Dolph Ziggler Reached A Major WWE Milestone On SmackDown
A significant accomplishment for one of WWE's most tenured wrestlers.
As pointed out in today's Figure Four Online Daily Update column, Dolph Ziggler wrestled his 500th televised match as a singles wrestler since debuting for WWE in 2006 on last week's episode of SmackDown.
Ziggler was a participant in a battle royal designed to find Jeff Hardy's replacement in the ongoing Intercontinental Championship tournament. Hardy was rendered unable to compete after being arrested in a divisive opening segment, though Dolph was unsuccessful in securing the spot - Baron Corbin eliminated him just before a commercial break.
This is a significant milestone for one of WWE's most tenured full-time wrestlers. Nobody else has notched 500 televised bouts in the same window, with Randy Orton and The Miz the only others to break 400.
Though his days as a top contender are likely over, Ziggler has been at the heart of one of WWE's best-developed stories in 2020, playing a pivotal role in the Mandy Rose/Otis saga. Now aligned with a surging Sonya Deville, that him and 'The Pridefighter' have dominated much of the feud so far suggests they're set for a fall eventually. Not that there's anything wrong with that: that's what heels are for.