Rick Boogs returns from injury on WWE Raw

Rick Boogs returned to WWE on Monday’s Raw after a nearly 10-month injury absence. 

Boogs was introduced by Adam Pearce as a surprise opponent for The Miz in an impromptu match on Raw, where Boogs won with a press slam in under two minutes. 

Boogs was injured on night one of WrestleMania on April 2, 2022 in the show’s opening match. Boogs and Shinsuke Nakamura were challenging The Usos for the SmackDown tag titles when he suffered a “torn quadriceps to patella tendon” as his right leg gave out while he had both Usos on his shoulders in a fireman’s carry.

Boogs underwent surgery to repair the injury in Birmingham, Alabama last April. Boogs had also suffered a serious leg injury earlier in his WWE career, as he also tore an ACL, MCL, and meniscus in 2017 while wrestling in NXT. 

Boogs made his SmackDown in-ring debut in August 2021 after he was called up to the main roster earlier in the year and paired with Nakamura. 

Between his NXT and main roster runs, Boogs appeared as “Joe Average” in a series of WWE-themed Old Spice commercials.