— On the latest Wrestling Observer Live, Bryan Alvarez speculated that next week’s #1 contender match between Randy Orton and Shinsuke Nakamura could see Orton win the match and go on to challenge Mahal next month, pushing out a Nakamura/Jinder rematch several weeks.
— With the next WWE Smackdown PPV not until October, there is plenty of time to set up the competitors in the “Hell in a Cell” match and the suggestion was that Nakamura/Mahal could happen there with Orton facing Rusev.
— As noted before, the plan as of last week was for Rusev and Orton to begin a program, despite the nine second match at SummerSlam. As a result, it’s possible we could see Rusev interfere in any potential Orton vs. Mahal title match.