Former WWE wrestler Matt Riddle originally gained fame through UFC’s Ultimate Fighter, securing a win in his professional debut at the Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale in 2008.
He went on to achieve multiple wins in both the middleweight (185 lbs) and welterweight (170 lbs) divisions, positioning himself as a rising MMA star before failed drug tests halted his career.
Now, reflecting on his MMA and WWE experiences on Barstool Rasslin, Riddle shared that he believes he could handle most of his wrestling peers in a real fight, with the exceptions of Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley.
Here’s what the former United States Champion said:
“I think a lot of people, you know, I’ve had other people in WWE take that as disrespect, but it’s like, dude, if you fought in the UFC and now you’re in WWE, what am I supposed to do, just forget my whole career?
Yeah, it’s like, no, dude, like I can stretch 98% of people because, you know, Brock’s pretty big and Bobby Lashley is pretty big. Neither are shabby at mixed martial arts either, you know what I’m saying? But I would say I’m pretty handy with the… you know, I know how to take care of myself.
I sure do, I sure do. If I’m running into a heavyweight fighter or somebody I know could probably smash me, I’d be like, ‘Yeah, dude, this guy.’
Just like I said, Brock, Bobby Lashley, probably gonna get me. I say definitely, you know, there’s always a chance, but there’s an acknowledgement of reality there.
Those are some big, bad motherf**kers. Those are big, bad dudes that are high-level wrestlers and mixed martial artists, and they’re good.”
Riddle has an MMA record of 8 wins, 3 losses, and 2 no-contests. He failed two drug tests due to marijuana use, which got him fired from the UFC. Also, Dana White wasn’t happy with some of the things Riddle said during interviews.
WWE released Riddle in 2023 because he failed multiple drug tests due to cocaine use (confirmed by him) and his other controversies outside of the ring (including an incident at the airport).
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