Former WWE Champion sets to face Ricochet for Intercontinental Championship

Ricochet is set to defend his Intercontinental Championship on next week's SmackDown against Jinder Mahal.

After winning the Intercontinental Title from Sami Zayn in March, though with the help of Johnny Knoxville, the newly-crowned champion only got to defend his title against The Great Liberator. In addition, he was also absent from this year's WrestleMania and this week's SmackDown for personal reasons.

But it seems like the champion is back again. On the latest episode of SmackDown, it was announced that Ricochet will defend his title against former WWE Champion Jinder Mahal in next week's episode.

This week's SmackDown also featured the return of Lacey Evans and an appearance from Raquel. The Bloodline also sent out a statement where The Usos announced they have plans to unify their tag team championship with the RAW titles.

Jinder Mahal previously called out Ricochet for a match

Jinder has won the WWE and United States titles. However, he hasn't had a consistent run since losing both titles and suffering two knee injuries.

Even though The Modern Day Maharaja has not been to any recent WWE events, he still made his presence known by calling out the current IC champion in a tweet earlier:

With Shanky being at ringside, it might be tricky for the Intercontinental Champion to defend his title. However, considering his high flying skill set, it's still going to be a tough matchup for Jinder.

Both men have not faced each other since 2017. Who do you think will walk out with the title? Sound off in the comments below.