Below are a couple of top WWE news stories of the day.
• Top WWE Star Is Working Hurt
Drew McIntyre is dealing with real pain after a brutal spot at WWE Backlash 2025. The former WWE Champion took a nasty fall during the United States Championship Fatal 4-Way match and says he’s still feeling the effects.
During the match in St. Louis, McIntyre and Damian Priest fought into the crowd. At one point, Priest delivered a South of Heaven chokeslam off a platform. McIntyre was supposed to go through a table, but his head reportedly missed the table and hit the floor instead. Fans noticed the impact looked worse than planned.
PWInsider reported that WWE medical staff were monitoring McIntyre after the match. Now, McIntyre has confirmed the injury himself.
Speaking with the Orlando Sentinel, McIntyre said:
“I can’t turn my head all the way left yet. Working hurt is just what happens if you’re an athlete, especially as the years go by.
If you’re injured, it is something to take care of. Maybe back in the day, we would have taped it up and gone with it.
In the past, I have worked with muscle tears and breaks, which isn’t the most sensible thing, but the way we operate now, you want to last for the long run.”
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• WWE’s Original Name For Jeff Cobb Revealed
Jeff Cobb made his WWE debut at Backlash 2025 using his real name, but that wasn’t always the plan. WWE had discussions about rebranding him with a name that would have referenced his past work in Lucha Underground.
According to the Wrestling Observer, the name being considered was “JC Matanza,” a clear nod to Cobb’s role as Matanza Cueto in Lucha Underground:
“JC Matanza was discussed internally as an insider reference since Cobb’s first major break was as Matanza Cueto in Lucha Underground.”
However, there were legal issues involved. The Observer noted that even though WWE recently acquired AAA, that deal did not include the rights to Lucha Underground’s intellectual property:
“While AAA was an investor in Lucha Underground, they weren’t owners, and in purchasing AAA, that wasn’t a purchase of Lucha Underground tapes or intellectual property.”
Beyond the legal concerns, Cobb himself reportedly didn’t support the idea. “Cobb was said to not like that name,” the Wrestling Observer added.
WWE has since settled on the ring name “JC Mateo” for Cobb moving forward.
In his debut match on last week’s SmackDown, JC Mateo defeated LA Knight. On this week’s SmackDown, JC teamed up with United States Champion Jacob Fatu to defeat Jimmy Uso & Rey Fenix in a tag team match, where Mateo pinned Uso.
