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Major League Wrestling (MLW) star Matt Riddle offered a sunny realization for pro wrestlers amid recent high-profile departures that took place last week.
WWE parted ways with the superstars known as Braun Strowman, Dakota Kai, Shayna Baszler, Kayden Carter, Katana Chance, Cora Jade, Gigi Dolan, Riley Osborne, Eddy Thorpe, Jakara Jackson, Joe Coffey, Mark Coffey, Wolfgang, Oro Mensah and Javier Bernal, according multiple reports. Fightful Select noted that departures were not outright releases but rather the decision not to renew contracts.
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Matt Riddle wins the MLW title. (MLW)
Riddle was also a WWE release, parting ways with the company in September 2023. He has since performed in New Japan Pro-Wrestling, Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide and has made an indelible mark on MLW by becoming the world heavyweight champion to start the year.
He told Fox News Digital that having the opportunity to perform at a high level elsewhere turned out to be a “blessing.”
“It depends on what you do when you get fired. It’s always unfortunate when people lose their jobs, but at the end of the day, for some of us, say for me, for example, it was a blessing,” Riddle said. “Sometimes, you just need the right push. Sometimes you need somebody to shut a door on you so another can open. And that’s not to say that everyone that’s been released, and that’s not just pro wrestling, that’s any profession.
BANGED UP MATT RIDDLE READY TO DEFEND MLW WORLD TITLE AGAINST DONOVAN DIJAK AT AZTECA LUCHA
Matt Riddle and Tom Lawlor greet Eric Bischoff. (MLW)
“Trust me, it might seem like it’s over, or it sucks, but when one door shuts, another opens. Even when I got fired from UFC back in the day, to then come where I did in professional wrestling, and even to now where I’m at today. I got fired over a year or so ago, but I’ve held eight different championships, and I was able to recapture the one championship I was never able to win, and that was the MLW Heavyweight Championship.
“Sometimes getting fired is a blessing in disguise.”
Riddle returned to MLW at Kings of Colosseum in 2024 and won Battle Riot VI that year. In January at Kings of Colosseum, he defeated Satoshi Kojima for the World Heavyweight Championship.
He then successfully defended it in a triple-threat match against Kojima and Alex Kane and then against 39 other men in Battle Riot VII.
Matt Riddle shows the MLW World Heavyweight Championship. (MLW)
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On Saturday, he’ll face Donovan Dijak in a title defense at Azteca Lucha in Chicago. The event takes place at Cicero Stadium and can be seen on YouTube at 10 p.m. ET.
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