The build to WWE‘s SummerSlam has been interesting.

Riding high off of the momentum of a very successful Money in the Bank, folks were excited to see how the card would shake out and which new, fun, or exciting matches would be booked for the big-time show in Nashville, Tennessee. The Usos will wrestle The Street Profits, Liv Morgan will defend her strap against Ronda Rousey – much to the dismay of Natalya – and the Roman Reigns-Brock Lesnar match has seen its stakes raised by the addition of a Last Man Standing stipulation and Theory's Money in the Bank win – which, when coupled with his match versus Bobby Lashley, will make the night a busy one for Austin indeed.

And yet, the most encouraging piece of news heading into the show isn't about a wrestler scheduled to appear on the show at all but instead about Big E and his recovery from the broken neck he suffered at the hands of Ridge Holland all the way back in March.

That's right, despite his C1 not “ossifying” quite yet as of July 4th, E told the fine folks at ESPN that he is expected to make a full recovery even if he will likely be out of the ring for the next year. Though the process is hard and losing a year of his prime obviously isn't ideal, the 36-year-old is taking his situation in stride in the hopes of eventually returning to the ring alongside his New Day buddies.

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“Honestly, it hasn't been a dark period,” Big E said. “I'm so thankful for all the people who checked in on me and reached out, who have concerns. I'm not saying I'm perfect. I'm not saying every day is the greatest ever for me. But I really haven't struggled with that type of stuff.”

Inspiring stuff.

So, as New Day inch closer and closer to their inevitable match versus the Viking Warriors at SummerSlam, Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston can at least know that the third member of their unit is approaching his eventual return, even if he'll most likely be there with them in spirit instead of in person.