10 Times WWE Dropped The Ball With Dolph Ziggler
4. Feuding With Rey Mysterio
Ziggler returned to the WWE TV with his current character in the fall of 2008, but served as an enhancement during his time on Raw. It wasn't until his move to SmackDown in April as part of the 2009 WWE supplemental draft that fans started taking him seriously.
In June, he cemented himself as a force to be reckoned with when he became the No. 1 contender to Intercontinental Championship, earning himself a title shot against Rey Mysterio at Night of Champions. Based off the way he was booked that summer, it appeared WWE was ready to go all in with Ziggler's push by having him be the one to take the title off Mysterio.
By Night of Champions Sunday, the plan had been to put the strap on Ziggler, but the outcome was switched shortly before the bout, reportedly due to something said by Mysterio. Although he was screwed out of the gold on that night, he had another chance to win it at SummerSlam, though he fell short of victory at that event also.
As a result, he wouldn't win the title that year. He was reduced to "WWE Superstars" pugatory before finally capturing the belt in August 2010.