Rumor Mill - Backstage Update on Brock Lesnar’s Future, Is WWE Expecting Him to Leave?, Superstar Possibly Getting Big Push in Lesnar’s Place

According to F4WOnline.com, WWE has instructed its merchandise department not to make any new merchandise for Brock Lesnar. Instead, the department has been told to make new merchandise for Sheamus.

This seems to be an indication that Sheamus might be in-line for a sizable push when he returns from injury, and Brock Lesnar’s future in WWE beyond WrestleMania 31 is very much up in the air.

The current feeling in WWE is that Lesnar will be leaving the company following WrestleMania, likely to give MMA one more try before he retires. Once Lesnar’s WWE contract expires, which is shortly after WrestleMania, a bidding war is expected to begin for Lesnar, pitting WWE against UFC and Bellator.

WWE Releasing Special Edition Magazine

While WWE no longer publishes WWE Magazine, the company will apparently continue to put out special issues. Joey Styles revealed on Twitter this afternoon that a "Collector's Edition" magazine highlighting the best photos of the year is now out on newsstands.

Rumor Mill - Backstage Fallout From WWE TLC - Unhappiness With The Show, Talent Meeting Held Today At Raw

Reddit.com user MetsFan4Ever, a former WWE backstage worker who still has ties to people in the organization, provided insight into the atmosphere backstage at Raw today at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan, following last night's WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs ... and Stairs.

According to him, many people in the company are dissatisfied with how the show came off following the successful TakeOver: R Evolution and are hopeful this will lead to creative changes with WWE's mainline product.

"While many knew it would be tough to top the NXT show, there were people who thought it could be pulled off," he wrote. "There have been rumblings that some talent knew they couldn't top NXT so in a silent protest in favor of Triple H, some superstars were described "mailing in" their matches last night. Many are in favor of Triple H and what he has done with the NXT product and feel it is time for Triple H to take the lead on the main roster."

MetsFan4Ever added that locker room leader John Cena hosted a talent meeting this afternoon that was described as "forceful yet calm." Cena stressed that a silent protest will not help matters. Instead, Cena feels they should step up their performance in order for their point to be proven.

Dixie Carter Announces New TNA Show to Air on Destination America

TNA President Dixie Carter announced on Twitter that "TNA Unlocked" will be a new show on Destination America. It will premiere on Saturday, January 17th at 10am.

Triple H Comments On Sami Zayn

"I do think he can succeed, I think it would take some time, he is the slow built kind of guy," Triple H said of Zayn. "Every time you see him he wins you over with that emotion and that quality and that realness. He lets you inside who he is as a person, you know it's very Steamboat-esque, in a way, that level of emotional connection to a talent that takes you and really invests you in him as a person and a character. His growth curve has been phenomenal, he had all the tools, but to see him do what he's done in a relatively short period of time is awesome and I can't wait for him to get that opportunity on the [main] roster."

Rumor Mill - Backstage Pressure on WWE TLC Due to NXT Success

F4WOnline.com is reporting that there is some motivation and maybe pressure on the WWE Superstars on Sunday. With all of the positivity and success from NXT R-Evolution this past Thursday, there is a feeling that WWE TLC will be better than expected.

WWE Exec Talks New Content Being Added To the Network

WWE CFO George Barrios recently talked at at the UBS Financial Conference in New York City. He opened up on how the company is creating new WWE Network content. Below is what he had to say:

“The thing that gets me the most excited is the new content we’re going to create for the Network. Now we haven’t announced it yet, and I think my boss would kill me if I chose the UBS conference to announce the new content, but I’m personally excited about what’s coming, so those announcements, those programs going on there, which to us then leads to in terms of what investors should be focused on is the acquisition and retention of subscribers. So that for us is a key part, seeing continued growth in the subscriber base globally is absolutely a core priority.”

Two Diva's removed from Total Divas New Season?

Summer Rae and Naomi do not appear to be part of the upcoming cast of of Total Divas.

WWE published a "Behind The Scenes of Total Divas" photo gallery for the new season and missing are Naomi and Summer Rae. The two are also not featured in the promo video that has been airing on E!.

Reddit Sends Triple H A Fruit Basket Following NXT Takeover: R Evolution

The Squared Circle Reddit community came together following last night’s phenomenal NXT Takeover: R Evolution live special to do something nice for Triple H.

Reddit user “cbartholomew” pitched the idea this morning, stating that if it got more than 100 votes he would personally buy an Edible Arrangements fruit basket for “The Game”. The post reached its goal in less than 15 minutes, and true to his word, he purchased and shipped a $127 fruit basket to WWE headquarters in Stamford, CT.

Unfortunately, Hunter is still at Full Sail University in Florida for tonight’s NXT television taping. But he did post on Twitter that WWE received the gift, and that it was being eating by the “WWE Archivist”.

Thanks for the fruit basket @reddit but I'm at @WWENXT working with the future. #WWEArchivistAteIt @WWE pic.twitter.com/fs8ogk2rGa

— Triple H (@TripleH) December 12, 2014

Triple H Addresses Vince McMahon’s Brass Ring Comment

Vince McMahon stated in his interview with Steve Austin that a lot of today’s talent — millennials — don’t want to grab the brass ring. He mentioned Bray Wyatt, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns as talent that might want to change that.

Well after WWE NXT TakeOver: R Evolution, Triple H Tweeted the following:

Hey, can anyone help me? I'm missing a whole box of brass rings. #NXTTakeOver @WWENXT

— Triple H (@TripleH) December 12, 2014

There has been a lot of talk about Vince making the “brass ring” comment, while also questioning the ambition of today’s talent. Triple H considers NXT “his baby” and WWE’s future. He’s very proud of what he’s done in overhauling the company’s developmental system and sees the special events as a chance for all of his work to shine.

WWE NXT TakeOver: R Evolution Results

Corey Graves retires from the ring, joins WWE NXT’s announce team

Usually, when an up-and-coming Superstar is forced into an early retirement, the discussion turns toward what might have been. Corey Graves is determined to not let that be the case for him. Though concussions have forced him out of the ring, the final chapter in “The Savior of Misbehavior’s” story has not been written. Starting with NXT TakeOver: R Evolution, Graves will join the broadcast team that calls the action every week on WWE Network.

“I’m really excited to start a new chapter of my career and life,” Graves told WWE.com before announcing his retirement on the TakeOver Pre-Show. “These last eight months have been up and down, emotionally, but I’m really looking forward to being part of the show again.”

Graves’ path to the announce booth traces back to WrestleMania Axxess, when he suffered a concussion during a match at the fan convention.

“I was bummed,” he said after being pulled from competition initially. “I felt like my Christmas got cancelled.”

Though he was not allowed to continue competing during WrestleMania weekend, Graves had every intention of getting back in the squared circle, working with WWE’s doctors and taking ImPACT and exertion tests to track his status. However, because of the frequency of Graves’ previous concussions, which built up over a decade on the independent circuit before coming to WWE, he was sent to see several specialists, who conferred with Dr. Joseph Maroon, WWE’s medical director. In Graves’ best interest, they recommended he step away from the ring.

“I saw Triple H in the [WWE Performance Center’s] gym,” Graves recalled. “I asked if he had any updates for me. His demeanor changed. He said something like, ‘I’m going to be honest with you. If I were you, I’d prepare for the worst.’ You could have told me a million things were going to happen to me that day, that wouldn’t be one of them.”

Faced with the end of his in-ring career, Graves was heartbroken.

“I remember just walking out of the gym in disbelief and going to the locker room, which was empty, and I fell apart,” he said. “I wasthisclose and I had my fingers on the prize. It was like, ‘Oh my God, I wasted my life. What am I going to do?’ I have a family, my wife was eight months pregnant at the time. My world fell apart in that moment.”

Following his conversation with Triple H, Graves officially received the news that he could no longer compete, but that he would be given a chance to do anything else within the company.

“That night, I pulled Triple H aside and thanked him for the opportunities,” he said. “I looked him in the eyes and said, ‘I’m not done here.’ He gave me a smile and said, ‘I know you’re not.’”

Graves took the weekend to gather his thoughts, then returned to the Performance Center and jumped at the opportunity to help with whatever he could, whether it be production, promotion or giving advice to new arrivals to the Performance Center.

But “The Savior of Misbehavior” gravitated toward the microphone. At the behest of The Voice of WWE, Michael Cole, Graves tried his hand at announcing and showed an aptitude that surely comes from his days of talking trash in the ring.

“I got in the booth here with Rich Brennan every day, we really developed chemistry,” Graves told WWE.com. “Knowing the business and growing up watching it like I did, I feel like I took to it pretty quickly.”

While he’s not afraid to admit he’s still learning the ins and outs of play-by-play, Graves is ready for whatever the future holds.

“It’s taken some time to get there, but I’m very excited to try something new,” he said.

Most of all, he’s grateful for the opportunity to stay in the industry he loves.

“WWE could have very easily discarded me and said, ‘You’re not able to do what we hired you for any more, so good luck to you,’” Graves said. “I like to think that they saw value in me, not only in the ring, but in what I’ve been able to prove I can do in the months since then.”