As noted, WWE United States Champion Dolph Ziggler left the title laying in the ring last week, apparently relinquishing it just days after winning the title at the Clash of Champions pay-per-view. It was announced on tonight’s SmackDown by General Manager Daniel Bryan that there will be a tournament to crown a new champion, beginning tonight with Bobby Roode vs. former champion Baron Corbin in a first round match. The storyline is that Bryan has been trying to contact Ziggler for the past week but Ziggler has ignored him. Bryan said Ziggler’s actions show that he has voluntarily relinquished the United States Title, which is why he’s announcing the tournament.
We noted before that Ziggler was scheduled to be off upcoming SmackDown TV tapings to sell the mystery storyline but he would still be working WWE live events. No word yet on if he will be working as champion now that the tournament has been announced.
Stay tuned for updates on the tournament and when the finals might take place.
Below is video from the opening SmackDown segment with Bryan’s announcement:
In light of @HEELZiggler's apparent decision to voluntarily relinquish the #USTitle, #SDLive GM @WWEDanielBryan announces a TOURNAMENT to crown the next titleholder! pic.twitter.com/xB4CKU4cGf
— WWE (@WWE) December 27, 2017
"It appears that @HEELZiggler has voluntarily relinquished the United States Championship." - #SDLive General Manager @WWEDanielBryan pic.twitter.com/2V3TgueFpM
— WWE (@WWE) December 27, 2017
