Giovanni Vinci’s controversial return match on SmackDown is reported to have been badly received by “key figures” in WWE.
Former Imperium member Vinci’s return to WWE programming has been anticipated highly recently, with video packages of the star driving Ferraris in expensive suits and skiing in the alps. However, despite the hype, his return match against Apollo Crews on SmackDown last night didn’t exactly go as planned.
Vinci leisurely made his way down to the ring, taunting the Edmonton, Alberta crowd and frustrating Crews and the referee. As soon as the referee rang the bell to start the match, Crews rolled Vinci up from behind to score a pinfall in less than ten seconds.
The finish took Vinci and the in-attendance audience by surprise, as well as viewers at home – and it appears WWE personnel felt the same. WrestleVotes posted on X that, according to inside sources at WWE, the decision didn’t go down well backstage:
“I’m told there are a few “key” figures within creative that absolutely hated the direction on the Giovanni Vinci angle tonight. #SmackDown”
Throughout 2020 and 2021, as part of Imperium – alongside Ludwig Kaiser and current World Heavyweight Champion Gunther – Vinci had dominant runs in NXT, twice gaining the NXT Tag Team Championships with Kaiser. Unfortunately, this level of success didn’t continue when the group made the jump to the main WWE roster. Last night on SmackDown was Vinci’s first appearance back on WWE television since the April 22 episode of Raw, which saw Imperium lose to The New Day’s Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods. Kaiser attacked his partner after the match, kicking Vinci out of the Imperium stable.
What else happened on SmackDown?
Aside from Vinci’s return, the September 6 episode of SmackDown turned out to be an eventful one. WWE Champion Cody Rhodes set up a title match for next week with an interesting stipulation, and the rivalry between Andrade and Carmelo Hayes intensified.
