Former WWE United States Champion and two-time WWE Raw Tag Team Champion Matt Riddle made his shocking in-ring debut with TNA Wrestling at TNA Turning Point.
Riddle joined Zachary Wentz and KUSHIDA in a losing effort against Ace Austin and The Hardys (Matt and Jeff Hardy).
Originally, the match was scheduled with Trey Miguel in Riddle’s spot, but Miguel was unable to attend due to travel issues.
This is particularly interesting since TNA has a close relationship with WWE, the company Riddle left on less-than-stellar terms.
Randy Orton (R) and Riddle celebrate their win in the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Crown Jewel pay-per-view in the Saudi capital Riyadh on October 21, 2021. Randy Orton (R) and Riddle celebrate their win in the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Crown Jewel pay-per-view in the Saudi capital Riyadh on October 21, 2021. Fayez Nureldine/AFP/Getty Images
After a fairly successful career as a mixed martial artist, Riddle first garnered attention on the independent scene for his unique appearance, unorthodox MMA style, and stoner persona.
The “Original Bro” quickly became a fan-favorite on WWE NXT, joining the brand in 2018. Although he never won a singles title in NXT, he did win the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic with Pete Dunne in 2020. Later, the duo won the NXT Tag Team Championship.
On May 29, 2020, Riddle moved up to the main roster, eventually becoming the WWE United States Champion.
More Professional Wrestling: Fan-Favorite AEW Superstar Reportedly Out With Injury
Riddle’s most memorable time was in his tag team partnership with Randy Orton, also known as RK-Bro. Fans loved the contrasting personalities and the duo won the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship twice.
Unfortunately, Riddles’ time with WWE would be marred with controversy.
In the summer of 2020, Riddle was accused of sexually assaulting a female professional wrestler during his time on the independent scene, which he vehemently denied. The lawsuit was dropped on July 13, 2021.
More Professional Wrestling: John Cena Tops Royal Rumble 2025 Victory Betting Odds, Why That’s a Bad Bet
On Dec. 13, 2022, Riddle was reportedly suspended for 60 days after failing WWE’s wellness policy for a second time. In an interview, he later confirmed this was due to cocaine use.
On Sept. 22, 2023, Riddle announced that he was “no longer with WWE.” This came after he had an incident with a TSA agent at JFK International Airport.
Riddle spent the next year with multiple promotions around the world, including Major League Wrestling (MLW), New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), and Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide.
Now, it seems that Riddle has found a new home with TNA. Given that multiple superstars have moved between TNA and WWE, time will tell if the Original Bro will make his WWE return.
More Professional Wrestling: WWE Superstar Jade Cargill ‘Secret’ Injury Details Reportedly Revealed
For more professional wrestling news, head on over to Newsweek Sports.
Um die besten Erfahrungen zu bieten, verwenden wir Technologien wie Cookies, um Geräteinformationen zu speichern und/oder darauf zuzugreifen. Wenn Sie diesen Technologien zustimmen, können wir Daten wie das Surfverhalten oder eindeutige IDs auf dieser Website verarbeiten. Die Nichteinwilligung oder der Widerruf der Einwilligung kann bestimmte Merkmale und Funktionen beeinträchtigen.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
