Some fans are still recovering from the events of WWE Fastlane and how some of the decisions have impacted the WWE since the event.While the biggest talking point surrounds Goldberg winning the Universal Championship, another big call was made during the show.

Down and out?

During the second of two impromptu matches on the show, Rusev was brutally beaten at the hands of Big Show.

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The Bulgarian Brute suffered three chokeslams and a knock out punch before the match came to an end.

Rusev had cut ties with his former partner Jinder Mahal ahead of the match and he was noticeably absent from RAW the following night.

It led fans to believe that there may have been heat on Rusev backstage which meant he was forced into losing a match that way.

However the man who delivered the knock out has answered the question for us when he was recently questioned by a fan.

Later posted on Twitter, Big Show confirmed that Rusev was set to undergo shoulder surgery, meaning his defeat at Fastlane was needed to write him off of TV.

The former United States Champion could now be set for some time on the sidelines following his surgery.

WWE has not yet made mention to the surgery so possible return dates for the Bulgarian Brute are still shrouded in mystery.

The man himself had hinted at time away recently on Twitter.

The bad news for Rusev however could be that with WrestleMania less than a month away, his recovery time could keep him out of action during the Show of Shows.

The previous two WrestleManias have not been kind to Rusev as he was defeated by John Cena for the US title at WrestleMania XXXI and despite winning a tag team match against the New Day as part of the League of Nations last year, he suffered the wrath of returning stars such as Stone Cold Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels and Mick Foley.

Back in a big way

With Rusev seemingly out of commission for the foreseeable future, his return could bring with it a new opportunity.

In the 12 months that have elapsed since WrestleMania 32, Rusev has certainly dropped down the rankings, no longer being a powerful dominant superstar and instead becoming somewhat of a gimmick a.k.a Handsome Rusev.

A return to his original character and a major push could once again move the former US Champion back into title contention on RAW.