I’m a WWE Champion who shared viral moment with Logan Paul but one specific request means my title can never be seen on TV
If there's one thing WWE Superstar Ricochet is used to being able to do, it's showcase his incredible talents to the world.
The former Intercontinental Champion is firmly established as one of the company's most eye-catching talents.
Popular with fans for his risk-taking, high-flying style, the 35-year-old is a hit on screens and a regular feature on WWE's flagship Monday Night Raw programme.
He's in the early throws of a feud with hard-hitting Raw newcomer Bron Breakker, having been on the end of a number of attacks from the former NXT sensation.
Ricochet also has an impressive WWE CV. As well as his spell with the 'IC' gold, he can also call himself a former United States and NXT North American Champion, as well as a SmackDown World Cup winner.
As well as titles, he's collected viral moments aplenty, not least the phenomenal spot at Royal Rumble in 2023 when he and Logan Paul collided in mid air having each launched themselves into a springboard clothesline.
READ MORE WWE
Later in the year, another sickening landing with Paul at London's Money in the Bank event earned them even more social media views as they crashed through a table at ringside having just about managed to execute another daredevil move correctly
Even before his time in WWE, the grappler was world renowned thanks to his time with the likes of Dragon Gate and New Japan, making his arrival in pro wrestling's biggest company in 2018 quite the coup.
Yet for all these impressive accolades and accomplishments, Ricochet has one other distinction which, if you only kept up with WWE via their weekly television output, you'd never know.
The performer is currently enjoying a title reign in WWE as their first ever Speed Champion, having won a tournament to snare the crown in early May.
Most read in Sport
He overcame Dragon Lee, JD McDonagh and Johnny Gargano to win the title, and has since even successfully defended it against Brit Tyler Bate.
Despite the triumph, Ricochet continues to appear on Monday Night Raw with his title nowhere to be seen - leaving some fans scratching their heads.
The moonsault master has, thankfully, stepped in with an explanation as to why his newly-won crown never appears on screen: quite simply, it can't.
Speed is a division of WWE that has its action streamed exclusively online via X - the fast-past matches limited to just three minutes in length, with championship bouts extended to five minutes.
Stars from Raw, SmackDown and NXT are all eligible to compete in Speed matches each week, with X the only place to see the bouts unfold.
Ricochet as revealed that the exclusive nature of the partnership with the social media platform means that the championship itself can only appear on X - which suggests it's effectively banned from other WWE shows.
- on X of course - the champ himself retorted to criticism of him not taking the title with him to Raw by saying: "[A] specific company paid a specific amount of money to have a specific show and title, EXCLUSIVELY be shown on their specific platform."
That did little to settle fans, who instead turned their anger towards Elon Musk and X, saying: "Ahhh Elon said “We’ll do it, but that belt is ours!" while another blasted: "So you’re saying the title means nothing, it’s a paid for prop."
Another argued: "Feels incredibly stupid of them to not let you wear it on TV. Surely they’d want you wearing it so people look into what it is."
"So they said 'Have this title ONLY on our platform?'," asked another user, who added "Literal self sabotage. Putting the belt on TV would draw eyes."
With one successful title defence under his belt, Ricochet will now meet either Tommaso Ciampa, Andrade or Karl Anderson in his next outing.
Ciampa defeated Ludwig Kaiser in a new number one contender's tournament, with Andrade and Anderson set to clash to determine who'll advance to meet the champ.