WWE News: ‘SmackDown’ Star Debunks Rumors Of Stalled Push Due To Controversial Gimmick
Despite his status as a former NXT Champion and the high expectations many fans had of him when he was called up to the main roster early this year, Aleister Black has not been regularly featured on SmackDown Live, especially in recent weeks. While this led to a report that WWE officials were having a hard time finding something for him to do on television due to the dark nature of his gimmick, the Dutch wrestler took to Twitter on Thursday to debunk the rumors and reassure fans that may be concerned about his lack of exposure.
The rumors started earlier this week when a fan tweeted a screenshot of a Facebook page that cited a report from Billi Bhatti of Dirty Sheets. Bhatti alleged that SmackDown Live‘s creative team, which currently features recently hired executive producer Eric Bischoff, wasn’t “too sure” of how to book Black because his gimmick is “too satanic” for mainstream television.
As seen in the screenshot, Bhatti added that the “hope” was for Black to be drafted to Monday Night Raw or NXT in the “coming weeks” in the event SmackDown‘s creative team still can’t come up with a storyline for the 34-year-old grappler.
Soon after the fan shared the screenshot and commented on the rumors, stressing that Black’s popularity with fans should transcend any “God vs the devil” arguments, the wrestler responded with a quick message, tweeting that Bhatti’s story for Dirty Sheets is “100% fake.”
.@Sheltyb803 knocked. @Sheltyb803 lost. Who wants next? #SDLive @WWEAleister pic.twitter.com/f2quCO8zwz
— WWE (@WWE) September 4, 2019
As reported by WrestlingNews.co, Black appears to be in a “holding pattern” due to the depth of the SmackDown Live roster, as the blue brand’s creative team can’t feature every deserving superstar on television on a weekly basis. He has, however, regularly been competing on WWE’s non-televised live events and had last wrestled on TV on the September 3 SmackDown, where he picked up a win over Shelton Benjamin.
In addition to the above appearances, Black has been busy on social media, staying in character and teasing future in-ring rivalries. According to an earlier report from The Inquisitr, Black went as far as to challenge “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt in August, replying to the ornery superstar’s WWE 2K20 plug on Twitter by making reference to the door he often brings up as part of his gimmick.
An actual feud between these two dark characters, however, seems to be out of the question for the meantime. Wyatt is part of the Monday Night Raw roster and is reportedly expected to compete for the red brand’s Universal Championship at Hell in a Cell in October, per The Inquisitr.
