Dolph Ziggler’s surprise return to WWE on the November 17th episode of RAW at Madison Square Garden was one of the night’s biggest moments—but now he’s revealing just how far WWE went to keep it under wraps.
Appearing on Busted Open Radio, Ziggler—now performing on the indies as Nic Nemeth—spoke openly about the extreme lengths taken to keep his involvement in the Last Time Is Now tournament secret. He faced Solo Sikoa in a one-on-one match, ultimately taking the loss, but the return itself stole the spotlight. Ziggler detailed the cloak-and-dagger effort WWE used to sneak him into MSG without tipping off fans or crew.
“In 20 years, I got to watch so many people hide or hide under the ring or sit on a bus somewhere. I never got to do the hiding. I had all black on, and I put a ski mask over my face and sunglasses, and they pulled me into the loading dock inside of the building, and then I got walked in, and I got to hide out for five or six hours.”
He went on to describe how special the moment felt, especially in such an iconic venue with real history behind the matchup.
“They could have me back for any show in any city, and it would be cool and fun. I am very fortunate to have something like the Cena Tournament and ‘Hey, you have history with this guy,’ and you don’t even have to force it. We have genuine history.”
But even with all that buildup, Ziggler admitted to some nerves before the music hit.
“I go, ‘I hope they remember, because otherwise, what am I doing here?’ Then music hits and you get that 1/1000th of like, ‘Okay, they do. All right, let’s go to work.’ That’s the difference.”
Ziggler hadn’t appeared on WWE television for years following his 2023 release. Since then, he’s been making waves in TNA Wrestling and popping up in WWE’s crossover angles on NXT. His RAW return wasn’t part of a long-term deal—just another twist in the ongoing Cena farewell tournament.
Do you want to see Dolph Ziggler back full-time in WWE, or should he keep doing one-offs like this? Share your thoughts in the comments and let us know what city you’d want to see him return to next.
November 18, 2025 1:42 pm