More Vince McMahon-XFL Rumors and the Most Controversial WWE Stories of the Week

As 2017 comes to an end, WWE's non-stop schedule will give way to a newsworthy 2018, as things such as professional football, the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania are set to dominate the headlines.

And with WrestleMania season on deck, CEO Vince McMahon could be the busiest man in WWE for an entirely different set of reasons.

Vince McMahon Sells $100M of WWE Stock Amid XFL Speculation

Vince McMahon moved one step closer to making his mind-boggling revival of the XFL—or whatever he chooses to call a rival football league to the NFL—a reality.

According to Darren Rovell of ESPN (h/t Joshua Gagnon of Wrestling Inc), McMahon sold 3.34 million shares of his WWE stock, equating to roughly $100 million, to fund Alpha Entertainment, LLC. According to a WWE spokesperson, that company was launched "to explore investment opportunities across the sports and entertainment landscapes, including professional football."

The seemingly imminent announcement of a new football league would only intensify what already figures to be a wild 2018 for WWE.

Paige Suffers Injury Scare at WWE Live Event

Paige suffered an injury scare at a WWE live event in Uniondale, New York, after a scary spot with Sasha Banks caused damage to her rib, shoulder or head, according to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc).

The injury caused a chilling standstill as Absolution's match against Banks, Bayley and Mickie James was abruptly canceled.

Paige is said to be doing much better but was pulled from subsequent live events, per Meltzer (h/t Raj Giri of Wrestling Inc).

Paige returned to WWE in November after a yearlong layoff, stemming from neck surgery. As a focal point of the women's division ahead of WrestleMania season, her loss would be debilitating, to say the least.

Hideo Itami Injures Brian Kendrick with a Stiff GTS

After coming into the promotion with an impressive rollout that featured Hulk Hogan, Hideo Itami's WWE career has been plagued with injury, whether they are being suffered or caused by the former Pro Wrestling Noah standout.

After struggling through various complications from shoulder surgery for over a year, Itami was involved in the match wherein Scott Dawson suffered a jaw injury in April, with The Revival member consequently missing significant time, per Joseph Currier of F4WOnline.

The Japanese's stiff GTS Monday caused an injury to The Brian Kendrick's orbital bone, per WWE.com (h/t Giri). Itami has been snakebitten throughout his runs on both the NXT and WWE main roster. Stuck in the cruiserweight division, Itami will have an uphill climb to relevance in the worldwide leader.

John Cena Rumored for Big WrestleMania 34 Match

A big WrestleMania match featuring John Cena is in the works, according to a highly speculative report by Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Wrestling Inc).

Plans for Cena are said to be much bigger than a match against AJ Styles in what could be a quest to win his record-breaking 17th world championship.

A big-name part-timer appears to be in the mix for a superfight that would be a far departure from Cena's battles against up-and-comers over the past few WrestleManias.

With Cena's days numbered as even a part-time star in WWE, it will be interesting to see what WWE has in store for its biggest star.

Alfred Konuwa is a Featured Columnist and on-air host for Bleacher Report and Forbes. Like him on Facebook.