Photo Credits-Wrestling Inc, Bleacher Report, Matt Cardona Twitter
On April 15, 2020, Matt Cardona (then known as Zack Ryder) was released by WWE during the first of many budget cuts. Ryder had very little success as a member of the WWE roster. In 2011, he started his YouTube series, increasing his popularity with the fans. He was rewarded with this newfound popularity, becoming U.S. Champion during December of that year. Unfortunately it was an underwhelming reign, as he would quickly get involved with John Cena and Kane, being repeatedly embarrassed and treated as a joke. He lost the title in mid-January and would be swiftly moved back down the card.
Ryder would have to wait four more years before winning another title. At WrestleMania 32 in a ladder match for the Intercontinental championship, Ryder was added as a late replacement for Neville who had been injured. Ryder then won the belt at the biggest show of the year, in a massive feel-good moment no one was expecting. Unfortunately this title reign would also be extremely short, dropping the title the next night on Raw to The Miz.
The rest of Ryder’s run would be unremarkable, apart from winning the Raw Tag Titles with partner and friend Curt Hawkins during the WrestleMania 35 preshow. Ryder was released a year later, after a 15-year run with the company. However, this release has been a blessing in disguise for Cardona, who has reinvented himself turning into one of the hottest commodities on the market.
His first major appearance came in All Elite Wrestling, as he would align himself with Cody and The Nightmare Family in a feud against The Dark Order. This rivalry would climax on September 5th, 2020, as Cardona and the Nightmare Family defeated the Dark Order in an 8-man tag at All Out. While his time in AEW was nothing spectacular, Cardona was able introduce and showcase this new character and attitude for the first time.
Cardona moved on as he would debut in Impact Wrestling in January 2021 during Hard to Kill. Since joining the company, Matt Cardona has been positioned in an upper-midcard role and has positioned in several angles with real life fiancée Chelsea Green. He will be in the main event of Hard to Kill 2022, facing off against W.Morrissey and Moose in a three-way for the Impact World Championship.
However in my opinion, the greatest thing Cardona has done both since his release and during his career has been his run in Game Changer Wrestling. On June 6th, 2021, Matt Cardona came to the ring disguised pretending to be Jon Moxley and attacked GCW Champion Nick Gage. After unmasking, the crowd in attendance turned on Cardona, as he would launch one of the greatest heel runs of 2021. Cardona simply acted like he was above the GCW promotion and felt that the deathmatch style of the promotion and their champion Nick Gage was barbaric and disgusting. This storyline ended in a deathmatch between Matt Cardona and Nick Gage on July 24th, 2021. After a brutal match, Cardona was able to secure the victory and the title via shenanigans. The fans were absolutely outraged, throwing cups, beer cans, among other items into the ring after the match. Cardona would eventually drop the title to Moxley during early September, ending his short run with the belt. This storyline created the most buzz and popularity around GCW, and it was all due to Matt Cardona. His ability to get the fans to hate him and truly bring wrestling back to the old days where people actually despised the bad guys, if only for a couple months.
Cardona also attacked NWA Champion Trevor Murdoch at the end of their Hard Times 2 show this past weekend, marking the fourth major promotion that Cardona has worked with during the last two years.
In conclusion, Matt Cardona took an unfortunate situation and was able to improve and develop a character that has connected with audiences and has been booked by the biggest promotions outside the WWE as a result. Cardona has risen his stock tremendously in the past year, and will have plenty of opportunities to increase his accolades over the next 12 months.
