WWE Rumors on Jacob Fatu, Bloodline; Hardys Eye WWE Retirement; Lashley, MVP Update

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

Reported Details on WWE's Handling of Fatu and WWE Tag Titles After SummerSlam

Jacob Fatu suffered an apparent leg injury while interfering in the SummerSlam main event between Cody Rhodes and Solo Sikoa, but his absence from WWE programming since then has reportedly been big design.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t WrestleTalk), WWE has been "totally quiet" about whether Fatu is actually hurt, but regardless of his status, keeping Fatu away from Roman Reigns has always been the intention.

All of the new Bloodline members got involved in the SummerSlam main event, including Fatu, who hit Rhodes with a splash through the announce table.

Fatu seemed to be favoring his leg afterward and ended up sitting and watching the rest of the match from ringside. That included Reigns returning to WWE programming for the first time since WrestleMania 40 and hitting Solo with a spear, which allowed Cody to retain.

Fatu has not been on WWE programming since then, and Meltzer noted that a big reason for that is the fact that WWE doesn't want him bumping and selling for Reigns right now.

That is likely due to the notion that WWE is building toward a big eventual match between Reigns and Fatu.

Just one day before SummerSlam, Fatu and Tama Tonga beat DIY for the WWE Tag Team Championships. If Fatu's absence persists, it reportedly won't impact The Bloodline's hold on the titles.

Per Meltzer, WWE is moving forward with the idea that any two members of The Bloodline can defend the titles at any given time.

That concept—known as the Freebird Rule due to the Fabulous Freebirds implementing it in the 1980s—has been used in WWE before, most notably by New Day.

Matt Hardy Talks Wanting Hardy Boyz to Retire in WWE

TNA star Matt Hardy talked this week about he and his brother, Jeff Hardy, having the desire to end their pro wrestling careers in WWE.

Speaking on his The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Matt noted that he and Jeff would like to have their last hurrah in wrestling with WWE since that is where they became huge stars:

"WWE was our birthplace. Without the WWE, we wouldn't have become who we ultimately became, these tag team legends, however people view us or the worst tag team ever. You know, Matt and Jeff Hardy. Whatever you think our legacy is, that happened because of WWE giving us an opportunity, obviously, so that will always be viewed as our home.

"We've said this before and I've said this on this podcast, ad nauseam that I think we want to finish in WWE now because that is our home. That seems like the right way to do it."

Matt added that while there was a time when he would have been happy to end his career in AEW, he now wants things to "come full circle" and would like to end things with him and Jeff getting an induction into the WW Hall of Fame.

Matt also discussed a project he and Jeff did with WWE during SummerSlam weekend in Cleveland.

During his podcast (h/t H Jenkins of Ringside News), Matt told the story of the Hardy Boyz' visit to WWE and explained what they did in Cleveland:

"We get on that plane, we get to Cleveland, as soon as we get to Cleveland, we were met by a WWE driver who picked us up to take us to the WWE TV hotel where we went and recorded some media, some digital for those guys which is going to air on some of their platforms coming up in the future.

"It was very cool, it was very cool to interact with a lot of the guys. We walked in, very first person we saw was Jey Uso which was cool. Saw a couple of the other boys, saw some of the office. We got some really neat stuff that's going to be coming out on WWE digital over the course of probably the next three, four, five months."

Matt and Jeff are WWE legends, but it has been years since either of them have officially been with WWE in any capacity.

They returned to the company in 2017 after a run in TNA and ROH, but Matt left WWE for AEW in 2020, and Jeff got released by WWE in 2021 after leaving through the crowd in the middle of a live event match.

Jeff reunited with Matt in AEW in 2022, but just three months into his tenure, he was suspended indefinitely after getting arrested for driving under the influence.

Although Jeff was reinstated in April 2023, he and Matt weren't utilized with much consistency, and they both returned to TNA this year once their contracts expired.

Since TNA now has a working relationship with WWE, it opens the door for The Hardys to do some things with WWE and even potentially make some appearances on WWE programming.

It is unclear if any such plans are in place, but having Matt and Jeff record some content may have been WWE's way of burying the hatchet in case there were any bad feelings regarding their departure.

Lashley, MVP Moved to Alumni Section on WWE Website

It appears as though Bobby Lashley and MVP may now officially be free agents following rumors of their impending WWE departure.

WrestleTalk posted screenshots Friday on X showing that both Lashley and MVP were moved from the active roster to the alumni section on WWE's official website:

That almost always indicates that a Superstar has left the company, and it would be in line with recent reports.

Meltzer (h/t Bryan Rose of F4WOnline) reported last month that Lashley and MVP were set to see their WWE contracts expire "relatively soon" with the expectation that they would perhaps try to reboot their Hurt Business stable in AEW.

Meltzer (h/t Nikunj Walia of Ringside News) later reported that MVP's deal expired on Aug. 2, officially making him a free agent.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lashley and MVP formed the Hurt Business with Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander, and the group enjoyed a ton of success.

Lashley had a lengthy United States Championship run during that time and also became WWE champion for the first time in his career.

The group officially broke up for good in early 2022, and although fans seemingly supported the reformation of the stable, it never came to fruition in WWE.

Now that both Lashley and MVP appear to be free agents, they have a ready-made, successful act they can pitch to other companies, which should ensure they land a strong deal.

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