Matt Sydal Matthew Joseph Korklan ( March 19 , 1983 ) is an American professional wrestler , also known as Matt Sydal and Evan Bourne . He was previously signed with WWE and wrestled on WWE Raw under the ring name Evan Bourne . Before signing with WWE , Korklan wrestled on the independent circuit for promotions such as IWA - Mid South , Ring of Honor and the Japanese promotion Dragon Gate under the ring name Matt Sydal . Korklan also had a tenure in the short - lived Wrestling Society X promotion and was featured on Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ' s early pay - per - view ( PPV ) events . Korklan is known for his high flying , lucha libre - inspired style of wrestling . Professional wrestling career . Early career . Korklan was on his high school ' s wrestling team . While he was a senior in high school , Korklan began training with the St . Louis , Missouri - based Gateway Championship Wrestling ( GCW ) promotion . After three months of training , Korklan began wrestling for GCW on October 20 , 2000 , becoming the first person under the age of 18 to receive a wrestler ' s license in Missouri . Prior to this , Korklan had briefly performed under the ring name Lance Sydal in the Saint Peters Wrestling Organization . In 2003 , Korklan ( now using the ring name Matt and forgoing a surname ) formed a stable in GCW , known as Operation : Shamrock . In addition , Korklan and fellow stable member Billy McNeil formed a tag team . Operation : Shamrock maintained a feud with the villainous Ministry of Hate faction , lead by Nikki Strychnine . Independent circuit . Korklan debuted in Independent Wrestling Association Mid - South in November 2003 , combining two of his old ring names into a new one , Matt Sydal . He won his first championship , the IWA Mid - South Light Heavyweight Championship , on January 17 , 2004 , defeating J . C . Bailey . Sydal lost the title to rival Delirious , on June 26 , 2004 . Sydal joined National Wrestling Alliance ( NWA ) Midwest that same year , on July 30 , he defeated Justin Kage for the NWA Midwest X - Division Championship , which he also lost to Delirious after holding the belt for nearly a year . Korklan won the title back when he teamed with Daizee Haze in an intergender tag team match against Delirious and MsChif . A unique rule of the match was that the male wrestler on the winning team would be champion at the match ' s end . Haze pinned MsChif to win Delirious ' s title for Sydal . Sydal lost the title to Jayson Strife roughly four months later before leaving the promotion . Sydal wrestled several top independent stars during his time as a regular in IWA . He lost three matches to A . J . Styles during a short - lived feud . He also faced men such as CM Punk , Chris Sabin and Nate Webb . On September 24 , 2005 , Sydal won the fifth Ted Petty Invitational tournament . During the tournament , he defeated El Generico , Tyler Black , and Sabin to secure himself a place in the finals . He met Kevin Steen and Arik Cannon in the final match and came out victorious . Since then , Sydal has only appeared in IWA on a few occasions , the last being in August 2007 . Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ( 2004 – 2005 ) . Sydal was featured on Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ' s ( TNA ) first three - hour pay - per - view event , Victory Road as a participant of a twenty - man X Division Gauntlet for the Gold match , a match where two wrestlers begin the match , and are replaced whenever one is eliminated , with the last person standing being named the winner of the contest . Sydal also was part of an online poll for the Sacrifice event . The winner of the poll would meet Christopher Daniels for the TNA X Division Championship . Sydal , however , lost the poll . During his tenure with TNA , Sydal was mainly utilized as a jobber , a wrestler who is rarely or never booked to win a match . Ring of Honor ( 2004 – 2007 ) . Sydal , along with valet Daizee Haze , debuted in Ring of Honor at " Reborn : Stage One " on April 23 , 2004 , defeating his recurring nemesis , Delirious . Following a brief feud with Trent Acid , Sydal teamed with Fast Eddie Vegas as the " Air Devils " ( a name voted on by the ROH fans ) . They only teamed once , after which Eddie turned on him on at the " Third Anniversary Celebration : Part 2 " on February 25 , 2005 , joining the villainous stable The Embassy . On August 12 , 2005 , Sydal and Haze joined Austin Aries , Roderick Strong and Jack Evans as the fourth member of Generation Next , a group who was in the midst of a feud with The Embassy . In late 2005 , Daizee Haze turned on Sydal , leaving him and Generation Next to join The Embassy . Generation Next fought The Embassy in numerous multi - man tag matches , culminating in a Steel Cage Warfare match on December 3 , 2005 , with Generation Next emerging victorious . After wrestling A . J . Styles at " Hell Freezes Over " , the two teamed up to challenge his Generation Next stable mates Austin Aries and Roderick Strong for ROH World Tag Team Championship . Sydal also teamed with Samoa Joe and Jack Evans to try and win the championship . Sydal went to the finals of the 2006 Survival of the Fittest event , before losing to Delirious . Sydal and Delirious brought their rivalry back to ROH as they engaged in several matches during mid - 2006 . After several matches against each other throughout the year , Sydal teamed up with Christopher Daniels in another attempt to win the ROH World Tag Team Championship . The two feuded with then - champions the Kings of Wrestling ( Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli ) , before winning the championship at " Dethroned " . Sydal and Daniels successfully defendeded their championship against the likes of CIMA and Shingo , and former champions Austin Aries and Roderick Strong , before losing the title to the Briscoe Brothers ( Jay and Mark Briscoe ) at the " Fifth Year Festival : Chicago " . During their title reign , Sydal would begin to show a cocky , villainous - like attitude . After coming up unsuccessful in attempts to win the title back along with Castagnoli , Sydal joined Larry Sweeney ' s villain stable Sweet n ' Sour Inc . , which also included Chris Hero , Sara Del Rey and Tank Toland . Sydal , who in real life was receiving offers from World Wrestling Entertainment , Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , and Dragon Gate , joined Sweet n ' Sour Inc . to further Sweeney ' s gimmick as a " super agent " . When Sydal eventually signed with WWE , it was said that Sweeney had " sold him up the river to Vince " . At Man Up , Sydal wrestled his final match for ROH , losing to long - time rival Delirious . Dragon Gate and Wrestling Society X ( 2006 – 2007 ) . Sydal began touring Japan with Dragon Gate in May 2006 . While there he aligned himself with CIMA , Don Fuji , and Jack Evans to form the New Blood Generation International . He also became a part of CIMA ' s Typhoon faction . During Dragon Gate ' s Wrestlejam event , Sydal teamed with Generation Next stable mate Roderick Strong to win the $ 10 , 000 Tag Team Challenge . Sydal was also part of the short - lived MTV promotion , Wrestling Society X , where he competed against the likes of Jack Evans , Scorpio Sky and the Human Tornado . There was the start of a storyline that would have him feuding with Syxx - Pac over Sydal ' s valet and on - screen girlfriend Lizzy Valentine , but they never actually wrestled before WSX shut down . In the spring of 2007 , Sydal returned to Dragon Gate . During his tenure there he won the Dragon Gate Open the Brave Gate Championship from Masato Yoshino , thus becoming the first gaijin to win the title . He held the title for slightly over a month , making a successful title defense against Yoshino , as well as against Austin Aries at Ring of Honor ' s " Fifth Year Festival : Dayton " , before dropping it to Genki Horiguchi . World Wrestling Entertainment ( 2007 – 2014 ) . Developmental territories ( 2007 – 2008 ) . After becoming a free agent again following the expiration of his WSX contract and the close of the promotion , Sydal signed a developmental contract with World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE ) . Sydal made his WWE developmental debut in Ohio Valley Wrestling ( OVW ) , at the October 10 , 2007 OVW taping , defeating Jamin Olivencia . In December of that year , Sydal defeated Mike Kruel to win the OVW Heavyweight Championship . It was announced on February 7 , 2008 that WWE had ceased affiliation with OVW . As a result , Sydal lost the OVW Heavyweight Championship to Jay Bradley . Sydal was moved to Florida Championship Wrestling and made his debut on March 22 , 2008 , defeating TJ Wilson , before being called up to WWE ' s main roster . ECW ( 2008 – 2009 ) . Sydal made his debut for the WWE ECW brand on the June 3 , 2008 episode of " ECW on Sci Fi " , as a face character , losing a match by count out to Shelton Benjamin after he was thrown at guest commentator Kofi Kingston . The following week on " ECW " , Sydal , now an official member of the ECW roster under the ring name Evan Bourne , teamed with Kofi Kingston to defeat Mike Knox and Benjamin in a tag team match . In the following weeks , Bourne defeated Matt Striker , Nunzio , and Chavo Guerrero using the shooting star press as his finishing maneuver . The move was previously banned in the WWE . Bourne also made appearances on the Raw brand , saving Rey Mysterio from an assault by Kane . The two successfully defeated John Morrison and The Miz the following week . At Cyber Sunday , Bourne was chosen by the fans to face Matt Hardy for the ECW Championship , but lost the match after Hardy performed a Twist of Fate . Just two days later on " ECW " , Bourne was injured attempting a suicide senton during a six - man tag match , when he landed on his right ankle , dislocating it and tearing his deltoid ligament . After further examination , it was determined that surgery would not be necessary , but was not cleared to return to the ring . On December 8 , 2008 , Bourne won a Slammy Award for " Best Finishing Maneuver " for his shooting star press . On the March 10 edition of " ECW " a promo was aired for Bourne ' s return to ECW on March 17 . In his return , Bourne defeated Jamie Noble . Bourne would continue to pick up major wins following his return . He began a feud with Mark Henry in which he would score a disqualification and count out win over Henry . Bourne also defeated Henry ' s manager Tony Atlas , but the next week he lost to Henry via pinfall . Raw ( 2009 – present ) . On June 29 , Bourne was traded to the Raw brand , and made his debut that night as the first of the three wrestlers that were part of a Gauntlet match against Randy Orton , in which he was eliminated . The following week , however , Bourne defeated the United States Champion Kofi Kingston in a non - title match . On the November 2 episode of " WWE Raw " , Bourne received a United States Championship match courtesy of Ozzy Osbourne and D - Generation X against The Miz which he failed to win . On the December 29 episode of " ECW " , Bourne made a special appearance and defeated Mike Knox in an ECW Homecoming qualifying match to advance to a battle royal where the winner would face ECW Champion Christian at the Royal Rumble for the ECW Championship . Bourne lost a match against WWE Champion Sheamus on the first " Raw " episode in 2010 . On the January 12 , 2010 , episode of " ECW " , Bourne competed in the " Homecoming Battle Royal " but was unable to win when he was the first to be eliminated . At Royal Rumble Bourne competed in his first Royal Rumble match and entered as # 2 , but was eliminated by CM Punk . On the February 22 episode of " Raw " , Bourne teamed up with the debuting Yoshi Tatsu and Kofi Kingston to defeat The Legacy ( Randy Orton , Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes ) . On the March 8 episode of " Raw " , Bourne defeated William Regal to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania XXVI , which was won by Jack Swagger . Throughout May , Bourne started an on - screen rivalry with Zack Ryder , with the two exchanging victories , before ending their feud on the May 27 episode of " Superstars " . The May 31 , 2010 episode of " Raw " opened with Bourne being the victim of an assault by Edge after Bourne had challenged him for his spot in the WWE Championship match at Fatal 4 - Way . Later in the show , as John Cena ' s scheduled tag team partner , Randy Orton , was injured by Edge before the main event , Cena chose Bourne to replace him in a match against Edge and Sheamus . Bourne pinned Sheamus to earn the victory for his team . Two weeks later , Bourne fought Chris Jericho in a match , which he won by disqualification when Jericho threatened the referee and attacked Bourne while he was in the ropes . Later that night , he assisted the rest of the Raw roster in fending off another assault by the " NXT " Season One rookies . At the Fatal 4 - Way pay - per - view , he faced Jericho in a rematch , which Bourne won by pinfall . The following night on " Raw " , Jericho challenged Bourne to a third match stating that if he didn ' t win , he would leave WWE . Jericho defeated Bourne by pinfall . Their feud continued on the July 5 episode of " Raw " , where Bourne teamed up with Randy Orton to defeat Jericho and Edge . Bourne was announced as one of the participants in the Money in the Bank ladder match for the Money in the Bank pay - per - view on July 18 , but he was unsuccessful . On September 19 , at the Night of Champions pay - per - view , Bourne teamed up with Mark Henry in the Tag Team Turmoil match for the WWE Tag Team Championship , but they failed to win the titles when they were the last team eliminated in the match by Drew McIntyre and Cody Rhodes . On the October 11th edition of Raw , Bourne competed in a match against CM Punk to qualify for Team Raw at Bragging Rights , but was unsuccessful in winning and was assaulted by Punk after the match . This was put in place as Bourne ( in reality ) required shoulder surgery and will be out of action for an estimated four months . Return from injury and feud with Jack Swagger . Air Boom , suspension and Return . ( 2011 - present ) . Bourne returned on the February 28 , 2011 , edition of " Raw " , defeating Sheamus with the " Air Bourne " , after Sheamus has been attacked by Triple H . On May 1 at Extreme Rules , Bourne was a Lumberjack in the WWE Tag Team Championship Match . On the May 23 edition of Raw , Bourne lost to Jack Swagger but attacked Swagger with a spinning back kick after his victory lap . The next week on Raw , Bourne beat Swagger with a quick roll up . After his feud with Swagger ended , Bourne was pushed to team up with Kofi Kingston as part of Air Boom , winning the WWE Tag Team Championships . After 6 successful title defences , against Micheal Micilicudy and David Otugna , Primo and Tyler Reks , and Jack Swagger and Dolph Ziggler , Bourne was suspended for 30 days . Upon his return , Air Boom was put into a feud with Primo and Epico . Suspension and injury ( 2012 ) . After losing the titles to Primo and Epico ( and losing two more rematches ) , Evan would be supsended again due to another failed drug test , this time for 60 days . Rumors started that Bourne will be apart of Team Long at WrestleMania 28 . In March , Bourne was involved in a car accident , leading to him suffering from a broken foot . Return ( 2013 - 2014 ) . After a year - long absence , Bourne returned on March 28 , 2013 , at an NXT live event , defeating Sami Zayn He was released from the WWE on June 12 , 2014 . Return to independent circuit ( 2014 – present ) . After leaving WWE , Korklan , under his former ring name of Matt Sydal , was announced as the first participant in Pro Wrestling Guerrilla ' s 2014 Battle of Los Angeles . On July 20 he made his in - ring return to Dragon Gate , tagging with Cima to take on Ricochet and Masato Yoshino . They came up short in the bout , when Cima tapped out to Yoshino . On August 9 , Sydal made his debut for Evolve , unsuccessfully challenging Ricochet for the Open the Freedom Gate Championship . From August 30 to 31 , Sydal took part in the 2014 Battle of Los Angeles . After a win over Chris Hero , he was eliminated from the tournament by Kenny Omega . Other media . As Bourne , Korklan is featured as a downloadable superstar for WWE SmackDown vs . Raw 2009 video game . Korklan is available for download on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in a pack along with other downloadable superstars and content . He also appeared in WWE SmackDown vs . Raw 2010 without the need for download . He is also in WWE SmackDown vs . Raw 2011 . Image Entertainment , Inc . released a DVD titled " Before They Were Stars : Matt Sydal : Bourne Is Born " on January 20 , 2009 , which features every match Korklan participated in Wrestling Society X as well as promos and a music video . Personal life . Both of Korklan ' s parents are schoolteachers . He has a younger brother Mike , who wrestles under the name Mike Sydal . He attended Parkway Central High School in St . Louis . In 2001 , Korklan enrolled at the University of Missouri , studying marketing , as he was unsure whether he could earn a living from wrestling . He continued to wrestle , attending college three days a week , while wrestling mid - week and on weekends . He graduated with a bachelor ' s degree in 2005 , and began working as a sales and marketing vice president for a small mailbox company in St . Louis , although he continued to wrestle . Korklan cites his wrestling influences include Sabu , Super Crazy , Rey Mysterio Jr . , Ricky Steamboat , Dean Malenko , Chris Jericho , Eddie Guerrero , Chavo Guerrero , Jamie Noble ] ] , Tajiri , Bret Hart and Owen Hart .