WWE Rumors: Examining Latest Buzz Around Steve Austin, John Cena and More

The latest round of WWE rumors left fans wondering whether Steve Austin would skip out on WrestleMania 32 and if John Cena is headed for a respite from the ring.

Ric Flair kick-started word that Austin would boycott the upcoming Showcase of the Immortals if a certain faction frontman was not a part of the next Hall of Fame class. The Texas Rattlesnake cleared up that story in a hurry. 

As for Cena, he is reportedly preparing for some time off. With Raw's and SmackDown's ratings tumbling, that's far from what Vince McMahon wants to hear right now.

Other Internet rumblings touched on the Divas title picture and the creative direction at the Madison Square Garden live show. Picking apart these stories, as well as the ones regarding Cena and Austin, we'll dive into the hard-to-trust world of wrestling rumors.

Divas Championship Possibilities 

WWE announced the Divas title bout for Hell in a Cell on Monday's Raw, but it's not clear if the match will stay a one-on-one situation. Charlotte is now scheduled to take on Nikki Bella at the pay-per-view.

With three weeks left until the event, though, there is certainly time to adjust that, adding one more dance partner.

Dave Meltzer heard word that Paige was set to be involved. He wrote on F4WOnline, "The original lineup we were given for the show had that as a three-way with Paige, so we'll see if they shoot it in that direction or [if] they changed ideas." 

It's certainly possible that Paige's issues with her former teammate lead her to join the fray at Hell in a Cell. Signs point elsewhere, however. Paige has clashed with Natalya more of late.

And it would be an odd move to have her tap out to Natalya en route to becoming a championship contender. Paige vs. Natalya is a safer bet.

Cena Exiting?

Fans may need to savor Cena's weekly open challenges while they can. The U.S. champ is reportedly going to be stepping away from the ring for a while.

On F4WOnline, Meltzer reported, "WWE U.S. Champion John Cena will be taking time off from wrestling shortly for what the WWE has described as personal reasons." He also noted that Cena will not be part of the European tour.

That could explain why WWE hasn't penned a rivalry for Cena after Night of Champions. He collided with The New Day and took an accidental superkick from Dolph Ziggler on Monday's Raw, but he doesn't have a clear rival at the moment.

All the other champs, meanwhile, either have a match already scheduled for Hell in a Cell or, in Kevin Owens' case, an obvious opponent waiting. 

One would have thought that WWE may have had Cena lose his title on Monday night or suffer a beating that wrote him off TV. With none of those things happening, fans are left to speculate what his next steps will be.

Backstage Word on Creative for MSG Show

McMahon was pulling the strings on Saturday night. 

According to PWInsider (h/t Wrestling Inc) McMahon handled the booking duties at the live event. The report also noted that McMahon is taking a more hands-on approach and micromanaging in response to the recent ratings struggles.

That's as unsurprising a report as one will find. It's easy to imagine McMahon doing less delegating, rolling up his sleeves and taking control as WWE's ratings continue to dip.

As much as fans may believe that a fresh voice at the top would inject energy and creativity into the product, WWE has long been McMahon's baby. And he has never been comfortable with other folks taking care of his baby.

This increased influence from McMahon would explain the continued focus on guys he has trusted for years: Cena, Brock Lesnar, Kane, Big Show. And Cesaro, of whom McMahon famously claimed in an interview with Austin wasn't connecting partly because he is Swiss, is nowhere to be seen.

Potential WrestleMania Boycott

Austin's name has been ever present in early WrestleMania discussions. The latest talk isn't about a potential comeback but instead about whether he would refuse to show up as a form of protest.

Ric Flair claimed on his WOOOO! Nation podcast that if WWE did not induct Michael "P.S." Hayes into the 2016 Hall of Fame, "Steve Austin will not attend WrestleMania."

Fans didn't have time to digest that one. The Texas Rattlesnake quickly snapped back, refuting the claim (warning: tweet contains NSFW language):

This may just be a case of Flair misunderstanding Austin. Maybe Stone Cold made a joke about boycotting the marquee event, and Flair thought it sounded more serious than he meant it.

Whatever the reality is, it's surely not nearly as interesting as seeing drama unfold as Austin tries to force WWE's hand. 

Either way, Hayes and The Fabulous Freebirds are long overdue as Hall of Famers. It won't take a boycott to get them in, either. WrestleMania will be in Dallas, where Hayes and his crew raised the most hell, which makes it more likely that the company will finally honor them as inductees.