Backstage reason why WWE split up Dolph Ziggler and Sonya Deville and sent him to RAW revealed
Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode were officially moved to RAW on the latest episode as part of the trade that saw AJ Styles move to SmackDown. The decision to draft Ziggler to RAW was reported a few days before it happened; however, there was still an element of surprise to the move as the Show Off was always involved in the Sonya Deville-Mandy Rose storyline.
Dolph Ziggler was in Deville's corner as soon as Mandy Rose split up and became Otis' on-screen partner. Sonya Deville has been in her element ever since Fire and Desire broke up and while she has been the focal point of the storyline, Dolph Ziggler was always by her side.
Tom Colohue revealed on the latest edition of the Dropkick DiSKussions podcast that when he asked about why WWE broke up the pair of Ziggler and Deville, he was told that Deville doesn't need him.
Tom noted that Ziggler's role in the feud was diminishing with each passing week, and it should also be noted that he was not a part of the segment between Rose and Deville on the most recent episode of SmackDown.
Tom also revealed that Ziggler voluntarily gave Deville more time on the microphone as he realized her potential. Dolph Ziggler was originally supposed to cut more promos during the feud; however, he reportedly let Deville do all the talking.
Deville and Rose's personal rivalry didn't need Ziggler to be involved anymore, and WWE rightfully made the call to send him to RAW, where he began a WWE title programme with Drew McIntyre.
Tom explained:
I did ask about this, and I was told quite simply, Deville doesn't need him. I think he did extremely well, but his role was becoming smaller and smaller. They had promos where Sonya Deville was doing all the talking, even though Dolph Ziggler was there and Dolph, to my knowledge, was supposed to do the talking, but he said to Sonya Deville, 'look, here are my lines, go for it.' He knows what talent she has and really, I feel they did need to move on. Otis seems to be moving towards Baron Corbin. Corbin now seems to be going to feud with Riddle and so Heavy Machinery will be feuding with Miz and Morrison. That will give us the option of a six-person tag, and it does mean that Deville has similar people to work with, but I don't think Rose and Deville will need that support at the moment. I think they have both really exceeded expectations.
Dolph Ziggler gets a WWE title match
Dolph Ziggler will face Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship at Extreme Rules, and the feud between the two former tag team partners isn't expected to go on for long. It's just another angle to solidify McIntyre's WWE title reign and make him look better.
Dolph Ziggler is no longer a nuisance for Mandy Rose, and she even reacted to the former World Heavyweight Champion's move to RAW. Rose and Deville can now embark on what could be a significant feud for both women.
Don't forget to check out the latest edition of Sportskeeda's Dropkick DiSKussions above in which Tom Colohue and Korey Gunz spoke on various topics. Tom revealed backstage details about behind Bray Wyatt getting back old gimmick, why Dominik Mysterio skipped NXT, backstage uncertainty over Braun Strowman as the Universal Champion, the Undertaker's retirement and much more.