WWE Rumors: Brock Lesnar, Vince McMahon and Friday's Top WWE News

As we hit the final day of the week after a long, exhausting and controversial start, it will be interesting to see just what WWE tries to do with all of its big angles next week on Raw. 

The odds of Brock Lesnar being on Raw anytime soon are slim. Triple H is going to be selling his injury, though the extent of it might be changed a million times between now and Monday. John Cena has to contend with Johnny Ace. (How about that for a follow-up feud after Lesnar?)

It's sad to say the WWE championship with CM Punk and Daniel Bryan, which should be great theater to watch at Over the Limit, is going to get third billing this week. 

While we wait for WWE's answer to the events of this week's Raw, here are some tidbits of information to get you through the weekend. 

BROCK LESNAR'S BLOWUP A WORK FOR DIRT SHEETS

There comes a time when a story just becomes so completely stupid that there are no words to explain it. That Brock Lesnar backstage blowup that had everyone talking earlier this week was staged by WWE to get the dirt sheets talking and trying to get them to report Lesnar was leaving the company. 

Question on Everybody's Mind: Why is WWE booking for dirt sheets?

Our Take: Look, I love dirt sheets. They give me information that I am able to react to every day. However, the people that actually read them make up such a small percentage of the WWE audience that they make no difference to business whatsoever. WWE trying to work angles through them just speaks to how out of touch McMahon is with the business in front of him. 

Hype Meter: 5 out of 5 Worked Angles

Instead of trying to constantly swerve the Internet, McMahon should be working on figuring out why business and profits are at their lowest levels in years. Even WrestleMania isn't going to be as profitable for the company because they had to pay The Rock a lot of money to do the show just to hit the buy rate they so desperately wanted. 

Deeper Dive

Vinny Mac Working The Dirt Sheets (Wrestling Observer)

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JUSTIN GABRIEL AND TYSON KIDD TO GET BURIED AS A TAG TEAM

We talked yesterday about an interview with Charlie Haas about the state of the WWE tag team division. It turns out WWE is reportedly going to use a new-old team in Gabriel and Kidd later this month when the former returns from injury. 

Question on Everybody's Mind: Will this reignite the tag team division?

Our Take: I'm sorry, I had to step away for a few minutes as I was laughing. That's not to say Kidd and Gabriel couldn't be good, but WWE is going to put them in positions to fail because that's how this company works. 

Hype Meter: 4 out of 5 Tag Team Returns

Kidd, in particular, should be plenty frustrated with where his career is at right now. If you have ever seen his matches in FCW, he is far better than most guys in WWE today. He just isn't going to get pushed because Vince McMahon doesn't want him to. Kudos for killing another career, Vinny Mac. 

Deeper Dive

Bringing Back Kidd and Gabriel (Wrestlenewz)

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STING IS A NEW MEMBER OF THE WWE.COM ALUMNI SECTION

In a surprise move, WWE has added Sting to the Alumni Section of its website. Not only that, but there are actually positive things written about him. It says he is "one of the most popular and respected competitors of all time."

Question on Everybody's Mind: What does this mean?

Our Take: Nothing. WWE owns Sting's rights from WCW, which is why the picture being used is from his old days and not in the black and white. Besides, at this stage of the game, what would Sting really bring to the table for WWE?

Hype Meter: 4 out of 5 Faces Painted

At least WWE is finally acknowledging Sting's existence. I have no desire to see him in a WWE ring—or a TNA ring, for that matter—at this stage of his career. 

Deeper Dive

A Look At Sting's Alumni Page (WWE.com)

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WWE PPV CONTINUES TO DECLINE

While WWE can tout the success of WrestleMania all it wants, the fact remains that pay-per-view business keeps getting worse for the company. At a conference call on Thursday, it was announced that both the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber shows declined from the previous year, which declined in 2010. 

Question on Everybody's Mind: What does WWE have to do to stop the slide?

Our Take: Pray? Or do things that are in the best interest of business and have Vince McMahon stop trying to do things that simply go against what the dirt sheets report. Those people don't drive the business as much as we like to think they do. 

Hype Meter: 3 out of 5 Promised Turnarounds

One of McMahon's biggest things is promising the stockholders that business is getting ready to take off. The things that we all complain about every day are reasons things like pay-per-view are declining, but don't try to tell that to anyone in WWE's corporate office. 

Deeper Dive

WWE Releases 2012 PPV Buy Rates (Wrestle Zone)

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Check back for more on the WWE as it comes, and check out Bleacher Report’s Wrestling Page to get your fill of the WWE. For more WWE talk, check out Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot topics you just can’t miss.

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