Matt Cardona, best known to wrestling fans as Zack Ryder in WWE, is a master of branding and self-promotion. When WWE creative didn't have anything for him in the early 2010's, Cardona took it upon himself to create the groundbreaking Z! True Long Island Story digital series. He generated so much organic popularity that the company had no choice but to feature him more prominently on television.
He's been wrestling independently since leaving WWE in 2020, with appearances for Game Changer Wrestling, All Elite Wrestling, Impact and more. Throughout his career, Cardona has proven to be creative and innovative.
Necessity has been one of the main reasons Cardona has been forced to get so creative. When WWE wouldn't push him, he took matters into his own spray-tanned hands and made them push him. When he saw that WWE let the "Zack Ryder" trademark lapse, he jumped at the chance to secure the name and monetize it himself. According to the Long Island Broski, that was not a smooth process.
Zack Ryder Trademark Battle
Cardona recently spoke with Jason Powell of ProWrestling.net for the Pro Wrestling Boom podcast. During his discussion with the veteran journalist, Cardona explained that he had big plans for a "Matt Cardona vs. Zack Ryder" cinematic match. That would have led to all sorts of merchandising opportunities, including a "Ryder & Cardona two-pack" of wrestling figures produced by his very own toy company, Major Bendies.
Unfortunately, WWE lawyers fought Cardona's attempt to secure the Zack Ryder Trademark. He knows a legal battle with WWE would be costly, so decided to abandon his effort. As a result, he's officially closing the book on that portion of his career.
"I applied for [the Zack Ryder trademark] knowing there’s a chance [WWE] could fight it and they have so that’s it, I’m letting it go," he said. "... I’m not gonna fight — because at the end of the day, it’s their intellectual property. They would win if we ever went to court over it so I tried, they fought it so that’s it, I’m backing down.”
Zack Ryder is dead, in my opinion ... It’s over, it’s dead, it was great. I’m grateful for that time but it’s done.”
- Matt Cardona
There's always a chance we could see 'Zack Ryder' make another run in WWE, but he's moving on from ever owning that character himself. Cardona's wife, Chelsea Green, recently returned to WWE at the Royal Rumble.
Check out our exclusive interview with Matt Cardona (June 2022):
