Cody Rhodes says he wants to see Matt Cardona return to WWE.
Speaking on Good Karma Wrestling, Cardona came up in the conversation. Rhodes joked that, while Matt is one of his best friends, he’s frustrated because Cardona blew him off for three different park visits. He then praised him for the run he’s having on the independent scene. Rhodes stated that, while it’d be cool if Cardona went to AEW, he wants to see Cardona return to WWE. He also called him a “huge get” as he noted that Cardona is the best he’s ever been.
“I’m really proud of him,” Rhodes said. “He’s out there, he’s doing the Indy God thing with the Indiana Jones hats. Everything Matt’s doing, Matt has been the king of the indies now, this is going on year two. You only usually get one run in that role. He’s going on year two. What Matt does next is gonna be huge. If he goes to AEW, that’d be cool. But if he comes back to WWE, that’s what I want. It would be off the charts. I think he’s a huge get, a huge free agent, and he’s the best he’s ever been.
Rhodes then recalled a story in which Cardona “tanked” a meeting with management “somewhere”, as he refused to wear a Nightmare Family jacket or associate with Cody on-screen.
“I have this story about Matt, which I’m gonna tell eventually, about watching his first meeting with a certain member of management somewhere, how he tanked this meeting right in front of me,” Rhodes said. “One big line he hit in the meeting that I’ll never forget, this is one of my real-life friends, he said, ‘I just want to make it clear, I’m never putting on a Nightmare Family jacket or associating myself with him on screen.’ I got you the meeting! Why? Under the bus, right away. Then he said some other things that I’ll save for the story in a more long-form setting. I love Matt Cardona, I’m greatly irritated with him at the moment.”
Cardona had a brief run in AEW in 2020 before he left the company and starting working for IMPACT Wrestling in January 2022. Since his WWE release, he has won the GCW World Championship, the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship, and the IMPACT Digital Media Championship, among several other titles.
Rhodes returned to WWE at WrestleMania 38, and he went down with a torn pectoral muscle at WWE Hell in a Cell 2022. He came back at WWE Royal Rumble 2023 and won the men’s battle royal. Rhodes will challenged Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania 38.
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