Butch is no more – long live Pete Dunne.
The superstar has returned to his roots on SmackDown alongsideas the British Strong Style teammates reunited for another win over Pretty Deadly.
Fans were delighted even before the bell rang as the Birmingham-born wrestler ditched to go back to his Bruiserweight roots.
For the first time since being called up to SmackDown in March 2022, he was introduced as , scrapping a name which divided viewers over the last couple of years.
In the ring, there was a difference too as the former United Kingdom Champion appeared more aggressive and determined in the ring as he and Bate took on Elton Prince and Kit Wilson.
In the end, he picked up the win for his team after hitting a huge Bitter End on Prince, signalling an official return to form after months of teasing the change in direction.
Fans are delighted by the switch – which has also been made official on his profile on WWE.com – and they’ve flooded social media with joyous responses to the .
‘RIP Butch good riddance Pete Dunne is back #SmackDown,’ tweeted @NFLFan1997, while @MikeJBknows added: ‘About damn time they brought the Bruiserweight back. Pete Dunne > Butch.’
And @JuicySteen wrote: ‘I am SO happy that Pete Dunne is back. Honestly, I wasn’t opposed to the Butch character when surrounded by the Brawling Brutes but on his own, Pete Dunne is the best decision.’
The change comes almost two years after he was first aligned with veteran Sheamus and fellow Englishman Ridge Holland as the Brawling Brutes, but even then Dunne was.
Playing down the change, he exclusively told Metro.co.uk at the time: ‘I’m embracing the opportunity and having as much fun with it as I possibly can! I think that will come across.
‘For me, as long as that in-ring stuff is the same quality, and especially now with this character being able to push it more – it’s obviously very similar to how I was before, but that added step above feels completely fresh for me after 16 years in wrestling. I hope that comes across on screen.’
He added: ‘I didn’t know , but I figured there would be a name change, I knew that would be the case.
‘I knew there would be multiple changes alongside that, so I went in with a very open mind.’
WWE SmackDown airs Friday nights at 1am on TNT Sports 1.
