34-year-old star gets crowned as the new champion after SmackDown goes off the air

Andrade becomes the second-ever WWE Speed Champion.

34-year-old star gets crowned as the new champion after SmackDown goes off the air

Andrade beats Ricochet to become new WWE Speed Champion (via WWE and reigns_era/X)

WWE usually records WWE Speed episodes in front of TV audiences after the shows go off the air. A dark match after the latest episode of SmackDown featured Ricochet defending his Speed championship against his #1 contender, Andrade.

The Speed match ended with the former United States Champion beating Ricochet and being crowned the new WWE Speed Champion. There is no official footage of his win at the moment. However, the match will soon be uploaded to the WWE Speed X account.

YouTube video

The Latino superstar took part in the recent #1 contender’s tournament for the championship. He beat Karl Anderson in the first round and then Tommaso Ciampa in a match yet to be aired to earn his title shot against the inaugural Speed Champion. The Highlight of the Night was crowned only two months ago. Since then, he only had one successful title defense, which was against Tyler Bate.

There is also news that the former Intercontinental Champion’s contract with WWE is coming to an end soon. The 35-year-old being stripped of the title so soon after winning it could be a sign of him not continuing with the Stamford-based promotion.

Andrade posts cryptic tweets hinting at being unsatisfied with his booking in WWE

Andrade made an ambiguous post on X last week where he called himself The Real Latino Man. He then named the major organizations he had worked for prior to his WWE return: AEW, CMLL, and AAA. This post was accompanied by three photos of him in those respective organizations. He could be seen shaking hands with Bryan Danielson in AEW, Volador Jr. in CMLL, and posing with Kenny Omega in AAA.

Andrade
Andrade (via WWE)

While some comprehended this post as him expressing gratitude for his journey, others theorized that El Idolo might be unhappy with WWE. The former CMLL champion has not done much since his return to WWE at the Royal Rumble in January.

The 34-year-old had been meandering around among the Judgment Day and partnered up alongside Rey Mysterio to take on Dominik Mysterio and Santos Escobar. He was then drafted to SmackDown, where he has yet to make a notable appearance. These factors could spell discontent for the Mexican with his booking in WWE.

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