While fans anticipated an action-packed night at WWE SmackDown New Year’s Revolution, one NXT star made his appearance on the pre-show. After a short stint in NXT, Olympic Gold medalist Gable Steveson was backstage during the latest edition of SmackDown and had a dark match.

Gable Steveson wrestles Cedric Alexander ahead of SmackDown New Year’s Revolution

The last time Gable Steveson was seen in the WWE was on the July 25 episode of NXT. He featured in a match against Baron Corbin for the Great American Bash. Despite being pushed as the Next Brock Lesnar, he couldn’t gain any traction with the fans. The last match he had on NXT ended with a controversial ending that left fans sour with the star.

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Ahead of SmackDown New Year’s Revolution, he competed in a dark match against former Cruiserweight Champion Cedric Alexander. Back in September 2021, Steveson signed an NIL deal with WWE while still competing for the University of Minnesota. This groundbreaking deal allowed him to appear in select WWE events while maintaining his amateur status.

With his history in amateur wrestling, he is the only second Olympic Gold medalist to be signed by the WWE. Following in the footsteps of Kurt Angle, he was trained by Brock Lesnar. However, he wasn’t able to make a mark during his debut or post-debut appearances. Only time will tell if this means a permanent move for Steveson to the blue brand or if it will be a one-off appearance.

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Despite having the background and the build, Steveson was never able to do what Angle or Lesnar did in the WWE. There have been plans for a push, which were thwarted by the lukewarm reception the star got. All plans for a push were scratched.

WWE’s failure at making the Next Big Thing

Since the massive success of Lesnar within a year of his debut and push, the WWE has been trying to recreate that. However, to little or no success. The closest they got was with Ryback, who was both big and intimidating. However, lacking in the in-ring skills department wasted his push.

With Steveson making an appearance on SmackDown, it looks like the WWE still wants to go ahead with the star. Only time will tell if he gets the push Lesnar got.

What do you think of Stevenson appearing on SmackDown? Tell us down below.

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