Dave Meltzer dismisses Roman Reigns vs El Grande Americano rumor; Lola Vice linked to main roster plans

Dave Meltzer told readers of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that rumors of El Grande Americano challenging Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight Championship are unfounded, after WWE published the tournament bracket to determine Reigns’ opponent for the September 14 edition of Raw in Mexico City. Separately, TRNBCKL Gold reports that WWE’s creative team has begun pitching ideas to bring former NXT Women’s Champion Lola Vice to the main roster.

WWE’s promotional material for the tournament listed Penta, La Parka, El Fiscal, El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr., Dragon Lee, Fenix, Psycho Clown and Laredo Kid as participants; El Grande Americano did not appear in that artwork. The bracket was revealed as the process to select the challenger who will face Reigns for the World title on the September 14 Raw at the Arena CDMX.

Meltzer wrote that among the announced entrants Penta stands out as the only participant established at a level where a World title match against Roman Reigns would feel credible. The newsletter noted that Penta recently lost the Intercontinental title to Chad Gable at SummerSlam and added that WWE could logically move him into the World Championship picture.

Meltzer also said that a candidate such as El Fiscal, who is not yet well-known among WWE’s mainstream television audience, appears less likely to be chosen to challenge Reigns. He observed that, with Reigns seemingly overlooking Rey Mysterio in his capacity as AAA’s General Manager, the tournament does not appear to offer substantial upside to AAA, which could favour a WWE-affiliated contender winning the bracket.

On the Lola Vice front, Vice failed to regain the NXT Women’s Championship in the NXT Underground match against Kendal Gray on this past week’s WWE NXT, suffering her first loss in an NXT Underground match. After that defeat she appeared to say goodbye to fans at the WWE Performance Center, and TRNBCKL Gold reports that WWE’s creative team has begun pitching main roster concepts for her.

TRNBCKL Gold’s report adds that there is no confirmed timeline for Lola Vice’s WWE television debut and that rumors place her on the SmackDown brand while she could continue to make occasional appearances for AAA. The tournament to determine Reigns’ title challenger will begin on the August 10 edition of Raw in Norfolk, with the winner scheduled to challenge Roman Reigns for the World title on the September 14 edition of Raw at Arena CDMX in Mexico City.