'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAUACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABgAAEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABgkQAAEDBAMBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEAAgQDBhEhBRIyFAEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAwQRAAIBBQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAECEQADBCExUf/aAAwDAQACEQMRAD8Azs4m57ah8LVjSrUizZWHD6nyqzPWgejCPKh3Vw5xIpMAJzjekREiKpaJ77V+Rl37qWVYpCpqEVT5sgb5X//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Matt Cardona, formerly known as Zack Ryder in WWE, recently spoke to Metro about his pitch to Vince McMahon for his role at WrestleMania 35.
Cardona worked for WWE for a long time and won several championships before being released in August 2020. This came at a time when many superstars were released from the roster due to budget cuts. The former Long Island Z and his longtime friend Curt Hawkins, also known as The Edge Heads, won the RAW tag team championship by defeating The Revival, thus breaking Hawkins' 269-match losing streak.
Zack Ryder recently revealed to Metro that the initial idea he pitched to Vince McMahon for his WrestleMania 35 match was to be the final two men left in the ring with Curt Hawkins at the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal. Vince put this foot down, but then miraculously, two weeks later Ryder and Hawkins were given a crack at the RAW Tag Team Championship match. Ofcourse, they came out victorious, cherishing their own WrestleMania moment!
"That’s when I really started going into Vince – I wouldn’t say a lot, but when I thought I had a good idea. He was always very – he always listened, he gave me respect back. WrestleMania was about to be in New York and New Jersey, one hometown.
We had pitched that we would be the two final guys in the Andre The Giant Battle Royal and I would sacrifice myself. Brian would clothesline me out, and he would get his big moment at WrestleMania, break the streak, win the trophy. Vince – he didn’t like it, which is fine. Two weeks later, we win the tag team titles at WrestleMania! I believe because we went into his office and he’s like, “Oh these guys, they live here!” I don’t know that for a fact, because we were just getting the Andre The Giant Battle Royale, and all of a sudden we’re in this tag team title match.
We had no programme with The Revival at the time, they were doing something for months with Bobby Roode and Chad Gable. Then all of a sudden, we’re in this match and we win the belts! I think that’s because we went and talked to Vince. You never know what’s gonna happen." Cardona said." (H/T Metro)
Zack Ryder has expressed a desire to return to WWE with title ambitions. We shall wait to see if the former Intercontinental Champion makes it to next month's Royal Rumble.
Matt Cardona's last WWE televised match was on RAW
in March 2020
Matt Cardona was formerly known as Zack Ryder and was part of the WWE roster for 15 years. He won several championships during his tenure with the company, but his highlight reel came when he won the Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match at WrestleMania 32.
On March 9th, 2020, Zack Ryder wrestled in his final televised match. This was for the company's flagship show, Monday Night Raw, against The Almighty Bobby Lashley, who dominated the entire match and won. Due to budget cuts, Ryder was released from the company in August 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
It would be interesting to see if Cardona returns to WWE or not, as he has been excelling in the independent circuits since leaving the promotion, and has found tremendous success.
Do you want to see Matt Cardona in WWE again? Let us know in the comments.
