As the new era in WWE has unfolded, a handful of recently released superstars have already made their returns; Dakota Kai, Karrion Kross with Scarlett, and now Dexter Lumis.
It’s clear that Triple H is bringing back a lot of the talent he worked with when overseeing NXT. Other than it making a lot of sense, it’s also been incredibly exciting as a fan to see who may be returning next.
For quite some time, many talented superstars were released despite how over they were. It was always frustrating when another name would drop with seemingly no legitimate reason for their departure.
There have also been several over the last few years that have asked for the releases, especially once they transitioned from NXT to the main roster on RAW and SmackDown. The atmospheres are completely different, and many of those no longer with the company have stated that time and time again.
Despite the scandals that inevitably led to his departure from the company, it was time for Vince McMahon to hang things up. And for an overhaul in the creative room. There will obviously never be another McMahon, and what he did for not just WWE, but pro-wrestling in general is nothing short of incredible.
Now that Triple H has taken over as executive vice president for Talent Relations and head of creative, there’s a spark in the company that has been lacking. It’s only been a few weeks since he was officially given the keys to the main roster shows, but the changes he has made and those he’s already brought back have gotten people excited about the WWE product once again.
With all the talent that has already returned, many are looking to who could be next. When looking into all the former superstars available to bring back, a few names stand out above the rest.
Bray Wyatt and/or The Fiend
Is there anyone out there who doesn’t want to see Bray Wyatt back in a WWE ring?
His return has been rumored for a few months now, even before the passing of the torch from McMahon to Triple H. His release in July of 2021 initially came as a shock, given the timing of it and how popular The Fiend was at the time. But fans became more understanding over time as they knew how the creative team has consistently dropped the ball with many unique gimmicks over the years.
Most believed Wyatt would quickly move on to either AEW or even NJPW, but that hasn’t been the case. He has rarely been seen publicly over the last year and has even significantly decreased his social media presence, too.
Now that Triple H is in charge, bringing back an incredible talent like Wyatt makes the most sense right now. Current and former wrestlers have spoken highly of his story-telling and specifically mentioned they have never seen a more creative mind in the wrestling business than his.
Throughout his time with WWE, he had several successful runs no matter where he was placed on the card. This gives the creative team numerous options in deciding which gimmick they’d like to see Wyatt return as, while also leaving the door open for incredibly creative ideas for where his character could go.
The era of overly imaginative gimmicks has been done for years now, but the WWE Universe couldn’t help but be captivated by Wyatt. Whether it was the Wyatt Family or The Fiend, there hasn’t been anyone like that in the company for a long time.
And let’s not forget; the pairing of The Fiend and Alexa Bliss was completely different than what’s been seen in recent years. Their dynamic was thrilling and the way they ended their story was abrupt. Bliss is yet to find her footing outside of that character and has spoken many times about how much she enjoyed that time in her career.
Bringing back Wyatt would inevitably propel Bliss into the main event scene once again, and reuniting her with Wyatt (and more Lily) would make for very entertaining television.
Johnny Gargano
A top name from NXT, Johnny Gargano has been heavily rumored and desired to return over the last month.
He initially left NXT once his contract expired this past January and has remained a free agent since. At the time, WWE wanted to retain Gargano and eventually bring him up to the main roster. But Johnny had other plans at the time.
His wife, Candice Lerae, was pregnant at the time with their first child. And Gargano wanted to take time off to spend time with his family, and also enjoy becoming a new father. It had been rumored online that he was planning on not wrestling again until after his son’s first birthday, but Gargano is yet to confirm or deny those rumors.
If he is interested in returning, however, his desire may have increased now with seeing Triple H running the creative team. Not only that, his former tag-team partner, Ciampa, has since been brought on to RAW and placed into the United States championship picture already.
The main roster shows are seeing much more wrestling and longer matches, a big complaint from most when comparing NXT to the main brands. This may be enticing for Gargano too, seeing how much better the product has already become. And also seeing fellow top NXT talent being treated far better on the main roster than they were previously.
Sasha Banks and Naomi
The drama that has ensued since Sasha Banks and Naomi walked out of RAW in May has been unrelenting.
The backlash began almost immediately when McMahon allegedly asked the commentators to comment on the situation. They would berate them and refer to them as, “unprofessional” when discussing the incident, while consciously leaving out the likely reason for the walk-out.
Banks and Naomi were women’s tag-team champions at the time and were set to take part in a battle royal match that night. But the match was set for single’s action and not for the two to work together.
Sports Illustrated detailed the incident and what the plans were for the match.
“The plan for Raw was a six-pack challenge match that would have ended with Naomi winning, including pinning Banks, and becoming the No. 1 contender for the Raw women’s title. She would have then challenged Bianca Belair for the title at Hell in a Cell on June 5, a match where all signs pointed to Belair winning.”
The plans would’ve become a big moment for Naomi’s career, but the tag-team champions were not interested in splitting up just yet. It was reported that McMahon had assured them there would be more focus on the women’s tag division, especially after they won the titles just a month prior at WrestleMania. But hearing these plans for RAW that night proved his assurance to be false, forcing the pair to walk out.
It has now been three months since Banks and Naomi have been seen in WWE. With McMahon and John Laurinaitis both gone from the company, the women may be more inclined to make their returns.
Just last week, WWE announced there would be a tournament to name the top contenders for the vacant women’s championships. The final two teams will face off at Clash at the Castle in September to determine the next champions.
The rumors have been circulating, even before this announcement, that the company had been in touch with both Banks and Naomi and was working on bringing them back. Now that their former titles are back on tv again, they may return very shortly; maybe to take back what was theirs? Time will tell.
Elias
For some reason, Mr. McMahon and his creative team felt it was time to scrap Elias from WWE television. He was off tv for months, with rumors circulating online about his drastic change in appearance and seemingly new gimmick in the works.
It finally came to fruition when Ezekiel made his television debut, setting off a very entertaining feud with Kevin Owens.
The pair would have great chemistry and funny segments over the weeks, with Elias making an appearance or two throughout. But the storyline has since fizzled out. And just this past week on RAW, Owens essentially wrote Zeke off television during their match. Owens man-handled him which left Zeke to be carried out on a stretcher.
Unless there are other ideas in the works, one would assume this means Zeke will be off television for quite some time. This opens the possibility of Triple H bringing back Elias, perhaps to avenge his younger brother’s “career-ending injury?”
It never made sense for Elias to be completely wiped out. His character was one of the most over at the time. He was even given a WrestleMania spot with a spotlight in the middle of the ring, to perform before being interrupted by John Cena.
The man held an audience in the palm of his hand and that is usually what is difficult to find in a wrestler nowadays.
If Triple H decides to move on from the Zeke story, which also had the WWE universe interested, the return of Elias could be huge. He would instantly be over and a feud with Owens would make for great television.