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Dolph Ziggler Returns To WWE As The 'Last Time Is Now' Tournament Continues

Nic Nemeth, the man formerly known as Dolph Ziggler, made his return to WWE Monday Night Raw at Madison Square Garden to compete in John Cena's 'Last Time is Now' Tournament.
Rick Ucchino|
Nic Nemeth
Nic Nemeth | IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

Just like his longtime rival and good buddy Zack Ryder did this past Friday Night on SmackDown, Dolph Ziggler made his return to WWE Monday night on Raw.

The Showoff arrived at Madison Square Garden in New York City to take the final spot in John Cena's The 'Last Time is Now' Tournament. The winner of which will take on The 'Greatest of All-Time' in his retirement match at Saturday Night's Main Event on December 13 in the Nation's Capital.

The roof nearly blew off the world's most famous arena when Ziggler's music hit and he was announced as the surprise first-round opener for Solo Sikoa. The more than 18,000 people in attendance were fully behind the former World Heavyweight Champion as he competed in his first match in WWE in over two years.

Ziggler had a 19-year run with WWE that came to an end when he was released from his contract in September 2023. He's been wrestling under his legal name of Nic Nemeth ever since, making appearances for multiple independent promotions and NJPW.

Nemeth made his debut for TNA Wrestling in January 2023 and went on to capture the TNA World Heavyweight Championship and the TNA World Tag Team Championships with his brother Ryan Nemeth.

Dolph nearly won his match against Sikoa Monday night after connecting with a Zig Zag, but Sikoa just got his shoulder up at two. He'd then catch Ziggler with a surprise Samoan Spike to pick up the win, much to the chagrin of The Garden.

Solo Sikoa & Gunther move on to round two in The 'Last Time is Now' Tournament

Solo Sikoa
Solo Sikoa | WWE.com

With the victory, Solo Sikoa joins LA Knight, Sheamus, Rusev and Jey Uso in the tournament quarterfinals. The former Tribal Chief owns one of the more dominant victories over John Cena in his Hall of Fame career, essentially squashing the reigning Men's Intercontinental Champion at WWE Crown Jewel 2023. He's three more wins away from getting the opportunity to do it again.

Former World Heavyweight Champion Gunther also punched his ticket to the second round when he knocked off the always impressive Je'Von Evans.

The 21-year-old stud from NXT took The Ring General to the limit and put on an absolute show worthy of the bright lights of New York City, but Gunther eventually grounded the high-flyer with a sleeper hold to score the submission victory.

The final two opening round matches will take place this Friday on SmackDown when Finn Balor takes on Penta and Carmelo Hayes battles Big Bronson Reed. The winners of those matches will face Gunther and Sikoa, respectively, next Monday night on WWE Raw.

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Published | Modified
Rick Ucchino
RICK UCCHINO

Rick Ucchino is the Assistant Editor & Content Coordinator for The Takedown on SI. He also works full-time for 700WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio as a local news and sports anchor, in addition to his time covering the Cincinnati Bengals for Sirius XM. Rick has been on the professional wrestling beat since 2019, having provided coverage for a number of outlets, including Fightful, SB Nation’s Cageside Seats and the Bleav Podcast Network. With an educational background in theater, creative writing and journalism, Rick focuses primarily on the storytelling aspect of pro wrestling, but he’s no stranger to the squared circle himself. He had the privilege of training with former WWE & WCW cruiserweight Jimmy Wang Yang for nearly two years and retired early due to back issues with a perfect 1-0 record in singles competition. Rick is a married father of two incredibly adorable children, who are budding pro wrestling fans themselves. Much to the chagrin of their mother. You can reach Rick at rwucchino@gmail.com

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