Matt Cardona says he is loving the pressure of being on the independent scene, as he gets to control everything he does.
In an interview with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated, Cardona described one major difference between now and his time in WWE. Cardona described how, in the past, he could “turn it off” when he wasn’t on the road with WWE, whereas his brain never shuts off as he’s flourishing on the independent scene.
“My brain does not shut off. I’m always thinking of ideas,” Cardona said. “I got into this with Chelsea Green a couple weeks ago. She mentioned how, when I was with WWE, I was able to turn it off when I wasn’t on the road. And she was right. In WWE, you’re not in charge of the show. You might have the greatest idea, but you’re not the booker or the writer. So you’ll drive yourself f—— crazy if you bring it home with you.
“On the indies, I’m in charge of everything, and I can’t stop thinking about all of it: my ring gear, my matches, my social media promos, the wrestling figures I want to make. I control everything. It’s a lot of pressure, but I love the pressure.”
Cardona also discussed how his pairing with Steph De Lander came about, as he noted that he needed someone to accompany him to the ring after Chelsea Green returned to WWE.
“You have to push yourself,” Cardona said. “I have no problem doing that. When my wife Chelsea Green got hired back to WWE, and Brian Myers signed with Impact Wrestling, I knew I’d be missing my family on the independents. They’d be part of my matches, and so would Swoggle from under the ring. You know Matt Cardona was going to win by any means necessary. I felt naked out there without them, and I knew I needed someone out there with me.
De Lander emerged as Cardona’s choice for an enforcer, as they joined forces during a tour of Australia, and they have been paired up together ever since. Together, the duo have become a social media sensation, as their RyderTaker video gained over a million views.
“A few months ago during a tour of Australia, I met Steph De Lander,” Cardona said. “She’s six-feet tall, she has these blonde bangs and piercings all over her and looks like she can kick my ass. I wanted to work with her. Every week since we’ve been a team, we’ve filmed a vignette for social media. They’re designed to capture people’s attention. One of them, ‘The RiderTaker,’ got over one million views.”
Cardona recently stated that he has not been in contact with any major companies. More information is available here.
Check out Cardona’s comments regarding a story Cody Rhodes told about him here.
