WWE Rumors on CM Punk vs. Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins; AEW's Hardy Boys Eye Heel Turn

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

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WWE Reportedly Slow Playing Road to Punk vs. Reigns

WWE reportedly wants a feud and match between CM Punk and Roman Reigns at some point, but the company isn't rushing to make it happen.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), WWE wants to "take a lot of time" before getting to Punk vs. Reigns, and it is the "obvious ultimate direction" for both Superstars.

Punk returned at Survivor Series in his hometown of Chicago, and during his first promo on the following episode of Raw, Punk mentioned a "wise man" who was believed to be Paul Heyman.

Heyman was pivotal to Punk's success in his first WWE run, and they are believed to be close friends, which makes Heyman a major link between Punk and Reigns.

Meltzer noted that he heard speculation of Heyman possibly spurning Reigns for Punk at some point, which would lead to a Reigns face turn and an eventual match against Punk.

Reigns has been world champion for over three years, coinciding with his heel turn and alliance with Heyman. During that time, Reigns established himself as the clear face of the company.

One of the few Superstars in WWE who can rival Reigns when it comes to popularity and overall interest is Punk, so it seems like a given that WWE will get them together eventually.

Right now, WWE appears to be setting the stage for Punk vs. Seth Rollins, while Reigns clearly still has unfinished business with Cody Rhodes.

Assuming Punk vs. Rollins and Reigns vs. Rhodes are the headline matches for WrestleMania 40, Punk vs. Reigns makes a lot of sense as the WrestleMania 41 main event.

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WWE Reportedly Tested Punk with Rollins Outburst

Seth Rollins' negative reaction toward CM Punk's WWE return at Survivor Series was reportedly planned by WWE all along.

After Survivor Series went off the air, video surfaced on social media, showing Rollins cursing at Punk, flipping him off and having to be held back by WWE personnel.

It was also reported by Fightful Select (h/t Steve Carrier of Ringside News) that Rollins was "looking for" Punk backstage after the show and had to be directed away from Punk. It was also noted that Punk was "confused" and it made for an "awkward scene."

According to Meltzer (h/t Upton), Rollins' actions were manufactured and planned ahead of time, and they were meant to test Punk in a way.

Meltzer referred to it as an "angle," which suggests WWE potentially has footage of the incident and could release it once the Punk vs. Rollins feud officially begins.

Before Punk's return, Rollins had some disparaging things to say about him in interviews, even calling him a "cancer" at one point.

During his promo on Raw, Rollins called Punk a "hypocrite" before saying he didn't want to waste any additional energy on the freshly returned star.

Punk and Rollins worked together a bit during Punk's first run with WWE, and while there may be some legitimate bad blood between them, that isn't likely to stop WWE from putting them together.

Rollins is a pro, and while Punk had backstage issues in AEW that led to his release, he figures to be on his best behavior early in his WWE tenure.

With Rollins and Punk already taking shots at each other, a match between them seems inevitable at either Royal Rumble or WrestleMania 40.

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Hardys Interested in AEW Heel Run

Matt and Jeff Hardy have almost exclusively been babyfaces throughout their career when teaming together, but the veteran wrestlers expressed interest this week in having a heel run in AEW.

Speaking on the Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast (starting at the 47:55 mark), Jeff said he is "most excited" about The Hardys going heel since it is something they haven't really done before as a team:

Jeff added that going heel "feels like the right thing to do" at this stage in their careers, and Matt agreed.

Matt and Jeff enjoyed their greatest success as The Hardy Boyz in WWE, winning nine world tag team titles together.

In March 2020, Matt joined AEW after leaving WWE, and while Jeff remained in WWE for a time, he received his release in December 2021 and joined Matt in AEW in March 2022.

The initial Hardys run in AEW was short-lived since Jeff was suspended in June 2022 following a DUI arrest. Jeff returned to AEW programming 10 months later and reunited with Matt.

While the reunion felt like a big moment when it happened, The Hardys have not been used in big spots over the past few months, and Matt admitted on the podcast (h/t Ian Carey of F4WOnline) that he has been frustrated by their usage, saying:

"Creatively, just the way we've been utilized the last four months, it's been very frustrating. We've been very patient but there has been a lot of frustration [with] things we've done, and kind of how we've been utilized in some ways. ...

"I feel like there is such a great spot for us at AEW if we're just utilized in the correct way and we've just got to get there. ... There's a huge fanbase that wants to see us and we're beloved. Sure, we're not Matt and Jeff Hardy of 1999 and 2000, but there is so much we can do to help young guys continue to come up and also give our rub-off to these young guys, but we just need to be utilized in the right way. And we hope we can get there, we feel like we're taking steps in the correct direction now."

While The Hardys have not been major factors in the tag team division since Jeff's return, a heel turn could be the catalyst needed to get them in the spotlight.

AEW has some hugely popular babyface tag teams such as FTR and The Acclaimed, and heel Hardys could be ideal opponents for them.

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