Former WWE Intercontinental Champion teases return with throwback pic

Former NWA Worlds Heavyweight and WWE Intercontinental Champion Matt Cardona (aka Zack Ryder) unveiled his latest tease that he may be returning to the company.

The Long Island Iced Z shared a photo on the social media site that harkened back to one of his most memorable periods in the promotion.

At the TLC: Tables, Ladders, and Chairs event on December 18, 2011, Ryder faced then-champion Dolph Ziggler in the opening bout for the United States Championship.

He would end up winning the match – and his first WWE singles championship – in a little over 10 minutes. It would be the first of two title changes during the show.

The photo, taken shortly after the event, was meant to showcase the new crop of superstars the company was pushing at the time.

Cardona was released from the promotion after 15 years in 2020, as part of a wave of layoffs during the worldwide pandemic. Since then, he has made a name for himself on the indie scene, as well as All Elite Wrestling, IMPACT Wrestling, the National Wrestling Alliance, and Game Changer Wrestling.

Cardona has teased returns in the past, although he has reiterated that if he did, it would be as himself and not Zack Ryder.

His wife Chelsea Green, herself a former Superstar, is also rumored to be making a return.

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Where are the other WWE stars from this photo?

Out of everyone featured in the photo posted by Cardona, only three of them are still actively involved with the company.

Cody Rhodes (holding the Intercontinental Championship) would eventually leave the company and help found AEW. He made a spectacular return to WWE at WrestleMania 38 and is currently recovering from a torn pectoral muscle.

Both Daniel Bryan (with the World Heavyweight Championship) and CM Punk (holding the WWE Championship) are, technically, in All Elite Wrestling. While Bryan now goes by Bryan Danielson and is a regular competitor, CM Punk's future with the company is up in the air following the "Brawl Out" incident in September.

Kofi Kingston and Evan Bourne – known as "Air Boom" at the time – were still the Tag Team Champions following TLC 2011. Kingston currently holds tag team gold, in NXT with his New Day partner Xavier Woods (he's also been a WWE Champion since then, as well). Bourne would eventually return to his own name, Matt Sydal, and is also currently a part of AEW.

Finally, Beth Phoenix is a member of the Hall of Fame and occasionally participates in storylines along with her husband, Edge.