Matt Cardona wants to keep fans guessing about what his NWA return will entail.
In an interview with WrestleZone Managing Editor Bill Pritchard, Matt Cardona spoke about what he’ll be doing when he returns to the NWA this weekend for NWA 75. Cardona will be competing in a match against an unnamed opponent on Saturday.
Rather than talk about his opponent, Cardona was asked what won’t be happening in St. Louis.
“If people are expecting Tyrus or EC3 to walk through that curtain, they’re gonna be disappointed. I don’t think this is gonna be my title rematch that I believe I deserve. But I haven’t been seen on NWA since February,” Cardona said. “It just hasn’t worked out scheduling-wise. NWA, as great as it is, it only films a few times a year. It films out for weeks or months in advance, and I’m booked solid all year round. So unless I get that date super early, I can’t do it. Unfortunately, if I miss one day of NWA, it’s like missing three months. Really, since February, I’ve probably missed two or three shows. That’s been February to the end of August, television-wise.”
Billy Corgan recently told WrestleZone that he’d been in discussions with the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia for NWA events, but the schedules didn’t line up to make it happen. Corgan said the NWA tends to book in shorter windows, and the arena was booked up far in advance.
To the contrary, NWA has found a yearly home at the Chase Park Plaza’s Khorassan Ballroom in St. Louis. Cardona said NWA 75 has been on his own schedule for several months, and he’s ready for whoever walks through the curtain.
Busy, Busy, Busy
“For NWA 75, they had this date very early on in the year. I don’t know why they had it, but they had it. Maybe they had to secure the building. So once I had that date, I penciled it in. So I’m excited to come back to NWA,“ Cardona explained. “Who am I gonna be wrestling? It really depends who walks through that curtain. Who wants the Matt Cardona rub? I think there might be a whole lineup of people backstage fighting to get through that curtain.
“But for me, scheduling-wise, it’s the busiest I’ve ever been. My calendar is completely full for the rest of the year. People email me all the time. and I’m like, ‘I’m booked. What do you want for 2024? Because I got nothing. I legit have nothing for 2023.’ I couldn’t get booked on another show if I wanted to,” he noted, “Unless it was a Wednesday night show or something like that. I’m booked Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Whether it be with the podcast or indie bookings or conventions or autograph signings. It’s a good problem to have. But for people are booking, and they’re not long-term booking, I can’t do their shows.”
Pritchard then joked that there is at least one show that runs on Wednesdays.
“Hey, I mean, they have my number. But hey, I can only do Wednesday,” Cardona quipped. “I can’t do Saturday, pal.”
Who’s (Not) Next?
Rolando Freeman shocked many people, including Cardona himself, when he pinned Cardona at NWA 74. Freeman picked up another win over Cardona at the following TV tapings, but Cardona doesn’t think he’ll see Freeman on Saturday night.
“I don’t think he’s dumb enough to do that again. Last year, he did win. I took him very, very lightly. I thought it was gonna be a joke. He ended up getting that upset win. This year, if he came through the curtain, ding-ding-ding, it’d be like a Goldberg squash,” Cardona stated. “So I don’t know if he’s dumb enough to come through that curtain. But hey, if he wants some more rub, then come on down, pal.”
Pritchard mentioned fans needing to wait to see what happens on Saturday. Cardona said pro wrestling is best when there’s an element of surprise.
“Everyone wants to get spoiled. They’re looking for information. I think wrestling is best when there is some surprise. I remember as a kid growing up, I hated when I would check the Internet and by accident I’d see a spoiler for a taped RAW or a SmackDown. I’d say, ‘Ah, damn.’ What’s the point if you already know? You wouldn’t go to a Star Wars movie if you read the script? Why would you do that? Maybe some people do, but I don’t like that. I don’t want to be spoiled before I see something.”
Fans will have to tune into NWA 75 this weekend to see who will step up to face Matt Cardona. The two-night NWA 75 event will take place on August 26 and 27. For now, you can watch our full interview with Matt Cardona below:
