Former X Division and TNA World Heavyweight champion Austin Aries, who was recently released from the WWE this past summer returned to the ring at House of Hardcore in Philadelphia. Before his match, Aries cut a lengthy promo about his career and personal responsibility. He talked about his career coming full circle and said that he was going back to using his orginal monicker, Austin "The Truth" Aries.
Aries said that while he's earned a great reputation for his in-ring and promo skills, he also developed a reputation for being an a--hole. He said that the reputation followed him to WWE, and that the company was apprehensive about signing him because of it.
"The truth behind why Austin Aries was fired isn't because creative couldn't find nothing for me, how do you not find something creative for Austin f--king Aries?" Aries asked. "The truth is, I got let go because I probably deserved to be. They didn't find anything for me because they didn't want to find anything for me because I was f--king miserable. "
The fans grew impatient during Aries promo, often chanting "boring" and " shut the f**k up!". Aries called out some of the fans booing, before saying that his firing was his fault although WWE brought out the worst in him.
"I competed at WrestleMania 33, and I'm telling you, leading up to what should have been the biggest moment of my life, I couldn't find an ounce of joy," Aries continued. "That's when I realized, there was something wrong with me. In six months, I lost my job. Relationships with people I cared about were tarnished."
After nearly going 19 minutes with his promo Aries was finally interrupted by Alex Reynolds, who Aries ended up defeating by submission.