In early 2014, Matt Riddle had just won his fifth straight MMA fight — even if two of those wins were overturned for positive tests for marijuana — but he was tiring of the politics, the injuries, and the drastic weight cuts.
He'd been a fan of pro wrestling since the age of seven. It was really the only sport, if you want to even categorize it as such, that was watched in his household. He already subscribed to the WWE Network, the streaming service that allowed him to watch the pay-per-views at a fraction of the price.