The recent string of controversial interviews from former WWE Superstar Matt Riddle has been a talking point in the wrestling world. Now, two-time WWE Hall of Famer Booker T has weighed in, stating that he believes Riddle does not “respect the business enough” and that he will “never, ever make it to that high ever again” in his career.
Riddle has made headlines recently for his unfiltered comments about CM Punk, AJ Lee, and his booking dispute with a UK promotion. Speaking on his Hall of Fame podcast, Booker T was asked about Riddle’s recent interviews. The NXT commentator explained that he never believed Riddle would reach the top level of the business due to his attitude and lack of respect for the legends who came before him.
“I never had any beef with Matt Riddle or anything like that. But I did say I did not think this guy was going to make it, you know, in this business, I didn’t think he was going to make it to Heavyweight Championship, you know, you know, level, just because of certain things. I don’t know… I just didn’t think Matt Riddle respected the business enough to make it to the next level. Because when you come in talking about how good somebody is in the ring, opposed to how much money somebody made in the business, and for the business, referring to Goldberg… You are totally on the wrong track. When you get heat with guys like Brock Lesnar, you’re totally on the wrong track, it’s not a good idea, and you just don’t understand the business more than anything.”
Booker T believes that Riddle’s actions, both in the past and the present, have done irreparable damage to his career. He stated that it’s one thing to burn a bridge in the wrestling business, but Riddle has “blown up the damn bridge.”
“You could be on a skyrocket trajectory, and boom, everything just blows up in your face, and you’re working on the indies. All right, never again to make it back to the major leagues. And I do believe that Matt Riddle is going to be one of those guys that will never, ever make it to that high ever again, just because the guy just, I don’t know, it’s one thing burning bridges, but when you just blow up the damn bridge, that’s another story, you know. I just don’t think this guy did himself any favors over the weekend, speaking the way he is.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit with an h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
