Matt Cardona Says He’s Proud WWE Brought Him Back Under That Name Instead Of Zack Ryder

Matt Cardona is proud WWE stuck with his indie name.

On November 14, Matt Cardona made a one-off return to WWE SmackDown. Using his “Zack Ryder” name, the star lost to LA Knight as part of the Last Time Is Now tournament to determine John Cena’s final match. However, when the 41-year-old officially rejoined WWE back in January, he emerged as Matt Cardona, leaving many confused as to why he’d used both names on the blue brand in such short time. Now, the former Intercontinental Champion has reflected on returning to WWE under the Cardona name.

Speaking to Chris Van Vliet on Insight, Matt Cardona discussed feeling proud that WWE were happy to let him use the name he’d built up on the indies.

I got a call like, ‘We wanna sign you.’ I’m thinking, okay. I’m just assuming it’s as Zack Ryder so I get all this new Zack Ryder gear made blah blah blah blah. Then a week or so before my debut I hear through the grapevine you’re gonna be Matt Cardona. Now I’m like oh sh*t I need new Matt Cardona gear. But I am very proud that they thought there was more value in Matt Cardona than Zack Ryder. Because who else has left [and come back with their non-WWE name? Okay, Razor Ramon leaves, and he comes back as Scott Hall. He went to WCW. I did this all in the Indies. No one’s ever done that before. Gone to the Indies and come back as their indie persona.”

-Matt Cardona

Before making his surprise appearance on SmackDown in November, the star had actually used the Matt Cardona name on WWE NXT when he appeared as part of TNA’s working relationship with the brand. Still, him being able to keep it upon his main roster return came as a surprise to many given his past success on the main roster under a different character.

Since his comeback, Cardona has remained on the SmackDown brand, making it clear in interviews that he wants the WWE Championship. Should he go on to achieve this feat, he’d join the illustrious list of Grand Slam Champions, though whether this comes to fruition remains to be seen.

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As always, we’ll aim to provide any further updates on future plans for Matt Cardona as soon as we hear more.