Matt Cardona & Steph De Lander On How They Came To Work Together

Since he was released from his WWE contract in 2020, Matt Cardona has found ways to reinvent himself over and over again. From "Alwayz Ready" to "The Death Match King" to "The Indy God," the former Zack Ryder went from "Mid Cardona" to multi-time world champion in just a few years. 

But he's also had some kind of help every step of the way as well. Chelsea Green, Brian Myers, "Smart" Mark Sterling, and Swoggle have factored into various situations involving the Internet Champion over the years. However, with each of them pursuing opportunities individually, Cardona needed to add someone new to the act. That's where former NXT superstar Steph De Lander came in. 

The devious duo recently shared both sides of their story on Sam Roberts' "NotSam Wrestling" podcast. Cardona and De Lander detailed the events leading up to their partnership. The newly-crowned Women's Internet Champion recalled their first meeting during a recent Australian tour with World Series Wrestling.

"We were on a tour in Australia," she said. "I grew up watching him, [so] I've known of him for years. We didn't really know each other personally. We met each other once, but we didn't really have a relationship [and] we were on this tour together in Australia. He came up to me and was like, 'Hey I have to ask you a question.' ... I instantly [thought] I've done something wrong because we literally never spoken."

Matt Cardona is a huge fan of "Macho Man" Randy Savage, so when you compare his career to the legendary Hall of Famer's, after his Miss Elizabeth, i.e. Chelsea Green, went back to WWE, "The Michael Jordan of Wrestling Figure Collecting" needed to find a Sensational Sherri to accompany him in the next stage of his career. After seeing her in Australia, he knew that he had found the right partner and wanted to get started as soon as possible.

"Just look at her," he said. "The piercings, she's like six feet tall, the blonde bangs. That girl is it. I asked her if she wanted to be my heater [and] she said yes. Then I went to the promoter [and asked to] do this tomorrow night or whatever? Let's f***ing start it now ... It worked and then [I'm like,] 'Okay well how am I gonna get her booked on all these shows that I'm already booked on?'"

Before they could convince promotions to book her and their new act, the first hurdle was Game Changer Wrestling. When promoter Brett Lauderdale initially turned down the booking, Cardona flew her in for Eye For An Eye 2023 and covered De Lander's payday himself. But after seeing what the team added to the show, "The Death Match Queen" has made several more appearances at the prominent indie promotion and just about everywhere else her new partner has been.

Once they established a connection, Matt Cardona and Steph De Lander were all in, and she said that they had a lot of the same ideas and goals. She wasn't able to afford the more extravagant things like event-specific gear or professionally shot promos every week, but once they were able to pool their resources, the creativity was able to flourish and the money started pouring in. 

But in addition to their shared aspirations, "The Baddest B***h On The Indies" credits Cardona's determination and experience as the driving force behind their swift success.

"I feel like we both had that mindset separately and then joining forces it's been perfect," she said. "There was no fear whatsoever and there always is in wrestling. This was something that probably that I've been the most sure of in my entire wrestling career. I've never said that, but it's true. How many years did he spend in WWE? Like 14. That doesn't happen by accident you know, so you've got to be doing something right." 

"What he has created for himself is insane, so if he's been able to do that for himself, what can he create with me along for the ride? I said to him very early on, 'You don't know me yet, but you have picked the right person. Whatever you want to do, I will do it 110%. I'm up for everything. I want to run with this as much as you want to run with it.' We've both kind of had that mindset and I think that's why it's done well," said De Lander.

Motivated to continue showing that a wrestling career doesn't have to be over if you're not in WWE and AEW, Cardona and De Lander are booked all over the world in the coming weeks and months, and it will be interesting to see what they can continue to pull off as their partnership keeps thriving.