“I didn’t care about that”

A 41-year-old star believed he would never return to WWE. In recent years, many names have returned to the Stamford-based promotion after spending years away.

CM Punk made a shocking return in 2023, and two years later he was joined by his wife, AJ Lee, in the promotion. Towards the end of last year, another familiar name set foot in WWE.

Matt Cardona competed in John Cena’s Last Time is Now in November on SmackDown as Zack Ryder. He had earlier shown up in NXT during the TNA invasion angle, but these appearances remained one-off.

In January, he officially signed a contract with the sports entertainment giant and became a full-fledged member of the blue brand. This comeback marked a full-circle moment for him, as he had been released by the promotion in 2020.

Recently, during an appearance on INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet, Cardona opened up about his journey. When asked whether getting back to the TKO-owned company was always the aim, he said he didn’t plan it right away.

“Yes and no. So when I get fired, my knee-jerk reaction isn’t, what do I got to do to get back there? I couldn’t live my life that way. But we’re very big on what we’re grateful for, goal-setting. One of the goals was always to be the WWE Champion. You can’t be the WWE Champion unless you’re WWE, right? So I had to get back there. But it wasn’t like from day one I’m gonna prove them wrong, I’m gonna get back there. No, and I say this all the time too. I didn’t want to prove people wrong. I didn’t care about that,” he said.

The former United States champion mentioned that at one point, he thought he was never getting back to his previous employers.

“At one point I thought there’s no way I’m getting back because I was doing everything. Indie Wrestler of the Year, cover of PWI, I was with Seth DeLander at the time because Chelsea (Green) had gone back, and I texted Steph. I said you need to get away from me because I’m holding you down. There’s no way I’m ever going back, because if not now, when?” he added.

Matt Cardona was bothered by WWE stars joking about him

During the conversation on INSIGHT, Matt Cardona said he was bothered by the comments made by Kevin Owens and Cody Rhodes on What Do You Wanna Talk About? podcast prior to his return.

Owens said that he loves Cardona but said that for someone who loves being on the indies, he talks a lot about how he wants to be in WWE.

Cardona said he was p*ssed at these comments and said it bothered him for a while. He said he is over it now and understands that there was no malice behind those comments.