WWE Superstar Rusev may be gone for a while. The Bulgarian Brute recently went back to his Bulgarian roots after his public break up with WWE Diva and manager Lana who has Russian ties. It is said that Lana will eventually drift away from her Russian gimmick, but this might take time. For now, the idea was to keep the two in a storyline that would ultimately lead to the both of them going different directions.
However, this storyline may be put on hold as according to Daily Wrestling News , Rusev was hurt at last night’s WWE SmackDown tapings. He was working with Ryback when he injured either his ankle or foot. After the match was over, Rusev was helped to the back where the company put a brace. He was also seen in a wheelchair after the show as over as you can see from our picture below from Twitter user @BellaFam.
This couldn’t come at a worse time, as WWE planned to do a lot with Rusev in the coming months to help build his character back up after three straight PPV loses to WWE Superstar John Cena. The idea was to have Lana and Rusev work together for at least the next few months. The Dolph Ziggler storyline with Lana was supposed to truly begin at the Elimination Chamber PPV where Rusev was set to destroy Ziggler to get revenge on him for taking Lana away.
Rusev was not originally set to win the chamber match he is part of, as WWE didn’t plan on him winning the Intercontinental Championship right now. The idea is that he very well could win titles down the line but the push of WWE Diva Lana was the big story that WWE wanted to push us this summer. Rusev is a big part of this, as he is connected to the Lana character more than any other on the roster. This both professionally and privately.
WWE will most likely continue the Lana storyline as planned, but if Rusev is seriously injured, he may end up missing the Elimination Chamber PPV and the next couple of months. Many would imagine that if it is merely an ankle problem, he very well could be able to perform. However, a guy at the size of Rusev probably cannot work all that well with a bum ankle. He very well could have just rolled it, but how often do you brace a roll and have someone in a wheelchair?
[IMG Credit: Twitter-@BellaFam, WWE.com]