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Industry veteran Jim Cornette has given his opinion on Lacey Evans' bizarre return to WWE.
Lacey returned to the promotion in April with a series of vignettes detailing her family's struggles with substance abuse, her time in the Marines, and everything she has overcome to get to WWE. Despite the momentum the vignettes gave her, however, recent reports indicate that the company currently has no plans for the 32-year-old superstar.
In a recent episode of the Jim Cornette Experience, Cornette said that Lacey was a good heel but feels that the company completely botched her return:
"She was a good heel, she had personality," said Cornette. "She had a good heel demeanor. Haven't seen much of her wrestling but it didn't look like it was rotten as I recall. But how she got there to being a heel was the most ignorant way to build a heel I've ever seen." (06:48- 07:08)
The legendary manager criticized the promotion for building Lacey up as a heroic figure in the vignettes before turning her heel. He added that the promotion is now stuck because they can't turn her babyface again:
"By making them the greatest person in the world, who has overcome every tragedy and be as admirable a person as possible. But now I'm better than you are. What? Where did that come from? So now they can't make her a babyface again, it wouldn't take." (07:09- 07:24)
What does Dutch Mantell think of Lacey Evans in WWE?
While Jim Cornette may find the booking of Lacey Evans perplexing, another wrestling legend praised the former Sassy Southern Belle. Dutch Mantell had some positive things to say about Evans' performance on a recent episode of Sportskeeda's Smack Talk.
During the July 15th edition of SmackDown, Lacey came to the ring to a chorus of boos from the crowd. She scolded the fans for not cheering for her because she sacrificed for them in the past. Dutch praised Lacey for putting the heat on the fans:
"I loved the promo. I loved it. It was good. And then she left. You're not acting, right? 'I'm an American hero, and you should be cheering me because I sacrificed for you and look at you.' So she's putting the heat on the fans. Not on your opponent, on the fans and that'll always get you heat. Then she says, 'Screw it, I'm just leaving.' I think she's got more heat than any of them, I mean, out of the girls," Mantell said.
Lacey Evans has not wrestled on television since the women's ladder match at WWE Money in the Bank on July 2nd. It will be interesting to see if her return goes better the next time around.
Do you want to see Lacey Evans return to WWE television? Share your opinion in the comments section below.
When using quotes from this article, please credit The Jim Cornette Experience and give a H/T to Sportskeeda for the transcription.
