Bad Bunny Eyes Roman Reigns; WWE's Khan Talks CM Punk; Latest on Triple H's Future

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

---

Bad Bunny Wants Match vs. Roman Reigns

Bad Bunny has made a massive impact in limited appearances as a part-time attraction for WWE, and he has his sights set on what would be the biggest match of his career thus far.

In an interview with Michelle Ruiz of Vanity Fair, the Grammy Award-winning musician suggested that he wants to mix it up with the undisputed WWE universal champion of the past three years, saying: "My plan is to take the title from Roman Reigns."

Bad Bunny has only had a handful of matches, making his in-ring debut at WrestleMania 37 in 2021, winning a tag team match alongside Damian Priest over The Miz and John Morrison.

More recently, Bad Bunny competed in his home country of Puerto Rico at Backlash in May, defeating Priest in a San Juan Street Fight thanks to help from the LWO and Puerto Rican wrestling legends Carlito and Savio Vega.

While Bad Bunny has had plenty of help along the way and has benefited from proverbial bells and whistles being added to his matches, he has impressed every chance he has gotten.

A big reason for that is likely his genuine love for pro wrestling, as he is a longtime fan and told Ruiz what he enjoys about it, noting: "I liked everything—the creativity, the characters, the fact that each wrestler has his own entrance song, like a soundtrack that identifies you."

Reigns is the face of WWE and one of the most dominant world champions of all time, having held a world title for over 1,000 days consecutively.

The Tribal Chief doesn't typically go up against novice wrestlers like Bad Bunny, but it won't be the first time if it does come to fruition.

In just the second singles match of his career, Logan Paul faced Reigns at Crown Jewel last year, and the bout was widely praised for how entertaining and exciting it was.

Reigns would likely be able to pull off something similar with Bad Bunny, so it won't be a shock if they do lock horns eventually.

---

Nick Khan Thanks Punk for Time in WWE

Amid speculation regarding CM Punk possibly returning to WWE following his AEW release, WWE president Nick Khan discussed the former WWE and AEW world champion this week.

ESPN's Marc Raimondi (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News) asked Khan about WWE's potential interest in Punk, and he gave something of a non-answer, saying:

"Listen, we only have respect for Phil [Brooks aka Punk]. We appreciate his run here. We appreciate what he did and tried to do with the UFC. Not many people can actually get in there and do what he did. So, when we have respect for Phil, we wish him nothing but the best."

Khan gave no indication whether WWE has any intention to speak to Punk, which isn't particularly surprising since that type of move would likely be kept under wraps even if it were to happen.

Additionally, WWE and UFC officially merged this week into a singular company, meaning executives like Khan are primarily focused elsewhere at the moment.

Punk was a multi-time world champion and huge star in WWE before walking out in January 2014. He stayed out of wrestling for over seven years before making his return with AEW in 2021.

His run in AEW was plagued by injuries and controversies, as he reportedly got into backstage altercations with the likes of Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks and "Jungle Boy" Jack Perry.

A reported tussle with Perry at All In was the final straw and led directly to Punk's AEW contract getting terminated.

It isn't clear if there is any type of mutual interest between Punk and WWE, but if Punk wants to continue wrestling at a high level, WWE may be his only option.

Bringing in Punk typically would have been a Vince McMahon decision in the past, but many more people would be involved in such a decision post-merger, and since Punk has history in both WWE and UFC, it isn't outside the realm of possibility that something could get worked out.

---

Triple H Remains Head of Creative After WWE Merger

Despite the merger of WWE and UFC into a new company called TKO, there won't be a significant change to the role of one of WWE's primary decision-makers.

According to Raimondi, Khan said Triple H will remain in his current position as WWE head of creative and chief content officer.

Those are roles Triple H has held since the summer of 2022 when Vince McMahon stepped down as WWE's head of creative, chairman and CEO.

McMahon returned in January to facilitate the sale of WWE to Endeavor Group Holdings, and he is now the executive chairman of TKO, but Triple H's job title is unchanged.

Since McMahon's return in January, rumors have persisted that he has had a hand in creative decisions and at times made changes to the Raw and SmackDown scripts remotely.

McMahon went on medical leave in July after undergoing spinal surgery, but Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t F4WOnline's Joseph Currier) reported that McMahon made changes to this week's episode of Raw and has been part of the creative process for weeks.

It remains unclear precisely how much input McMahon has on a weekly basis and whether he has final authority over creative decisions, but Triple H is undoubtedly a significant part of the creative process regardless.

WWE has long been a collaborative effort from a creative standpoint, and that is likely still the case, but in terms of decision-makers who are present backstage at Raw and SmackDown, it sounds like Triple H will continue to be the point man moving forward.

---

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below.