WWE Rumors on Roman Reigns' Future, Contract Pay Cuts and Kairi Sane Returning at Backlash

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

Why Reigns Was Reportedly Pulled from Advertised Dates

WWE pulling Roman Reigns from previously advertised appearances on Raw during the month of June is reportedly not a reflection of the relationship between Reigns and the company.

According to PWInsider.com (h/t Wrestle Ops), Reigns being advertised for those dates in the first place was a "clerical error."

Amid recent talent releases, there was speculation that Reigns and WWE were perhaps at odds in some way, but PWInsider.com clarified that there are no such issues.

Reigns prevailed in the main event of WrestleMania 42 last month, beating CM Punk for the World Heavyweight Championship, which marked the start of his first world title reign in two years.

During the WrestleMania post-show, Reigns indicated that he would be a full-time performer during the summer, which was significant since he has only worked a part-time schedule in recent years.

The OTC has appeared weekly on Raw since WrestleMania, entering into a rivalry with Jacob Fatu that will see them clash in the main event of Backlash this weekend.

However, now that Reigns is no longer being advertised for June episodes of Raw, it begs the question of when he will be back after Backlash.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Wrestle Features) reported that Reigns is not scheduled for Night of Champions on June 27, so he isn't needed for episodes of Raw that month.

The next premium live event after that is SummerSlam on Aug. 1 and 2, so it may be safe to assume that Reigns will return on the Raw after Night of Champions in order to build for a month toward his SummerSlam match.

Reported Details on WWE Approaching Talent for Pay Cuts

As part of WWE's recent sweep of talent releases, parent company TKO has reportedly also asked some of its Superstars to take a pay cut.

According to Bryan Alvarez of Wrestling Observer Live (h/t WrestlePurists), "several" wrestlers have accepted pay cuts, and there will "definitely" be even more as time goes on.

Meltzer (h/t WrestlePurists) added that one talent in particular took "a pretty big pay cut" despite the assumption that the talent could have left and made "a lot of money" in AEW.

Per Meltzer (h/t WrestlePurists), Reigns was not among those asked to take a pay cut, and none of the Superstars at or near the top have been asked to either.

Rather, WWE is reportedly asking "guys who were at a higher level before than they are now."

Meltzer noted that the wrestler who took "a pretty big pay cut" to stay in WWE is part of that group, as they were previously presented as a bigger deal, but "creatively didn't take advantage of what they had."

Alvarez noted that Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods of New Day were among the talent asked to take a pay cut, but they declined, which led to them and WWE mutually agreeing to part ways.

While New Day had been presented as a midcard act for quite some time, Kofi and Woods were two of WWE's longest-tenured Superstars, and part of the most-decorated tag team in company history.

That suggests longevity won't necessarily stop TKO from exploring cost-cutting measures unless the talent in question are in the main event mix.

Rumors on Potential Kairi Appearance at Backlash

Kairi Sane was reportedly among the Superstars released by WWE on April 24, but there is some thought that her time with the company may not be over quite yet.

According to Alvarez (h/t Steve Carrier of Ringside News), people in WWE believe there is a "better than 50 percent chance" that Sane will show up at Backlash on Saturday to finish her storyline with Iyo Sky and Asuka.

When Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp reported on Sane's release, it came as a shock to many since she had been appearing regularly on Raw and was heavily involved in a program with Asuka and Sky.

In fact, Sane even beat Sky in a singles match on the April 13 episode of Raw, just before WrestleMania 42.

Despite Sane's release, the Asuka vs. Sky angle has continued, and they are set to clash in a grudge match at Backlash.

Sane getting involved in that match in some capacity would likely be a welcome surprise for many fans, especially since there were chants in support of Sane during the Raw after her release was initially reported.

Should Sane show up at Backlash, it is unclear if that would mean WWE is doing an about-face and keeping her in the fold, or if that would simply be her final act with the company.

After it was made public last year that WWE was allowing R-Truth's contract to run out, the company instead decided to keep him and had him make a surprise return at Money in the Bank, so perhaps something similar could happen with Kairi.