Dolph Ziggler Admits He Doubted if WWE Fans Would Even Remember Him Before Competing on This Week’s Raw

Dolph Ziggler came out to one of the loudest pops of the night on this week's Raw at Madison Square Garden.

Dolph Ziggler Admits He Doubted if WWE Fans Would Even Remember Him Before Competing on This Week’s Raw

Solo Sikoa beat Dolph Ziggler on Raw [via- WWE]

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After getting released by WWE in September 2023, it took over two years for Dolph Ziggler to get the call to wrestle for the company once again. ‘The Showoff’ pulled up to this week’s Raw at Madison Square Garden as the mystery opponent for Solo Sikoa in a first-round matchup in The Last Time is Now tournament.

Doing what he does best, the 45-year-old put on an impressive performance and almost got past Sikoa, just not quite completely. The MFT leader survived a Zig Zag from Ziggler. However, the Samoan wrestler’s best shot, i.e., the Samoan Spike, was good enough to put away the veteran. The current TNA star recapped his outing at The Garden while speaking on the Busted Open Radio podcast.

Calling his experience “insanely fun,” the former World Heavyweight Champion revealed what difficulties he faced in hiding backstage so that his return didn’t leak online. The real-life Nic Nemeth said more and more people kept coming to see him as the word got spread that he was there.

I was excited, but it’s wrestling. We have these egos. We’re crazy. I go, ‘I hope they remember ’cause otherwise, what am I doing here?’ And then music hits and you get that one 1,000 of like, ‘Okay, they do.’ Alright, let’s go to work.

Dolph Ziggler via Busted Open Radio podcast

The information eventually surfaced online just hours before the show, and Nemeth’s younger brother Ryan told him that the cat was out of the bag. The 6-time Intercontinental Champion said WWE could have him for any show no matter which city they’re in. Ziggler felt fortunate to have been a part of the tournament to decide John Cena’s last WWE opponent.

His involvement seemed natural, as he’s someone who’s had a rich history with ‘The Cenation Leader’. The former Spirit Squad member admitted that he had an iota of trepidation about WWE fans not remembering him. However, once his music hit, it was absolute pandemonium. Ziggler also reflected on his opponent for the night by saying that he’s improved tenfold since ‘The Showoff’ left WWE.

Dolph Ziggler says he tried getting Zack Ryder in his MSG spot

Dolph Ziggler was the second surprise in that list of 16 WWE Superstars who were picked for The Last Time is Now tournament. The fans already had seen the first one on last week’s SmackDown in the form of Zack Ryder. He lost to LA Knight after giving ‘The Megastar’ a run for his money.

Dolph Ziggler and Zack Ryder
Dolph Ziggler and Zack Ryder [via- WrestleZone]

Ziggler has now revealed that he pitched for Matt Cardona to have gotten his match at Madison Square Garden simply due to the fact that he hails from the state of New York. The Showoff’s ask was quite generous of him as a gesture, but it didn’t receive the final nod from WWE, as is evident. Applauding Ryder as a deserving candidate for that honor, Ziggler quipped that the two of them were different in the way that he held two world titles in WWE.

I love Cardona, and I was pitching for Cardona to get the Madison Square Garden match because upstate New York guy. He deserves it, but there is a slight difference in the two of us. We’re very similar in a lot of ways, but I do have a couple of world titles and every once in a while, I can steal something. 

Dolph Ziggler via Busted Open Radio podcast

There might’ve been a possibility of Ziggler vs. Ryder in the later stages of the tournament if they had won their respective matches. Coming on to Solo Sikoa, the former TNA World Champion praised the Anoa’i clan wrestler’s in-ring timing and said he was so easy to work with. ‘The Showoff’ felt that they delivered the goods within the allotted timeframe.

Ziggler appreciated how the crowd stayed on its toes for his match and hoped to soak it all in a bit more if he could. And for those wondering if he has signed with WWE or not, a report from Fightful has confirmed that he has not. For now, Ziggler’s Raw appearance was a one-off deal, pretty much like Zack Ryder’s on SmackDown.

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