Rumor Roundup (May 20, 2023): CM Punk backup plan, AEW video game date, Wyatt status, McIntyre return, more!

Speculating on the rumors surrounding pro wrestling is a favored pastime of many fans, perhaps second only to actually watching the matches. In this daily column, we take a look at the latest rumors being churned out by the pro wrestling rumor mill.

Important reminder: Rumors are just that — rumors. None of this has been confirmed as fact, it’s just circulating around the pro wrestling rumor mill. We track rumor accuracy in a weekly feature called Rumor Look Back you can find here. Remember, take it all with a grain of salt.

Rumors for the Day:

• According to PW Insider, the current problem between AEW and CM Punk is not a work. If the two sides cannot reach an agreement over Ace Steel’s status for Collision, AEW will look to move the premiere episode of the show out of Chicago’s United Center and into another venue.
• F4WOnline’s Dave Meltzer indicated that AEW “has had contact with Daily’s Place” in Jacksonville, Florida, as a potential backup location for that Collision premiere. The situation needs to be resolved by next Wednesday when Tony Khan will announce the location on Dynamite.
• This week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter notes that Drew McIntyre’s pending return to WWE is “more a creative issue” that he and WWE have to come to an agreement on. As far as his contract status is concerned, a new deal has not been reached. However, WWE can add injury time to the end of his deal, which they usually do when they think a star might leave.
• WrestleVotes claims that Bray Wyatt is still on WWE’s payroll. He’s listed in WWE’s internal groupings among other “unassigned” wrestlers like Gable Steveson, R-Truth, Logan Paul, and Tommaso Ciampa.
• Fightful Select says June 27 will be the release date for the AEW: Fight Forever video game. An announcement should be coming next week to make it official.
• Sources also told the site that Bryan Danielson will be “contributing in creative” for AEW Collision. Insider confirmed this item and noted that Bryan has been unofficially “giving suggestions and ideas” for a while now.
• Per WON, Seth Rollins will also miss next week’s episode of Raw due to filming the Captain America movie.
• WRKD Wrestling clarified that WWE’s “hesitancy” to put the new World Heavyweight Championship on Rollins over his role in Captain America “isn’t an immediate fear.” It’s more related to a future scenario where he and Becky Lynch “further pursue Hollywood.”

If you have heard of any interesting rumors that you’d like to add, feel free to post them in the comments section below. Just remember they are rumors and not confirmed as fact, so please take them as such. And check our weekly Rumor Look Back here to keep track of how often rumors turn out to be correct.