Brock Lesnar Update, ZZ Loupe Released and Top WWE News from Week of July 30

The past week has been a busy time in WWE. Not only did we have the Battleground pay-per-view, but we also got to see what Raw and SmackDown were like after the brand extension.

Let's take a look at some of the biggest headlines from the past seven days.

John Cena's American Grit Renewed for Season 2

According to WWE.com, Fox has renewed John Cena's competition reality show American Grit for a second season, with Cena returning as a host and executive producer.

For those who did not watch the first season, American Grit takes 16 civilians and splits them up into four teams, with each group being captained by someone from a certain branch of the military.

The first season featured two winners taking home $250,000 each after surviving 10 grueling weeks of obstacle-course challenges inspired by real military training exercises.

All of that leads us to believe Cena will be taking another stretch of time away from WWE at some point to film the series.

Shelton Benjamin and Rhyno Return to WWE

As seen during the July 26 episode of SmackDown, Rhyno made his return to the company during a segment that saw the former ECW champion Gore Heath Slater out of his boots.

The same show also revealed Shelton Benjamin will be making his return in the near future, confirming  WWE's plan to bring back some established names to help put over the new generation of stars.

"

I'm Comin' Home!!! #SmackdownLive @wwe https://t.co/4HNCuwTeay

— Shelton J. Benjamin (@Sheltyb803) July 27, 2016"

Rhyno has worked several dates in NXT over the past year, but this will be the first time we will see Benjamin since he left WWE in 2010.

Since being released, Benjamin has competed all around the world for promotions like Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling. He is an amazing athlete who is still capable of outperforming many of the current Superstars, so it will be interesting to see how he is used once he is back in the mix.

WWE Couple Ties the Knot

We all know Rusev and Lana are a couple in real life, and they finally tied the knot in a ceremony this past week.

Several WWE talents attended the wedding, including many of the women Lana will appear with during the next season of Total Divas.

The Bulgarian Brute and The Ravishing Russian have talked about getting married during promos recently, so don't be surprised if WWE acknowledges the union on Raw.

Three Developmental Talents Released, Including Tough Enough Contestant

According to Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com, WWE has released developmental talents Josh Woods, Tom Kingdon and Zamariah "ZZ" Loupe.

Woods and Kingdon had limited exposure on WWE television, but many will remember Loupe as the alligator wrestler who inexplicably made it to the finals of the most recent season of Tough Enough.

Loupe's journey at the Performance Center was chronicled on the WWE Network show Breaking Ground. He made it to the final round of Tough Enough before losing to former Green Bay Packer Josh Bredl.

Loupe lost a lot of weight while training, but his cardio was always an issue for trainers. His charisma and personality were his most important assets, and with all the exposure he got during Tough Enough and Breaking Ground, it wouldn't be surprising to hear about him signing with an indy promotion in the future.

Two Title Matches Added to SummerSlam

WWE hit the ground running during the first week of the brand extension by setting up two title matches for SummerSlam on Raw and SmackDown.

After Stephanie McMahon and Mick Foley announced the creation of the Universal Championship to serve as Raw's top title, they put together three matches to determine who would face Seth Rollins for it at SummerSlam.

Finn Balor shocked the world by defeating Roman Reigns in the main event to earn the right to face Rollins for the newly minted title.

Then on SmackDown, Dolph Ziggler won a Six-Pack Challenge to become the No. 1 contender to Dean Ambrose's WWE Championship.

Both of these matches are sure to make the WWE Universe happy. Balor is already being positioned as a top star in the company, and many have wanted to see Ziggler back in the main event scene for years.

The McMahons have been calling this the New Era for months, and these two bouts seem to indicate they weren't kidding.

New Women's Champion Crowned on Raw

Setting up two incredible main events for SummerSlam was great, but nothing topped seeing Sasha Banks defeat Charlotte for the Women's Championship on Raw.

The two former NXT standouts did battle in what can only be described as an instant classic. They were given a lot of time to work, and they didn't waste a single second.

Banks is someone the WWE Universe has embraced since the moment she debuted during the Divas Revolution almost a year ago.

She gave an emotional interview following her victory, declaring "I did it!" while the crowd gave her a standing ovation. It was a special moment in The Boss' impressive career.

Charlotte was a great champion during her reign, and if she gets a rematch for the title at SummerSlam, we can expect these two amazing talents to steal the show again.

Brock Lesnar Not Subject to WWE Wellness Policy

According to TMZ, Brock Lesnar will not suffer any kind of punishment from WWE after failing two drug tests prior to his UFC fight against Mark Hunt.

The report noted a WWE spokesperson said Lesnar is not subject to the usual wellness-policy requirements because he only works for the company on a part-time basis.

This may not seem logical, but what we have to remember is WWE is considered an entertainment company, not a sports franchise.

Technically, the company doesn't have to have any kind of wellness policy at all, but WWE has implemented one after years of criticism stemming from the way it has handled concussions and performance-enhancing drugs.

Nowadays, WWE has rules and regulations that rival those of the NFL and other major sports, and it has gone to great lengths to make sure its talents are taken care of in the event of an injury.

What do you think? Is it fair for Lesnar to be exempt from the wellness policy?

Thanks for reading, and follow me on Twitter @BR_Doctor.