Welcome to the Grapevine! This section of Smark Henry is where we round up all the important founded and unfounded rumors floating around the pro wrestling scene that you may have missed over the past few days. Remember to take everything with a grain of salt!
New name and gimmick for Dabba-Kato
Dabba-Kato, the former RAW Underground superstar who re-debuted on the second night of WrestleMania to help Apollo Crews win against Big E, will be known as Commador (or Commodore) Azeez. The announcers seem to be intentionally forgetting Dabba-Kato's stint on RAW Underground with the gimmick change. On a related note, Vince McMahon is firmly behind Crews's new character. (Source: PWInsider)
We say: We would've preferred that Apollo Crews won on his own merits, but this is all good for the heel heat. We can't wait to see if they'll be booking him better as Intercontinental Champion.
WWE making changes to RAW announce team
The RAW announce team will be getting a major shakeup as Tom Philips will be replaced by new signee Adnan Virk. Corey Graves will also be moving from SmackDown to RAW, replacing Samoa Joe. It's unclear whether Philips will return to WWE TV as there are no set plans for him, while it is also unclear whether Samoa Joe will be taking Graves's place on SmackDown. Philips getting replaced is the reason why Michael Cole led commentary for all of the WrestleMania matches from both brands this weekend. (Source: Wrestling Inc., Andrew Zarian)
We say: This is highly interesting as there seems to be a lot more to this Tom Philips benching story than what we know right now. Expect to see more updates to it in the coming days.
Adam Pearce and Drew Gulak train Bad Bunny
Adam Pearce and Drew Gulak were responsible for training Bad Bunny in the WWE Performance Center for his match. Bad Bunny had started training for the match, which was very well-received by the wrestling industry, since late December or January. As of right now, Bad Bunny's WrestleMania match is a one-off appearance. (Source: Alex McCarthy)
We say: WWE definitely has some of the best in the business, and props have to go to Bad Bunny for putting in the work and loving the game so much to be quite good at it after four months.
Photo from WWE
: New Gimmick and Name For Dabba-Kato, WWE Changing RAW Announce Team, Who Trained Bad Bunny?){kind=link}