WWE: Competitors Announced for World Title Tournament, Colby Corino Departure, Backlash Match Producers

WWE
May 7, 2023

WWE Announces Full Field of Competitors for World Heavyweight Title Tournament

WWE announced the full field of competitors for their upcoming World Heavyweight Championship tournament, which takes place starting at this Monday’s RAW show in Jacksonville, Florida and concludes on May 27th at Night of Champions 2023 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

  • Seth Rollins
  • The Miz
  • Shinsuke Nakamura
  • Cody Rhodes
  • Finn Balor
  • Damien Priest
  • Edge
  • Rey Mysterio
  • Sheamus
  • Bobby Lashley
  • Austin Theory
  • AJ Styles

Colby Cornio Reportedly Departed from WWE Over Contract-Related Issues

As noted before, former National Wrestling Alliance talent Colby Corino signed a contract with WWE this past February.

BodySlam.net’s Cassidy Haynes reported that his sources stated that Corino recently departed from WWE and is currently a free agent. Haynes reported that the reason for his departure is due to issues related to his contract status in the company. Corino and WWE officials reportedly had agreed to a deal between the two sides but nothing was ever officially signed.

Haynes reported that the reason for this issue was due to WWE entering a “hiring freeze” earlier this year which affected the status of Corino’s contract with the company. This “hiring freeze” reportedly was caused by WWE’s sale process at the time, which resulted in Endeavor’s agreed purchase of the company.

WWE Backlash 2023 Match Producers

Fightful Select reported that the following people were the match producers for WWE’s Backlash 2023 event on Saturday in San Juan, Puerto Rico:

  • IYO SKY vs. Bianca Belair (c), RAW Women’s Championship – TJ Wilson
  • Seth Rollins vs. Omos – Adam Pearce
  • Bobby Lashley vs. Bronson Reed vs. Austin Theory (c), WWE United States Championship – Chris “Abyss” Park
  • Zelina vs. Rhea Ripley (c), SmackDown Women’s Championship – Shawn Daivari
  • Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest, San Juan Street Fight – Jamie Noble
  • Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, & Matt Riddle vs. The Bloodline – Jason Jordan
  • Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar – Michael Hayes
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