on september 15, 2008, nemeth re-debuted on "raw" (as a heel), introducing himself in a backstage segment under the name "dolph ziggler". on october 10, nemeth was suspended for 30 days for a violation of wwe's wellness program policy. he returned to "raw" on november 17 in a backstage segment with rey mysterio and shawn michaels. in his first match on "raw" under the ziggler name, he lost to batista on the december 1, 2008 episode. the following week he got his first victory as ziggler, by countout, against r-truth. the next week on "raw", he picked up his first televised pinfall victory, when he defeated charlie haas. ziggler would compete in the 2009 royal rumble match, in which he was eliminated by kane after 21 seconds.