LNC Wrestling Mid-Afternoon News Roundup June 27th, 2026

It is Saturday, and the wrestling world is moving in several different directions at once.

WWE is trying to shape AAA into something that feels bigger than just another side project. CM Punk’s return has once again become its own conversation before he has even stepped back onto television. TNA is heading into Slammiversary weekend with talent still openly praising the freedom of the company’s creative environment, even while the product continues to face questions about consistency. Místico just walked into Forbidden Door weekend with even more gold around his name. WWE ID has a new men’s champion. GCW may be looking at a future that could involve AEW’s streaming ecosystem. And Adam Copeland’s latest comments on Judgment Day only make the early Vince McMahon handling of Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest look even more questionable in hindsight.

That is the kind of news day this is.

Some of these stories are about immediate creative direction. Some are about business. Some are about legacy. Some are about companies trying to figure out how to build the next wave of stars without losing what made those names or brands matter in the first place.

So yes, today’s Mid-Afternoon News Roundup has a lot to get into.

And most of it says more than it seems on the surface.

Jeremy Borash Being Believed To Be Behind The New Los Perros Del Mal Says A Lot About WWE AAA’s Direction

The new version of Los Perros del Mal in WWE AAA is already one of the most interesting creative swings connected to the project.

The June 20th episode of AAA saw the faction return in a major angle, with Karmen Petrovic, Bronco Nima, Daga, Angel and Berto attacking El Grande Americano. On paper, it would be easy to look at that as just another faction debut. In reality, it means a lot more than that because Los Perros del Mal is not a random name in Mexican wrestling.

This is a group with real history.

The original Perros del Mal, led by Perro Aguayo Jr., carried the kind of outlaw energy that made them feel dangerous, rebellious and culturally important. They were not just another heel group. They were part of the identity of a specific era of lucha libre. That is why bringing the name back in WWE’s version of AAA is not something that can be treated like a simple branding exercise.

According to Dave Meltzer, Jeremy Borash is believed to be behind the idea, and the concept had reportedly been on the list of major planned AAA angles for about a year. That detail matters because Borash has always understood presentation. His background in TNA and Impact made him one of those wrestling minds who knows how to make factions, entrances, characters and big visual moments feel important even before the bell rings.

This feels like that kind of idea.

The Angel and Berto connection is also important because they are the nephews of Hector Garza, who was part of the original Los Perros del Mal. That gives this version of the group a family connection instead of making it feel like WWE simply grabbed an old faction name and handed it to whoever was available. Daga gives it additional credibility because he has history with the group. Karmen Petrovic brings a fresh wrinkle, especially with her Spanish-speaking ability and the potential to become a central female presence in the group. Bronco Nima gives them size and muscle.

The pieces are there.

The question is whether WWE will let Los Perros del Mal feel like Los Perros del Mal.

That is the real test.

This cannot feel overproduced. It cannot feel sanitized. It cannot feel like a faction built by people who only understand the logo and not the meaning behind it. Los Perros del Mal has to feel aggressive, disrespectful, unpredictable and rooted in lucha culture. If it becomes another polished WWE stable with clean camera shots, safe promos and no real edge, the whole thing will miss the point.

But if WWE AAA gets this right, this could become the first major heel engine of the new era. AAA needs something like that. It needs factions that create emotion. It needs enemies that feel personal. It needs stories that are not just built around guest stars and crossover appearances.

Los Perros del Mal gives WWE AAA a chance to prove it understands that.

Now the company has to prove it can handle the legacy without watering it down.

Adam Copeland’s Judgment Day Comments Make Vince McMahon’s Talent Blind Spot Look Worse In Hindsight

Adam Copeland’s comments about the early days of Judgment Day were interesting because they were not just about the faction.

They were about how obvious Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest should have been.

Copeland revealed that Vince McMahon wanted him to start a group that was similar to The Brood, and when Copeland immediately chose Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley, Vince was surprised. Copeland said that reaction made him feel like Vince did not realize what he had in those two.

Looking back now, that is hard to argue.

Rhea Ripley became one of the biggest stars in WWE. Damian Priest became a world champion-level performer. Judgment Day became one of the most important weekly acts in the company, even after Copeland was removed from the group and the faction became something completely different from its original version.

That is the part that makes this story more interesting.

Judgment Day did not truly become great because the original version was perfect. It became great because the talent inside the group eventually outgrew the original pitch. The darker, supernatural-adjacent version with Edge was fine as a starting point, but the faction found its real identity when it became messier, more character-driven and more human. Finn Balor, Priest, Ripley and Dominik Mysterio turned it into something that could live on weekly television. Later versions of the group continued to evolve because the brand of Judgment Day became bigger than one person.

That does not happen unless the performers are strong enough to carry it.

Copeland deserves credit for seeing Priest and Ripley early. Priest had the look, size, presence and cool factor, but WWE had not fully unlocked him yet. Ripley had star power written all over her, but she had not yet become the face of the women’s division. Copeland saw them as people who could carry a major group.

Vince apparently did not see it the same way.

That says a lot.

It also speaks to one of the biggest differences between the old WWE creative system and the current one. Under Vince, too many talents had to fight through strange presentation choices, sudden stops, cold pushes and creative confusion before the company finally realized what the audience already saw. Ripley and Priest were not hidden gems. They were right there.

Judgment Day eventually became proof that the talent was stronger than the original creative limitations around them.

That is why Copeland’s comments hit the way they do. They are not just a fun behind-the-scenes story. They are another reminder that WWE almost underplayed two performers who later became major pieces of the company’s future.

AJ Francis Calling TNA The Perfect Place For Creative Forces Is True, But It Also Highlights TNA’s Biggest Challenge

AJ Francis praising TNA as the perfect place for creative people to thrive makes complete sense.

It also explains why his post-WWE run has worked better than a lot of people expected.

Francis said TNA gives talent room to be creative without being micromanaged, and that is exactly the kind of environment he needs. He is not the type of performer who benefits from being handed a script, told to hit one line, and then forced into a box. His value comes from personality, noise, confidence, media awareness and the ability to make people react.

That was not always fully used in WWE.

In TNA, it has become the point.

Francis understands how to get attention. He understands how to make himself part of the conversation. Whether fans like him or not, he knows how to create a reaction, and that is valuable in wrestling. TNA has allowed him to lean into that instead of running away from it.

That is why his current work feels more natural than his WWE presentation did. In WWE, Top Dolla often felt like a performer the company only half-believed in. In TNA, AJ Francis feels like someone the company is willing to let talk people into caring.

There is a difference.

His feud with Elijah heading into Slammiversary is a good example. The idea of Francis potentially owning Elijah’s name, music and likeness sounds ridiculous on paper, but it works because wrestling is supposed to have ridiculous stories when the people involved commit to them. Francis has committed to it. That is why the angle has energy.

But this story also points to the bigger TNA issue.

Creative freedom is only valuable when there is enough structure around it. TNA has a lot of talent that can talk, wrestle and create moments, but the company does not always connect those moments into a consistent product. Letting talent breathe is great. Letting talent figure everything out on their own is not the same thing.

That is where TNA still has to improve.

The company has Joe Hendry, Mike Santana, Moose, The System, AJ Francis, The Hardys, The Rascalz, the Knockouts division and several pieces that should make the show feel loaded. But there are still weeks where the creative direction feels scattered. TNA gives people freedom, but it still needs sharper follow-through.

Francis is right that TNA can be a strong place for creative forces.

Now TNA has to prove that creative freedom can become consistent creative momentum.

Místico Becoming Four-Belt Místico Shows How Important CMLL Has Become To The Forbidden Door Era

Místico and Máscara Dorada winning the ROH World Tag Team Championships in Arena México was not just a title change.

It was a statement.

They defeated Sammy Guevara and The Beast Mortos at CMLL’s Friday night event, with Dorada wiping out Guevara on the floor while Místico submitted Mortos with La Mística. That instantly made Místico even more decorated heading into Forbidden Door weekend.

Místico is now holding the ROH World Tag Team Championship, the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship and the CMLL World Trios Championship.

That is not normal.

It also says a lot about where wrestling is right now.

CMLL is no longer just a partner promotion that AEW and NJPW use when they need international flavor. CMLL has become a major part of the wider crossover ecosystem. Forbidden Door is not just AEW and NJPW anymore. CMLL matters. STARDOM matters. ROH matters. These relationships are starting to overlap in a way that makes certain wrestlers feel bigger because they are carrying credibility across multiple companies at once.

Místico is one of those wrestlers.

For years, some American fans reduced him to the Sin Cara run in WWE, which was always a lazy way to talk about his career. In Mexico, Místico is a generational star. He still has the aura. He still has the crowd connection. He still feels like one of the most important lucha libre names of the modern era.

This current run is a reminder of that.

Putting the ROH Tag Team Titles on Místico and Máscara Dorada right before Forbidden Door gives their match more weight. They are not just showing up as special attractions. They are walking into the weekend as champions. That matters, especially when they are involved with teams like The Young Bucks and Shingo Takagi and Titán.

The only risk is title overload.

When one wrestler holds too many championships across too many promotions, the belts can start to feel like props. That is always the danger with modern belt collecting. It looks cool, but if the reigns do not have direction, the titles lose value.

But Místico is one of the few people who can make it work right now because his name still carries weight in Mexico, and the larger Forbidden Door landscape benefits from having a true CMLL centerpiece.

This is not just four-belt Místico for the sake of a graphic.

This is CMLL making sure one of its biggest stars walks into the international spotlight looking like one.

CM Punk Pushing For A Chicago RAW Return Is Exactly Why WWE Has To Be Careful With His Comeback

CM Punk’s return has once again become a story before WWE has even officially brought him back.

According to Dave Meltzer, Punk is earmarked for SmackDown and eventually a program with Cody Rhodes, but he has reportedly been pushing hard to return on the July 6th episode of RAW in Chicago. Meltzer also noted that saying there are no issues at all between Punk and WWE would not be accurate, but that the situation is not as bad as some have made it sound.

That is the most believable version of the story.

It does not sound like a disaster. It does not sound like everything is perfect either. It sounds like CM Punk.

That is usually where the truth lives.

Creatively, WWE moving Punk to SmackDown makes sense. SmackDown could use another top-level name around Cody Rhodes, Randy Orton, Drew McIntyre, Gunther and the rest of that main-event picture. Punk vs. Cody is also an obvious major program, especially after Punk confronted Cody on the RAW after WrestleMania 42.

That direction is not hard to understand.

But Punk wanting to return in Chicago also makes sense.

CM Punk in Chicago is not just another hometown appearance. It is part of his identity. If WWE has a RAW in Chicago on July 6th and Punk is ready to come back, there is no reason to pretend that would not be a massive moment. The pop would be huge. The visual would be strong. The clip would travel everywhere.

WWE can still move him to SmackDown afterward.

That is what makes the situation tricky. WWE bends the brand split whenever it wants, so if the company really wants the Chicago moment, it can have the Chicago moment. Punk can return on RAW, explain himself, create buzz, and then show up on SmackDown to begin the Cody direction.

The problem is that anything with Punk becomes bigger because of Punk’s history.

When he is off television, people speculate. When reports mention “issues,” people run with the most dramatic version. When he makes a joke on a broadcast, fans try to decode it like a contract negotiation. That is the CM Punk effect, and WWE knew that when it brought him back.

The company has to use that carefully.

Punk should not return just to fill television time. He is too big for that. If he comes back, he needs a lane immediately. A Cody Rhodes program gives him one. A SmackDown move gives him one. A Chicago return gives him a moment.

The smartest play is to do both.

Let Punk have the Chicago return, then send him toward Cody Rhodes and SmackDown with purpose. That gives WWE the reaction, the direction and the story.

Anything else risks turning a simple creative decision into another unnecessary CM Punk news cycle.

Max Abrams Winning The WWE ID Men’s Championship Is A Bigger Deal Than It May Look

Max Abrams becoming the new WWE ID Men’s Champion is important because it shows WWE is still trying to make the ID system feel like more than just a scouting label.

Abrams defeated Chazz “Starboy” Hall at The Nightmare Factory Presents: The ID Showcase in Atlanta to win the title. He is part of The Mog Squad with CJ Valor, Jacari Ball and Santi Rivera, and the group has been connected to WWE EVOLVE.

That is the bigger story.

WWE ID is trying to create a bridge between the independent scene and WWE’s developmental system. The championship gives that bridge a little more structure. Instead of just announcing signees, prospects and partnerships, WWE can now use title changes to show movement inside the system.

Cappuccino Jones was the first champion. Chazz Hall became the second. Max Abrams is now the third.

That creates a lineage.

It also gives Abrams something tangible. A title makes him stand out. It gives The Mog Squad more relevance. It gives WWE EVOLVE another name to track. More importantly, it gives fans a reason to pay attention before someone becomes an NXT regular.

That is what WWE ID should be doing.

The program cannot just exist as a logo attached to indie talent. It needs stories. It needs stakes. It needs champions who defend the title often enough for the audience to understand why the belt matters. If WWE wants people to care about the ID Championships, the titles need consistent visibility and consequences.

Abrams winning is a good step.

Now WWE has to follow up.

If the title change leads to more EVOLVE appearances, more Showcase defenses and more attention around The Mog Squad, then this can help Abrams become one of the names fans associate with the next wave of WWE developmental talent. If it just becomes another social media announcement with no real creative direction, then the moment will fade fast.

The ID system has potential.

But potential only matters if WWE keeps giving it reasons to feel alive.

GCW Talking With AEW About MyAEW Could Become A Major Independent Wrestling Business Story

GCW reportedly holding discussions with AEW about potentially joining the MyAEW platform is one of those stories that could become much bigger later.

Right now, it is just talks.

But the idea itself is important.

GCW has been one of the most recognizable independent wrestling brands in the country for years. It has a loyal audience, a strong WrestleMania week presence, a deathmatch identity, cult stars, big indie supercards and a fanbase used to paying for streaming wrestling. That makes GCW valuable to any platform trying to build a serious wrestling library.

AEW’s MyAEW service needs that kind of content if it wants to become more than just a place for AEW extras.

That is the business side of the story.

If AEW wants MyAEW to be a true wrestling hub, it needs volume. It needs variety. It needs promotions that feel different from AEW instead of just smaller versions of AEW. GCW would bring something AEW does not naturally produce on its own. That is the value.

For GCW, the reason to explore options is obvious. The promotion has had a long relationship with Triller, and Brett Lauderdale has said that relationship remains strong, but Triller’s larger issues have created questions across the wrestling streaming space. Any independent promotion with real value would be smart to look around and see what else is possible.

That does not mean GCW is leaving Triller tomorrow.

It does mean GCW is thinking like a company that understands its leverage.

The biggest question is creative identity.

GCW works because it feels like GCW. It is raw. It is chaotic. It is adult. It is not polished in the same way AEW is. That is not a flaw. That is the product. If GCW ever lands on MyAEW, the worst thing that could happen is the platform trying to make it cleaner, safer or more corporate.

That would defeat the point.

AEW would need to understand that GCW’s value is in the difference. The blood, the noise, the chaos, the weirdness, the indie spirit, the unpredictability — that is what people are paying for. If AEW can give GCW a platform without changing what GCW is, then this could be a win for both sides.

It would give AEW’s service credibility.

It would give GCW more visibility.

It would give fans more wrestling in one place.

But it has to be handled carefully because independent wrestling fans are sensitive to anything that feels like a bigger company absorbing the scene. If this becomes a partnership that helps GCW grow, it could work. If it feels like AEW collecting indie brands under one roof just to build content volume, fans will push back.

That is why this story is worth watching.

It is not just about streaming.

It is about where independent wrestling fits in a world where WWE and AEW are both trying to build bigger ecosystems around themselves.

Final Thoughts

Today’s news is really about control.

WWE is trying to control the future of AAA by reviving a legendary lucha faction with Los Perros del Mal. WWE is trying to control the next wave of independent talent through WWE ID. WWE is trying to control the timing and direction of CM Punk’s return, even though Punk’s own presence makes that harder than usual. AEW may be trying to control more of the wrestling streaming landscape through MyAEW. TNA is trying to give talent creative freedom while still needing stronger creative consistency. CMLL is making sure Místico walks into Forbidden Door weekend looking like one of the most decorated wrestlers in the entire crossover scene.

That is where wrestling is right now.

Every company is trying to build something bigger than the match in front of them.

Sometimes that means reviving history. Sometimes it means trusting talent. Sometimes it means creating new developmental systems. Sometimes it means moving platforms. Sometimes it means putting four titles on a star because the moment calls for it.

The challenge is making sure all of it actually means something after the headline fades.

That is the difference between news and momentum.

And right now, every company involved in today’s roundup is chasing momentum in its own way.

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