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Former WWE Superstar Matt Cardona (fka Zack Ryder) recently refused to wrestle legendary tag specialist and Hall of Famer Bully Ray, claiming that he was bullied online by the former Tag Team Champion.
Cardona has been on a roll since his release from the Stamford-based promotion in 2020. After a brief stint in AEW, he wrestled across the US, winning championships wherever he went. Cardona has captured titles in IMPACT Wrestling and GCW, and even carried seven belts from five promotions at one point in 2021.
The former Intercontinental Champion recently appeared at the National Wrestling Alliance's NWA 74 event, where before losing his match against indie wrestler Rolando Perez, he cut a promo where he named some people that he wouldn't wrestle, including Bully.
Matt claimed to have been bullied online by the Hall of Famer, stating that the ECW alum has been "extreme-shaming" him for months:
"I'm certainly not wrestling Bully Ray. Bully, what a fitting name, because you have been bullying me online. Yeah, he's been extreme-shaming me. He's been saying that I'm not extreme. He's been saying that I'm not hardcore."
Matt Cardona went on to claim that he has become the "king of death matches" in the past few years while Bully Ray sits at home and does radio shows.
While Bully Ray has been actively competing - notably wrestling on the same NWA show Cardona appeared on - the former United States Champion has been in several hardcore and death matches over the past two years.
The back-and-forth between Matt Cardona and Bully Ray online indicates a match between the two is in the cards
While Matt Cardona claimed that he will not wrestle Bully Ray in his promo, the online back-and-forth between the two indicates that they will be squaring off in the squared circle soon enough.
In reply to the original tweet, Bully's response was obscenity-laden and to the point:
"I dont have to go on @BustedOpenRadio to “spin” this. You’re a b****. End of story. Now go home and get ya fkn shinebox."
Matt replied to this inflammatory comment by asking Bully to "be a star", riffing on WWE's anti-bullying campaign, "Be a STAR".
The WWE Hall of Famer and former IMPACT World Champion shot back by calling Matt Cardona a "1 star performer".
One would guess that the two former WWE stars will be clashing in the ring in the near future. Although no such match has been announced, the recent Twitter back-and-forth certainly points to a match between the two happening.
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