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Welcome to another edition of the WWE News Roundup, where we will bring you the latest top stories in the world of wrestling. SummerSlam is on the horizon, and fans are expecting to see some massive clashes in just a few hours.
The show will see Gunther defend his Intercontinental Championship in a big match against Drew McIntyre. The two men are no strangers to one another, and McIntyre remains the only man on the WWE main roster who has pinned The Austrian Anomaly.
SummerSlam will also hold many more championship matches on Saturday night. So let’s check out the biggest news stories of the day before The Biggest Party of the Summer.
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#5. Drew McIntyre questions Gunther's weight
Gunther and Drew McIntyre are scheduled to go head-to-head at Summerslam. Before their big Intercontinental Championship match, WWE posted the Tale of the Tape on its social media.
The comparison of the two stars showed Gunther’s weight as 285 lbs, while McIntyre’s weight was stated to be 262 lbs.
The Scottish Warrior took a shot at the post, mocking his opponent’s weight while addressing him by his former ring name, WALTER.
"Sure this isn’t WALTER’s weight?" wrote McIntyre.
Gunther fought under the ring name WALTER before moving to the main roster. At the time, he was significantly bigger and heavier. However, he lost a lot of weight and underwent a notable physical transformation before winning the Intercontinental Championship.
#4. The Rock was scripted to take a loss from Chris Jericho in 1999
The Rock faced off against Chris Jericho in a massive contest on the October 4, 1999, episode of WWE RAW. A day before the match, Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara left the WWE to join WCW as the company’s head writers.
Before their departure, the two men had scripted The Rock and Chris Jericho’s main event for RAW. Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda's The Wrestling Outlaws show, Russo revealed that he and Ferrara initially booked Jericho to record a huge win over The Rock. However, the outcome of the contest was changed after their departure.
"In that show, we had Jericho beating The Rock," Russo said. "Bro, it would have put a rocket on his backside and he would have gone through the roof. We left, bro, that was the only thing they changed on that show. And, bro, it literally took them two years to get Jericho over, whereas if they would have done that that night, they would have gotten him over two years quicker."
Jericho got over in the coming years, but it took him a while longer to become a megastar. It was one of the big decisions that could have changed the landscape of the wrestling industry.
#3. The IIconics turned down an offer to return to WWE
The IIconics (Peyton Royce and Billie Kay) were one of the first pure women’s tag teams of the modern era. The two had a decent run in the company that saw them win the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship for a short run.
The duo was released as part of budget cuts just a few days after WrestleMania 37 on April 15, 2021. The move led to the duo announcing a hiatus from in-ring competition.
The IIconics, on their Off Her Chops podcast, recently said that WWE contacted them and offered them a spot to participate in the Women's Royal Rumble in 2022. However, their exit from WWE was "too fresh" in their minds, and they decided to let the opportunity pass.
"Kay: Yeah. Eight months after — eight or nine months after our release? Royce: It was a little bit too fresh I think."
The duo added that they took a hiatus from wrestling as Royce and her husband, Shawn Spears, welcomed their firstborn into the world in January 2023 and wanted to focus on starting a family.
Meanwhile, Billie Kay also announced her pregnancy in June 2023 and is expected to have a child in December 2023.
#2. Doctors have advised Big E never to wrestle again
Big E has always been seen as one of the most entertaining men in the company. The former WWE Champion has achieved many things during his career.
On the March 11, 2022, episode of SmackDown, a belly-to-belly suplex from Ridge Holland resulted in Big E landing on his head. This led to an injury as the big man fractured his C1 and C6 vertebrae.
Fans haven’t seen Big E in the ring ever since, and the former WWE Champion recently opened up about his injury during the SummerSlam 2023 press conference. He revealed that the doctors have told him to stop wrestling.
"We did the year check-up and all that stuff looked great, but on the other side, I also talked to spine specialists, people who have worked on other people in the company and done their fusions and they said, 'Hey, I would not wrestle again if I were you.'"
The star also stated that he does not have any nerve pain.
"For me, at 37, these are things that I think about. I think about quality of life. When I started this job at 23 and probably had a bit of a death wish and was okay at dying in the ring, I would now like to not die in the ring. I would like to do other things with my life. I don't really have a timeline right now. I'm just really grateful to not have any nerve pain."
It’s unfortunate to see such a big star end his in-ring career due to an injury. However, it would be best for the 37-year-old to call it a day if returning to the ring could worsen his injury.
#1. WWE fulfilling Logan Paul’s request for SummerSlam
WWE fans recently learned about a huge rumored request made by Logan Paul for his match against Ricochet at SummerSlam.
The Maverick had requested WWE on his IMPAULSIVE podcast that he wanted his match against Ricochet to open up SummerSlam so he could be there for his brother Jake Paul’s boxing match later on.
It was unclear whether The One and Only would face The Maverick in the opening match of SummerSlam. However, it looks like Ricochet confirmed the rumor during a recent interview.
While talking to Lucha Libre, the former Intercontinental Champion stated that he is going to beat Logan Paul at SummerSlam so he can catch his flight to see his brother Jake Paul’s boxing match.
"I mean, he's asking for a fight. I guess Saturday I'm going to fight Logan Paul, give him a big L so he can get on his plane and fly to see his brother fight and get a loss too," the WWE star said.
Logan will only be able to catch his brother’s fight if he opens SummerSlam with Ricochet. WWE may have granted his request, allowing Ricochet to confirm the same during his interview.
Do you want to see Big E return to the WWE ring someday? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
