As expected, Ricochet made what looks to be his final WWE appearance on Monday’s Raw – and he went out with a bang.
The eye-catching, risk-taking performer appeared on the flagship red brand show in the US as Raw emanated from Ohio.
All signs point toward it being a farewell for the in-ring daredevil, who has reportedly told WWE officials he won’t be signing a new contract there once his current deal expires this summer.
That development already forced company officials into an urgent reshuffling of plans, Ricochet effectively stripped of his Speed Championship just weeks after winning it.
The fast-paced Speed division had looked set to be built around the former NXT star, but Andrade snared the gold in a match set to air on WWE’s X account later this week.
Recent weeks had also seen Ricochet begin a feud of sorts with Raw powerhouse Bron Breakker, which also looks to have been hastily escalated with news of his impending departure.
After weeks of beat-downs and attacks from Breakker, former NXT North American Champ Ricochet took one final dose of punishment from his rival on Monday night, and it left fans mightily impressed.
Wrestling has long observed a tradition of wrestlers using their final appearance with a company to ‘do the honours’ by making an opposing wrestler look good on their way out.
Ricochet clearly had designs on marking that tradition in his own unique style thanks to a devastating assault backstage.
Angered by the high-flyer’s intervention in his attack on Ilja Dragunov, Breakker tracked down the pair backstage and exacted some revenge on Ricochet, hurling him against the side of a truck, forcing him to land with a sickening impact on the concrete floor.
For good measure the grappler was then slammed into a car windscreen from a flight of steps.
While the offence would all have been undoubtedly written and planned in advance, fans couldn’t help but applaud Ricochet’s dedication in taking the eye-watering pounding.
One X user said with crying emojis: “Nice knowing you Ricochet,” while another added: “That was brutality.”
Of the concrete floor landing, one fan noted: “That throw into the truck the landing looked ugly,” with another saying: “That’s a nasty fall.”
Another fan winced: “That bump on the ground sounded TOUGH JESUS,” while one echoed: “Bump like that on the concrete is crazy.”
With a nod to Ricochet ‘doing the honours’, a fan would chip in: “Such an insane bump on the back. Good business on the way out.”
Following the show, PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reported this is likely the last WWE fans will see of the star for now, barring a major turnaround.
Johnson stated: “Ricochet was written out of WWE storylines tonight after being assaulted by Bron Breakker and being powerslammed into the windshield of a car.
“This was the plan as of this past Thursday, WWE sources have indicated.”
He added: “Unless they come to him with a new offer he can’t refuse before his deal expires and he does a complete 180, Ricochet’s WWE run likely ended tonight.”
Elsewhere on Raw, the stakes were raised for this weekend’s World Heavyweight Championship match at Clash at the Castle: Scotland.
Scot Drew McIntyre challenges champ Damian Priest for the gold in his home country, looking to avenge his WrestleMania humiliation that saw McIntyre’s title reign end after just five minutes.
It was confirmed on Raw that their meeting will see the rest of Priest’s Judgement Day cohort banned from ringside.
McIntyre had earlier beaten Finn Balor in a match-up, while The Awesome Truth successfully defended their Raw Tag Team titles with a victory over Authors of Pain.
News Summary:
- Fans applaud departing WWE star for honouring tradition with ‘nasty’ fall in Raw beatdown
- Check all news and articles from the latest Football updates.