"Nothing like it" - Carlito comments on his new team with Jeff Hardy
At the WWE Royal Rumble, Carlito made his return to WWE after nearly a decade away from the company. He returned to television again the next night on WWE RAW and teamed up with Jeff Hardy for his first match on the Red brand in years.
Carlito entered the WWE Royal Rumble as a surprise entrant and made his presence felt immediately. He showed off that he was still more than athletic and he could still do everything in the ring, hitting his patented finisher, the Backstabber. Unfortunately, he was eliminated by Elias from the Rumble.
Carlito and Elias would pick up right where they left off at the Rumble on WWE RAW. The returning Superstar teamed with Jeff Hardy to face Elias and Jaxson Ryker in a winning effort, securing the victory.
In a post-match interview, Carlito and Jeff Hardy opened up on their team. Carlito talked about how it felt to return and team with Jeff Hardy after so many years, given that back in the day they had rivalries of their own as well.
"There is nothing like it, man. It was great, I was happy man, with my main man Jeff over here. I'm on cloud nine right now."
Jeff Hardy went on to add that he was more than happy to be teaming with Carlito on RAW as well.
"It was amazing, it was just two old timers doing what we do best. We grew up doing this stuff man, and we are so lucky to still be doing it in 2021."
Carlito returned to WWE RAW after 10 years
Carlito had a long and successful career in WWE prior to his current run with the company. During that run, he had two Tag Team Championship reigns with Primo, while also holding the WWE United States Championship and the WWE Intercontinental Championship.
One of his more notable feuds was for the United States Championship with John Cena, where he made his impact in a good way. While he never made it to the main event level, he was seen as one of the stars who could possibly get there. Unfortunately, he was released from the company due to a wellness policy violation.