What's the story? There has been lots of speculation in recent weeks about the future of Luke Harper after he requested his release from WWE shortly after WrestleMania 35. The latest piece of information regarding Harper comes from Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp, who is reporting that the former Bludgeon Brother was unhappy with Braun Strowman following their interactions in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal. In case you didn't know… The 2019 Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal was largely built around Braun Strowman, who overcame the ‘threat’ of SNL duo Michael Che and Colin Jost to win the over-the-top match on the WrestleMania 35 kickoff show. Another notable moment during the match came when Harper lifted Ali up in a suplex position on the ring apron and waited for Strowman to hit both men with a big boot to send them to the outside of the ring. It has been widely reported since ‘Mania that Strowman missed his cue – the footage backs this up, as Harper let go of Ali at one stage and held him up in another suplex – while Ali then suffered an injury when he ricocheted off the ground after being eliminated before slamming his head into the corner of the announce table. Mustafa Ali was injured during the Battle Royal. (Video) 🙏#WrestleMania pic.twitter.com/d4sryBofub — GIF Skull - Laying the Mack Down (@GIFSkull) April 7, 2019 The heart of the matter Sean Ross Sapp is reporting that Luke Harper was unhappy with Braun Strowman after WrestleMania 35, not only due to the suplex spot but also because “The Monster Among Men” caught him with a stiff kick during the Battle Royal. Harper was also said to be frustrated when Strowman felt after the match that he had not done anything wrong. Sapp wrote: “We were told the match itself was a disaster to put together and execute, and that Luke Harper wasn't happy that Braun Strowman both forgot his spot and that Ali ended up hurt in the match. In addition to that, Braun hit Harper with a stiff kick just ahead of that. Harper, in an effort to protect Ali during his elimination, hurt his back and/or shoulder trying to keep him from flying out of control. Afterwards, we're told that Strowman didn't think he had done anything wrong, which caused a little more frustration.” What's next? Luke Harper’s WWE contract expires in November 2019. However, several reports have suggested that WWE will extend his deal by six months – the amount of time he was recently out with a wrist injury – which means he will be contracted to the company until shortly after WrestleMania 36. Given that Harper requested his release, it is highly unlikely that we will see him on WWE television any time soon.<doc-sep>WWE WWE exile Luke Harper's name can't escape the headlines at the moment, and his saga continues with a new Fightful report detailing one of the situations that led to Vince McMahon's apparent hatred of the former Bludgeon Brother. WrestleMania 35 created much of Harper's heat. Per Fightful, the 39-year-old raised management's ire by taking issue with Braun Strowman's Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal performance. As was previously reported, 'The Monster Among Men' forgot a number of spots in the bout, including one that saw him recklessly throw Ali from the ring, resulting in Harper injuring himself while trying to catch the former Cruiserweight. The situation worsened when Strowman apparently decided that he hadn't done anything wrong afterwards, leading to the reported heat between the two. Advertisement A failed dark match pitting Harper against EC3 (with manager Drake Maverick) was previously pinpointed as the reason behind Harper's exodus, but Fightful have countered this, stating that Vince had already decided he hated Harper by that point. Dave Meltzer had previously reported that Strowman's battle royal screw-ups were the reason he didn't do much on television in WrestleMania's immediate aftermath, but at least he's on TV. Poor old Harper may not feature again before his contract expires next year.<doc-sep>Luke Harper is caught in WWE purgatory, and has been for quite some time. Several WWE sources spoke to Fightful recently, and confirmed several reports from Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, and gained some new information along the way. Related Article Knockouts Tag Team Championship Match And More Announced For 6/3 Episode Of IMPACT Wrestling We were told the Andre the Giant Battle Royal match itself was a disaster to put together and execute, and that Luke Harper wasn't happy that Braun Strowman both forgot his spot and that Ali ended up hurt in the match. In addition to that, Braun hit Harper with a stiff kick just ahead of that. Harper, in an effort to protect Ali during his elimination, hurt his back and/or shoulder trying to keep him from flying out of control. Afterwards, we're told that Strowman didn't think he had done anything wrong, which caused a little more frustration. A source close to the situation spoke of the Harper vs. EC3 match and said that Vince McMahon himself seemed to have a long-term issue with Luke Harper and that whatever happened wouldn't have mattered anyway, going as far as to say that McMahon "decided to hate anything he was involved in long ago." It's worth mentioning that Harper has had a few good runs with WWE, including the original trio with the Wyatt Family, and Intercontinental Title reign, and a dominating stint along with Rowan as a member of the Bludgeon Brothers. Injuries completely and repeatedly derailed almost every version of the Wyatt Family along the way.<doc-sep>WWE.com Sami Zayn, not Braun Strowman, will compete in this year's men's Money In The Bank ladder match. The former 'Underdog From The Underground' "earned" his spot on last night's WWE Raw, defeating the 2018 winner in a Falls Count Anywhere main event rife with shenanigans, with the stipulation being that Zayn would take Strowman's spot if he was victorious. The bout was rife with interferences. Baron Corbin was the first to strike, attacking Braun with a trash can. He put Strowman through a table, allowing Sami to score a two-count, before Drew McIntyre ambushed 'The Monster Among Men' when things spilt backstage. Strowman fought well. He withstood the 3-on-1 attack for a credible length of time, but couldn't overcome the odds in the end: Zayn wound up pinning Braun with Corbin and McIntyre on top of him. Advertisement With an outcome calibrated to protect Strowman in defeat, the post-match saw the big man get his heat back by recovering to Chokeslam Zayn through the announce table. Sami now joins existing participants Ricochet, McIntyre, Corbin, Ali, Finn Balor, Andrade, and Randy Orton in the men's bout. A stunning achievement, considering he was literally thrown in a bin on last week's Raw.<doc-sep>
As it's been widely broadcast from the man himself, Luke Harper requested his release from WWE last month, stating that he was seeking a new challenge. Not only was this rejected by WWE, but six months have been added on to the contract that was set to expire in November because he underwent wrist surgery last year. Vince McMahon reportedly told Harper to take his concerns and request for a release up with Triple H, but according to Dave Meltzer, The Game has been blanking Harper. It seems as though McMahon has not been a fan of Harper for a while as well judging by a report that emerged yesterday. According to Fightful, Vince 'decided to hate anything Harper was involved in long ago' for an unknown reason, but it doesn't seem like he would be the troublesome type backstage. But an incident that apparently took place at WrestleMania has drew the ire of backstage officials relating to Harper. As some will remember, a spot involving Harper and Mustafa Ali in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal saw Braun Strowman eliminate both, with Ali taking a rather nasty-looking bump against the ringside announcers desk. Fightful have reported, per IWNerd, that Harper was furious at his former stable-mate for his actions in the match. “We were told the match itself was a disaster to put together and execute, and that Luke Harper wasn’t happy that Braun Strowman both forgot his spot and that Ali ended up hurt in the match," Sean Ross Sapp stated. "In addition to that, Braun hit Harper with a stiff kick just ahead of that. Harper, in an effort to protect Ali during his elimination, hurt his back and/or shoulder trying to keep him from flying out of control.” Sapp also added that Strowman felt as though he'd done nothing wrong, which has led to a dispute between the pair, hence why management are cheesed off. It sort of seems like a reported witch-hunt against Harper at this point - who wouldn't be angry at a botch which could've gone a lot more wrong than it did? Even though Strowman isn't pulling up any trees currently on Raw, at least he's still getting to perform on television and in main events. Harper though has been consigned to nothingness, which is a horrible shame considering the talent he possesses. News Now - Sport News