WWE News Roundup: Returning star addresses fan criticism, Top babyface teams up with Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns' message to his rival (January 23, 2022)

We're back with the latest edition of WWE News Roundup.

Out of the many stars who will return to the company for this year's Royal Rumble event, one of them recently reacted to some fan criticism. Meanwhile, Seth Rollins teamed up with Kevin Owens and a top babyface in a six-man tag team contest following the latest SmackDown episode.

Not too long ago, Rollins also received a message from Roman Reigns via Twitter. Dutch Mantell believes that a 27-year-old talent is not ready for the main roster. Additionally, MVP gave his take on which superstar could challenge Bobby Lashley after the Royal Rumble.

With that in mind, let's take a closer look at these news stories.

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#5. Summer Rae addresses fan criticism about being called a "legend" by WWE

Ahead of her entry into the 2022 Women's Royal Rumble match, Summer Rae appeared on the most recent episode of SmackDown.

During the show, the announcers called her "a WWE legend from Nashville." This development did not sit well with some fans, who took to the internet to voice their displeasure.

As seen in the Twitter clip above, Rae had the following response to her critics:

"I'm seeing so many complaints that WWE called me a legend tonight. I don't make the rules y'all. They said what they said."

The former Total Divas cast member had more to add to her statement, and you can check out exactly what she stated in the tweets below:

"I strike again. By simply SHOWING UP. You favs could never. 1 day when you do find a wife hopefully she will look past how pathetic it was to be a grown a** man tweeting about a women being less than what she thinks she is. Good day sir. Stay pressed. It gets me over," Summer Rae concluded.

While the 38-year-old did not win any titles throughout her WWE career, Rae had some newsworthy stints with Fandango and Rusev (a.k.a. Miro in AEW), among other stars.

It will be interesting to see how she fares in the 30-woman contest this year.

#4. Roman Reigns' message to Seth Rollins after WWE SmackDown

The latest WWE SmackDown show ended in a tag team match pitting Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens against The Usos. The high-stakes contest ended via disqualification when Roman Reigns attacked his former Shield brother.

Reigns sent a message to Rollins after the show, highlighting how the RAW star has attempted to rattle him by appearing on the blue brand over the last few weeks:

Interestingly, with the disqualification result favoring Rollins' team, there will now be a stipulation for his upcoming match against Reigns. The Universal Champion's cousins, Jimmy and Jey Uso, have been banned from ringside for his title defense at the Royal Rumble event.

Rollins had the following response to his former stablemate's recent tweet:

"*ahem* ASKED to #SmackDown by Fox execs to inject some life into a show you’ve drained of it for the last 500whatever a** days. And now it’s just you and me, brother. While this should be Mania, making history at Rumble suits me just fine."

While the stipulation could decrease Reigns' winning chances on January 29, he has also emerged victoriously from matches without The Usos' help throughout his current title reign.

#3. Seth Rollins teams up with Kevin Owens and Big E after WWE SmackDown

After the main event of WWE SmackDown concluded via disqualification, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns were far from done with each other.

Post-show events saw Reigns and The Usos attack Rollins and Kevin Owens. Another name from Monday Night RAW, Big E, arrived on the scene to even the odds. His presence eventually led to a six-man tag team match pitting The Bloodline against the RAW stars.

As has often been the case in dark matches and house show bouts, Reigns' team lost to the opposition.

Interestingly, Big E had been at odds against Rollins and Owens not too long ago. The trio was involved in a WWE Championship rivalry, but things have changed considerably with the former Shield member's supposed babyface role in his feud against Reigns.

Rollins has also teamed up with The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Big E) and The Viking Raiders (Erik and Ivar) — two babyface teams — to defeat The Bloodline in untelevised matches lately. The main question now is whether or not The Visionary reverts to a heel status after his upcoming Universal Championship bout.

#2. Dutch Mantell thinks Aliyah is not ready for a role on WWE's main roster

Aliyah recently made a jump to SmackDown as a babyface, and she has already created a new WWE record. The 27-year-old beat Natalya in 3.17 seconds, which is now the fastest win in the company's history.

Despite her favorable booking on the main roster, Dutch Mantell believes Aliyah's stint in NXT — that lasted more than five years — did not "get her ready" for the main roster. Here's what the wrestling veteran had to say on the latest episode of Sportskeeda Wrestling's Smack Talk:

"So Aliyah, how long was she in NXT? [Several] years, right? They just warehoused her down there, didn't they? I still don't think the girl is ready really. She looks greener than grass. NXT didn't get her ready. She should have been this good six or nine months in but she didn't progress past that. I don't get it," stated Mantell.

Regardless of Aliyah's current booking, higher-ups' faith in her will be proven if she gets pushed into the top title picture anytime soon.

#1. MVP has a prediction about Bobby Lashley's future challenger in WWE

With Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley's dream match on the horizon, MVP believes the latter will emerge from their clash as the new WWE Champion.

Speaking on Corey Graves' After the Bell podcast, he also predicted that the Road to WrestleMania 38 could see Lashley crossing paths with Big E.

"Big E could be that if he could find that internal switch to say, 'Okay. Now, I'm laughing. I'm having fun. But now, it's time to also be a beast.' And his road to WrestleMania, I predict, finds this way to Lashley. Because I believe Bobby Lashley, the All Mighty will beat Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble, and he will take back the WWE Championship," said MVP.

Big E and The All Mighty went one-on-one against each other a few times last year. The New Day member won his first world championship on the main roster by defeating Lashley in September 2021, and both men even crossed paths as part of a multi-man feud heading into the Day 1 event.

Of course, Big E also has ties to Brock Lesnar, who dethroned him from the top of RAW earlier this month. So regardless of who emerges as the red brand's top champion at Royal Rumble, the 35-year-old star could realistically enter the world title picture again.