WWE Rumor Roundup: Update on Roman Reigns' future opponent, Injured star to return soon? Shane McMahon-Randy Orton botch (February 6, 2022)

Welcome to the latest edition of WWE Rumor Roundup.

Roman Reigns' challengers on the road to WrestleMania 38 have already been confirmed. But who will step up to the Universal Champion after this year's Show of Shows concludes? A recent report suggests that a top name from SmackDown could target Reigns soon.

Another star from the blue brand — who has been out of action lately — might finally return to the company. Plus, the 2022 Royal Rumble event featured backstage controversy, most of which is related to Shane McMahon's influence in the 30-man contest. Rumors indicate that a significant botch occurred with McMahon's entrance in the Men's Rumble.

Meanwhile, Tyson Kidd was notably absent from the said event. We'll look at his current WWE status as well. Additionally, reported plans for a top NXT star's appearance in the Rumble were nixed.

With that in mind, let's dive straight into these topics.

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#5. Drew McIntyre could face Roman Reigns in WWE this year

Roman Reigns' next Universal Championship defense will go down on February 19 against the returning Goldberg. While The Tribal Chief is the favorite to retain his title at Elimination Chamber, Brock Lesnar has challenged him to a subsequent match at WrestleMania 38.

Many fans also believed that Drew McIntyre would face Reigns in early 2022. That does not seem to be the case right now, but McIntyre will reportedly cross paths with the Universal Champion at some point this year. Dave Meltzer stated in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that plans for the bout are still in place:

“Drew McIntyre is very much in the plans for an opponent for Reigns at some point."

The Scottish Warrior has had four televised one-on-one encounters against Roman Reigns, with the latter emerging victorious every time.

The two men have more recently faced off in untelevised tag team bouts.

#4. Update on King Xavier Woods' WWE status

In early January, King Woods suffered a muscle tear on WWE SmackDown and has been out of action ever since. Although he missed the 2022 Men's Royal Rumble, The New Day member could return to television soon.

According to Fightful Select, Woods is no longer part of WWE's internal inactive talent list. While not a confirmation, it may suggest that the company has medically cleared him for an in-ring return.

Big E and Kofi Kingston have had a New Day reunion lately in their ally's absence. Therefore, Woods' comeback would re-establish the faction's status as a trio.

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#3. Shane McMahon and Randy Orton got their Royal Rumble entrances mixed up

This year's Men's Rumble saw Shane McMahon and Randy Orton entering the match from the 28th and 29th positions, respectively. However, this was not the original plan in place for the two men, as per Fightful Select.

Orton was initially supposed to enter at No. 28 instead of McMahon. However, the latter's theme song began playing for that spot due to a botch. Because The Viper would not enter to Shane O'Mac's music, both men had to exchange their positions in the Rumble.

Interestingly, the event took place in Orton's hometown of St. Louis. For this reason, it would have been an awkward moment if he came out to someone else's theme song that night.

#2. Has Tyson Kidd "grown frustrated" in WWE?

TJ Wilson (Tyson Kidd) usually helps produce matches for female competitors in WWE. However, he did not work on the Women's Rumble this year.

Sean Ross Sapp spoke about Wilson's status with the company on the SRS Q&A podcast:

“A few weeks ago I had heard that TJ Wilson had grown frustrated."

Sapp also noted that he did not report this story earlier because he received conflicting information from sources close to Wilson:

"One person who told me the information said, 'heard he wasn't there, he didn't show up, wasn't happy with how things were going, and he's no longer there.' However, I follow up with WWE, I follow up with people close to him and they say, 'no, TJ is still with the company.'" (H/T - WrestlingNews.co)

Fit Finlay was eventually brought on to produce the match. Before this development, however, several stars reportedly refused to perform in the 30-woman contest when they became aware of TJ Wilson's absence.

Additional speculation suggests that Wilson has taken some time off from WWE.

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#1. Plans for Bron Breakker's Royal Rumble appearance were canceled

This year's Rumble matches featured appearances from names outside of WWE's current roster, but the company's higher-ups did not book any NXT talent to appear during the event.

According to reports, Bron Breakker could have had a spot with Dolph Ziggler in the 30-man bout. Here's what Dave Meltzer stated in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter:

"There was some talk of doing a Bron Breakker spot with Dolph Ziggler to build NXT, but the decision was made not to have anyone from NXT in the Rumble."

Despite being the current NXT Champion, Breakker had his first televised match for WWE's third brand in September 2021. In comparison, Ziggler is an established veteran at this point. The 41-year-old has been performing in WWE since he signed with the company in 2004.