It’s been more than a year since Dexter Lumis appeared on a WWE program, but rumor has it that the 40-year-old wrestling star is on his way back to the ring, where he may be difficult to spot.
Lumis (real name: Sam Shaw) has appeared in several photos on social media with scruffy facial hair and a longer mane on top of his head. He was previously known to have a neatly trimmed mustache with a well-maintained fade.
This may seem innocuous to non-wrestling fans, but the new look appears to be part of a larger plan by the WWE to reintroduce Lumis as part of the new ‘Uncle Howdy’ faction, which is expected to debut Saturday on the King and Queen of the Ring Tournament in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The WWE recently gave fans a major Uncle Howdy clue using a QR code that revealed the zip code in Jeddah: 22423.
WWE stars such as Randy Orton, Bianca Belair and GUNTHER will take part in the event, with the men’s and women’s winners expected to have a shot at a title.
Lumis has appeared in social media photos with scruffy facial hair and a longer mane
Lumis was known to have a neatly trimmed mustache with a well-maintained fade
But the biggest buzz could center around the return of Bo Dallas as Uncle Howdy, who is expected to lead a new faction that will likely include Lumis, according to multiple reports.
Lumis was a regular with WWE until May 2023, when he mysteriously disappeared from promotional broadcasts. There were reports that the WWE simply had no creative plans for Lumis.
The 37th annual SummerSlam will be held at the Jeddah Super Dome on Saturday, amid a year of revival on the wrestling circuit following Vince McMahon’s sudden resignation over sex trafficking allegations.
McMahon, a longtime wrestling promoter, is being sued by a former WWE employee on several allegations, including alleging that he trafficked her to other men in the company.
Lumis’ one-off signature look (pictured) is replaced by a more casual aesthetic
Despite this, the WWE, a sports entertainment company that is part of the TKO Group, is now among the top 10 most subscribed YouTube channels worldwide, with no professional sports leagues currently in that mix.
Others in the top 10 include Indian record label and film production company T-Series, Sony Entertainment Television and social media personalities MrBeast and PewDiePie.
WWE joined YouTube three years after its launch and says the company currently has more than 81 billion lifetime views on the platform. Part of YouTube’s success comes from carefully curating content – and ensuring a continuous flow of it.
That includes highlights from the weekly television shows Raw, Smackdown and NXT, which are immediately uploaded to the platform when the shows end. There are also pay-per-view and premium live event archives, as well as original content including press conferences held after premium live events, WWE career recaps, and wrestler vlogs.