On his Notsam Wrestling podcast, analyst Sam Roberts proposed that WWE may be orchestrating a “red herring” concerning the widely anticipated return of AJ Lee. He suggested the company could be positioning former champion Rhea Ripley to take her place in the current storyline involving CM Punk, Seth Rollins, and Becky Lynch ahead of Wrestlepalooza.
This theory surfaces despite multiple reports indicating WWE is actively planning for Lee’s in-ring comeback. Those plans are said to center on a mixed tag team match at Wrestlepalooza pitting Lee and CM Punk against Rollins and Lynch. The return was seemingly corroborated when the official WWE Shop account on X made a now-deleted reference to “AJ Lee’s return to the ring.”
Roberts’s speculation is fueled by an on-screen segment from this past Monday’s episode of RAW, which established a friendly relationship between CM Punk and Rhea Ripley. This interaction occurred in the wake of Lynch helping Rollins defeat Punk for the World Heavyweight Championship at Clash in Paris.
“Why are we establishing an on-screen relationship, a friendship between CM Punk and Rhea Ripley? Is there a chance that it’s not AJ Lee at Wrestlepalooza? Is there a chance that it’s CM Punk and Rhea Ripley?” Roberts questioned.
He elaborated on the potential strategy, stating, “Maybe WWE is trying to throw Rhea Ripley into the mix so that people like us can speculate wildly… They present us a road that has multiple forks in it. Maybe it’s a red herring, maybe it’s we think it’s going to be AJ Lee, but just in case it’s not AJ Lee, let’s start building some foundation so it can be Rhea Ripley.”
While Ripley is a popular star who could fill the role, the company’s own social media activity via the WWE Shop post has led many to believe Lee’s return is a certainty. Roberts’s theory, however, frames the situation as a deliberate attempt by WWE to create narrative uncertainty for a major premium live event.