WWE Rumors: Examining Latest Buzz Around Paige, Triple H and More

The soap opera involving Paige and Alberto Del Rio continued to dominate the WWE rumor mill this week.

Demands from management that the pair break up permeated across the internet, while others rumors suggested that the former WWE Divas champion may not return to the company when her 30-day suspension is up.

Triple H, the man who oversaw NXT and tapped the Brit to be the face of the women's division, was also in the news this week as WWE applied for a new trademark that could directly link him with another Superstar while simultaneously tipping WWE Creative's cards in terms of long-term storytelling.

The upcoming WWE cruiserweight division was also in the news as WWE confirmed the list of competitors, while a respected site revealed just how many Superstars would make up the roster on Monday nights.

Like Sands Through An Hourglass...

After MLW Radio Network's MSL & Sullivan (h/t Wrestling Inc) reported that WWE executive Mark Carrano threatened to fire Paige if she did not call off her relationship with Alberto Del Rio, Dave Meltzer of F4WOnline.com continued to suggest that was the case:

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In the discussion on last night's show regarding whether Paige was threatened with being fired by WWE exec Mark Carrano if she didn't break up with Alberto De Rio, when [Mister Saint Laurent] reported it, MSL never said directly that Paige had said that, although it was also obvious from how he talked that it was a source very close to the situation.

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Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez continued the discussion on the Sept. 5 episode of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Heavy.com), suggesting that the British-born competitor might not return to the company when her suspension comes to an end:

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And if she is done with the company, well, I mean, that’s gonna be tough…they’re probably trying to maneuver to where she can be released and she can work elsewhere, because she is under contract for a long time, and WWE obviously would probably not want her working the entire term of the contract.

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If there is even the slightest hint of truth to the rumors, the situation has turned contentious.

Threatening someone's job is one thing. Intentionally making it difficult for that same someone to earn a living out of spite is another.

Of course, WWE is contractually in the right. It signed Paige and has exclusive rights to the performer for years.

At some point, though, it becomes more trouble than it is worth to essentially hold her hostage because it is more concerned with her choice of significant other than coming up with something creative and interesting for her to do on Raw.

The Skull King

Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc revealed that WWE has applied for the Skull King trademark "for performance use. They applied for trademarks of the same name back in 2014 but only for merchandise, not performance."

It may seem somewhat trivial, an unimportant tidbit added to a generic news post on another wrestling site.

Upon further inspection, though, it raises questions about the creative direction the Raw brand was headed in before Finn Balor's untimely injury in the wake of his SummerSlam victory.

WWE Creative seemingly inexplicably added "king" to Balor's alter-ego, but The Skull King suggests there is a possibility that Balor, not Kevin Owens, was originally intended to be Triple H's new handpicked champion.

After all, Balor became the franchise star of NXT under Triple H, the first internationally recognized star the chief operating officer brought into the fold.

The history was there, and the introduction of a Skull King to go along with Balor's Demon King would make sense. Though now, with Balor on the sideline, it remains to be seen how The Game weaves the nickname into his on-screen act without it coming across as a cheesy attempt to sell a few T-shirts.

Of course, it is absolutely possible that it is but a new nickname for Braun Strowman or a cheesy new character to debut on SmackDown before sulking into obscurity on Superstars or Main Event.

This is merely presumption that The Skull King is intended for Triple H.

A Cruiserweight Revolution

Everything in WWE is a revolution these days, so why not involve the cruiserweights, too?

Fans have been introduced to the likes of Gran Metalik, Cedric Alexander, Rich Swann and Brian Kendrick. Now, Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com reports that the cruiserweight division on Raw will feature no more than 10 Superstars:

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PWInsider.com has been told that the initial division will feature ten talents, so it appears that for the rollout of the division, the entire Cruiserweight roster (for now) has been announced.  The initial plan is for the Cruiser talents to work Raw TV as well as NXT TV and live events.  One would assume that eventually, they will begin to work Raw live events as well.

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It is a smart move by WWE officials to limit the number of characters it introduces in the cruiserweight division. After all, it can barely make the most of the talent it has at its disposal now.

Bringing an overabundance of guys in would create an even larger logjam and prevent any of them from truly getting over, no matter how good they may be.

The inclusion of a Jack Gallagher or Swann could be huge for those athletes as they continue to make a name for themselves in front of Vince McMahon-owned cameras. Shoving them to the background for the sake of an even more expansive roster that the company cannot maintain would be a mistake.