5 Forgotten WWE Debuts Of Indie Superstars

Answering the call of Kurt Angle during the brilliant “Kurt Angle Invitational” run of 2005, Matt Striker first appeared in WWE as Matt Martel on the February 24th, 2005 edition of Smackdown.

Hot off the heels of a PPV loss to John Cena, Angle was in a particularly bad mood as he entered the ring for this edition of the Invitational; a fact not helped by Striker’s decision to cut him off on the mic and rub salt in the open wound by mentioning the loss to Cena.

The WWE’s decision to give Striker mic time despite his position on the card as an enhancement talent proved to be a good sign for Striker, who would gain a full-time contract with the WWE later this year. But first, he had to take his lumps like a man and endure the wrath of a PO'd Gold Medalist.

Striker would act as a glorified tackle dummy for the enraged Olympic Hero, who was more than happy to vent his frustrations on the newcomer. Two minutes of pummelling later and Striker was left bloodied, screaming and locked in the Ankle Lock submission, causing him to tap out almost immediately.

Striker would reappear twice more several months later in July, looking to wrest away the gold of the Pittsburgh native, who had since moved to Monday Night Raw. Needless to say, he was unsuccessful on both occasions.

After a short spell with Ring of Honor in mid-2005, Striker would begin working as a regular talent for WWE in late 2005, where he would remain until 2013.