“WWE SmackDown” star Sami Zayn’s character arc has been an interesting one, ever since he won the United States Championship from Carmelo Hayes and entered a feud with Trick Williams, leading to him losing the gold to Williams at WWE WrestleMania 42. On a recent episode of the blue brand, Zayn was involved in a divisive segment where he cut a promo on, then “beat down” a gingerbread man costume that Williams had been using to torment him for weeks. Despite coming off as a bad guy in the promo, Zayn told the Toronto Sun’s “No Holds Barred” that he doesn’t think he’s fully turned heel.

“I think I’m trying to play this one a little different,” Zayn said. “We’re riding these reactions, which are kind of different week to week. I had this idea for a slight character shift, that would be a little outside the box, would kind of split the audience a little bit. But, sometimes things just don’t work out exactly how you envision it and sometimes you think you’re going to be somewhere on the timeline and you’re not. Maybe I’m being a little vague here about it, but all this to say I think there’s still a ways to go and it can still go in a number of different ways, which I find very interesting and kind of refreshing.”

He explained that as to what makes a good heel or babyface, he doesn’t exactly know. Zayn said it’s easy to overthink things, but believes you have to look to yourself and what you value in people, as well as the qualities you don’t like in others, then you embody those as a performer.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit the Toronto Sun’s “No Holds Barred” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns is set for his first defense since winning the gold from CM Punk at WWE WrestleMania 42 on Saturday when he takes on his cousin, Jacob Fatu, at WWE Backlash. Reigns has claimed he’ll be full-time with WWE through the summer, seemingly implying he’s holding the gold through at least SummerSlam, but many fans want to see Fatu with the shock victory. On “Busted Open Radio,” Bully Ray even pitched the involvement of Reigns’ former “Wise Man,” Paul Heyman.

“I think Paul aligning with Jacob Fatu would do a world of good for this story,” he said. “If it wasn’t for Paul Heyman the entire Bloodline story, not only is it not as great as it was, I don’t know if it ever gets off the ground.”

The WWE Hall of Famer said he would “absolutely” take the title off Reigns to get people talking. Bully Ray said John Cena’s advertised “history-making announcement” in Tampa at the event isn’t enough, he wants to see something that goes against the grain. He explained he’s a lot more interested in Reigns chasing Fatu after a Heyman betrayal, and outlined how the end of their Backlash match would go in his scenario.

“Jacob Fatu put the Tongan Death Grip on [Reigns] and squeezed him within an inch of his life while Paul Heyman stood there and stared at Roman Reigns while his life was being choked out of him. The bell rings and Roman’s eyes close,” he said. “I’m a lot more interested in that chase because of the backstabbing and the screwing over… I’m into that a lot more than ‘Jacob loses and he falls in line.'”

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “Busted Open Radio” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Is Jelly Roll my first choice for Danhausen’s Backlash tag team partner? No. But is he my last one? Also no.

I have to give credit to Jelly Roll. He’s taken his wrestling training very seriously, and it’s been evident in his work so far. His in-ring performances — WWE SummerSlam 2025, then “SmackDown” in March 2026 — have both turned out to be decent. And considering the dynamics of a tag match involving Danhausen, The Miz, and Kit Wilson, that’s all he would really need to deliver from a physical standpoint at Backlash. Danhausen, The Miz, and Kit Wilson would cover the comedic aspect of the match.

Danhausen will likely bring the smoke (no, literally), a “curse,” and perhaps, like WrestleMania 42, the mini-hausens as added backup. The Miz will likely trash talk his confirmed and unconfirmed opponents. Meanwhile, Wilson may preview the faceoff with another spoken poem.

Considering that previous plans called for Jelly Roll to work alongside Cody Rhodes at Backlash, it’s safe to say that he is available for an appearance. And despite our overall exhaustion from celebrity involvement in WWE, I can’t deny the fact that Jelly shares legitimate history with both Wilson and The Miz. That’s why I’m okay with him potentially partnering with Danhausen.

The betting odd suggestions of CM Punk, Mr. Iguana, and Joe Hendry do sound more enticing, however.

Other aspects of the deals the media rights contracts revealed included extra content outside of “SmackDown” on Fox, including the seven-month run of “WWE Backstage,” and other shows that never materialized. The agreements also included guidance on how clips from both shows could be shared online, including on YouTube, with NBCU allowing for “Raw” clips to be posted beginning at midnight following the show’s conclusion, with parameters on how much of the full episode could be shown, as well as time limits on the clips. The Fox deal was similar in its parameters, and clips posted online before the end of the show at 10 p.m. EST could not exceed a minute.

As for renewal of the deals, both Fox and NBCU were required to tell WWE by March 15, 2023, during an exclusive negotiating window, whether or not the companies were interested in renewing the deal. According to Wrestlenomics, there is no information as to why Fox did not renew its deal for “SmackDown.” According to testimony given during deposition ahead of the shareholder suit, NBCU received an extension of that exclusive negotiation period, as it was during the time the sale of WWE was being negotiated.

The NBCU deal for the red brand also allowed to WWE to offer the company either a two or three-hour version of “Raw” as part of the renewal. It was revealed in January 2024 that “Raw” would be headed to Netflix after the expiration of the NBCU deal. “Raw” officially made off cable television for the first time in its history in January 2025, with a flexible run time.