Ricochet squared off against Braun Strowman tonight in the semifinals of the SmackDown World Cup.
Braun Strowman was the heavy favorite in the matchup and controlled the majority of the action. However, the Monster of All Monsters became distracted by Intercontinental Champion Gunther making his way to the ring.
Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci of Imperium hopped on the ring apron but Braun fought them off. Ricochet was able to capitalize on the distraction and rolled Strowman up for the pinfall victory. Imperium attacked Braun after the match but Ricochet ran back to the ring for the save. Ricochet and Strowman shook hands and posed in the ring after the match.
Ricochet on Wanting Braun Strowman’s Respect, the Importance of the IC Title
Ricochet sat down with Cathy Kelley in a WWE Digital Exclusive after SmackDown went off the air. Braun Strowman sent out a controversial tweet after defeating Omos at WWE Crown Jewel. In boasting about the victory, Braun mocked smaller wrestlers and their “flippy” style. Ricochet, Mustafa Ali, and other professional wrestlers responded to the tweet.
During the interview, Ricochet revealed that it was important for him to get Braun to respect him tonight in their SmackDown World Cup match.
“I was going to go into this match no matter what to make sure that Braun Strowman respected me at least,” said Ricochet. “He can think what he wants, he has his own opinions, but I was going to come in tonight, knowing very well that as soon as we leave this match he is going to respect me. Of course, it wasn’t my idea to have Imperium come out, and obviously, it wasn’t because they beat me up.”
Ricochet also discussed his opponent in the SmackDown World Cup finals next week, Santos Escobar. He noted that they have a history before WWE and he is excited to bring their rivalry to the fans. Ricochet added that winning the Intercontinental Championship back from Gunther represents a chance to redeem himself.
“It means the world. It means everything to me. It was devastating when I lost it. So that is another key motivating factor behind all of this. It is not just to win for America, to win the SmackDown World Cup, and to just win in general for Ricochet. Because we know Ricochet’s past, this hasn’t been the best couple of years for him so this is a chance for me to redeem myself and show that I belong here,” he added.
