Pro wrestler Candy Cartwright drops lawsuit for alleged sexual assault against WWE star Matt Riddle

The lawyer of wrestling pin-up Candy Cartwright has said that she has put her claim against WWE star Matt Riddle "in the past", dropping a lawsuit that was filed last October and included a sexual assault allegation.

The former champion for women's promotion Shine named Riddle, Evolve – who she describes herself as representing as a social media ambassador – WWE and promoter Gabe Sapolsky in the original suit.

The three other defendants have since been dropped, leaving Cartwright's claim against Riddle, which is thought to revolve around allegations outlined on her Twitter account last summer which remain publicly visible.

"I’m posting this because I have been so sad for so long," said Cartwright, adding the 'speak out' hashtag which has been widely used to highlight alleged acts against women in wrestling.

"I didn’t realize that what he did to me was not ok. I realize now, reading these other brave women’s stories, that I can’t be afraid anymore and I have to speak out.

"Back in May of 2018, I was riding with Matt Riddle and a few other wrestlers. During the van ride, when the 3 other wrestlers had fallen asleep, Matt asked me to 'hop on his d*ck'.

"When I refused – although we had previously been together, I was incredibly uncomfortable in that setting – when I said no, he grabbed me by my throat, choked me and said, 'what if I just made you?'

"I ended up giving him oral sex – praying someone wouldn’t wake up – to get out of having intercourse with him. It was incredibly humiliating.

"It is never OK to put your hands on a woman. It’s also not OK to not listen when she says no."

It is unclear what caused the decision to file for the case to be dismissed, which has been reported by TMZ and others.

Riddle has always vigorously denied the allegations, swiftly issuing a video in which he succinctly told viewers that he had never sexually assaulted anyone.

"The allegations by this independent female performer are completely false and another attempt to harass and humiliate Mr and Mrs Riddle and to try to tarnish their reputation in the community," a statement from Riddle's representatives said at the time.

"We have been aware for the last two years of this performer stalking the Riddle family. In 2019, our firm had drafted a pleading against this performer to seek an injunction for cyberstalking in the Circuit Court for Orange County, Florida."

Cartwright subsequently told Newsweek that the aim of Riddle's video had been to "distract people."

She published a photo that appeared to show the pair kissing, and Riddle admitted that they had had an affair, for which he expressed his regret to his wife.

"I know having an affair was wrong and I'm sure it brought a lot of pain to his family, but that doesn't take away from the fact that he assaulted me," Cartwright said at the time. "Multiple times. Throughout the course of our relationship."

In a statement in June, WWE said: "We take any allegation of this nature very seriously and are looking into the matter.

"Individuals are responsible for their own personal actions. WWE has zero tolerance for matters involving domestic violence, child abuse and sexual assault."

TMZ quoted Riddle's attorney as saying this week: "The parties have put this in their past and are focused on the future."