3 former WWE stars John Cena called out on SmackDown

WWE Friday Night SmackDown aired tonight on the USA Network and featured a few big-time matches and segments. For example, Bronson Reed clashed with LA Knight, and Sami Zayn went one-on-one with Randy Orton.

The main event of the evening was a match between R-Truth and John Cena. The bout led to the two men fighting on the ramp, and John ended up using the championship belt to smash Truth. This caused Cena to lose by disqualification, but his night wasn't over.

CM Punk showed up, leading to a brawl between the two. Thanks to some underhanded tactics, Cena put Punk through a table. He then sat on the corner ropes and reenacted his own version of Punk's infamous pipebomb promo from 14 years ago. It was hard-hitting, and the fans both at home and in the arena loved it.

Notably, John shouted out three stars who were once with World Wrestling Entertainment but aren't any longer. This was similar to Punk's initial promo where he mentioned Colt Cabana. Who did The Face That Runs The Place mention, and what are their ties to John?

Below are three former WWE stars that John Cena called out on SmackDown this week.

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#3. He mentioned Claudio Castagnoli, formerly known as Cesaro in WWE

The first name John Cena mentioned was Claudio Castagnoli. However, some fans might not know him by that name and instead, they might remember him as former WWE star Cesaro.

Cesaro had a fair bit of success while in WWE. He once held the United States Championship and then held tag team gold on seven separate occasions with three different partners. He also won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.

As for his ties with John Cena, the two had five singles matches together that aired on television in World Wrestling Entertainment between 2012 and 2015. The first bout took place at Tribute To The Troops, while the rest all happened on RAW.

Today, Claudio competes for All Elite Wrestling. He is technically part of the biggest faction in the company, The Death Riders, but many believe his run in the promotion has been disappointing, and he hasn't been pushed as well as fans had hoped once he left WWE.

#2. John Cena referenced his former friend and rival Matt Cardona, aka Zack Ryder

Another name mentioned by John Cena on WWE SmackDown was Matt Cardona. Cardona competed on RAW, SmackDown, NXT, and even ECW as Zack Ryder for several years before being cut by the company.

While in WWE, he managed to hold multiple titles. Ryder held the RAW Tag Team Titles twice alongside Curt Hawkins. He also held both the Intercontinental Championship and the United States Championship.

John Cena and Zack Ryder went one-on-one on WWE TV shows twice. The first time was in 2011, and the second time was a few years later in 2015. In both examples, The Face That Runs The Place stood tall.

Today, Matt Cardona is known as The Indie God. He wrestles for companies all over and often sports numerous titles at once. Cardona has also appeared in some bigger companies, including AEW, TNA, and NWA, among other promotions.

#1. John mentioned Nic Nemeth from TNA Wrestling, aka Dolph Ziggler

The final name John Cena mentioned in his pipebomb promo was Nic Nemeth. For those unaware, Nemeth is the current ring name of one of the longest tenured stars in modern WWE history, Dolph Ziggler.

While Dolph has long since left World Wrestling Entertainment, he found a great deal of success while working for the promotion. He was a two-time world champion, a four-time tag team champion, an NXT Champion, a two-time United States Champion, and an impressive six-time Intercontinental Champion.

Dolph Ziggler and John Cena wrestled on broadcasted shows in singles matches on seven different occasions between 2010 and 2015. Six of those bouts took place on Monday Night RAW, and one took place at the TLC pay-per-view in 2012.

Today, Ziggler competes as Nic Nemeth. While he isn't with WWE anymore, he is working with affiliated promotions. For example, he is a key star in TNA Wrestling and even recently appeared at an AAA show, which was acquired by World Wrestling Entertainment recently. It wouldn't be crazy to think he could be back in the Stamford-based company again one day.