List of WWE Raw and Smackdown Superstars out of action due to injury

Bengaluru, Nov 18: The injury bug is back in the WWE affecting multiple top superstars and thereby forcing them to remain absent from Raw/Smackdown programming. Multiple top-tier Superstars in the WWE have been sidelined over the summer. The trend continues in recent weeks as WWE’s storyline plans around their premium live event continue to be hampered.

The latest example of such an incident is the injury that occurred to former WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens. The Raw roster member suffered an MCL sprain at Sunday’s WWE Live Event, as per the reports from PWInsider.

The Bloodline (Roman Reigns, The Usos, Solo Sikoa, and Sami Zayn) vs. Drew McIntyre, The Brawling Brutes (Sheamus, Butch, and Ridge Holland), and Kevin Owens in a WarGames Match was the originally planned main event for WWE Survivor Series WarGames 2022.

But if Owens is dealing with an injury then WWE will have to replace him and the possible announcement should come during this week’s Smackdown. Even the Women’s WarGames Match lineup has reportedly been altered due to an injury.

WWE Raw Women’s roster member Candice LeRae is the concerned superstar who rumoredly picked up an unknown injury. She was initially supposed to be the final member of Team Bianca against Team Bayley in Women’s WarGames at Survivor Series.

But in the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer mentioned the injury while discussing the segments from Raw. He said that The Poison Pixie must be hurt, or else she should have been revealed to be a participant in the WarGames Match.

Overall, 15 top and mid-card superstars from WWE Raw/Smackdown/NXT roster are on the sidelines due to injury reasons and those names are given below:

– Randy Orton

– Cody Rhodes

– Becky Lynch

– Logan Paul

– Big E

– Kevin Owens

– Rey Mysterio

– Aliyah

– R-Truth

– Natalya

– Rick Boogs

– Robert Roode

– Tiffany Stratton

– Tommaso Ciampa

– Candice LeRae

At the beginning of the 2022 summer, 14-Time WWE World Heavyweight Champion Randy Orton suffered a back injury. To fix the problems, he had to undergo surgery and this resulted in the change of the originally planned SummerSlam 2022 main event – Roman Reigns (c) vs. Randy Orton for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.

Another main eventer from Raw, Cody Rhodes had to undergo surgery to repair a torn pec. WWE announced in June that he will be out of action for 9 months and his return is expected around the 2023 Royal Rumble.

Speaking of the first WWE premium live event of 2023, two of the elite female WWE Superstars are expected to return in or prior to that night – Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair.

The latter was last seen on WWE programming at the WrestleMania Backlash 2022 premium live event where she lost the SmackDown Women’s Championship to Ronda Rousey in an I Quit Match.

As per WWE’s storyline, the second-generation Superstar is dealing with a broken arm from Ronda’s Armbar submission but in reality, she needed to take a time off WWE programming to address some of her personal problems.

That’s not the case for Lynch though who legit hurt her shoulder during one of the co-main-events of Summerslam 2022 against Bianca Belair in the WWE Raw Women’s Championship Match.