Jeff Hardy Almost Given Huge WrestleMania Role
WrestleMania 36 is done and everybody is probably breathing a sigh of relief. Due to the coronavirus, the event underwent several drastic changes.
One of the biggest changes took place about 10 days out. Due his battles with leukemia, Roman Reigns opted to not compete against WWE Universal Champion Bill Goldberg.
Instead, Braun Strowman filled the spot last minute and won the title within minutes. Apparently, WWE thought about giving Jeff Hardy the spot and placing the gold on him.
The news was first reported by Wrestle Talk. Of course, WWE decided to go with Strowman during night one of WrestleMania 36.
As for Jeff, he did not work the show. Recently, he returned to WWE TV after being out for almost a year due to injury.
While away, Matt Hardy departed WWE and joined All Elite Wrestling. Jeff’s contract was frozen for all the time he missed because of injuries and legal matters.
Currently, Jeff is dealing with a DWI case. He was set to appear before a judge, but that has been pushed back.
It will be interring to see how long Strowman is Universal Champion. The idea was for Reigns to win the belt at WrestleMania 36, although he could be out indefinitely until the coronavirus numbers begin to settle or a vaccine is created.
Before Strowman won the title, he was always close to the main event picture. Yet, he rubbed some people the wrong way with how he handled himself off TV.
WWE had few options to fill Reigns’ spot and they ultimately went with Strowman. It will be interesting if he drops the title quickly or has a lengthy run as WWE continues to air from the Performance Center.
Rhea Ripley Off TV?
Speaking of WrestleMania 36, Rhea Ripley made history at the show. She became the first wrestler to defend an NXT title in the event’s history.
Unfortunately, she lost the NXT Women’s Championship to Charlotte Flair on night two of WrestleMania 36. Apparently, Flair will be defending the title across all three brands; as NXT looks to bring in a larger audience.
As for Ripley, she could be off TV for a while. PWInsider is repotting that she returned to Australia as her visa was expiring.
According to https://t.co/ytShgXE0eY, Rhea Ripley may have dropped the NXT Women’s Championship at WrestleMania as her work visa has now expired and she has to return to Australia to renew it.
They also report that Ripley won’t be a part of the next set of NXT tapings.
— Gary Cassidy (@consciousgary) April 7, 2020
Thus, there is no word on when Ripley will return to TV. Considering how many countries are not forbidding people to travel, she might be away for the foreseeable future.
Flair’s next opponent will be decided shortly. Tomorrow’s episode of NXT will see a new No. 1 contender crowned.
Io Shirai, Mia Yim, Tegan Nox, Dakota Kai, Chelsea Green and Candice LeRae will compete in ladder match with the winner getting the next title shot. Also on Wednesday’s episode, Johnny Gargano and Tomasa Ciampa will meet for the final time.
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