The Grapevine (4/18/22): Details on Recent WWE Name Changes, Rumors On Big Tony Khan Announcement

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!

Details on WWE name changes

Vince McMahon has reportedly issued a new decree forbidding younger and newer WWE Superstars from using their real names as ring names. This explains the frequent name changes that have been happening on both WWE and NXT, as McMahon reportedly does not want anyone to use their full or part of their real names in the event that they leave the company. More established veterans such as Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar, and Cody Rhodes are exceptions, as well as Gable Steveson. (Source: WON)

We say: It makes sense to anyone who's been following wrestling for at least a while, but AEW gaining momentum and signing a lot of former WWE stars likely catalyzed this. Of course, would this really be an issue if WWE hadn't released a lot of talent? In any case, though fans need to accept that this really does happen a lot in wrestling, perhaps it would behoove WWE to at least make the name changes a little more hardworking and not too sudden.

AEW-NJPW joint show rumored to be Tony Khan's big announcement

The big announcement AEW is hyping up for this week's Dynamite is rumored to be a big AEW-NJPW stadium show in Chicago this July. It hasn't been denied by those within AEW, though it hasn't been confirmed either. The other potential theory is a new streaming or broadcasting deal for Ring of Honor, which Tony Khan had recently acquired. NJPW and AEW's relationship is said to be stronger than ever, as NJPW World has now started to broadcast Japanese editions of AEW programming. (Source: Dave Meltzer)

We say: An AEW-NJPW show in the US would be huge, especially if the homegrown Japanese talent are the ones making the trip instead of just those currently based in the US right now. 

Photo from WWE

April 18, 2022