That time Natalya got a little too familiar with Zack Ryder 🤣 — “The Real Long Island Iced-Z Experience”
There are backstage moments in WWE that never make it to TV, but live forever in stories, memories, and the retellings from the Superstars themselves. And among those stories, one of the funniest—and most unexpected—involved none other than Natalya and the self-proclaimed Internet Champion, Zack Ryder.
It all went down during a random Monday Night RAW when the roster was buzzing around backstage, preparing for their segments. Zack Ryder, sunglasses on indoors as always, was doing what he did best: cutting goofy promo lines to nobody in particular, recording clips for his show, and making sure everyone could hear him say “Woo Woo Woo” at least once every three minutes.
Natalya happened to be passing by while adjusting her ring gear, stretching, and getting into her zone. She caught Ryder mid-rant about how “Long Island Iced-Z is back and better than ever, bro!” and for whatever reason, that one line made her stop in her tracks. Maybe it was the nostalgia of the early 2010s. Maybe it was his ridiculous confidence. Or maybe… just maybe… she saw an opportunity to mess with him.
She walked right up to him, smiling like she knew exactly what she was doing. Ryder froze—because when Natalya looks directly at you with that mischievous grin, you feel it. She put one arm around his shoulders, leaned in just a little too close, and said:
“Well, Zack… if you’re the Long Island Iced-Z… I might need to see if the recipe is still as legendary as everyone says.”
Ryder blinked. Twice. Then three times. His brain completely blue-screened.
“Wait—what? Me? Recipe? What do you mean? I mean—you know the catchphrase—it’s just—it’s like a thing—Woo Woo Woo—uhhh…”
Natalya laughed so hard she nearly doubled over. He was flustered beyond belief, stumbling over words like someone had unplugged his promo mode. She straightened her posture, patted him on the chest, and tilted her head with that classic Hart-family confidence.
“Relax, Zack. I’m just saying…” She paused dramatically. “Some wrestlers talk big. Some wrestlers are big. And some wrestlers just… exaggerate their legend a little.”
Ryder looked mortified and honored at the same time. “Hey! I never exaggerate! Okay, maybe sometimes. But still!”
Natalya gently shoved him with her shoulder as she walked off, leaving him standing there, speechless, holding his half-broken phone tripod.
A passing Superstar—likely Dolph Ziggler, because it felt like a Ziggler moment—patted Ryder on the back and said, “Bro… you just got the Full Hart Treatment. And you survived. Proud of you.”
Ryder tried to regain his swagger, straightened his headband, and delivered the most confused “Woo Woo Woo… you know it?” ever recorded.
And just like that, the legend grew: the day Natalya got a little too familiar with Zack Ryder and gave him the “Real Long Island Iced-Z Experience”… leaving him flustered, red-faced, and laughing about it for weeks.
