Feature article originally published at My Fantasy Sports Talk (2016) as Matt Sydal (FKA Evan Bourne) returning to the WWE? by Ashley Rose Nova.
Forward of current status of Matt Sydal at AEW
Matt Sydal, also known as Evan Bourne from WWE, was born as Matthew Joseph Korklan, on March 19, 1983 in St. Louis, Missouri. Sydal graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri. He is known for his famous finisher and perfectly executing the Shooting Star Press.
Quick History Lesson: The Shooting Star Press was created by Jushin Thunder Liger.
The wrestler jumps forward in an elevated position and presses knees to chest while executing a back flip in the mid-air landing on their opponent in the splash position.
Liger, The Japanese Legend, studied several martial arts styles in hopes to innovate pro wrestling. This is how Liger would introduce the Abisegeri Kick.
In August 1987, in Japan. Jushin Thunder Liger debuted the Shooting Star Press in a match with Masakatsu Funaki. The idea of the Shooting Star Press came from the manga Fist of the North Star. WWE previously banned the move due to safety reasons.
At one time you could not see the move live on WWE except on old matches on the WWE Network, Ring of Honor, New Japan Wrestling, and most indie wrestling matches.
Matt Sydal is considered one of the best highflyers in the wrestling industry. His style is remarkable. His style is a combination of Lucha libre and Puroresu wrestling, this sets him apart from veterans and his peers.
Many fans of the highflyer have been questioning if he is planning on returning to WWE.
When I reached out to Sydal about the rumor he did not deny or confirm if it were true if he would be returning to WWE in 2016.
He has made it clear that he is enjoying creating his own content and his second run in the indie circuit.
He spoke to Real Sport expressing how he felt about Impact and encouraging future talent to be more creative with their style.
“Well, it was an opportunity to finish the story that I started right here early in my career and it was really more fate and destiny than anything else. Impact is a place where I can get challenged greater than I’ve ever been challenged before, work with guys that I can feed off of, learn from and grow from.
Basically, it’s part of my attempt to conquer the world of wrestling and to be the number one guy that’s talked about on the dirt sheets, online, and most importantly, in people’s hearts and memories. Impact is a great opportunity for me to do that.”- Sydal’s reply to Real Sport “On being brought back to Impact.
“I encourage people to strive to be more creative, to push the boundaries of their own personal limits, to trust themselves, question authority and to not be a copier. To be an original is the truest form of this business. There are so many guys that have great characters and great abilities, and then there’s also a lot of guys who are trying to do shooting star presses and be me.
But, you know, everybody’s gotta start somewhere. Well, I tell you what, if anyone else is bringing shooting stars to Impact, a guy like Andrew Everett, you know, I’m gunning for him. The way I see it, shooting star presses, there can only be one guy that does it and that’s gonna be me and if anybody else wants to encroach on my territory, I will defend it.” –Matt Sydal interview with Real Sport
It clear how happy Mr. Shooting Star Press is with his involvement in the indie circuit and his competition in X-Division.
However, if Sydal had selected to return to WWE for their Cruiserweight division (205 Live) he would have most likely dominated it.
Sydal 2020…
After leaving Impact Wrestling, Matt Sydal continued to work the indie circuit. He attended several independent events and opened his own dojo. The pro wrestling training center is in Pinellas Park, FL and is called SYDOJO. The training center offers classes, such as yoga with
both Sydal Brothers and 1 on 1 personal coaching, for anyone who is interested in the artform. SYDOJO offers great training, coaching, and empowerment to any newcomer.
Sydal also participated in the ROH Pure Tournament. The tournament was to resurrect the Pure Title, which was once held by performers like Nigel McGuinness. The title represents the best in technical wrestling. Matt Sydal did not win the title. The title is now held by the man know as
“The Foundation” Jonathan Gresham.
Matt Sydal also can be seen wrestling at AEW (All Elite Wrestling).
Sydal is still a free agent and is not signed currently to any promotion. This was confirmed in a recent guest interview with Chris Van Vilet. Sydal comments on ROH and confirming he is a free agent:
“I’m a free agent … I don’t have anything booked with Ring of Honor right now. But my matches just sort of — we filmed eight weeks of TV, so I had a match with Ring Of Honor on Monday. And then my AEW Dark airs on Tuesday. Or actually, I had an AEW Late Night debut right the day after a Ring of Honor match. And then just this past week when I wrestled Sonny
Kiss on AEW Dark, the night before I’m wrestling Jonathan Gresham in the Ring of Honor Pure Title Tournament. So it was pretty awesome for me to know that — I mean, during the pandemic there was no work. I had zero work, it was very challenging. I mean, I was just holding on by a string there, by a thin thread. But I was just dedicated, and I really believed we’d be able to come out of this and I’d be ready.” – Matt Sydal
All Elite Wrestling has announced that Matt Sydal has signed a contact. He is now ALL ELITE!