CM Punk Wants Stone Cold, The Rock; John Cena Talks Return; WWE Rumors on Lashley
Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.
CM Punk Taunts Stone Cold, Teases Dream Match
For years, WWE fans fantasy-booked a match between CM Punk and Stone Cold Steve Austin. The idea looked dead and buried after Punk's abrupt exit from WWE in 2014 and with Austin only getting older.
Punk hasn't given up, though.
At Fanatics Fest on Saturday, the Straight-Edge Superstar goaded Austin a bit by saying "his six-shooters might be buried in the Nevada desert" but that he's ready and waiting if the Hall of Famer wants to step in the ring again.
Austin, for his part, fanned the flames in February when he told ESPN's Marc Raimondi he wasn't ruling out having one more match and offered praise of Punk.
"I like Punk, and I think Punk likes me — so, as long as he can take a [Stone Cold] Stunner," he said. "I consider him a great friend, a great guy and a great wrestler who's had a great career. We'll see."
WWE provided the blueprint for how to utilize the Texas Rattlesnake in his No Holds Barred match with Kevin Owens to close out the first night of WrestleMania 38. It made for a great spectacle that covered for the fact Austin is clearly limited physically in what he can do.
It appears Punk and Austin are at least open to exploring something similar down the road.
Cena 'Will Not Miss' Raw Debut on Netflix
Starting in January, WWE will be breaking new ground by airing Raw on Netflix. The debut show figures to be a star-studded affair as the promotion will want to make as big a splash as possible.
John Cena confirmed in a red-carpet interview with Complex he will be on hand.
"It's an event I will not miss," he said. "I will be there."
The 16-time world champion first announced at Money in the Bank in July he intends to retire from wrestling after enjoying one last run with WWE in 2025. He provided a few more details about his farewell tour in the post-show press conference, telling reporters he expects to compete across the year and work between 30 to 40 dates.
Given their prominence on the WWE calendar, it's safe to assume the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania will be two of those occasions. Raw's inaugural Netflix show would be a good place to point toward how Cena might be used at the Rumble and along the "Road to WrestleMania."
Bobby Lashley No Longer Signed to WWE, Future Appearances Still Possible
Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp reported Bobby Lashley isn't under contract with WWE, making him a free agent. "Sources within WWE said that the door was open for eventual appearances," Sapp reported.
Sapp first reported in July the former world champion was likely on the way out after the company had removed him from its internal active roster. Lashley is now listed in the "WWE Alumni" section of its website.
It's unclear when or even if the 48-year-old intends to return to WWE or sign with another wrestling company. In an appearance on The Laboratory with Plaz, he sounded excited to explore new athletic avenues.
""I love to be able to push myself to do things that are ridiculous. I set goals for myself every day," he said. "What can I do? How far can I push myself? How much can I do? I want to run a marathon. I'm going to try to do that pretty soon. I'll do jiu-jitsu, I'm going to try and win a world championship in jiu-jitsu. I'm going to do a boxing match. We've already talked about this boxing match. I might have an opportunity to do it. I'm boxing somebody in Vegas. There is an opponent."
For now, fans have seen the last of Lashley in WWE for the foreseeable future and he might be ready to leave wrestling behind altogether.
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