What’s the story?
WWE NXT announcer Mauro Ranallo announced his return to NXT on his Twitter account after he had officially been announced as the new play by play announcer for the NXT brand. The Tweet can be seen below:
Ranallo expressed his excitement at commentating on his first NXT taping alongside Percy Watson and Nigel McGuinness and was met with a lot of positive responses from his fans and supporters.
In case you didn’t know...
Mauro Ranallo initially signed up with the WWE in December 2015 and remained with the company until April 2017, commentating on the SmackDown LIVE brand as well as on several WWE Pay Per Views.
Ranallo was released, allegedly, due to backstage issues. Although Ranallo clarified this later, the issue gathered a lot of steam amongst the wrestling community and a lot of fans were critical of the way the matter was handled by the WWE.
Since his departure from the WWE, Ranallo has signed up with the MMA promotion Bellator and has also been announced as the lead play by play announcer for the super-fight between Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather Jr.
The heart of the matter
Mauro Ranallo made his return to the WWE during yesterday’s NXT taping. Ranallo was re-introduced to the WWE Universe by Triple H as the new play by play announcer for NXT, and he was welcomed by the Full Sail University arena with loud cheers.
However, Ranallo’s welcome wasn’t limited to Full Sail University, as fans and Superstars alike reacted to his return to the WWE on Social Media en masse. Here are a few reactions to Ranallo’s return!
Ranallo announced his return to the WWE via Instagram and the aforementioned Tweet, and it appears that fans have certainly expressed a lot of support for the announcement. Things are looking up for NXT!
What’s next?
Mauro Ranallo will now be the lead play by play commentator for NXT alongside Percy Watson and Nigel McGuinness. It is being said that he has been signed to a multi-year deal and will be with the promotion for the foreseeable future.
The first NXT taping with Ranallo’s commentary will be released on the WWE Network on 28th June 2017. Before that, however, Ranallo will be a part of Bellator MMA’s NYC event which will be available live on Pay Per View tonight (July 24th, 2017) where he will be calling the action alongside former UFC commentator Mike Goldberg.
Author’s take
Personally, I was overjoyed when I saw Mauro Ranallo back in the WWE. The credit for his return goes to Triple H and everyone else backstage that was involved in getting Ranallo back. The former voice of SmackDown is now the voice of NXT, and I’m sure he’s going to add a whole new dimension to NXT with his golden voice!
Here’s hoping that Ranallo stays with the WWE for a long, long time.
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