Randy Orton-Will Ospreay; Becky Responds to Hogan and WWE Smackville Rumors

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

Orton-Ospreay Tease Match

The (seemingly well-meaning) social media battle between Randy Orton and Will Ospreay continued Monday with the following Twitter conversation:

Orton, who is as entrenched in WWE as almost anyone in the company, is almost certainly not leaving. There had been rumors swirling about him potentially joining AEW, but those appear unfounded. Orton's 39 and never wrestled outside the WWE bubble; it's hard to see him leaving the comfort of the spotlight to have a few dream matches.

Ospreay, who is one of the best workers in the world, has rebuffed WWE advances to this point and chosen to stay in New Japan. He's currently the promotion's junior heavyweight champion and has been quoted as saying he does not want to sign a contract with an American promotion. 

As it stands, it appears the only battles Orton and Ospreay will be having is with their Twitter fingers rather than their fists.

Becky Lynch Fires Back at Hogan's Takeover Dream

It was a sunny Sunday night in Florida. Hulk Hogan was staring out at the sunset, a day before the Raw reunion, and got a little nostalgic.

Then Becky Lynch came and stomped on every bit of that nostalgia: 

First of all, Hulkster, a bunch of people from the Raw reunion did once try to take over the wrestling business. It was called TNA. It...did not go well.

Second of all, the idea of a group of mostly geriatric men in their 50s, 60s and 70s attempting to take down the most talented in-ring roster WWE has ever had is hilarious in and of itself. Imagine 2019 Hulk Hogan trying to take down Ricochet or have a 30-minute brawl with Seth Rollins.

Third of all, Becky Lynch is once again a "Man" of the people.

Smackville Set Up on Short Notice to Test WWE for Short-Notice Programming

WWE announced Saturday's Smackville special, a network broadcast of a SmackDown house show, with barely more than a week to prepare. That leaves writers little/no room to build to the special, which will create a struggle for the performers to tell stories.

It appears at least part of that was done strategically. 

Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful reported WWE is testing its ability to counterprogram other promotions by creating their own events on shorter notice. WWE recently ran its Evolve show against AEW's Fight for the Fallen.

It's unclear how often WWE plans to counterprogram, but it's a sign of the company attempting to squeeze out competition by offering its own alternatives. That said, it's hard to see why fans would choose to tune into glorified house shows over major events in other promotions.