The Magnificent Seven: The Top 7 Matt Hardy Moments

Matt Hardy is an interesting figure in modern wrestling history. He rose to prominence as a tag guy in WWE, before becoming a popular mid carder. As good as he was—particularly when it came to reinventing his character–his act seemed to have run its course by the time he departed from WWE. He not so surprisingly found his way to TNA, where his brother Jeff had already established some roots. Rather than rest on his laurels and quietly retread the gimmick and the kinds of stories that had brought him fame in the first place, as some WWE cast-offs have a habit of doing in TNA, Hardy ultimately blazed a new trail. As Broken Matt Hardy—a gimmick he not only started playing on TNA TV, but carried into shoot interviews, and got special TV segments devoted, too—he offered up an idiosyncratic style that wrestling world hadn’t really seen the likes of before, and that threatened to revolutionize the wrestling business.

There are those fans who can’t take Hardy seriously—particularly inclined to dismiss his most eccentric work. Whether you like him or not, though, I find him a fascinating figure for study. This week’s column is dedicated to seven moments that were uniquely Matt Hardy—moments that were exciting, moments that were influential, moments that were unique. As always, a fair degree of subjectivity goes into this countdown, so please consider this a list more of my favorite moments than one ranking definitive greatness. I welcome your additions in the comments section.

#7. Urging Jeff Hardy To Jump at WrestleMania 23

The WrestleMania 23 Money in the Bank Ladder Match featured one of the most star-studded rosters of competitors the match has ever had, chock full of past or future main eventers. Money in the Bank is one of wrestling’s most valuable prizes—holding the promise of a high-profile world title shot, and more often than not a world title reign. This was particularly so in 2007, only the third iteration, when each previous briefcase had resulted in an upper mid-carder’s first world title win.

Jeff Hardy looked to be in position to win the briefcase in this match, only for his brother Matt to divert his attention elsewhere. Matt had long-time family rival Edge stretched across a ladder, bridged across the ring apron and the barricade. While Matt had, in general, been known as the saner Hardy, who tended to rein in his brother, in this case, he cut loose with an eye toward ending his nemesis, or at least incapacitating him for the remainder of the match (as a sub-plot, ending Edge’s hitherto unblemished record at WrestleMania).

Jeff being Jeff, he complied with his big brother’s instruction, foregoing the chance to win the match in favor of the crazy and violent spot of jumping off the ladder to deliver a seated senton for the first time WWE used the spot of someone getting driven through a ladder.

#6. Total Non-Stop Deletion

Over the course of 2016, TNA wasn’t exactly a red hot product, but when the company was the talk of the wrestling world, it was more often than not because of the outlandish antics of Broken Matt Hardy. Total Non-Stop Deletion marked a coronation of sorts, as not only Hardy and his immediate entourage or opponents got sucked into the Broken Universe, but rather, the rest of TNA’s stars traveled to the Hardy Compound to stage a full episode of Impact there.

The episode itself was a bit uneven, but in even world champion Eddie Edwards defending the company’s top prize against Lashley, it was a moment when The Hardys were about the most important figures in TNA. It’s a shame that so much of this buzz got squandered a few months later in a TNA regime change that saw the Hardys leave the company (and enter legal battles with it), but just the same, the night itself was a glorious celebration of Matt Hardy’s broken vision.

#5. Defeating Jeff Hardy at WrestleMania 25

Matt Hardy is a well-accomplished professional wrestler, who thrived in WWE during a peak point in the company’s business and enjoyed good longevity there, besides doing well in TNA and in a variety of indies. For much of his career, however, his biggest limitation is that he’s just not as big of a star as his younger brother Jeff.

It was a cathartic moment for Matt Hardy fans when he got the better of his brother at WrestleMania 25 in an Extreme Rules Match. The brothers engaged in a wild brawl that ended with Matt nailing a chair-assisted Twist of Fate to pin his brother.

While Jeff would ultimately win the feud, and one might argue that Matt has remained in Jeff’s shadow, and that only the recent Broken persona has started to chip away at that perception, this match nonetheless read as a statement that the brothers Hardy were on an equal playing field, and that maybe, Matt might be a little better.

#4. Winning the TNA Championship at Bound for Glory 2016

While there’s a significant gap between WWE and TNA in terms of audience size and financial figures, TNA nonetheless remains the steadiest number two US-based promotion over the last decade and change. TNA’s biggest show is Bound for Glory, so it stands to reason that winning the main event of that show, and particularly winning a world title in that process is a pretty big deal. That’s exactly what Matt Hardy accomplished at Bound for Glory 2016, winning a triple threat over Ethan Carter III and Drew Galloway.

TNA being TNA, Hardy had to relinquish the title shortly thereafter, but he still got his moment of formally reigning atop TNA, before he was able to win the title again in January and turn heel in the process. All of this paved the way for his eventual Broken turn, which I’d argue actually earned Hardy more attention and acclaim in the broader wrestling world, after he’d reached the more traditional top of the mountain in TNA.

#3. Thwarting MVP at WrestleMania 24

If there’s one thing that Matt Hardy was very, very good at as a singles wrestler for TNA, it was cultivating mid-card rivalries that felt personal and kept the crowd engaged for sustained stretches. His feud with MVP was one of the best examples, as the two feuded over MVP’s US Championship and did one of the better takes on the wacky tag partners who just couldn’t get along gimmick. Hardy need an emergency medical procedure, and WWE deftly placed the blame on MVP to add extra heat to their rivalry whenever Hardy got back.

As it turned out Hardy returned in grand fashion, coming out of the crowd to reintroduce himself in the WrestleMania 24 Money in the Bank Ladder Match. MVP was widely considered one of the favorites to win the match, and looked to have it in the bag only for Hardy to take him out. The moment was electric, and drew the appropriate fire to the US title scene for weeks to follow as Hardy and MVP rekindled their issue.

#2. Surprise Attacking Edge

In the summer of 2005, Matt Hardy had a ton of buzz around him not because of anything he’d done as a wrestler, but rather his unceremonious release from WWE. The story goes that management didn’t trust him to be around Edge and Lita, after he came upon suspicious text messages and believed the two were engaged in an affair.

So, when Hardy returned, unannounced, no entrance music or gear, but rather captured jumping Edge backstage, it felt like a revelation. It would have been difficult for Hardy to get through WWE security, and to have timed an attack so it showed up on live WWE TV, but it wasn’t unthinkable that someone with years of WWE experience, friends on the inside, and the right motivation might pull it off.

As the weeks went on, it was clear that Hardy was back not as a vigilante, but a regular wrestler taking part in a worked shoot angle. Just the same, it was a fresh, white hot angle when it launched, and Hardy’s most electric moment as part of the WWE roster.

#1. Delete or Decay

While I could have called upon other entries from the Broken catalog, Delete or Decay was my proper introduction to the Broken universe when I looked it up on YouTube after catching so much buzz about it online.

The Broken work, and particularly matches like this set at the Hardy Compound, make little sense in the tradition of professional wrestling. They include campy elements, and sometimes downright magical turns (see that regenerative pool that transforms wrestlers into past gimmicks of themselves). Just the same, the cinematic style in which their shot is fresh and exciting, capturing some of the cooler elements of a product like Lucha Underground and taking them to their outlandish extreme. Add to that an entertaining back-and-forth fight with lots of fun cameos from the Hardy entourage, and you have some unforgettable television.

Delete or Decay isn’t for everyone, but I look to it as a match that truly reflected Matt Hardy’s one-of-a-kind vision for what wrestling might be—imaginative, fun, and undeniably unique.

Which Matt Hardy moments would you add to the list and how would you order them? My nearest mis was the Hardy Boyz’s return at WrestleMania 33, but I left it off for feeling more like a collective moment for the team than Matt’s accomplishment (though it was certainly still in contention). Let us know what you think in the comments.

Read more from Mike Chin at his website and follow him on Twitter @miketchin.