A major star made a surprising return to WWE programming tonight. Matt Cardona, formerly Zack Ryder, appeared on NXT after 6 years away from the company.
Cardona first appeared in a brief cameo, standing behind NXT Champion Oba Femi in the parking lot. Later, he was shown in the crowd during the main event, drawing a huge pop from fans. His last match for the black-and-gold brand was in 2016 before he moved back to the main roster.
During his WWE run from 2007 to 2020, Cardona became a highly popular figure, as noted by WWE.com, and captured the United States Championship. He also teamed with Mojo Rawley in NXT as The Hype Bros before leaving in 2020, after which he reinvented himself on the independent scene.
Following the show, Cardona fueled speculation with a post on X (formerly Twitter):
Driving home from @WWENXT… Don’t count out @ThisIsTNA… and don’t count out THE COMPLETE MATT CARDONA!
Cardona’s appearance came during a chaotic Title vs. Title main event between NXT Champion Oba Femi and TNA World Champion Trick Williams. The match, which ended with Trick retaining his title by disqualification at 11:53, featured multiple TNA personalities. Mike Santana caused the DQ by punching Trick, while Zack Wentz, Alicia Fox, Eric Young, Mance Warner, The IInspiration, and Frankie Kazarian were spotted in the crowd. The show closed with a massive brawl between the NXT and TNA rosters.