Several prominent WWE wrestlers, including Liv Morgan and Bianca Belair, have been absent from television recently due to injuries. Liv Morgan is recovering from a shoulder injury, while Bianca Belair has been sidelined with a finger injury. Gunther, a former World Heavyweight Champion, was also written off WWE programming because of a nose injury. These absences are drawing significant attention amid speculation about their future comebacks.
Vince Russo Explains WWE’s Approach to Injured Wrestlers’ Returns
Veteran wrestling personality Vince Russo offered insight into why WWE has chosen to remove injured stars from TV rather than showing them in reduced roles or ongoing storylines. Russo revealed on the BroDown podcast by Sportskeeda WrestleBinge that WWE is holding these wrestlers off television intentionally to maximize the audience’s excitement upon their return. This tactic is designed to create “pop” moments that WWE can deploy strategically throughout the year.
Russo explained,
“Why, when a wrestler gets a boo boo, are they taken off the show? And I finally figured it out because now Gunther’s hurt, and now Gunther’s going to be off the show. I finally figured it out, because they know that’s another pop in their back pocket. They know when Bianca Belair comes back, they got a pop. When Liv Morgan comes back, they got a pop. When Gunther comes back, they got a pop. So, they completely take them off television just to line up what’s the pop in September? What’s the pop in October?” Russo said. [29:14 onwards]
Current Status of Liv Morgan and Other Injured WWE Stars
Liv Morgan has not appeared on WWE programming since suffering her shoulder injury on an episode of RAW. Bianca Belair made a brief reappearance as a Special Guest Referee at Evolution 2025, which suggests that her in-ring comeback might be nearing. However, WWE has not provided specific updates on when these stars will return to active competition. Meanwhile, Gunther’s continued absence reinforces the careful coordination behind these breaks.
Implications of WWE’s Strategy for Fans and Future Events
This deliberate withholding of injured wrestlers from television highlights WWE’s plan to engineer peak moments that generate strong audience reactions at pivotal times. By spacing out the returns of top talent like Liv Morgan, Bianca Belair, and Gunther, WWE aims to sustain viewer interest across multiple months. Fans can expect these comebacks to be carefully timed to enhance storyline impact and ratings in upcoming events such as SummerSlam 2025 and beyond.
