Keith Lee Debuts 'Bearcat' Gimmick On WWE Raw
Lee looked dominant on his WWE return
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Sep 28, 2021
Keith Lee officially debuted his new 'bearcat' nickname and gimmick on the September 27 WWE Raw, quickly dispatching of Akira Tozawa.
Tozawa was in the ring following a 24/7 Championship segment and issued an Open Challenge to other wrestlers in the 24/7 Title pursuit, only for Lee to storm his way to the squared circle.
The former NXT Champion was introduced as Keith 'Bearcat' Lee and was sporting new purple-and-black ring attire, with the 'bearcat' name printed across the gear as well. Lee dominated Tozawa in a very quick match, pinning him for the win in less than a minute.
Lee first introduced the 'Bearcat' character during a dark match ahead of last week's WWE Raw, with the name seemingly a tribute to WWE Hall-of-Famer Edward 'Bearcat" Wright, who wrestled between 1952 and 1975.
Lee was interviewed in a backstage segment for Raw Talk following the show, with his responses suggesting that the gimmick tweak is the first step in WWE's plans to repackage Lee as a heel.