Matt Riddle Booked For Another Promotion Following WWE Release

A new wave of wrestling free agents became available today, exactly three months after WWE released them. That includes the controversial Matt Riddle, and Riddle became the first of the free agents to reveal their next destination. Speaking on today's "Busted Open Radio," Court Bauer confirmed that Riddle is returning to MLW. The company also announced the news on X.

"Matt Riddle is joining MLW," Bauer said. "He will debut with us January 6 in Philadelphia, live on Triller TV Plus, at Kings of Colosseum. And his opponent, [their] first time ever meeting, dream match — Jacob Fatu."

Bauer then talked a little bit about Riddle's history with MLW, which dates back to before the former MMA fighter signed with WWE. The MLW owner said that they entered discussions with Riddle in the late fall, and the company has major plans for him next year, especially with other returning performers like Sami Callihan or Satoshi Kojima. Bauer also confirmed that Riddle's contract allows him to work in places like Japan and Mexico going forward.

"We like to think that his home base in America will be MLW in the future," Bauer continued. "He's gonna be on virtually all of our shows going forward, and where that takes us down the road, we'll see. He is able to work for other places ... but he's primarily with us."

According to Bauer, Riddle has some other announcements that he'll be making soon, teasing other plans for the former WWE star. However, Bauer is confident that MLW will remain a focus for Riddle.

Controversy has followed Riddle around for the last several years, including allegations of sexual assault and an unusual airport incident earlier this year that saw Riddle accuse a police officer of sexually assaulting him. Riddle was released by WWE a short time later, with no specific reason cited.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.