Cardona Reveals Gruesome Injury Details, WWE Rumors on Cathy Kelley's Future, Latest on Piper Niven

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.

Matt Cardona Discusses Triceps Injury

Matt Cardona's WWE comeback was halted by a devastating triceps injury, and the 41-year-old opened up about how things played out.

Cardona posted an Instagram video explaining the gruesome details of his injury, which first arose during his match against Gunther on the Aug. 14 episode of Friday Night SmackDown earlier this month.

"I got powerbombed on the announce table, got powerbombed on the apron twice and in the ring. My elbow was bothering me, but I didn't really think anything of it," Cardona said (h/t Steve Carrier of Ringside News).

However, further damage was done when Cardona tried to fight through the pain during a match against Kit Wilson at the Aug. 21 WWE Main Event taping.

"I felt a pop, and I thought, 'There's no way I hurt my elbow on a dropkick, right?'" he said. "I had no strength in my right arm. I said, 'Okay, this triceps is torn.' I could just tell."

Cardona underwent an MRI the following day that confirmed his triceps was completely torn off the bone. He had surgery on Aug. 25, and he rued the timing of his injury.

"Sure enough, yes—torn right off the bone, right off the elbow," he said. "It just sucks getting hurt now when I'm still figuring out who Matt Cardona is in WWE."

Cardona added that he's still motivated to make his WWE comeback memorable, and he won't let his injury deter him from his ultimate goals.

"Five months, six months, three months off at this point in my career—that's a long f--king time. I don't want to sit home. I don't want to sit and collect a check. I don't want to have a vacation. I want to be in the ring," he said. "I came back to win the WWE Championship. I might sound crazy to you, maybe I'm delusional, but that's just how I'm wired. I will not die. I am a cockroach—whatever you want to say. I love this stuff too damn much to let this injury stop me. I'll be back faster than the surgeon said and coming back to be the WWE Champion—or I'm going to die trying."

WWE Reportedly Considering Expanding Cathy Kelley's Role

Cathy Kelley has long been WWE's go-to backstage correspondent, but it sounds like she could be taking on more responsibilities soon.

According to a recent report from WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select, WWE is looking at other ways to use Kelley after being impressed with her work over the last few months.

"It has been relayed to us that WWE has been impressed as of late with the work of Cathy Kelley and that the company would like to find additional roles for her outside of her current backstage correspondent position on television," the report stated (h/t Derek Holloway of Ringside News). "Kelley, who by all accounts is well-liked and extremely engaging, has stood out over the course of the last few months."

Kelley worked for WWE from 2016 to 2020 before returning to the company in 2022. The company is reportedly considering including her in its digital promotions.

"We're told WWE has considered making her a focal point of upcoming social media campaigns while also having her take on a significant role within the social aspects of Club WWE," the report stated. "The feeling within is that WWE sees an opportunity to utilize Kelley's strengths beyond her current television role and continue expanding her presence across the company's digital platforms."

Kelley previously told Chris Van Vliet in an interview that she isn't particularly interested in testing her skills in the wrestling ring, but she would be open to a manager role at some point in her career.

For now, it appears that Kelley will continue to be featured as one of WWE's lead personalities on the broadcast side.

Piper Niven Injury Recovery Update

Piper Niven has been absent from WWE for over a year after suffering a serious neck injury, but she provided a positive update on her progress.

Niven shared on Instagram that she's 12 weeks removed from neck surgery, and her scans showed that she's healing properly.

"Got my 12 week scans and everything is 'healing beautifully,'" Niven wrote in her caption (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News).

Niven last wrestled in August 2025. In June, she confirmed that her surgery recovery has an indefinite timeline, and there's a chance she may not be able to wrestle again.

Still, Niven decided to keep things optimistic as she thanked fans for checking on her. She also warned that she won't be back on social media frequently, as she's content with focusing on her recovery.

"I logged into a tonne of messages of love and concern and I wanted to say thank you so much," she wrote. "I am probably not gonna get back to anyone before I Irish goodbye back out of social media, please don't hate me. But thank you all for giving a hoot. Imma go back to living my geriatric Florida bam life."

Fans will certainly continue to hold out hope that Niven can make a full recovery, and it sounds like she's already on the right track.