4-time champion to return to WWE SmackDown after 7 years as LA Knight's surprise opponent? Potential explored

A massive name could return to WWE SmackDown this week as LA Knight's opponent. Last week, Nick Aldis announced two more matches in the Last Time is Now Tournament. One of them will see The Megastar in action, but Aldis chose to keep his opponent a surprise.

This led to fans speculating on various names who could show up on the blue brand this week as Knight's opponent. In a surprising possibility, The Megastar could face Matt Cardona, better known to WWE fans as Zack Ryder, on Friday.

While The Indy God was released by the Stamford-based promotion in April 2020, his last match on SmackDown came over seven years ago on the April 3, 2018, episode. Cardona made a brief return to WWE last month during TNA's invasion storyline with NXT, losing to Josh Briggs on the October 14 episode of the developmental brand's show.

Since John Cena has stated that even stars who are not signed to the global juggernaut could show up to participate in the Last Time is Now Tournament, the erstwhile Zack Ryder could take this opportunity to appear in WWE again. Cardona had found notable success during his stint with the Stamford-based promotion, winning the Intercontinental Championship and the United States Championship once, and the Tag Team Championship twice.

The 40-year-old shares a lot of history with The Franchise Player. Cena even namedropped Matt Cardona during his recreation of CM Punk's "pipebomb" promo leading up to Night of Champions 2025.

Therefore, Cardona could be LA Knight's surprise opponent on the upcoming SmackDown. That said, this scenario is only speculative at this point. Fans will have to wait and see who faces The Megastar on Friday.

LA Knight desperately needs to win on WWE SmackDown

LA Knight has lost all momentum after suffering so many setbacks lately. If The Megastar gets eliminated from the first round of the Last Time is Now Tournament on SmackDown, it would be hard for him to recover after that.

Despite not being able to score any meaningful wins, Knight is still popular among fans. Facing adversity initially could make the eventual success more meaningful, but if someone loses all the time without any momentum whatsoever, fans will stop caring after a while, which could be the case with LA Knight.

Therefore, the former United States Champion needs to put on a dominant performance in the upcoming tournament to reestablish himself as a major star.

Edited by Parth Pujara