Daniel Bryan Storyline Changes, The Shield Drawing On RAW, WWE Statement On Using Vladimir Putin

- Until he got to RAW on Monday, very few people knew that Daniel Bryan was examined for neck problems in the past week and advised to get minor surgery before his problems got worse. The Buried Alive Match with Kane that was set for Payback was scheduled to be announced on RAW but most of the show was re-written due to Bryan leaving for surgery.

- For the second straight week on RAW, The Shield's overrun segment has had the highest rated quarter-rating of the night.

- The Daily Beast has an article up about WWE using Vladimir Putin's image in the promos of Lana and Alexander Rusev. A WWE spokesman issued the following comments to the website:

"WWE programming, like Hollywood movies and television shows, is an exciting blend of action, characters and fictional storylines of good versus evil that are often inspired by pop culture and current events. Russian President Vladimir Putin has given us good material to work with to create strong characters in Rusev and Lana, who are perceived as either protagonists or antagonists depending on where in the world you are watching WWE programming."

Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

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