their finishers on various Superstars who were involved in the match.
Rusev, who was part of the victorious League of Nations team, revealed on his Twitch channel that it was down to the Superstars to choose which legendary finishers they wanted to receive after the 10-minute encounter.
The three-time United States Champion said he had always wanted to take a Stone Cold Stunner, which is why he opted to work with Steve Austin in the post-match segment.
#1 Becky Lynch pitched WWE WrestleMania 36 defeat
Asuka was rewarded with Becky Lynch’s RAW Women’s Championship after she won the 2020 Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match, but the storyline would have played out very differently if Lynch’s original idea was approved by WWE Chairman Vince McMahon.
“The Man” revealed during an appearance on The Bellas Podcast this week that she pitched for Baszler to win the RAW Women’s Championship from her at WrestleMania 36, but WWE’s higher-ups opted to keep the title on her.
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