4 Wrestling rumors we hope are true and 3 we hope aren't: FOX "pressurizing" WWE to bring back 8-time World Champion, Controversial finish planned for top Survivor Series match?

Welcome to this week's edition of WWE/wrestling rumors we hope are true and those we hope aren't. It's a big week ahead in WWE as we gear up for Survivor Series 2021.

This week's edition includes original plans for an AEW star to face Big E at SummerSlam 2021. Certain WWE stars have reportedly asked for their release, while the company has "forgotten" a popular SmackDown star.

There is backstage news on Vince McMahon and more WWE releases, Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar's salary, big plans for a break-up feud, and more:

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#4. Hope is true: The reason why WWE is bringing Brock Lesnar back early

Brock Lesnar was suspended by WWE official Adam Pearce on SmackDown before getting fined a whopping $1 million. This was WWE's way of extending the Roman Reigns-Brock Lesnar feud, one that is supposedly going to culminate at WrestleMania 38 in the main event of one of the two nights.

The suspension would originally have written Brock Lesnar off TV for the rest of 2021, with The Beast Incarnate already having been advertised for the 2022 Royal Rumble. However, Staples Center in Los Angeles put out a tweet advertising that Brock Lesnar was going to buy a ringside ticket for SmackDown on December 10.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE is only bringing Brock Lesnar back early because of pressure from Fox Executives, some of whom will reportedly be in attendance:

'[Brock] Lesnar will be returning on the 12/10 Smackdown in Los Angeles. The idea is he’s going to buy a ringside ticket. This show is a major one because they are running the show in that city largely for FOX executives to get a major FOX show in FOX’s home base. Lesnar is obviously one of the key people they are interested in, and it’ll likely be the start to build Lesnar for the Rumble show,'' said Meltzer.

We hope this is true because of the better utilization of Brock Lesnar. Since his return to WWE, he has only made a handful of appearances and suffered one defeat to Roman Reigns.

It will be interesting to see what direction WWE takes with Brock Lesnar at the 2022 Royal Rumble. If he enters the Men's Royal Rumble match, he could be the favorite to win it again.

#3. Hope isn't true: WWE planning a controversial finish for the Women's Champions match at Survivor Series?

Survivor Series 2021 will feature a clash between two of WWE's top women's champions Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair. With the rumors of their backstage confrontation going viral, WWE chose to acknowledge it indirectly on SmackDown.

Perhaps it was a way of building hype to the RAW vs SmackDown Women's champion vs champion match. It's always interesting to speculate who WWE will go with as the victor because it often says a lot about the superstars' respective standing in the company.

That's why the Women's champion vs champion match will be inspected heavily by fans. However, most of them may be disappointed with the finish that ends up happening at Survivor Series. According to Bryan Alvarez on Wrestling Observer Live (WOL), there are reportedly plans for a "screwjob" finish at the pay-per-view.

Sportskeeda's Shruti Sadbhav wrote:

"In the latest report from the Wrestling Observer Live, Bryan Alvarez said that WWE plans to book a controversial angle at the Survivor Series pay-per-view. The show will feature a battle between the two women's champions, and Alvarez believes the company will use the real-life rift between them to script another "screwjob."

Alvarez elaborated further:

"He further referred to WWE bringing up the infamous Montreal Screwjob involving Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, and Vince McMahon. Alvarez used the example to speculate that the writing team is heading in a similar direction with Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair's storyline."

We hope this isn't true because it would be yet another disappointing finish to a top women's match in yet another big four pay-per-view.

#3. Hope is true: Two WWE stars requested their release from the company

The news surrounding the mass WWE releases are often negative. In many cases, they're abrupt, ill-timed, and undeserved. However, the hoarding of talent in the company means that not everyone can be utilized to their liking.

Two such superstars who belonged to the latter category were Lince Dorado and Gran Metalik. While they couldn't make a splash in WWE, Metalik is still widely considered one of the best in-ring talents in all of wrestling.

According to Dave Meltzer on the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dorado and Metalik were two superstars who reportedly requested their release from WWE. They requested a meeting with Vince McMahon following a loss on WWE Main Event:

"The pair were reportedly unhappy with the lack of opportunities and requested to be released after losing to the team of Angel and Humberto."

We hope this is true because Dorado and Metalik were too talented to sit on the sidelines and remain underutilized. There are plenty of promotions that would be a better fit for them over WWE.

#2. Hope isn't true: WWE "forgot" about Toni Storm?

Toni Storm has been dubbed by many as one of the best female superstars in WWE, but the start to her main roster career on SmackDown has been less than promising.

Although Toni Storm recently confronted Charlotte Flair to tease a SmackDown Women's title feud post-Survivor Series, the handling of the 26-year-old has been criticized by WWE fans.

According to a report from WON, Toni Storm had been "forgotten about," which is what explains how WWE has handled her since her main roster debut.

We hope this isn't true because she could already be among the top few women on the WWE roster from a pure talent standpoint. Her work before the main roster call-up has indicated that she has the potential to be a women's champion, although the potential of many superstars hasn't been realized in the company.

Toni Storm could still get a big push, although it won't happen right now. Her recent losses mean she will likely just be a filler feud for SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair post-Survivor Series.

#2. Hope is true: WWE planning a big break-up feud on RAW

Things haven't been good for the Mysterios in WWE for the last few months. Although they enjoyed their moment in 2021 as the SmackDown Tag Team Champions, their reign was cut short, and The Usos managed to overcome them to capture and then retain the SmackDown Tag Team Championships.

The Mysterios then moved over to RAW, where there has been increasing tension between Rey and his son Dominik Mysterio. The latter suffered a few losses and was then replaced in the RAW Survivor Series men's team by former WWE Champion Bobby Lashley.

According to Andrew Zarian of The Mat Men Podcast, a source within WWE said that a break-up feud between the Mysterios is happening soon:

We hope this is true because it seems to be the right time for the Mysterios to part ways. Although WWE could have utilized them better during their tag team title reign, the two have had a long run together.

With that said, we hope that WWE keeps them together and their feud culminates at WrestleMania 38. It could be a star-making match for the 24-year-old Dominik Mysterio, who still has a lot to prove.

#1. Hope isn't true: Vince McMahon's thoughts on WWE Superstars' salaries

WWE's mass release of superstars has all been justified as "budget cuts." Although that hasn't always been the case, it leaves a lot of speculation as to whether the company is trying to inflate their profits as much as possible for a potential sale.

President Nick Khan stated that the company wasn't in any current talks of a sale, but hinted that they're always willing to hear offers. The company's profits keep increasing as seen in their Quarterly Earnings Reports.

They reported revenue of $255.8 million, a 15% increase ($34.2 million). In this context, Dave Meltzer reported on WOR that Vince McMahon believes many stars are being overpaid despite only 8% of the company's revenue going to superstars:

"On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer indicated that every wrestler in WWE is underpaid because only about 8% of WWE's total revenue is paid to the wrestlers. Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar are the only wrestlers making five million dollars per year, and a couple others make north of three million dollars per year. Vince McMahon thinks many of the wrestlers are overpaid."

We hope this isn't true because the superstars are the attraction, but the remuneration only proves that the company views every star as replaceable.

#1. Hope is true: WWE's plans for an AEW star to face Big E at SummerSlam 2021

Aleister Black's WWE career ended abruptly after his highly-anticipated return. He had a new look, character, and entrance music, but it never came to fruition. Black returned to WWE after a hiatus lasting longer than half a year and began a feud with Big E.

It caused a lot of buzz, but he was abruptly released, and a month later, he jumped ship to AEW. Since then, he has gone by the name Malakai Black and has enjoyed a steady, progressive push in the company.

Black was viewed as one of WWE's biggest missed opportunities, and a man who Paul Heyman pushed for behind the scenes during his tenure as the RAW Executive Director.

According to TalkSPORT, WWE reportedly had plans for a SummerSlam match between Big E and Aleister Black:

"TalkSPORT's Alex McCarthy exclusively revealed on Wrestling Daily – part of the WrestleTalk network – that there were plans for [Aleister] Black to face Big E at SummerSlam."

We hope this is true because it would have put both men in a high-profile match at SummerSlam. Big E had an underwhelming Kickoff show match against Baron Corbin instead, although he was on the receiving end of the biggest push of his WWE career following the bout.