WWE Rumors: Big Update On Finn Balor’s Expected Return To The Ring, Per ‘PWInsider’
It’s been over a month since Finn Balor went on a break from WWE action, with the company writing him off for the meantime through a loss to “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt at SummerSlam. This came a few weeks after it was reported that the Irishman requested to take time off in order to “recharge” his batteries. It’s still unclear how WWE may utilize him once he comes back from his break and appears on television once again, but a new report has provided information on when he might be returning on WWE’s non-televised live events.
As reported by PWInsider, Balor is included in WWE’s card for its upcoming tour of Australia from October 21 to 23 and is scheduled to face Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura in a series of title matches. The advertised card for these shows suggests that all of the matches are consistent with the current brand alignment, so there’s a possibility the lineup is subject to change.
According to an earlier report from The Inquisitr, WWE is scheduled to hold its next brand draft on October 11 and 14 and do away with the controversial Wild Card Rule. For the past few months, this rule has allowed wrestlers to make supposed one-off appearances on their rival brand’s show on any given episode of Monday Night Raw or SmackDown Live.
Keeping that in mind, there’s a chance Balor and Nakamura might be among the wrestlers switching brands in next month’s draft. Both men were feuding for the Intercontinental Championship before Balor requested some time off and was attacked by Wyatt on the very same night that reports of this request first emerged. At the time, it was also believed that Balor dropped his title to Nakamura because of his desire to regroup and take a breather from WWE’s hectic touring and television schedule.
In addition to the possible resumption of his rivalry against Nakamura or another shot at Wyatt, there have also been rumors that WWE could reunite Balor with his former Bullet Club stablemates in The O.C. — AJ Styles, Karl Anderson, and Luke Gallows. As reported by Sportskeeda, The O.C. offered their assistance to Balor ahead of his match against Wyatt at SummerSlam, only for the former Intercontinental Champion to refuse. However, it appears that Styles has also been hinting at the possibility of expanding his faction, as the outlet noted that he tweeted earlier this month that having a three-man stable would suffice “for now.”