For years, they were two of the most beloved WWE Superstars, starting in NXT before moving to the main roster. As Enzo & Big Cass, they were the perfect combination of wiley, diminutive hype man (Enzo) and tall powerhouse (Big Cass) – Enzo’s rapid-fire mic work was a smorgasbord of catchphrases and repeat-along lines that had the audience eating of his hands, and his hot tag to Big Cass – who usually had to clean up the messes that Enzo’s mouth created – was a guaranteed pop for the WWE Universe. But then things went sour. First, injuries began to creep in, then reports of Enzo’s backstage behavior, followed by a shift to 205 Live, where his athleticism (or rather lack-there-of) became painfully apparent alongside such cruiserweight stars as Neville, Cedric Alexander , and Mustafa Ali. Big Cass returned from injury into a seemingly random feud for the newly unretired Daniel Bryan. Enzo became the suspect in an alleged rape case, while Big Cass’ own backstage behavior also became an issue and soon they were both gone from the WWE – Enzo Amore was released in January of 2018, while Big Cass followed suit in June.
Enzo remained quiet for much of 2019, as the investigation into the alleged sexual misconduct was underway, while Big Cass prepared to head to the indies, somewhere he hadn’t been since 2011 and his early days with World of Unpredictable Wrestling (WUW) in New York City. By the time of Cass’ release, the charges against Enzo were dropped, but he seemed to be finished with sports entertainment and was pursuing a hip-hop career instead. To make matters worse, Cass and Enzo were no longer on speaking terms, having fallen out during their last year in the WWE. But all that changed this past December.
https://twitter.com/briantheguppie/status/1061443457972084736
Big Cass returned to the indies in November of 2018, first with Big Time Wrestling at shows in Massachusetts and New York. Cass returned looking out of shape and seemed destined to remain languishing on lower level indies. It almost seemed like the fire was gone. And then in December, he was booked with Tommy Dreamer‘s House of Hardcore, in a match against former WWE Superstar MVP. Following the match, while signing autographs later in the show, he suffered a seizure and had to be taken to the hospital. Tommy Dreamer quickly assured everyone it wasn’t drug related and prayed for his health. And when news hit his former tag team partner Enzo, sitting at home, it started a path to reconciliation.
🙏🏼 to my heater
— REAL1 (FKA Enzo Amore) (@real1) December 9, 2018
“It’s been well-publicized that Cass had a health scare and suffered a seizure at a House of Hardcore wrestling event,” Enzo told Sports Illustrated in a recent interview. “Once I saw that footage, I thought about my friend—a guy I traveled the world with and had experiences that I can’t share with any other human—and I couldn’t risk losing that forever. Pride aside, I reached out.” That reaching out led to the former two “Certified G’s” reconnecting and re-igniting their fires to not only return to the ring but reunite together as a tag team once again. They hit the gyms and got back into shape, and on Saturday, April 6, in New York City – their old stomping grounds – they made their return in as big as way as they could. By crashing the NJPW/ROH G1 Supercard at Madison Square Garden.
Following the end of the titles-for-titles match that saw Bullet Club‘s Guerrillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa) retain the IWGP Tag Team titles and win the Ring of Honor World Tag Team titles, Enzo and Big Cass attacked the losing teams, particularly ROH’s PCO & Brody King and the Briscoe Brothers. Other ROH personnel rushed to the ringside, including Bully Ray, to fight back the “invasion”. While Enzo & Big Cass were fought off, they had made their statement. They were back.
“YOU CAN FEEL WHEN ITS REAL” #nZo #caZXL #FREEagentZ https://t.co/mRgfwpPzUq pic.twitter.com/FEzzaZLt3D
— REAL1 (FKA Enzo Amore) (@real1) April 11, 2019
Know known as nZo (Enzo) and CaZXL (prounounced Cass-Excel), and collectively known as FreeAgentZ (pronounced “Free Agency”), they declared they were ready to return to the pro wrestling world – but that they would not be signing with anyone. “This is the real-life nWo,” Enzo told Sports Illustrated. “We are not signing any exclusivity contracts, we are not signing a non-compete. We have all the right in the world to promote ourselves shamelessly and have as much fun as we want. If fans want to see us in a ring, then let their voices be heard.”
While their orchestrated attack on the two ROH teams would seem to indicate a possible run with ROH, they seem to be looking much bigger than that. They want to wrestle anyone and everyone, anywhere in the world. And with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) announcing the brackets for this year’s rebooted Crockett Cup tag team tournament, featuring indie teams as well as squads from ROH and NJPW, many are speculating that we may see FreeAgentZ as the “wild card” team that has yet to be announced.
#CrockettCup Preview – https://t.co/Fwq0STwx5T
Aldis vs Scurll – Worlds Championship
Mack vs. Cabana – National Championship
Jazz vs. Sienna – Women's Championship
Plus 8 Team TournamentTickets – https://t.co/p2QgvspZu1
Live on Traditional PPV, @FiteTV and #HonorClub pic.twitter.com/0OAdDGPRP6— NWA (@nwa) April 10, 2019
“We’re going where we want, when we want, and nobody can put a filter on us now,” nZo said to Sports Illustrated. “Our goal is to be the top act in the entire world of pro wrestling. In the social media era, we’re the f—ing Road Warriors. We’ve got nothing else to lose, so we’re going to take it all. We’re still certified, we’re still bona fide, and we’re still the realest guys in the world.”
