WWE Wrestlepalooza: Where Do We Go From Here?

Depending on where you're standing, you might think WWE's PLE partnership with ESPN kicked off with a bang, or you might be of the opinion it was more of a whimper. Either way, one thing is for sure: It's yesterday's news. AJ Lee may have tapped out Becky Lynch in her in-ring return, Stephanie Vaquer may have captured her first taste of main roster gold, and Brock Lesnar may have busted a lot of brackets by beating John Cena like a drum, but that's all in the past now. The wrestling world moves fast, and while the WINC staff spent the weekend giving you our biggest loves and hates and naming the biggest winners and losers from Wrestlepalooza, it's Monday now, and we're laser-focused on the future heading into tonight's "WWE Raw."

Will the Lesnar vs. Cena story continue, or will Lesnar appear in another capacity? How will The Usos respond to their loss at the hands of The Vision? Is AJ already owed a title shot? These questions and more are the ones we're here to answer before WWE presumably does some answering of their own in Evansville, Indiana (and in Orlando on Friday). The first-ever WWE Wrestlepalooza is behind us. Where do we go from here?

Brock Lesnar returned to the ring for the first time in over two years to decimate John Cena just a few appearances away from his in-ring retirement, and while betting against Lesnar on any given day is folly, few saw that being the outcome. 

The idea of asking where Lesnar goes from here is not an easy one, especially since there is no guarantee he will not be disappearing back to Saskatchewan for an indefinite period of time – Lesnar's position is also tenuous, evidenced by nixed plans for a return in 2024 and his extended absence, having been named in a sex trafficking lawsuit against Vince McMahon. But WWE has made it clear that despite not knowing or wanting to divulge when he will be around, he certainly will be at some point, and surely one doesn't destroy Cena and disappear into the ether. 

Lesnar could very well return at the Royal Rumble just in time for the build to WrestleMania, with Gunther and Bron Breakker being floated around as potential opponents back when he was originally being penciled in to return at the Rumble. One has not been seen since he lost the World title to CM Punk, who then in turn lost it to Seth Rollins, and the other technically belongs to the same stable as Lesnar if Wrestlepalooza was anything to go buy; Paul Heyman, co-Architect of The Vision, returned to Lesnar's corner as manager. Does that draw Breakker closer to a match with Lesnar as it has with Heyman guys before? Does it create a conflict of interest if Lesnar decides he wants Rollins' World Heavyweight Championship? 

Going a bit further outside the box, does it create the opportunity for Lesnar to work with Rollins against those he and Heyman betrayed earlier this year, CM Punk and Roman Reigns? Crown Jewel is on the way and an event in Saudi Arabia feels like an event Lesnar would and has worked several times before. He could even run it back with Cena, especially if the "Greatest of All Time" doesn't want his Wrestlepalooza defeat hanging over the end of his career. As Heyman and Paul Levesque have said before, albeit insidiously, "Brock does what Brock wants," but those do feel like the best options in the field at this current stage of time.

Written by Max Everett

The Usos may have only recently reunited following Jey's World Heavyweight Championship reign and singles run, but they're not off to a good start after taking a loss to The Vision's Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed. The match was also interesting, with LA Knight being added as the special guest referee prior to the match, but not really getting involved in the action himself.

Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed are on an absolute tear right now, despite not having the backup of World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins at the moment. The problem is, there just aren't too many teams on "WWE Raw" for them to feud with that make sense. They're the biggest heel team on the red brand that is full of heel teams, like Judgment Day and New Day. Putting Breakker and Reed into a feud with Judgment Day for the World Tag Team Championships could be possible, maybe Rollins tells them not to come back until they're holding gold as well, but WWE would need to figure out how to make Finn Balor and JD McDonagh a bit more babyface for that to work.

As for the Usos, it seems like a gradual heel turn of Jey is possibly, despite the crowd still absolutely loving him, and it seems like Roman Reigns will once again factor into the storyline. Jimmy told Jey that he "didn't see an ula fala" around Jey's neck during a backstage segment on "Raw" when it seemed like his brother was on the phone with "The Tribal Chief" getting advice. If WWE doesn't want to actually turn the "Yeet Man" heel, getting Reigns back in there to be a voice of reason, to establish him further as a babyface after all the years of "The Tribal Chief" as a heel would also make sense. If they want to capitalize off of Reigns' growing Hollywood stardom with the ESPN deal and make him more of a good guy, that would also probably be some good business for them. It could be Reigns to get The Usos back on track, and even toward tag gold once again.

Jey and Knight didn't get into it during the Wrestlepalooza match, and if they had, Jey's direction in regards to a heel turn would have been more clear. "The Megastar" didn't take the accidental chair shot by Jey, so hopefully either their feud is resolved, or we'll see more of their story Monday on "Raw," because at this point, the addition of Knight to the match seemed to be to only introduce a stipulation and let the teams use weapons without consequence. For all the matches on Wrestlepalooza, where both teams, and Knight, go from here, this was one of the more difficult to predict.

Written by Daisy Ruth

There's no stopping "La Primera" Stephanie Vaquer now that she's defeated top "WWE Raw" star IYO SKY for the Women's World Championship. Vaquer was a betting favorite going in to the match, and she bested SKY with a corkscrew moonsault for the victory. "La Primera" had been off the red brand for a few weeks prior to the match, due to an illness, according to Triple H in the post-show, and because of that, she feels like a fresh talent, even now with the championship, and there are plenty of exciting matches that could be on deck for her after she takes on the WWE Women's Champion at Crown Jewel in Perth, Australia next month.

While SKY seemed over the moon for Vaquer despite her own loss, SKY's former bestie Asuka is likely not going to take it too well. The next step for "The Genius of the Sky" is a feud with "The Empress of Tomorrow," but it's likely that Vaquer could also face a heel Asuka somewhere along the line in tandem with that storyline. A Vaquer and SKY team-up against Asuka and Kairi Sane, who's currently stuck in the middle of it all, also seems like a match that's destined to happen.

Elsewhere on the roster, Vaquer has Roxanne Perez, who she knows well from their "WWE NXT" days, Lyra Valkyria, Natalya, and even possibly Bayley, depending on where her split-personality storyline takes her. It's not clear where exactly Liv Morgan stands in her return, but once she and Perez have their feud, Morgan would absolutely head right for the Women's World Championship.

"La Primera" could also have an excellent feud with Becky Lynch if Vaquer has a lengthy title reign. While Lynch is locked in a feud with the newly-returned AJ Lee right now, it seems very possible that Lee wins the Women's Intercontinental Championship. When Lynch doesn't win that back from Lee, she could get back in the main title picture and go after Vaquer, in a match we have yet to see in WWE.  

Vaquer has stated that her dream match is Rhea Ripley, and that's certainly one that fans would love to see in the near future. WWE obviously didn't have any qualms about booking a babyface versus babyface match when it came to Vaquer and SKY's match for the vacant title, so they very well could do it again with how much intrigue a Ripley/Vaquer match would draw.

Written by Daisy Ruth

Saturday's "Wrestlepalooza" festivities saw a landmark match when WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins and Women's Intercontinental Champion Becky Lynch took on CM Punk and the newly-returned AJ Lee in tag team action. Punk and Lee walked out of Indianapolis with the win, but the couple will hardly have time to rest on their laurels as WWE speeds to Crown Jewel, which is set to broadcast live from Perth's RAC Arena in early October. As all four mixed match tag team participants look to book their tickets to Australia, the possibilities for storylines are endless. Will they continue feuding as couples, or will Lee and Lynch take center stage for the Women's Intercontinental title? Will Punk involve himself in Rollins' Crown Jewel plans? What's next in the historic careers of our four mixed tag team participants?

I personally don't see WWE moving forward with a couples-based storyline heading into Crown Jewel. Each party's significant other might run interference here and there, but there's a low ceiling to hit when it comes to mixed wrestling storylines, especially considering various outside factors that prevent too much intergender violence (broadcasting regulations, sponsor opinions, the like). There's also the post-Wrestlepalooza face-off segment to consider, where Rollins seems to have his sights set squarely on Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. We are running towards Crown Jewel, which saw men and women's champion versus champion storylines. Even if Punk, coming off of his Wrestlepalooza win, staked his claim on Rollins' title, the likelihood of that storyline panning out in the next few weeks is slim to none. There is also the question of a possible Punk/Rollins feud's triteness: Punk and Rollins' history has been incredibly well-established, to the point where people may consider it to be overdone. Do we really need them to run it back again? Don't expect this feud to be revived any time soon.

If WWE is unlikely to continue running Wrestlepalooza's couples storyline, and another Punk/Rollins program (if there be any) seems to be postponed until after Crown Jewel, where does that leave Lee and Lynch? With a high-profile, overseas live event like Crown Jewel on the way, we can expect a solo Lee/Lynch storyline. It's clear the two women were holding back during their intergender feud, and given Lee's brief possession of Lynch's Intercontinental title, that is the logical next storyline direction for both women. Of course, one can argue that Lee should go to the back of the line, and pay her dues like every woman in the locker room. That will, however, only build to the inevitable: Lee is coming for Lynch's title, as a serious contender. Expect to see a cutthroat feud with these two proven microphone masters, with no dirty secret or taboo topic off the table. If they don't run this program at Crown Jewel, they could feasibly do it at one of the two Saturday Night's Main Event specials we have in 2025...but let's be honest, Lee and Lynch deserve a bigger stage than that.

Written by Angeline Phu

Cody Rhodes triumphed in Wrestlepalooza's main event, when he bested Drew McIntyre to retain the Undisputed WWE Championship. Indianapolis is now in the rear view mirror, but both McIntyre and Rhodes will have no time to rest as WWE speeds across continents and oceans to Crown Jewel, which will be the penultimate event in a 2025 Western Australia takeover for the company. While it seems that Rhodes has his Crown Jewel plans determined for him following a champion-versus-champion face-off with WWE World Heavyweight titleholder Seth Rollins at the Wrestlepalooza post-show, the details on his upcoming feud seem murky. How will Rhodes contend with Rollins' Vision attack dogs, Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker? Who will come to aid "The American Nightmare?" Where will McIntyre fit in the Crown Jewel card? As WWE moves headfirst into a new ESPN-backed streaming era, where do we go from here?

Rhodes and Rollins are on a collision course for Crown Jewel, and it can be presumed that Perth will see the two champions face off for the event-specific WWE Crown Jewel Championship, which Rhodes won last year when he overcame GUNTHER in an explosive match. As Rhodes attempts to navigate the few weeks between Monday's post-Wrestlepalooza episode of "WWE Raw" and October 11, however, he will undoubtedly be met with Vision resistance, as Reed and Breakker are extremely unlikely to let Rollins fight this battle alone. Rhodes will have to scrounge up some equalizing faces if he wants to have a fair shot at the Crown Jewel title — luckily for him, The Vision are not exactly popular faces around either of WWE's brands. Top contenders for Rhodes' Crown Jewel allies include The Usos, who may be looking to score a win over Reed and Breakker after an upset tag team match result at Wrestlepalooza, or CM Punk, who is currently a top "Raw" babyface with plenty of hatred towards Rollins and little direction post-Wrestlepalooza.

Dark horse picks for potential Rhodes allies include Penta, who was put on the receiving end of Reed's lethal Tsunamis not too long ago. Given that he is embroiled in a feud with The New Day, however, this seems unlikely. Penta's then-ally Sami Zayn is an even more improbable, given that he is being met with great success with his ongoing United States Championship Open Challenge series on "Smackdown." Fraxiom were recently at the brunt end of Vision violence on recent episodes of "SmackDown," but their relative greenness might take them out of contention when it comes for Rhodes to pick his allies ahead of Australia.

McIntyre, fresh off of another loss at Wrestlepalooza, is left directionless ahead of Crown Jewel. He could reignite his feud with Randy Orton, but that feud felt like it was nothing more but a staller until Rhodes could return from Street Fighter filming. Perhaps a feud with Zayn for the US title could be a way to get him on the Perth card. Otherwise, McIntyre, unfortunately, doesn't have any overwhelmingly clear routes to Crown Jewel.

Written by Angeline Phu