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WWE’s Backstage Reactions to Matt Hardy’s Antics, Push for Release

Matt Hardy’s recent online antics, apparently a call for his release from WWE, have been a focal point of wrestling media reports for the past few weeks.

His eccentric behavior has also stirred some internal WWE conversation, with different members of the leading wrestling promotion reacting quite distinctly to the wrestler’s personal presentation online. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter breaks down some of the backstage reactions.

As would be expected, the predominant backstage sentiment is anger at Hardy, feeling he has embarrassed the company and absolutely should be fired. Others, however, believe that because he is clearly in “work mode” trying to get fired, WWE should not so hastily cave into his ‘requests’ and release him from the company.

A third school of thought, albeit a minority one, is that Hardy is doing a successful job of entertaining and keeping himself relevant and thus deserves some degree of credit for his antics.

Regardless of how the situation shakes out, few are legitimately worried about the prospect of Matt Hardy signing with TNA Wrestling from a competitive standpoint. Even if he were to reform The Hardy Boyz with his brother Jeff, the feeling is that TNA has dropped the ball so badly on key opportunities that no real threat would emerge.

What does concern WWE, however, is the possibility that Matt Hardy joining TNA would persuade Jeff to also remain with the company. WWE still believes Jeff Hardy can be a valuable main event player, and it would like to handle the Matt situation in a way that keeps the door open for a Jeff Hardy return.

Written by Brian Cantor

Brian Cantor is the editor-in-chief for Headline Planet. He has been a leading reporter in the music, movie, television and sporting spaces since 2002.

Brian's reporting has been cited by major websites like BuzzFeed, Billboard, the New Yorker and The Fader -- and shared by celebrities like Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj.

Contact Brian at brian.cantor[at]headlineplanet.com.

Comments

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  1. You’re absolutely right about the deflection not making a big difference in terms of competition between TNA and WWE. However, that still doesn’t mean that McMahon would want to see a reunion happen in his rival’s company.

    Excellent article.

  2. Personally, i love Jeff Hardy and I hope that this whole situation won’t hamper his return to the WWE. You are correct, WWE should handle it in a way that keeps the door open for Jeff. But the Hardy brothers are close so the situation has to be handled very carefully to keep Jeff happy.

  3. I’ve noticed that alot of the people talking crap about the Hardys are the same people that swore they would support them through thick and thin. Is this what the IWC has come to? Turning on 2 of the most talented wrestlers in history just because they don’t feel happy in the WWE? Have you ever thought whats good for THEM?

  4. Personally the Hardys are a favorite in my family- especially Matt. If he is released from WWE and decides to sign to TNA then I’ll be watching that. Many like myself believe that Matt Hardy is an amazing wrestler- you can simply hear it by the cheers of his fans when he emerges into the ring for a match. WWE refuses to let Matt Hardy prove his talent and that seems to be the main problem. Hardy has been an all time favorite of mine and my family, friends, and I will be waiting for what happens next.

  5. This is total BS man. They want to keep Matt Hardy in WWE simply so it’ll keep the door open for his brother Jeff. As if Jeff would really want to return at this point of his career in TNA…he’s the friggin’ TNA World Heavyweight Champion for crying out loud! His recent push in TNA is guaranteed to hold him there for a long time. I kind of feel bad for Matt…it seems as if no matter where he goes he’ll just be in his little brother’s shadows. WWE has not given him a proper push since Wrestlemania 25 (in which the storyline was based on him being inferior to Jeff btw). I think Matt should straight up walk out of WWE and go out to make a better name for himself.

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