Tommaso Ciampa Returns From Injury Absence On WWE Raw

It had been nine long months since we last saw Tommaso Ciampa inside a WWE ring. That wait ended Monday night on "WWE Raw" at the expense of The Miz.

Seth Rollins kicked things off on "Raw" with plans to host an open challenge for his World Heavyweight Championship, only to be interrupted and brutalized by Finn Balor. In the aftermath, "The A-Lister" sounded his frustration, claiming that he was going to be the one to answer "The Visionary." Instead, he called for an open challenge of his own and was at first pleasantly surprised to see Ciampa answer the call.

Unfortunately for The Miz, it was not a friendly reunion, and after about five minutes Ciampa scored his first victory on WWE programming since last August when he teamed up with The Miz to defeat A.J. Styles and Bobby Lashley.

For nearly the past year, Ciampa has been dealing with a hip injury, but he was backstage at "Raw" last month in Albany, New York. He didn't end up appearing that evening, but it signaled that his return was imminent. And, there have even been hints that a reunion with former tag team partner and bitter rival Johnny Gargano is on the cards.

Last month, "The Way," without past member Austin Theory, was reunited on "Raw" as Gargano, Candice LeRae, Dexter Lumis, and Indi Hartwell were selected by the red brand in the WWE Draft. During a backstage segment, Gargano appeared to reference Ciampa.

"And like I was saying, he's coming back soon, and I think it's gonna be great," Gargano said.