WWE Rumors on Drew McIntyre's Injury, Tama Tonga's Contract and Shawn Spears' Return
Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.
McIntyre Reportedly Not Expected to Miss Time Despite Injury
Drew McIntyre reportedly suffered a legitimate injury during his win in the men's Elimination Chamber match at the Elimination Chamber premium live event in Perth, Australia, last weekend.
Following the event, McIntyre appeared on WWE's The Bump (h/t PWMania.com's James Hetfield) and said he believed he suffered a ruptured eardrum during the match:
"I can barely hear the words after getting hit in the ear so hard. It's fine. I said I would do whatever it takes, not just for me but for everybody else. And every superplex, every dive off the cage, every powerbomb in the back of my neck was worth it. I said I'd go through any obstacle. Push Cody [Rhodes] to finish his story, that's what the fans wanted. Push Seth [Rollins] to stop being selfish.
"Some people are like, it's just so you can get Seth at WrestleMania. Yeah, I just had to beat AJ Styles and I just had to put myself through hell while jet lagged, while this eardrum appears to be burst. Worth it. I did it for each and every one of you. We're so close, so close. WrestleMania, we finish our own story and I finally get my moment."
Per PWInsider Elite (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), McIntyre's injury is "100 percent legitimate," but he isn't expected to miss any time because of it.
At Elimination Chamber, McIntyre beat out Randy Orton, Logan Paul, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley and LA Knight to earn the right to face Seth Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 40.
He has fallen just short of winning the title on a couple of occasions, but McIntyre may enter WrestleMania as the favorite to beat Rollins, who is coming off a knee injury.
The Scottish Warrior has often talked about wanting his big WrestleMania moment in front of fans, as he had to settle for winning the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 36 in an empty warehouse due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Luckily for McIntyre, it doesn't seem as though his ear ailment will prevent him from competing on the Grandest Stage of Them All.
Tonga, WWE Reportedly Agree to Contract
After seemingly years of speculation, Tama Tonga is reportedly soon set to arrive in WWE.
According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Steve Carrier of Ringside News), the former New Japan Pro-Wrestling star has officially signed with WWE.
Tonga, who is the 41-year-old adopted son of WWE legend Haku, made his pro wrestling debut in 2008 and had been with New Japan since 2010.
In addition to being a key member of Bullet Club, Tonga enjoyed an enormous amount of success in a tag team with his brother, Tanga Loa, called the Guerrillas of Destiny.
The Guerrillas of Destiny won the IWGP Tag Team Championships a record seven times, plus Tonga won the NEVER Openweight Championship four times on his own.
While there has been no indication that Loa or Tonga's other brother, Hikuleo, are set to follow him to WWE, his arrival could open the door for them to make the move at some point as well.
It isn't yet clear what the initial plans are for Tonga in WWE, but there has been some thought that he may start in NXT since Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson recently started appearing on the brand.
Tonga could potentially reunite with Gallows and Anderson, going back to their Bullet Club roots, especially since Gallows and Anderson have been at odds with AJ Styles recently.
Also, Tonga and his family are essentially considered to be a part of the Anoa'i family despite not being blood relatives, which could set the stage for him to join The Bloodline at some point.
Reported Details on Spears' WWE Return in NXT
Shawn Spears made a surprise return to WWE on Tuesday night, as he appeared on NXT and hit Ridge Holland with a steel chair.
While returns and debuts are often reported ahead of time, that wasn't the case with Spears, and WWE going to great lengths to keep it a secret was a big reason why.
According to Fightful Select (h/t Carrier), Spears was not listed on any internal run sheets, and NXT head Shawn Michaels actually served as Spears' stand-in during rehearsals to prevent anything from leaking.
Fightful also reported that Spears was hidden backstage before his appearance, which aided in keeping the secret under wraps.
The 43-year-old Spears is embarking on his third stint with WWE, as he wrestled under the name Gavin Spears on ECW from 2008 to 2009 and then as Tye Dillinger in NXT and on WWE's main roster from 2013 to 2019.
Following his release from WWE, Spears signed with AEW and began wrestling as Shawn Spears. He also became known as "The Chairman" due to his propensity for hitting his opponent with steel chairs.
Spears had some success in AEW, and was part of the Pinnacle stable headed by MJF, but he was used sparingly after the stable disbanded in 2022, and he became a free agent at the start of 2024.
WWE seems to be treating Spears as a completely new Superstar, opting to give him the Shawn Spears name rather than calling him Tye Dillinger.
Spears got people buzzing with his return on Tuesday, and he could be in the ideal spot, as the 22-year veteran will get to both perform and help teach the up-and-coming young stars on WWE's developmental brand.
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