Top 5 Wrestling News Stories Of The Week 3/31: Charlotte Flair & Tiffany Stratton Go “Off Script”, Rusev Returning To WWE & Kevin Owens Unable To Compete At WrestleMania 41
Each and every week, the weird and wonderful world of professional wrestling never fails to captivate fans with a plethora of captivating stories that make their way into the news cycle.
Whether it’s shocking upsets, dramatic showdowns, or behind-the-scenes drama, the happenings within professional wrestling always keep fans on the edge of their seats.
Here are the Top Five Wrestling News Stories of the Week.
Charlotte Flair Blasts Idea She Buried WWE Champion
Charlotte Flair caused a stir after a recent promo battle with Tiffany Stratton left the WWE Women’s Champion struggling. Flair seemed to be adlibbing lines which Stratton just ignored as she stuck to her scripted promo and many fans thought The Queen was trying to catch the champion off guard. But for Flair, it was simply a case of her being the best.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Charlotte Flair explained her side of the story and said she took inspiration from how she felt when WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus returned to the company to face her in 2019:
It’s great that you said ‘teach her a lesson’ – I did not look at it as a lesson. I looked at it as I am Charlotte Flair. Do you want me to be less than? This is what you wanted, right? This is who you want to be like, this is your idol.
OK. So 2019, Trish Stratus wanted to come back and I kept thinking to myself, Trish Stratus wants to come back and wrestle me. Oh, I have to be as good as she thinks I am, like, I can’t be less than. ‘Charlotte Flair is that good that I have to come back.’ She’d been gone for how many years? Yeah, now she makes a lot more regular appearances, but that’s all that’s going through my head.
This is a similar situation. I am going to be as good as everyone thinks I am, and now I feel like I’m even that much better because 2024 did kick my ass and it did give me the clarity and it did light the spark, like no, my career is on my time and I’m coming for everything. I’ve done my homework. WrestleMania is the easy part for me. WrestleMania is my domain.
4. Mick Foley In Hospital After Scary Car Wreck
Mick Foley has given fans an update after he was involved in a car crash.
WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley has revealed he’s banged up but otherwise free of serious injury after being involved in a nasty car accident.
In a post on Facebook, Foley shared a photo of the destroyed car he was travelling in and confirmed he was in the hospital with a minor concussion.
“TOUGH DAY FOR MICK! I have no idea how I am still walking around after this accident. I’m in the hospital now, and I’m sore from my knees to my neck, including a minor concussion.”
Thankfully, Foley provided a further update on his condition and revealed that although he feels like he’s been hit by a truck, he still plans on making all of his commitments starting as soon as this weekend:
Hey everybody, it’s Mick Foley. And I just want to take a moment to thank all of you for your well-wishes, your positive energy, your prayers. I had so many people in wrestling reach out to me. I just was sending some texts with The Undertaker a few minutes ago. Triple H reached out. Been a pleasure, really, to have had some of the biggest stars in wrestling — and Al Snow — reach out to me [laughs]. That never gets old.
I’m going to be honest, though — I’m banged up. I feel like a truck has run over me. I’m propped up against about seven pillows. But, looking at that accident, and looking at that car, I don’t think anyone would predict that the guy in that car would come out of it with soft tissue damage.
It’s pretty — I don’t want to say miraculous, but I’m feeling really fortunate right now. And I will not be missing any of my dates. I’ll be in Texas this weekend. I’ll be travelling to New Mexico, Arizona, of course on to WrestleMania.
And, again, I just want to thank everyone [and] assure you that it was not an April Fool’s joke. I’m very grateful, very sore, but thankful for all of you. Have a nice day.
3. Rusev On Brink Of WWE Return
Former WWE United States Champion Rusev is set to return to the company after leaving AEW.
According to a new report from Mike Johnson of PWInsider, the star was at WWE headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut all day on April 2. Sources confirm that the former Rusev has re-signed with the company and was at HQ to “set the stage for his return.”
Interestingly, his partner CJ Perry, wasn’t with him. There’s no word on when the star will return to television, but he’s now officially “back in the mix.”
2. Chelsea Green Left “Heartbroken” By WWE Creative Change
Chelsea Green feared she’d missed her big moment.
After returning to WWE at the 2023 Royal Rumble, Chelsea Green has earned praise far and wide for making the most of any opportunity that came her way. In fact, in the eyes of fans, she’s turned nothing into something on more than one occasion.
Green’s tenacity has endeared her to fans around the world, and WWE’s fanbase was collectively delighted when she became the first-ever Women’s United States Champion.
In the culmination of the tournament across several episodes of SmackDown, Green beat Michin to become champion at Saturday Night’s Main Event on December 14, 2024. However, that wasn’t the original plan.
During a new interview with Click and Tell, Green revealed that she was initially supposed to win the title two weeks earlier at Survivor Series. Crucially for the star, Survivor Series took place just down the road from her hometown, meaning all of her family would be in attendance.
Green explained that she was heartbroken by the late change, adding that all of her family was still at the event, even though she wasn’t on the card.
“Originally, it was supposed to be in Vancouver (at Survivor Series 2024). That was obviously going to be, I mean, for so many different reasons, the biggest moment of my career.
It was already going to be the biggest moment, but to have my friends and family there and for it to be in somewhat of my hometown, close enough to my hometown, like that’s unheard of. People don’t get those moments.”
So, when it was taken away from me, I was heartbroken. I still had all my friends and family at Survivor Series, but I wasn’t on the show. So it was really a moment of just like, ‘oh, like how?’ And it put a little bit of a damper on it until I found out it was going to be in Long Island. That is my husband’s hometown.
So if it couldn’t be in my hometown, at least it’s in Long Island. It’s with all of my in-laws. Everyone in my family ended up flying there anyway. And it was just like the perfect moment. The crowd was amazing. They were chanting my name the entire time from start to finish. I was able to have all my family come back and take pictures with it.”
1. Kevin Owens Will Miss WWE WrestleMania 41 After Devastating Injury Reveal
Kevin Owens will no longer be facing Randy Orton at WrestleMania due to injury.
It was reported several hours before WWE SmackDown in Chicago that former WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens had an injury that could potentially take him out of his scheduled WrestleMania 41 match with Randy Orton.
During WWE SmackDown in Chicago, the General Manager Nick Aldis was in the ring where he spoke about how sometimes things happen in pro wrestling that remind us why WWE tells the fans, “Don’t try this at home.” That led to Aldis introducing Owens.
Kevin Owens made his entrance wearing a Bret Hart jacket, and he had a somber look on his face. While Owens was booed on his way to the ring, it wasn’t as loud as usual and many fans likely knew that there was bad news about to be revealed.
As he stood in the ring, Owens said he’s been doing this for 25 years, and he thinks he can say confidently that he gave everything he had every time he stepped foot in this ring. Owens spoke about how he got to experience things he’ll never forget, and he got a chance to take care of his family in a way he can only dream of.
Speaking from the heart, Owens talked about how there’s a price to pay when you get into the ring. Owens said it seems like it is his turn to pay the price.
It was revealed by Owens that, for the last four months or so, he’s been dealing with a neck injury, and they couldn’t figure out what was wrong, but this week they figured out what was wrong with it. Owens said now he has to go have neck surgery.
Owens said that the timing couldn’t be worse because not getting to be in the ring with Randy Orton at WrestleMania really sucks. Owens thanked WWE for allowing him to tell us about his injury because he doesn’t know when he’ll be in front of us again.
To wrap it up, Owens said that in the last few years, he’s learned to never take anything for granted, and he’ll never take this for granted. Owens said thank you and, “I’m sorry, guys. Thank you.” Owens shook hands with Aldis and hugged him.
A neck surgery likely means a lengthy absence that could put Owens on the shelf for over a year or more, but everybody is different. Wrestlers like Steve Austin and Edge (Cope) had major neck surgeries and missed a year of action. Recently, guys on the current WWE roster like Braun Strowman and Erik of the War Raiders missed about a year of action after neck surgery. Every person and situation is different.
It has been reported by PWInsider that Kevin Owens will need neck fusion surgery. There was a lot of sympathy and sadness for Owens among people in WWE.