WWE Talent Working Job Scared, Bayley vs. Sasha Banks, More SummerSlam Plans, Does Raw Star Have Heat?

What is the current backstage atmosphere in WWE?

There is a lot of talent working “job scared” in WWE at the moment. The independent scene is virtually non-existent and there remains a lot of uncertainty in regards to the COVID-19 pandemic. Just look at the amount of talent WWE cut in April. While several of them have garnered interest from other promotions, with some being fortunate enough to get deals, they went the entire duration of their 90-day non-compete deals with literally no movement in regards to the indies. Bottomline: no one wants to get released right now. Everyone is angling to get on TV and to be used more often. Earlier this week, I explained how talent earnings have been impacted in WWE by the COVID-19 pandemic. You will see some stars speaking out but right now, most of the mid-tier workers are trying not to “rock the boat.”

We now have two title matches set for SummerSlam, what else should we expect?

Drew McIntyre vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship and The Street Profits vs. Andrade and Angel Garza for the Raw Tag Team Championship are both official for SummerSlam. These matches were expected and were added the card without any surprises. Another title match that you can expect is “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt vs. Braun Strowman for the WWE Universal Championship. Other than that, we are not expecting Brock Lesnar due to the fact the show is not expected to be in front of a live audience. Matt Riddle should be on the card, whether or not it will be against AJ Styles or King Corbin. The location for the show is still undetermined with Vince McMahon looking to make the show special.

I have read so many different things on Aleister Black. What’s going on with him?

Vince McMahon is high up on Aleister Black but Murphy taking him out and trying to remove his eye on Raw could be used as a way to write him off television. It is unknown why WWE would do this but he does not appear to have any type of backstage heat at the moment. WWE could look to tweak his character but it is currently something under a “wait and see” approach.

What are your thoughts on Sasha Banks going over Asuka for the WWE Raw Women’s Championship?

Sasha Banks winning the WWE Raw Women’s Championship will undoubtedly play into the inevitable split between her and WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley. A split between Banks and Bayley has been the slow burn of all slow burns but I truly believe Banks officially winning the title plays into that. As for how it happened, WWE used Bayley beating up Kairi Sane backstage with the footage mysteriously ending up on the big screen to lure Asuka out of the ring to draw the count out. I thought that was a poor finish to an otherwise good match. WWE wanted to show Asuka cared more about her friend than the title but why was the footage randomly played on the big screen? Couldn’t WWE have done something near ringside instead? I hate when logic is ignored and fans are just expected to believe in the coincidence. Sane is gone and I expect Asuka is going to want a rematch but there will be a time when Bayley and Banks are feuding.

The next installment of Ask WNC is scheduled to run on Thursday, July 30, 2020.

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