Controversial star reveals he immediately texted former US Champion after he shockingly returned to confront Chris Jericho

Chris Jericho was the biggest name AEW had at launch, and he remains one of the top talents on the roster to this day. The inaugural AEW World Champion is currently in his second reign as ROH World Champion, and Tony Khan has booked him against former WWE US Champion Matt Cardona (fka Zack Ryder). Amid backstage issues, a certain controversial star has revealed his reaction to the news.

Effy is a top indie wrestler and a key part of GCW. As controversy is a part of his gimmick, the star made headlines after it was revealed All Elite Wrestling pulled Ricky Starks from Game Changer Wrestling dates due to Effy's comments about Tony Khan and his father. The tension increased when GCW regular Matt Cardona debuted on ROH TV this past week to confront Chris Jericho ahead of Final Battle.

The Hammerstein Ballroom is a part of the current drama surrounding GCW and AEW. Tony Khan's companies will run three big nights of action at the legendary NYC venue later this month, then GCW will return to Hammerstein on January 19 for The People vs. GCW.

In a new interview with The Ringer, Effy discussed the once-friendly promotions and wondered if Cardona's booking is a direct shot or a move in the right direction. Effy acknowledged Cardona has friends in every promotion, and constantly takes advantage of opportunities, praising him for always being on, and admitting his own character should probably be a little more like Cardona.

The 34-year-old noted The Indy God will likely work GCW's Hammerstein date, and confirmed the ROH segment with Chris Jericho was not a case of the companies working together.

"What is going to be something that is planned or what is something that wasn’t planned and that we’re gonna roll with now. I’m excited to see it, it got me fired up last night. I messaged Matt Cardona, I said he was the funniest man of all time. He’s taught me so much about the way to approach this business and I do see some of my weaknesses in being too honest and too emotional," Effy said. [H/T: Fightful]

Cardona has never wrestled for ROH. The four-time WWE champion debuted for AEW in July 2020, teaming with Cody Rhodes to defeat The Dark Order. He returned for All Out 2020, teaming with Scorpio Sky, QT Marshall, and Dustin Rhodes to beat Colt Cabana, Evil Uno, Stu Grayson, and Brodie Lee. Cardona's last All Elite match was a Collision loss to then-TNT Champion Adam Copeland in March.

Chris Jericho and other AEW stars will compete in the ROH PPV

Several top AEW stars have been confirmed for the 23rd ROH Final Battle Pay-Per-View. The big event is set for the legendary Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on Friday, December 20.

Officials have now confirmed three title matches for Final Battle, with the card to be updated this coming week. Chris Jericho's title defense is set to headline. Below is the updated lineup:

1. Women's World Television Championship: Red Velvet (c) vs. Leyla Hirsch
2. World Tag Team Championship: The Sons of Texas' Dustin Rhodes and Sammy Guevara (c) vs. Dutch and Vincent of The Righteous
3. World Championship: Chris Jericho (c) vs. Matt Cardona

Athena is set to continue her historic reign with the ROH Women's World Championship at Final Battle. Her rumored opponent is Billie Starkz, who failed to dethrone Athena in the 30-minute main event of Final Battle 2023.

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