Matt Cardona says he's letting go of his attempt to own the Zack Ryder IP.
Matt Cardona recently applied for trademarks related to his WWE character, Zack Ryder. Cardona had applied for trademarks on the Ryder name and the catchphrase "Woo Woo Woo, You Know It." However, he recently stated on social media that his attempt to own the Zack Ryder name was unsuccessful.
During an appearance on the Pro Wrestling Boom podcast with ProWrestling.Net's Jason Powell, Cardona explains why he will not fight hard for the trademark and reiterates that he believes Zack Ryder is dead.
"[WWE did let the 'Zack Ryder' trademark] lapse. I applied for it knowing there was a chance they could fight it, and they have, so that's it. I'm letting it go," he said. It would have been cool to do a cinematic 'Matt Cardona vs. Zack Ryder' match. It's not going to happen. I'm not going to fight because, at the end of the day, it's their intellectual property. They would win if we ever went to court over it. I tried. They fought it, so that's it. I'm backing down."
Powell asked Cardona if he still felt strongly about wanting to return to WWE as Matt Cardona, given the equity that he has built under his own name on the independent circuit. Cardona took the chance to say that while he would have enjoyed a potential cinematic match and the various merchandise possibilities if he had been able to own the name "Zack Ryder," that character is dead to him.
"Zack Ryder is dead, in my opinion. It's all Matt Cardona, but I did want [to own the intellectual property of 'Zack Ryder'], for instance, to do that 'Matt Cardona vs. Zack Ryder' cinematic match," he said. "For instance, I have my own toy company, Major Bendies; it would have been cool to make a Zack Ryder vs. Matt Cardona two-pack, and stuff like that. Moreso [Cardona wanted the trademark for purposes of ] merchandise [as opposed to] participating in matches as Zack Ryder. It’s over. It’s dead. It was great. I’m grateful for that time, but it’s done."
Cardona's wife, Chelsea Green, recently returned to WWE. Cardona recently stated that he is very happy to see her go back, as she didn't even get a chance to have a cup of coffee during her first run with WWE. Fans can read more here.
Despite everything Matt Cardona says about Zack Ryder being dead in his mind, one thing that has not died is his dream of becoming the WWE Champion. fans can read more about that here.
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