Matt Riddle dealt with a lot of hate after it was claimed he intentionally no-showed at Global Wrestling Kingdom’s debut event in the UK, which was a charity event. He was accused of not returning the deposit but it seems he’s finally given it back.
Global Wrestling Kingdom took to their Facebook and put out a statement about Matt Riddle. They said Riddle has now paid back his deposit and promised to cover their expenses.
GWK explained their side of the story. Riddle’s flights were booked and approved by his manager back in April, and no problems were mentioned then. They had planned some seminars for him, but his manager asked if GWK could share the weekend with a promoter in Paris who wanted him on Saturday. GWK agreed, but the Paris promoter later pulled out. GWK said they tried to find him other bookings but couldn’t.
“update Mr Riddle has now paid back his deposit and has given us his word that he will reimburse his expenses too.
We have not made any public statement on this unfortunate situation, but we think it’s important to set the record clear on Mr Riddle’s claims.
His flights were booked and approved by his manager back in April. No issue was raised at the time.
We originally planned to coincidence his appearance with some seminars but his manager asked if we could share his weekend with a promoter in Paris who wanted to book him on the Saturday which we agreed to.
Unfortunately, they decided that they couldn’t work with him. We did make efforts to see if we could help get him booked elsewhere but to no avail. We simply can’t force promotions or gyms to work with him if they don’t wish to.”
After chasing Riddle for months for a promo, they only got one the Wednesday before the show. They wished him a safe flight on Thursday but got no reply. On Friday, they sent him his driver’s details, but again got no answer. His driver even waited at the airport for hours. Riddle finally messaged Friday evening, saying he didn’t like his flight and had chosen to wrestle elsewhere.
GWK reminded him fans had paid to see him and told him again the show was a charity event, helping Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide and Help 4 Homeless Veterans. They said Riddle didn’t respond again until three days after the event.
“After months of chasing his manager for a promised promo hyping up the event, he eventually sent us one the Wednesday prior to the show.
We wished him a safe flight on Thursday but got not response. No issue of the flight was raised.
We informed him the name of his driver on Friday morning but got no response.
Again, no issue was raised regarding his flight, nor did he let us know that he was planning on not showing up.
After his driver waited several hours at the airport for him, we asked him where he was but didn’t get a reply back until Friday evening. Only then did he tell us he was unhappy with his flight and decided to take other bookings instead.
We implored him to try and get a flight over as fans had paid to see him. He was reminded again, that this was a charity event (for ‘Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide’ and ‘help 4 homeless veterans’) which was announced on our social media pages back in July.
We received no response from Mr Riddle whatsoever until yesterday afternoon – 3 days after the event.”
They also pushed back on his complaints about the flight. GWK showed screenshots proving his ticket included two meals. They said seats are chosen at online check-in, which Riddle hadn’t done, and that luggage issues could have been easily fixed with a quick call or message.
Even though they called the situation very disappointing, GWK thanked the fans and wrestlers who did show up. They said the energy was amazing and the crowd’s huge reaction when Grado came out nearly knocked them out of their chairs.
“In his many videos, he’s stated that his flights didn’t include meals. Screenshots clearly show that 2 meals were included in his flight and these screenshots were sent to him on Friday night. No seats were allocated because this is done once you check in online which Mr Riddle hadn’t done. Any issues with luggage could have been quickly sorted out by a quick message or phone call.
It is incredibly disappointing that this happened, but we would like to focus on the positive and heap massive praise on all the talent and fans who showed up on Sunday. All the fans and talent backstage were incredibly positive, and the reaction of the crowd when Grado’s music hit nearly knocked us out of our chairs. Grado truly is… the man!”
This comes after Matt Riddle provided his own DMs about the whole matter. The drama between Matt Riddle and Global Wrestling Kingdom has been messy, but at least he’s now paid back the money he owed. While doubts about his professionalism still linger, GWK is choosing to show their strong debut show and the wrestlers who delivered in his place.
What’s your take on this situation? Do you think Matt Riddle’s repayment is enough to restore his credibility, or has the damage already been done? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
September 4, 2025 9:14 am
