WWE Hall Of Famer Makes Surprise Appearance On Raw

By Sai Mohan

Two-time WWE Hall of Famer Booker T joined the commentary booth for the AJ Styles vs. Ciampa match on the 8/1 "WWE Raw" episode. Booker, a native of Houston, Texas, received a loud ovation from his hometown crowd at the Toyota Center.

Booker has had several stints as an announcer for WWE's flagship shows. In February 2011, he joined "WWE SmackDown" as a color commentator, working beside Josh Mathews and Michael Cole. Then, on the season premiere of "WWE Raw" in 2015, he replaced Jerry Lawler as the new color commentator for the Red Brand. The change was made due to Lawler taking time away to deal with diverticulitis. Later that year, Booker would be replaced by Byron Saxton as he became a coach for "WWE Tough Enough." Following the 2017 WWE Superstar Shake-up, Booker T once again return to the "WWE Raw" announce booth, replacing David Otunga. In subsequent years, Booker has continued to serve as a panelist on various shows across Peacock and the WWE Network.

As Booker called the action Monday, Ciampa went on to upset Styles to become the No. 1 contender to Bobby Lashley's United States Championship. Earlier in the night, he defeated Dolph Ziggler and Chad Gable in a Triple-Threat Match to qualify for the match against Styles.

WWE has yet to announce the date for the Ciampa vs. Lashely title match.

As noted earlier, Ciampa's change of presentation shouldn't come as a surprise. Earlier on Monday, Fightful Select reported that Triple H, the new Head of Creative in WWE, has plans for Ciampa to "showcase his abilities" and to be put in more meaningful matches and feuds. Cimpa was consistently booked as one of NXT's top stars when Triple H handled creative for the former Black & Gold brand a few years ago.

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