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Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.
Rollins Talks How WWE Return Came Together
Seth Rollins is set to challenge Damian Priest for the World Heavyweight Championship at Money in the Bank, putting him right back into the main event mix after missing some time with a knee injury.
Rollins made his surprise return on the June 17 episode of Raw, and in an interview with ComicBook.com's Matt Aguilar (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News) this week, The Visionary explained how the decision was made for when and how he would re-enter the mix:
"I had a few weeks notice. We kind of looked at the timeline of the injury and looked at the stories and where I fell back into place. You never really know how things are going to go. The top of the card here on Raw is stacked. You have guys like Damian Priest, Drew McIntyre, CM Punk whenever he is around and able, Gunther waiting in the wings, Rey Mysterio, Judgment Day. It's stacked.
"It was interesting to see where I could slide in. The time felt right. Coming off Clash at the Castle, it was ripe for the picking. Damian Priest needed a challenger, so I hopped right in."
Rollins last competed at WrestleMania 40 in April. He and Cody Rhodes lost a tag team match to Roman Reigns and The Rock in the main event of Night 1, and Rollins dropped the world heavyweight title to Drew McIntyre on Night 2, although Rollins did help Rhodes beat Reigns in the Night 2 main event.
It was clear at WrestleMania that Rollins was hobbled by a knee ailment that caused him to miss significant time prior to WrestleMania, so it came as little surprise when he was off WWE programming for more than two months after WrestleMania.
What was surprising was the time and place of Rollins' return since most assumed he would be out for much longer.
Given that Rollins held the world heavyweight title for nearly a year before his loss at WrestleMania, announcing his intention to win the title back from Priest was a natural first step.
After this Monday's Raw, the stakes for that match at Money in the Bank are now even higher, as Rollins can not challenge Priest again for the title if he loses, whereas Priest must leave The Judgment Day if he loses.
Rhodes Discusses Moment with Cena at WrestleMania 40
Cody Rhodes scored the biggest victory of his career at WrestleMania 40, beating Roman Reigns in the main event to finally finish his story and become WWE champion.
While it was a heavy moment and the culmination of years of hard work, The American Nightmare still found a way to take in and enjoy his surroundings.
On a recent episode of Behind the Turnbuckle with Jonathan Coachman (h/t Nikunj Walia of Ringside News), Rhodes described a moment from the match that will always stick with him involving his longtime friend and mentor John Cena:
"There is a particular moment at WrestleMania 40 that will stick with me forever. It's not necessarily the one, two, three as much as I was really big under the learning tree and a student of John Cena's. I liked his model, from a businessman, as a babyface character in wrestling. More than that, I liked the model and the standard he is as a human being. As a good ambassador for wrestling. As an authentic ambassador.
"Our fans can smell when this is not authentic. He was the right person for that job. We're in the ring, and Undertaker and Rock have their moment. John is off camera against the back wall, watching the end of Roman and I, as we're both coming up. I just got to make eye contact with John. I don't think I've ever learned anything more in my life than just the moment of eye contact with the captain, the leader, the dude. He's out here to be part of this for me. It's super touching. Having that moment with him, just brief contact, knowing I'm about to turn around and what's about to happen, that's the high of highs."
The Rhodes vs. Reigns match at WrestleMania was contested under Bloodline Rules, meaning it was anything goes. As a result, there was a ton of outside interference.
The Rock, Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso interfered on The Tribal Chief's behalf, while Cena, The Undertaker, Seth Rollins and Jey Uso helped out Cody.
In many ways, Rhodes is the successor to Cena as a beloved babyface who is especially popular with children, so it is fitting that Cena played a role in his victory.
Rhodes' win is something that will be remembered and replayed for many years to come, and it is clear that it holds a special place in Cody's heart.
Reported Details on Injury Suffered by Ludwig Kaiser on Raw
Ludwig Kaiser beat Bron Breakker by disqualification in a match on Monday night's episode of Raw, but he reportedly came out of the contest worse for wear.
According to PWInsider.com's Mike Johnson (h/t Walia), Kaiser was favoring his side and one of his arms backstage and had to be checked out by WWE's medical team.
The match against Breakker was a hard-hitting affair that saw both Superstars absorb a ton of punishment, plus Sheamus got involved and caused the DQ by taking out Kaiser.
Breakker put an exclamation point on things by spearing Sheamus while he had Kaiser up for an attempted Celtic Cross through the announce table.
The exact nature of Kaiser's injury is unclear, as is the severity, but he may have been significant enough to force WWE to alter some of its plans involving him.
Per WrestleVotes, Kaiser was originally supposed to face Sheamus and Drew McIntyre in a Triple Threat Money in the Bank qualifier on next week's Raw, but Ilja Dragunov was announced as part of the match rather than Kaiser.
In recent weeks, WWE has been pushing Kaiser as a singles star rather than simply the sidekick of Gunther.
Kaiser has gained some traction as a hated heel and has some big wins under his belt, beating Sheamus in addition to his DQ victory over Breakker.
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