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

WWE Reportedly Approached Punk About New Contract

Based on the success and popularity CM Punk has achieved in the eight months since returning to WWE, and company is reportedly already looking to restructure his contract.

According to PWInsider.com (h/t Nikunj Walia of Ringside News), WWE recently approached Punk about negotiating a new deal, and it was described by multiple sources as a "bigger" contract.

Punk reportedly signed a three-year pact with WWE when he returned to the promotion back in November, meaning he is under contract through November 2026. PWInsider.com added that prior reports about Punk having only signed a short deal were incorrect.

In January 2014, Punk left WWE on bad terms, and he remained out of pro wrestling until 2021 when he debut with AEW. After the partnership between Punk and AEW dissolved last year, WWE signed him and had him return at Survivor Series in his hometown of Chicago.

Despite having been back for eight months, Punk has only competed in one televised match, that being the 2024 men's Royal Rumble match back in January.

Punk suffered a torn triceps during the match and could not compete at WrestleMania 40, but he has remained a key figure on WWE programming and has been involved in arguably the most compelling rivalry in wrestling with Drew McIntyre despite being out injured.

After announcing recently that he has been cleared to compete, Punk's match against McIntyre was made official for SummerSlam with another Punk rival in Seth Rollins serving as the special guest referee.

Punk has long been viewed as something of a volatile personality, which is perhaps part of the reason why is first stint with WWE ended, as well as his time with AEW.

However, Punk appears to be happy in his current role in WWE, and there has been no indication of any issues whatsoever between the two sides.

In fact, WrestleVotes reported that WWE is "extremely happy with Punk's attitude, commitment, drawing power and big merchandise sales," so it comes as little surprise that they reportedly want him to stick around for the long haul.

McAfee to Reportedly Take Time Off from Raw During College Football Season

With Pat McAfee set to return to ESPN College GameDay for the 2024 college football season, his ESPN announcing schedule will reportedly be impacted.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), it is "expected" that McAfee will be pulled from the Raw announce team while he fulfills his College GameDay obligations this fall.

McAfee previously served as the color commentator alongside Michael Cole on SmackDown, but when he was added to ESPN College GameDay in 2022, he took a step back from those duties.

However, following the end of the 2023 college football season, McAfee returned to serve as the full-time color commentator on Raw, once again alongside Cole.

Until recently, it was not clear if McAfee would be part of ESPN College GameDay for the 2024 season, but it was cleared up this week.

During Wednesday's episode of the Pat McAfee Show, the former West Virginia University and Indianapolis Colts punter said he would be back on the College GameDay panel during the upcoming season:

McAfee doing College GameDay and his WWE duties would perhaps be more doable this time around since two days separate the weekly college football schedule and Monday Night Raw, whereas SmackDown airs one day before the CFB slate.

Even so, it sounds like McAfee will be taking a WWE hiatus, which could open the door for either Corey Graves or Wade Barrett to move from SmackDown to Raw once Joe Tessitore officially joins WWE as SmackDown's play-by-play announcer.

Conflicting Reports Regarding WWE's Handling of Lashley, MVP Contracts

Amid reports that Bobby Lashley and MVP are set to leave WWE soon, some conflicting accounts of the events leading up to it have surfaced.

According to Meltzer (h/t Walia), one source said WWE declined to offer new contracts to Lashley and MVP, whereas another claimed Lashley was offered a new deal, however, he turned it down, and the expectation is that he will leave when his current deal expires.

WWE head of creative Triple H did little to dispel the rumor that Lashley and MVP are on their way out of the company when asked about their status this week.

While speaking to the Daily Mail (h/t Mukherjee), Triple H said: "You know, just like any sport, any business, we sign talent, talents' contracts run out, we release talent, it's just part of the process. So it's an ongoing thing."

Meltzer (h/t Bryan Rose of F4WOnline) previously reported that Lashley and MVP were set to see their WWE contracts expire "relatively soon," and there has been talk of them trying to resurrect their popular Hurt Business stable in AEW.

The quartet of Lashley, MVP, Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander dominated WWE programming throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but the group broke up in early 2022.

There have been calls from fans for WWE to bring the Hurt Business back, but it hasn't happened, and it seems that could lead directly to a two-time WWE champion in Lashley leaving the company.

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