Tyler Bate Set for WWE SmackDown Debut

WWE has released an update on Tyler Bate’s future plans following his SmackDown premiere on this week’s episode.

Before the January 5 episode of Pretty Deadly, WWE advertised that Butch and a mystery partner would face off against Elton Prince.

Butch’s mystery opponent was revealed as Tyler Bate. He is a former NXT competitor and ex-British Strong Style Teammate. Tyler Bate won his WWE Main Roster debut match with Butch.

Recent reports confirm that Bate was originally on the main roster. However, his appearance now marks the official start of his main roster run and not just a one-off.

Bate’s WWE profile now lists him as a SmackDown artist, ending his time with NXT.

WWE has shared a video on Instagram showing Tyler Bate’s reaction to his debut after he returned backstage.

Tyler Bate is a member of the following:

It’s finally here! The big, strong, boi is now on SmackDown, and I will be staying.

WWE captioned this video, just in case you still needed more proof.

The big, strong boi is here! #SmackDown – New Year’s Revolution

Tyler Bate debuted in WWE as a part of the line-up for the first WWE UK Championship Tournament, which took place early in 2017.

Bate won the tournament and became the first WWE (NXT UK) Champion in history at the age of 19 by defeating Butch, then Pete Dunne.

The British star made history with the NXT UK franchise. He is the only wrestler who has been recognized as an NXT UK Triple Crown Winner, after reigning with the NXT UK Tag Team, Heritage Cup and NXT UK titles.

He is also the only NXT UK champion to have won twice, and the last NXT UK champ before the gold was united with the main NXT Championship.

In 2018, after beating Rode Strong and Kyle O’Reilly from the Undisputed Era, Bate held the main NXT Tag Team Championship with Trent Seven.