Braun Strowman suffers stunning first loss on SmackDown to "smaller" former US Champion

Braun Strowman's "flippy-flippers" controversy seemed to bite him as he suffered a stunning defeat on SmackDown - the first loss since his return to WWE and his first overall defeat in the company since May 2021 - marking 18 months since his last defeat.

It was none other than former US Champion Ricochet who pulled off the upset. But how did it happen?

Last week, there was a tense confrontation backstage, and Ricochet brought up Braun Strowman's controversial comments. It was used briefly as a part of the storyline to build up the hype for the match.

The semi-finals of the SmackDown World Cup saw Strowman and Ricochet go head-to-head, and Imperium - including Intercontinental Champion and leader Gunther caused a distraction.

This allowed Ricochet to get a sliding pinfall onto Braun Strowman - handing him a stunning defeat and causing one of the biggest upsets we've seen in a long time.

Post-match, Imperium launched an assault on Strowman while Ricochet was leaving. The former US and Intercontinental Champion looked on from the ramp, torn about whether to do the right thing or let the man get the beatdown.

He chose the first option and helped Strowman get the better of Imperium, with the two forming an alliance after the match.

It was a good bit of storytelling. You can fully expect Strowman to be next for Gunther after the World Cup winner (Ricochet or Santos Escobar) presumably loses to the Intercontinental Champion.

Are you happy with the way this story is playing out? Voice your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below!