Cena vs. Reigns WWE Crown Jewel Buzz; Adam Copeland's AEW Success; Cole Injury Update

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.

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WWE Possibly Building Toward Reigns vs. Cena

With John Cena and LA Knight set to team up against The Bloodline's Jimmy Uso and Solo Sikoa at Fastlane on Saturday, WWE may be building toward an even bigger match for Cena.

Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Andrew Ravens of WrestlingNews.co) said this week that it "feels like" WWE may be setting up a match between Cena and undisputed WWE universal champion Roman Reigns next month at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia.

In recent weeks, Cena has been embroiled in a rivalry with The Bloodline, and while it looked like he was going to have to face Uso and Sikoa in a handicap match at Fastlane, Knight showed up last week on SmackDown to save Cena from a Bloodline attack, and he signed on to be Cena's partner.

During an appearance on WWE's The Bump this week (h/t WrestlingInc's Danny Wolstanholme), Cena suggested that he still has a bone to pick with Reigns, saying:

"The last time I did get a fair fight, I finished second, which isn't too bad. You know, as long as you're in the WWE, it's unfinished business. As long as you're here, there's another match, there's another chance, there's, you know, another day. So is unfinished business [a] question mark? Sure, because we're always here."

The most recent singles match between Reigns and Cena took place at SummerSlam 2021, and it saw Reigns beat Cena to retain the Universal Championship.

Then, in December 2022, Cena teamed with Kevin Owens on an episode of SmackDown to beat Reigns and Sami Zayn in a tag team match.

If Cena vs. Reigns happens at Crown Jewel, there would be some intrigue since Cena is currently tied with Ric Flair for the most career world title reigns at 16.

At the same time, it seems unlikely that Cena would beat Reigns, especially with the likes of Cody Rhodes and possibly even The Rock pursuing the title.

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Copeland's AEW Dynamite Debut Does Big Numbers on YouTube

Adam Copeland made his AEW debut at WrestleDream last weekend, and followed it up with his first Dynamite appearance on Wednesday.

As of Friday morning, the YouTube video of Copeland's debut at WrestleDream had done 4.7 million views, while his Dynamite debut video had been viewed 2.2 million times.

Copeland was previously known as Edge in WWE and had spent nearly his entire pro wrestling career with the company. He was forced to retire from in-ring competition in 2011 due to a neck injury, but he made a surprise return in 2020.

Once Copeland's WWE contract expired at the end of September, rumors run rampant that he would appear at WrestleDream, and that is precisely what happened.

After Copeland's longtime friend, Christian Cage, beat Darby Allin to retain the TNT Championship, the trio of Cage, Luchasaurus and Nick Wayne attacked Allin and Sting, prompting Copeland to make the save.

Copeland took out Luchasaurus and Wayne, but he did not get physical with Cage, prompting speculation on what that could mean.

On Dynamite, Copeland cut a promo and called Christian out to the ring. He proceeded to tell Cage that he wanted to have one last run with him as a tag team, but Christian turned him down.

On next week's Dynamite, Copeland will make his AEW in-ring debut when he faces Luchasaurus, which figures to further the storyline between Copeland and Cage.

All signs point toward a rivalry and match between Copeland and Cage, and once that wraps up, a reunion may very well be in the cards.

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Cole Says He Needs Two Ankle Surgeries

Adam Cole announced this week that the ankle injury he suffered on a recent episode of Dynamite will require multiple surgeries.

Speaking on his Twitch stream (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), Cole said doctors told him he will need two surgeries, and will have four plates and four screws inserted into his ankle.

Cole also said the ailment is the most painful injury he has ever dealt with over the course of his 15-year pro wrestling career.

On the Grand Slam edition of Dynamite, two weeks ago, Cole made his way to the ring to support his tag team partner, MJF, during his AEW World Championship defense against Samoa Joe.

While Cole stayed at ringside for the duration of the match, he seemed to take an awkward step off the stage and could be seen limping around during and after the contest.

There was some speculation that the injury was actually a work and part of a bigger storyline that would result in Cole facing and potentially beating MJF for the AEW world title.

Cole had been scheduled to defend the ROH World Tag Team Championships with MJF against The Righteous at WrestleDream, but since Cole was unable to compete, MJF defended them in a handicap match and won.

It is possible that AEW could eventually work Cole's injury into the angle and use it as a way for him to betray MJF, but as of now, all signs point toward it being a legitimate ankle injury.

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