WWE Smackdown: World Cup Winner revealed; Update on big return and more

In
the
main
event
of
this
week’s
Smackdown,
Ricochet
squared
off
against
Santos
Escobar
in
the
World
Cup
finals.
The
two
put
up
a
great
match
for
the
fans
in
attendance
at
the
KeyBank
Arena
in
Buffalo,
New
York,
and
watching
at
home.

In
the
end,
Ricochet
planted
Escobar
down
with
a
Superkick
and
came
off
the
top
rope
with
his
astounding
630-splash
maneuver
to
secure
the
pin-fall
win
over
Escobar
and
clinch
the
win
in
the
2022
World
Cup.

WHAT
AN
UNBELIEVABLE
MATCH@KingRicochet
is
the
winner
of
the

#SmackDownWorldCup!!!#SmackDown
pic.twitter.com/7X2zz6kHcl

—
WWE
(@WWE)

December
3,
2022

Ricochet
overcame
Mustafa
Ali
and
Braun
Strowman
in
the
first
round
and
semifinal,
respectively
on
his
way
to
the
finals.
Escobar,
on
the
other
hand,
defeated
Shinsuke
Nakamura
and
BUTCH
to
go
to
the
finals.

As
a
result
of
Ricochet’s
win
in
the
World
Cup,
he’ll
now
be
getting
the
above-mentioned
title
match
opportunity.
The
One
and
Only
Ricochet
will
challenge
GUNTHER
for
his
Intercontinental
Championship
on
the
December
16,
2022,
edition
of
Smackdown.

In
another
major
news
from
Smackdown,
former
NXT
Superstar
Tegan
Nox
is
back
onboard
with
the
WWE,
this
time
on
the
main
roster.
Nox
made
her
surprise
return
during
the
latest
episode
of
Smackdown.

In
recent
weeks,
there
have
been
reports
of
WWE
being
interested
in
her
under
Triple
H’s
new
regime.
It
now
appears
that
there
was
indeed
truth
to
the
speculations
as
she
made
a
sudden
appearance
to
save
Liv
Morgan
from
an
attack
by
DAMAGE
CTRL.

Welcome
back,
Tegan
Nox!#SmackDown
pic.twitter.com/xLsdX1i2Ao

—
WWE
(@WWE)

December
3,
2022

Nox
thus
joins
the
latest
spree
of
comebacks
since
Paul
“Triple
H”
Levesque
took
things
over
in
the
WWE
creative
division.
Dubbed
‘The
Lady
Kane,’ Nox
was
a
major
fan-favorite
during
her
run
in
NXT
and
NXT
UK.

She
had
a
heated
rivalry
with
her
longtime
friend,
Dakota
Kai
who’s
now
a
member
of
DAMAGE
CTRL.
Following
her
return,
it’s
expected
that
Nox
will
stay
under
the
Smackdown
banner
to
kick
off
a
feud
with
DAMAGE
CTRL
alongside
Liv
Morgan.

Speaking
of
the
Smackdown
Women’s
Division,
an
existing
member
is
likely
to
re-debut
after
getting
repackaged
in
the
coming
weeks.
Lacey
Evans
is
going
back
to
the
basics,
per
a
video
package
aired
on
the
latest
episode
of
Smackdown.

Being
a
former
US
Mariner,
Evans
was
seen
training
with
her
fellow
Marine
Corps.
A
voice
echoed
in
the
back
about
how
she
got
“lost
in
the
crowd
with
the
whiners
and
the
weak”
but
she’s
now
ready
to
revert
back
to
her
roots.

Evans
had
teased
this
character
change
after
the
November
11
episode
of
Smackdown,
where
she
lost
a
six-pack
challenge
to
determine
the
number-one
contender
to
Ronda
Rousey’s
SmackDown
Women’s
Championship.

As
told
to
interviewer
Cathy
Kelley,
the
former
Sassy
Southern
Belle
was
no
more
“comfortable”
in
the
“glitz,
glamour,
and
the
lifestyle”
of
being
a
WWE
Superstar.
Now,
she
is
all
set
to
return
to
action
under
a
mariner
gimmick
on
a
date
to
be
announced.