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Triple H Breaks Silence On WWE SmackDown’s Most Shocking Return

By John Canton • Published Nov 15, 2025 09:10 EST
Triple H WWE boss

Triple H shared a photo on social media with a WWE superstar with a very familiar face.

The 16-man Last Time Is Now Tournament to determine John Cena’s final opponent on December 13th promised some surprises, and it delivered on WWE SmackDown in Albany.

When WWE announced that LA Knight would be in action on the November 14th edition of SmackDown, General Manager Nick Aldis refused to reveal who the opponent would be, keeping it a surprise for the audience.

After LA Knight made his entrance, he waited to see who his opponent was. It was a well-tanned and jacked version of the guy who used to say “Woo Woo Woo, You Know It,” Zack Ryder. This was Ryder’s WWE main roster return after working for WWE from 2005 to 2020, including more than a decade on the main roster, which saw him win titles like the Intercontinental Title and Tag Team Titles.

This version of Zack Ryder, at 40 years old, looked different than what WWE fans were used to, but the man who has wrestled as Matt Cardona (his real name) outside of WWE is still in great shape and very capable in the ring.

It actually wasn’t the first time Ryder had competed in WWE since his 2020 release, as he wrestled on NXT on October 14th as Matt Cardona against Josh Briggs and lost that match.

During this SmackDown match, Ryder put up a fight and even got a two-count with his Rough Ryder finisher. However, Knight was too much for him and got the win with the BFT.

Triple H Shares Backstage Photo With Zack Ryder

On social media, WWE’s Chief Content Officer, Paul “Triple H” Levesque, who was an active wrestler during most of Ryder’s first run in WWE, did one of his classic “point” photos with Ryder while reminding us that the Last Time Is Now Tournament is about opportunity.

You never know who might show up in The Last Time Is Now Tournament. It’s all about opportunity and @TheMattCardona proved that tonight. #SmackDown

For now, it hasn’t been reported whether WWE plans to re-sign Zack Ryder to a new contract and bring him back to the company on a full-time basis, or if this was a one-time thing.

However, Zack Ryder did impress a lot of people with his performance, and Triple H appears to be happy about it as well, so perhaps this could open the door for Ryder to return to WWE again.

Zack Ryder’s wife, WWE Women’s US Champion Chelsea Green, recently re-signed a 5-year contract to remain with the company, so it would likely make Mrs. Cardona happy if her husband worked for WWE again.

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