Former WWE star Matt Riddle has revealed how he was signed by WWE and noted that he could have also gone to NJPW.

Riddle said that he was close to join NJPW before his move to WWE, with the Japanese promotion pitching for him to be a part of the New Japan Cup and doing well in the tournament. He was interested in joining the promotion as he was a fan of the company and had wanted to wrestle for them, but a call from Triple H resulted in him eventually joining WWE.

“They [WWE] knew me dude. They called me, I didn’t call them for a job,” he said to “Rewind Recap Relive.” “New Japan hit me up and I was like, ‘Sick. Always wanted to wrestle for you guys. Awesome.’ But then I hit up Gabe, Gabe who runs EVOLVE, Gabe Sapolsky, and that does like kind of talent scouting for WWE now. And I hit him up and go, ‘Hey Gabe, I’m gonna ask you to release me in my contract. I just got a call from New Japan and they’re making me a better offer than what you are giving me now and I’ll get to wrestle in New Japan, and you know how much that means to me.’ I go, ‘Or, because I know you have Triple H’s number, you could see what they think.’ And I would say two minutes later, I got a call from Triple H, being like, ‘Hey, we’d love to have you at NXT.’ And I was like, ‘Sick.’ And then they were paying more. Also, I got to stay in America, be with my family and stuff like that. So, it’s kind of a no-brainer, you know. I just went down, moved to Florida and wrestled there.”

He added that he was keen to leave EVOLVE because the pay wasn’t as good, while the promotion also didn’t allow its stars to wrestle on television in other promotions, according to him. Riddle wrestled in EVOLVE and PWG after his transition from MMA, before making the switch to WWE.

Nikki and Brie Bella haven’t been seen on WWE programming since “WWE Raw” was in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania the Monday night following Brie’s return at the Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia. During their promo segment, the WWE Hall of Famers announced they were headed toward the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships. 

Their storyline for WrestleMania 42 could very well be kicking off Friday night, as a new report from PWInsider Elite revealed the sisters are backstage at “WWE SmackDown” in Phoenix, Arizona. It was revealed earlier in the day on Friday, via WWE’s social media, that the Irresistible Forces, Lash Legend and Nia Jax, will defend their Women’s Tag Team Championships against Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss. The Bellas have not been announced for the show publicly, however.

The Bellas have been open about wanting to come back to make a run at the women’s tag gold ever since the belts were revealed in December 2018. Nikki made her comeback to WWE last summer, and in her sporadic appearances, feuded with Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer. Brie made her return to WWE as the #29 entrant into the women’s Rumble at the end of January.

Elsewhere on “SmackDown” Friday night, Grammy Award-winning artist Jelly Roll will return to WWE as a special guest on “Miz TV.” WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill will take on Michin, and the Wyatt Sicks’ Uncle Howdy and Erick Rowan will face Solo Sikoa and Tama Tonga in non-title action. Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton will also make their WrestleMania 42 match official with a contract signing.

Welcome to Wrestling Inc.’s live coverage for “WWE SmackDown” on March 13, 2026, coming to you live from the Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Arizona! WWE/Netflix

The bell rings and Michin rains down right hands on Cargill’s spine. She delivers a shotgun dropkick on Cargill’s midsection, then flies through the middle rope to level Cargill on the outside and dumps her back in the ring. Cargill runs over Michin with a pump kick and follows it up with a bodyslam, then sends Cargill crashing out of the ring through the middle rope and delivers a kick to her chest off the ring apron.

Michin looks to land a crossbody on Cargill off the ring steps, but Cargill catches her and lands a Fallaway Slam on her. Cargill jams her knee into the back of Michin’s neck inside the ring during the commercial break, then fires off stomps on her and continues to wear her down.

Back from the break, Cargill sets up for Jaded on Michin. Michin escapes and lands a Tornado DDT on Cargill, then goes for a pin but Cargill kicks out. Michin then lands a Pele Kick on Cargill, then follows it up with a Sliced Bread out of the corner and lands Eat Defeat on Cargill.

Michin looks to fly off the apron on the outside, but Cargill runs over her and powerbombs her on the barricade near the timekeeper’s area. She dumps Michin back in the ring and mockingly licks her face, then connects with a chokeslam and Jaded on her for the win.

Winner: Jade Cargill

After the match, Cathy Kelley joins Cargill in the ring and says what happened to Michin is what happens to wrestlers who believe in their own hype. She says the women in the back quiet down when they see her and yet, the world tells her that she should be scared of Rhea Ripley. She says she doesn’t see a challenger or threat, then says she’ll show Ripley why she’s always on top. 

Ripley’s music hits and she dares Cargill to slap her. Cargill slides under the bottom rope to escape Ripley, and Ripley says Cargill is running from a fight after running her mouth about tough. She says Cargill will be her b**** after WrestleMania 42.

We then head backstage, where Sami Zayn approaches Cody Rhodes looking to work things out between them. Rhodes becomes frustrated and asks if Zayn wants an Undisputed WWE Championship match, but Zayn says he congratulated Randy Orton because he’s one of a kind and looks up to him. He says he doesn’t look up to Rhodes because they’re friends and supposed to be equals, then says Rhodes doesn’t get to talk down to him. He admits to being inspired by Zayn and leaves before Zayn becomes visibly frustrated and Aleister Black and Zelina confront him.

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Page and MJF went to war at last year’s Revolution, though they didn’t fight in the main event. Page hit a Dead Eye, then an Angel’s Wings, and finally, a Buckshot Lariat to score the victory over his nemesis. The main event saw Adam Copeland challenge Jon Moxley for the AEW World Championship. Khan said that he always believed that AEW fans would be seeing Page and MJF headline a pay-per-view with their feud, however.

“It is absolutely very fitting that MJF vs. ‘Hangman’ Page is the Texas Death match for the world championship,” Khan said. “‘Hangman’ Page vs. MJF is a rivalry I’ve felt to be showcased at the top of AEW for many years… From the very first [AEW] event, they were both in the position of being in the spotlight as future world championship challengers and potentially future AEW World Champions. Both of them have lived up to all the expectations and become top stars in AEW and now to see them fight in this incredible type of match that has always delivered fantastic results when it comes to excitement and brutality… I believe the match of this magnitude has been in the cards for a very long time.”

The Texas Death match will cap off AEW’s first PPV since Worlds End on December 27. Revolution will see a total of 13 matches, including three on the Zero Hour preshow, and a total of eight championships will be defended.