Backstage WWE and AEW Rumors: Latest on Asuka, Rey Mysterio and More

The march to SummerSlam on August 23 has fans wondering what awaits top WWE stars such as Asuka, who is the Raw women's champion and on the hottest run of her main-roster career.

Might a challenge in the form of the sadistic and ruthless Shayna Baszler await The Empress of Tomorrow? According to a new report, that may well be in the cards.

And what of Rey Mysterio, fresh off having his eye plucked out by Seth Rollins at Extreme Rules? Is he finished with the company, or is a new deal in the works?

The answers to those questions and more await in this collection of wrestling rumors, reports and innuendo.

SummerSlam Plans for Asuka

Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio reported that, while things do tend to change in WWE, the plan for SummerSlam was for Asuka to defend her Raw Women's Championship against Shayna Baszler.

We saw Baszler watching Kairi Sane's match with Bayley during Monday night's Raw with great intent. If The Pirate Princess is leaving WWE, as Meltzer also noted, it would make sense for The Queen of Spades to attack her to set up the rivalry that way.

Baszler vs. Asuka is a match with considerable appeal. The two most dominant women's champions in NXT, they have yet to clash in a meaningful singles match.

At Elimination Chamber in March, Asuka was the final competitor eliminated by Baszler en route to her shot at championship gold at WrestleMania 36.

Still, despite that encounter and their involvement in May's Money in the Bank, they have not had that one match that captivates audiences and gives them a taste of what a showdown may have looked like at the peak of their dominance in NXT.

Hopefully things go according to plan and Asuka battles the only other woman who can realistically claim to be the baddest woman in WWE.

Rey Mysterio Contract Update

Kishan Prasad of Sportskeeda noted that negotiations are ongoing in regard to Rey Mysterio's new contract, but the future Hall of Famer is not backing down from his request for a pay raise.

The Master of the 619 lost the asinine Eye for an Eye match at Extreme Rules on Sunday, most likely writing him off television until he and the company come to some sort of agreement.

WWE clearly values Mysterio or it would not have booked him in such a high-profile feud with Seth Rollins, minus an active deal. Their program was a major part of WWE television over the past two months and one of the key selling points for Sunday's The Horror Show at Extreme Rules.

The 45-year-old has some leverage based on that alone, and the lack of genuine star power across the board in WWE only strengthens his hand in the negotiations.

Whether WWE recognizes that and is willing to cave on the pay-raise front will be the key to retaining Mysterio's rights for another few years.

Deonna Purrazzo Working Without a Contract in Impact Wrestling?

Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select reported Deonna Purrazzo is working without a contract in Impact Wrestling. 

If accurate, and there is no reason to believe it isn't, this is an eyebrow-raiser.

The Virtuoso exploded on to the scene just over a month ago and has since become the face of the Knockouts division. She has seen ample television time and is the company's Knockouts champion after defeating Jordynne Grace in a great match at Slammiversary.

So the question becomes: If the company was so invested in Purrazzo that it pushed her right out of the gate, why wouldn't it sign her to a contract, especially when it was busy signing up the likes of The Good Brothers, Heath Slater, Brian Myers and Eric Young?

Even if it is under a per-appearance stipulation, having Purrazzo on some sort of deal when you are about to make her the hottest star in women's wrestling seems like the right business decision.

Hopefully, there is more to this one that we have yet to learned.

Plans for The Good Brothers in All Elite Wrestling

During Chris Jericho's Saturday Night Special #15, Le Champion revealed the original plans for The Good Brothers in All Elite Wrestling called for them to be part of The Inner Circle.

That would have drastically changed things as Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson standing alongside Jericho would have left Santana and Ortiz in the cold.

With that said, Anderson and Gallows would have brought size and a brawling style to the tag team division that it does not have outside of The Butcher and The Blade.

They would have made for a nice change of pace, and their style likely would have meshed well with those of The Young Bucks, FTR and even The Lucha Bros.

Instead, Gallows and Anderson are part of an Impact Wrestling tag team division with its fair share of unique and interesting teams, with whom their styles should prove compatible.