Matt Hardy
Ring name(s)	Evil Knieval[1] Executioner[1] Grim Reaper[1] Ignis Fatuus[2] High Voltage[3] Matt Hardy[3] Matt Hardy Version 1.0[3] Surge[3] White Cheetah[1]
Billed height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[4][5]
Billed weight	235 lb (107 kg)[5]
Born	(1974-09-23) September 23, 1974 (age 37)[6] Cameron, North Carolina[7]
Resides	Cameron, North Carolina
Billed from	Cameron, North Carolina[4][5]
Trained by	Dory Funk, Jr.[3]
Debut	October 15, 1992[3]

Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy^[3] (born September 23, 1974)^[6] is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA).^[5]

Before signing with WWE, Hardy, with his brother Jeff, founded a wrestling organization called Organization of Modern Extreme Grappling Arts (OMEGA).^[7] While there, Hardy held many championships including the Heavyweight and Tag Team Championship, which he held with Jeff.^[3] The promotion folded in October 1999 when they signed contracts with WWE.^[3] The Hardys gained notoriety in WWE's tag team division due to their participation in Tables, Ladders, and Chairs matches.^[8] As a tag team wrestler, Hardy is a six-time World Tag Team Champion, a one-time WWE Tag Team Champion, and a one-time WCW Tag Team Champion.^[3][4]

Apart from his success as a tag team wrestler, Hardy is a one-time world heavyweight champion, having won the ECW Championship in 2008. He also has won other singles championships,^[3][4] having held the Hardcore, European, Cruiserweight, and United States Championship on one occasion each. All totaled, Hardy has won 13 championships in WWE.

Early life[link]

Son to Gilbert and Ruby Moore Hardy, he is the older brother of Jeff Hardy.^[9][10] Their mother died of brain cancer in 1986.^[10][11] Hardy played baseball as a child and throughout high school, but had stopped by his senior year.^[12] He also played football, either as a linebacker or a defensive end.^[13] Hardy was a good student at Union Pines High School in North Carolina, and was a nominee for the "Morehead Award", a scholarship to any university in North Carolina.^[14] Hardy attended University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he majored in engineering;^[15] however, after a year he dropped out due to his father being ill.^[16] He then attended Sandhills Community College in Pinehurst to gain his associate's degree.^[16]

Professional wrestling career[link]

Early career[link]

Hardy, along with his brother Jeff and friends, started their own federation, the Trampoline Wrestling Federation (TWF) and mimicked the moves they saw on television.^[9] They later created their own wrestling promotion, OMEGA Wrestling, in which Hardy competed under the name High Voltage.^[7] Shortly after Hardy sent in a tape for the World Championship Wrestling (WCW) Amateur Challenge using the ring name High Voltage, a tag team named High Voltage began competing in WCW, causing Hardy to change his name to Surge.^[7][17] A few years later, it was revealed to him by Chris Kanyon that the tape had been kept in the WCW Power Plant, watched multiple times, and that the name High Voltage was blatantly stolen from it.^[7][17]

The Hardys also wrestled for several other North Carolina based wrestling organizations and adapted a number of alter-egos. As The Wolverine, Hardy captured the New England Wrestling Alliance (NEWA) Championship in May 1994. As High Voltage, he teamed with Venom to claim the New Frontier Wrestling Association (NFWA) Tag Team titles in March 1995.^[3] A month later, High Voltage defeated the Willow for the NFWA Championship.^[7]

World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment[link]

The Hardy Boyz (1998–2001)[link]

Matt Hardy performing his patented legdrop onto Christian at the King of the Ring.

Hardy worked as a jobber for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1994 up until he signed a full-time contract. His first WWF match was against Nikolai Volkoff on May 23, 1994, which he lost by submission^[18] He wrestled sporadically throughout 1994 in the WWF, losing matches against Crush, Razor Ramon, Owen Hart and The Undertaker.^[19] Hardy continued wrestling with the WWF sporadically, including matches against Hunter Hearst Helmsley and "The Ringmaster" Steve Austin.^[3] It was not until 1998, however, that the Hardy brothers were given full-time WWF contracts, and sent to train with former wrestler Dory Funk, Jr..^[7][20] The Hardy Boyz used a cruiserweight, fast-paced high flying style in their matches, often leaping from great heights to do damage to their opponents (and themselves in the process). Although Jeff was better known for his extreme moves, Hardy was a prodigious high-flier himself. In 1999, while feuding with Edge and Christian, the duo briefly picked up Michael Hayes as a manager.^[21] On July 5, they won their first WWF Tag team Championship by defeating the Acolytes, but lost it back to them a month later.^[22] They soon dumped Hayes however, and joined the short lived stable The New Brood with Gangrel.^[23] After breaking away from Gangrel, Hardy and Jeff were briefly managed by Terri Runnels,^[24] after they won her services in the first ever tag team ladder match.^[25]

In 2000, the Hardy Boyz found a new manager in their real-life friend Lita.^[26] Together, the three became known as "Team Xtreme".^[27] Throughout 2000 they continued feuding with Edge and Christian, defeating them for the WWF Tag Team Titles on two occasions.^[28][29] Hardy won the WWE Hardcore Championship on April 24, 2000, on Raw is War, by defeating Crash Holly, but lost it back to Holly three days later on SmackDown!.^[30] At SummerSlam the Hardy Boyz competed in the first ever Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match, for the Tag Team Titles against the Dudley Boyz and Edge and Christian, but were unsuccessful.^[8]

Singles career (2001–2005)[link]

Matt Hardy, one half of the Hardy Boyz, at WrestleMania X8

In 2001, after Jeff's Intercontinental Championship run,^[31] Hardy was given a singles championship push. He won the European Championship on SmackDown! four days before Backlash.^[32][33] Hardy believes that he was pushed to win the title because of Jeff winning the Intercontinental Championship, and because of the effort he put into his previous storyline with Triple H and Stone Cold Steve Austin.^[33] He became the second-longest reigning European Champion in history and the longest-reigning American-born European Champion.^[34]

Throughout the year, the Hardy Boyz continued to win as a tag team, winning the WWF Tag Team Titles two more times,^[35][36] and the WCW Tag Team Championship during the Invasion.^[4] By the end of the year, the Hardy Boyz began a storyline where they were having trouble co-existing.^[3] This culminated in a match between the two, with Lita as the guest referee, at the Vengeance pay-per-view, which Jeff won.^[37]

At the beginning of 2002, it seemed Team Xtreme had patched things up.^[3] After the Brand Extension, however, Hardy was relegated to Heat while Jeff wrestled on the main show, Raw.^[3] On the August 12 episode of Raw, Hardy turned against Jeff during Jeff's match against Rob Van Dam, because Hardy was frustrated at not receiving a match against Van Dam for the number one contendership for the Intercontinental Championship.^[38] A short time later, Hardy joined the SmackDown! roster.^[39] On the October 3 episode of the show, Hardy took advantage of a run-in from Brock Lesnar to defeat The Undertaker.^[40]

Having now dubbed himself "Matt Hardy: Version 1", and with his MF'er (Mattitude Follower) Shannon Moore in his corner, 2003 began with Hardy frantically trying to lose weight to get under the 220 lb (100 kg) weight limit to compete for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship.^[3][41][42] After just barely making weight, Hardy defeated Billy Kidman at No Way Out to win the Cruiserweight title.^[43][44] At WrestleMania XIX, he successfully defended it against Rey Mysterio.^[45][46] The Mattitude faction then expanded to include Crash Holly as Moore's "Moore-on" (follower).^[47] He later disbanded the group and returned to Raw in order to be able to travel and work with his then girlfriend Lita, who just returned from an injury.^[48] On his first night back, he turned on Lita in storyline after teasing a proposal to her.^[48] Hardy spent little time on Raw^[3] and later turned into a fan favorite by engaging in a rivalry with Kane.^[49][50] Lita was also involved in the storyline, and Hardy took time off after a chokeslam from Kane off the stage during Lita and Kane's wedding.^[3][51] This time off was due to a knee injury.^[52]

Release and sporadic appearances (2005)[link]

Along with his friend Rhyno, Hardy was released by WWE on April 11, 2005.^[7][53] Edge and Lita received jeers from the crowds at WWE events, often resulting in chants, "You screwed Matt", and, "We want Matt".^[54] Paul Heyman, in a "shoot" promo, mocked Edge for his actions at One Night Stand.^[55] Lita, for the first time in over five years, became a heel (villainous character) as a result of the affair becoming public knowledge.^[56] Fans began a petition on the internet, wanting WWE to re-sign Hardy, and amassed over fifteen thousand signatures.^[54]

Hardy released two character promotional vignettes, that he was planning to use before he was offered a new contract by WWE.^[54] Hardy called himself The Angelic Diablo with the tagline "the scar will become a symbol" in reference to the way in which he had been treated by Lita and WWE.^[54][57] On the June 20 episode of Raw, during the storyline wedding of Edge and Lita, Hardy's entrance music and video were played when the priest asked if anyone had a reason why Edge and Lita should not be wed.^[58] On the July 11 episode of Raw, Hardy made his return, attacking Edge as he made his way to the ring.^[59] On the July 13 edition of WWE's webcast Byte This!, which featured Lita as its guest, one of the callers was Hardy himself.^[3] The two engaged in a huge argument which led to Lita walking off the set.^[3]

Ring of Honor (2005)[link]

Hardy appeared at a scheduled Ring of Honor (ROH) event on July 16, 2005, in Woodbridge, Connecticut where he defeated Christopher Daniels via submission.^[60] Hardy also cut a brief promo where he continued in full 'worked shoot' mode, attacking WWE and John Laurinaitis. Following his official return to WWE, Hardy was met with backlash following a match with Homicide from the fans at a subsequent ROH event, which Hardy won.^[61] The next day at his final ROH appearance, he lost to Roderick Strong.^[62]

Return to World Wrestling Entertainment[link]

Return (2005–2006)[link]

Hardy during a Raw house show held in Bremen, Germany

On July 11, 2005, Hardy posted on his website that he was finally "free", that wrestling fans had not seen the last of him, and that he had a surprise for the fans who had supported him. That night on Raw, Hardy attacked Edge backstage and again later during Edge's match with Kane, leaving the commentators speechless.^[59] Before being escorted out of the building by security, Hardy stated that Edge and Lita would pay for their actions and told fans that they could see him at Ring of Honor while security officials and event staff were trying to restrain him.^[59] Hardy also called out Johnny Ace as security had him in handcuffs taking him out of the arena. This caused an uproar amongst fans, who were confused and wondered if the whole thing was a work or a shoot. Similar occurrences repeated during the following two weeks.^[63][64]

On the August 1 episode of Raw, Vince McMahon officially announced Hardy's return to WWE, adding that Hardy would face Edge at SummerSlam.^[65] Hardy made his in-ring return, defeating Snitsky on the August 8 Raw.^[66] Seconds after the victory, Hardy was attacked by Edge, and as he was being carried backstage, Matt counterattacked Edge in the locker room. On August 21 at SummerSlam, their match came to a premature end when Edge dropped Hardy onto the top of a ring post, causing him to bleed heavily. The referee ended the match on the grounds that Hardy could not continue, and Edge was declared the winner.^[67] After SummerSlam, the two continued fighting on Raw, including a Street Fight that resulted in Hardy performing a Side Effect on Edge off the entrance stage and into electrical equipment below.^[68] At Unforgiven, Edge faced Hardy in a steel cage match. Hardy caught an interfering Lita with the Twist of Fate and won the match with a leg-drop off the top of the cage.^[69] Hardy and Edge faced each other at WWE Homecoming in a Loser Leaves Raw ladder match. Edge's briefcase holding the contract for his WWE World title shot was suspended above the ring. The winner of the match received the contract and the loser was forced to leave Raw. After a contentious match, Edge tied Hardy's arms in the ropes, and Lita trapped Hardy in a crucifix hold, leaving Hardy only able to watch Edge win.^[70] When the match ended, Edge and Lita gloated over the victory, but Hardy took it in stride and left the arena. With his defeat at the hands of Edge, Hardy was moved to the SmackDown! brand where he re-debuted with a win over Simon Dean on October 21 in Reno, Nevada.^[71]

Hardy during the Eddie Guerrero tribute tour in Italy in November 2005.

Back on SmackDown!, Hardy started an angle with MNM (Johnny Nitro and Joey Mercury) and their manager Melina when Melina approached Hardy, seemingly wanting Hardy to join with her team. Hardy refused the offer, which led to him facing the tag team on several occasions with a variety of partners. One of his partners, Road Warrior Animal, brutally attacked him after they were defeated – sick of "pulling all the weight in tag teams". Animal, who was renamed The Road Warrior, and Hardy feuded for a while after this, with Hardy picking up several wins over the veteran,^[72] including a qualifying match for the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 22, which was ultimately won by Rob Van Dam.^[73]

Hardy next competed in the SmackDown! King of the Ring tournament, losing to eventual winner Booker T in the opening round thanks to a low blow and distraction from Sharmell.^[74] Hardy also became the first man to defeat Mr. Kennedy. On July 25, after the SmackDown! taping, Hardy was taken out of action after doctors found the remnants of the staph infection that had plagued him the previous year. He was sidelined until August 25 while he healed. Hardy made a surprise appearance backstage at Unforgiven after Jeff's match against Johnny Nitro. Lita joined the two in the segment, making this the first time the three had been seen together on WWE television since February 2003. Hardy then began a rivalry against Gregory Helms which saw both winning over each other time and time again. Then at No Mercy, in both of their hometown, Cameron, North Carolina, Hardy beat Helms.^[75] The two met again one more time at Survivor Series, where Hardy's team won in a clean sweep.^[76]

The Hardys reunion (2006–2007)[link]

Jeff (far left) and Matt at the December to Dismember making their entrances.

On the November 21, 2006 episode of ECW on Sci Fi, Hardy and Jeff competed in a match together for the first time in almost five years, defeating the Full Blooded Italians.^[77] At Survivor Series, the Hardy Boyz competed with CM Punk and D-Generation X (Triple H and Shawn Michaels) as part of Team DX versus Team Rated-RKO (which included Edge, Randy Orton, Johnny Nitro with Melina, Mike Knox, and Gregory Helms) in a traditional Survivor Series match. Team DX won in a clean sweep, last eliminating Orton.^[76] At December to Dismember, the Hardy Boyz issued an open challenge to any tag team who wanted to face them.^[78] MNM answered their challenge by reuniting at December to Dismember, a match that the Hardy Boyz would be victorious in.^[79] At Armageddon, Hardy and Jeff competed against Paul London and Brian Kendrick, MNM, and Dave Taylor and William Regal in a Ladder match for the WWE Tag Team Championship but lost.^[80] Subsequently, he and Jeff feuded with Joey Mercury and Johnny Nitro after the legitimate incident where they injured Mercury's face at Armageddon 2006.^[81] This led to a bitter long term rivalry, and at the 2007 Royal Rumble, Hardy and Jeff defeated MNM.^[82] Mercury and Hardy continued to feud until Mercury was released from WWE in March.^[83] Before Mercury's release, however, Hardy defeated him to earn a spot in the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 23, which was ultimately won by Mr. Kennedy.^[84]

The night after WrestleMania on Raw, the Hardys competed in a 10-team battle royal for the World Tag Team Championship. They won the titles for the sixth time after last eliminating Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch.^[85] After briefly feuding with Cade and Murdoch, the Hardys retained their World Tag Team Championship in their first title defense at Backlash.^[86] The Hardy Boyz would also successfully retained their titles at Judgment Day. One month later at One Night Stand, they defeated The World's Greatest Tag Team to retain the titles in a Ladder match. The following night on Raw, Vince McMahon demanded that The Hardys once again defend their chmapionships against Cade and Murdoch. The Hardys were defeated after Murdoch pushed Jeff's foot off the bottom rope during Cade's pinfall, causing the three count to continue.^[87] They invoked their rematch clause against Cade and Murdoch at Vengeance: Night of Champions, but were unsuccessful.

Storyline with MVP and United States Champion (2007–2008)[link]

Hardy spent nine months in pursuit of MVP's United States Championship, which they are wrestling for here.

On the July 6, 2007 episode of SmackDown!, Hardy won a non-title match against WWE United States Champion Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP), which resulted in a feud between the two.^[88] Hardy was unable to defeat MVP at The Great American Bash for the WWE United States Championship.^[89] MVP then claimed that he was "better than Hardy at everything", which led to a series of contests between Hardy and MVP, such as a basketball game, an arm wrestling contest, and a chess match which MVP "sneezed" on and ruined when Hardy put him in check.^[90] MVP challenged Hardy to a boxing match at Saturday Night's Main Event, however MVP was legitimately diagnosed with the heart condition Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.^[91] Since MVP was unable to compete, Hardy faced his replacement, former world champion boxer, Evander Holyfield. The match ended in a no contest after MVP entered the ring to verbally abuse Holyfield, who then knocked him out.^[92] MVP also challenged Hardy to a beer drinking contest at SummerSlam, but as revenge for what happened at SNME, Hardy allowed Stone Cold Steve Austin to replace him; Austin simply performed a stunner on MVP then kept drinking.^[90][93]

After a segment involving MVP inadvertently choosing Hardy as his tag-team partner, Theodore Long promptly set up a match against Deuce 'n Domino for the WWE Tag Team Championship which the duo were able to win, therefore setting up Hardy's first reign as WWE Tag Team Champion.^[94][95] It was the first time Hardy held a tag team championship with someone other than his brother. Hardy and MVP retained the titles at Unforgiven in a rematch against former champions Deuce 'n Domino.^[96] Hardy was scheduled to face MVP at Cyber Sunday, but due to a head injury sustained on the previous episode of SmackDown!,^[97] he was not medically cleared to compete.^[98]

Hardy as the United States Champion.

On the November 16 episode of SmackDown!, Hardy and MVP dropped the WWE Tag Team Championship to John Morrison and The Miz.^[95][99] Despite the fact that Hardy was hurt, MVP immediately invoked the rematch clause.^[99] After the rematch, in which Hardy was forced to tap out, MVP attacked Hardy, repeatedly targeting his knee.^[99] It was later confirmed by WWE.com that Hardy had suffered an injury at his former partner's hands and that he might not be able to compete at Survivor Series.^[100] Despite his absence at the pay-per-view, his team was able to win the match.^[101] On November 21, WWE's official website reported that Hardy underwent an emergency appendectomy in Tampa, Florida. A CAT scan revealed an inflamed appendix after Hardy was feeling extreme pain. Later surgery revealed that his appendix had already burst.^[102] According to Hardy himself, on December 8 doctors back in North Carolina found an abscess of infection that had not been caught, and he had it drained, spending an additional several days in the hospital. Hardy made an appearance at the December 31 episode of Raw supporting his brother Jeff. To further Jeff's storyline with Randy Orton, however, Hardy was attacked by Orton.^[103][104] Hardy made his return at a live event in Muncie, Indiana on March 1, 2008.^[105]

On March 30, 2008, at WrestleMania XXIV, Hardy made his televised return to WWE programming in the Money in the Bank ladder match by cutting through the crowd, and attacking MVP to prevent him from winning the match. He made his official in-ring return the next night on Raw, losing a singles match to WWE Champion Randy Orton. On the April 4 episode of SmackDown!, Hardy faced MVP in a non-title match, which he won, re-igniting their storyline rivalry.^[106] On April 27, 2008, Hardy defeated MVP to win the United States Championship at Backlash,^[107][108] and successfully retained his title against MVP five days later on Smackdown.^[109]

After some sporadic feuds for the title, Hardy was drafted to the ECW brand on the June 23, 2008 episode of Raw during the 2008 WWE Draft, in the process making the United States Championship exclusive to ECW.^[110] After a successful title defense against Chavo Guerrero at Night of Champions, he dropped the United States Championship to Shelton Benjamin at the Great American Bash pay-per-view on July 20, 2008, which meant that the title returned to SmackDown.^[111][112]

ECW Champion and feud with Jeff (2008-2009)[link]

Hardy as the ECW Champion.

On the July 22 episode of ECW, Hardy became the number one contender to Mark Henry's ECW World Heavyweight Championship after defeating John Morrison, The Miz and Finlay in a fatal four-way match.^[113] He won the title match at SummerSlam by disqualification due to interference from Henry's manager, Tony Atlas, thus he failed to win the title.^[114] Due to the ending of the pay-per-view match, Hardy received a rematch for the title on the next episode of ECW, but again failed to win the title when Henry pinned him after a distraction by Atlas.^[115]

At Unforgiven, Hardy won the ECW World Heavyweight Championship during the Championship scramble match, defeating then-champion Henry, The Miz, Finlay and Chavo Guerrero by pinning the Miz with three minutes left, thus making Hardy the first person in history to win a championship scramble in WWE, and marking his first world heavyweight championship win.^[116] He continued to feud with Henry until No Mercy, where Hardy successfully retained the title. After successful defenses against Henry, Chavo, Finlay, and Evan Bourne, Hardy lost the title to Jack Swagger on the January 13, 2009 episode of ECW, which was taped on January 12.^[117]

At the 2009 Royal Rumble pay-per-view, after losing an ECW Championship rematch to Swagger, Hardy turned into a villain when he hit his brother Jeff with a steel chair, allowing Edge to win the WWE Championship.^[118] On the January 27, 2009 episode of ECW, it was announced by General Manager Theodore Long that Hardy had requested, and been granted, his release from ECW, and had re-signed with the SmackDown brand.^[119] As part of the buildup to this feud, Hardy implied that he was responsible for all of Jeff's accidents leading back to November, including an automobile accident and a pyrotechnics accident, in an attempt to stop Jeff holding the WWE Championship, and at WrestleMania XXV, Hardy defeated Jeff in an Extreme Rules match, and in a stretcher match on the following episode of SmackDown.^{[120][121][122]}

Matt and Jeff began their rivalry at the 2009 Royal Rumble, and it culminated with a match at WrestleMania XXV.

On the April 13 episode of Raw, Hardy was drafted to the Raw brand as part of the WWE draft.^[123] Two weeks later, in a rematch from WrestleMania, Hardy lost to Jeff in an "I Quit" match at Backlash, in which he broke his hand.^[124][125] Hardy continued to wrestle with his hand in a cast, incorporating it into his persona and claiming that he was wrestling under protest.^[126] At the June 22 taping of WWE Superstars, Hardy suffered yet another injury, when his intestines "exploded" through his abdominal wall, during a Triple Threat match against MVP and Kofi Kingston.^[127][128] Hardy had suffered a tear in his abdominal muscle two years previously, but had not needed surgery until it worsened, and became a danger to his health.^[127]

SmackDown and departure (2009–2010)[link]

He was then traded to the SmackDown brand on June 29, and underwent surgery for the torn abdominal muscle on July 2.^[129][130] He made his return on the August 7 episode of SmackDown as the special guest referee in the World Heavyweight Championship match between his brother, Jeff, and CM Punk, and helped Jeff retain the championship by counting the pinfall.^[131] The following week Hardy saved his brother when CM Punk and The Hart Dynasty attacked both Jeff and John Morrison, turning into a fan favorite again.^[132] On the August 21 episode of SmackDown, after apologizing for his past actions towards Jeff, he had his first match back after his injury when he teamed with Jeff and John Morrison to defeat The Hart Dynasty and CM Punk, when Matt pinned Punk.^[133]

Hardy during a SmackDown house show.

In early 2010, Hardy began an onscreen relationship with Maria; the relationship was short-lived, however, as Maria was released from her WWE contract. On the February 16, 2010 episode of ECW, it was announced that Hardy would be mentoring Justin Gabriel on WWE NXT.^[134] On the March 5 episode of SmackDown, Hardy qualified for the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania XXVI by defeating Drew McIntyre, but was unsuccessful at WrestleMania, as the match was won by Jack Swagger.^[135][136] Hardy was kayfabe suspended by Vince McMahon because he attacked Drew McIntyre after McIntyre lost to Kofi Kingston at Over the Limit.^[137] He was able to get his revenge on McIntyre during the Viewer's Choice episode of Raw when chosen as the opponent for McIntyre, with Theodore Long stating that Hardy was suspended from SmackDown but not from Raw.^[138] On the following edition of Smackdown however, McIntyre announced per orders of Vince McMahon, that Hardy had been suspended from all WWE programming.^[139] At Fatal 4-Way however, Hardy prevented McIntyre from regaining the Intercontinental Championship, thus continuing their feud.^[140] On the following edition of SmackDown he was reinstated by General Manager Theodore Long and had a match with McIntyre which Hardy won. After the match, it was announced that McIntyre's visa had legitimately expired and was sent back to Scotland, thus ending their feud.^[141]

On September 12, WWE confirmed they had sent Hardy home from a European tour.^[142] Following this Hardy began posting videos on his YouTube channel expressing his disinterest in the WWE product and insisting that he wanted to be released from the company.^[143][144] On October 15, 2010, WWE announced that Hardy had been released from his contract.^[145] Hardy later stated that his release had been in effect two weeks before WWE made the announcement.^[146]

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2011)[link]

Hardy at a TNA house show in February 2011.

On January 9, 2011, Hardy made his debut for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) at the Genesis pay-per-view, as part of the heel stable Immortal. He was the surprise opponent for Rob Van Dam, and defeated him to prevent Van Dam from receiving a match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, held by Hardy's brother Jeff. In the main event, Hardy attempted to interfere in Jeff's World Heavyweight Championship match with Mr. Anderson, but was stopped by Van Dam, which led to Jeff losing both the match and the championship.^[147] On the January 13 episode of TNA Impact! the Hardy Boyz reunited to defeat Anderson and Van Dam in a tag team match, following interference from Beer Money, Inc..^[148] Two weeks later, Hardy suffered his first loss in TNA when he was defeated by Mr. Anderson.^[149] On February 13 at Against All Odds, Rob Van Dam defeated Hardy in a rematch.^[150]

On the following edition of Impact!, Hardy, along with the rest of Immortal and Ric Flair, betrayed Fortune.^[151] On March 13 at Victory Road Hardy was defeated by Flair's previous protégé, A.J. Styles.^[152] On April 17 at Lockdown, Immortal, represented by Hardy, Abyss, Bully Ray and Ric Flair, was defeated by Fortune members James Storm, Kazarian and Robert Roode and Christopher Daniels, who replaced an injured A.J. Styles, in a Lethal Lockdown match.^[153] On the April 21 episode of Impact!, Hardy faced Sting for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, Hardy's first World Title match in TNA, but was defeated.^[154] The following month Hardy was granted a shot at the TNA World Tag Team Championship against James Storm and Robert Roode, Beer Money, Inc. While the champions looked to defend the title against the Hardy Boyz, Matt instead introduced the returning Chris Harris, Storm's old tag team partner, as his partner for the title match.^[155] The match took place at Sacrifice, where Storm and Roode retained their title.^[156]

On June 20 Hardy announced that he was taking a few weeks off from TNA. The following day, it was reported that the promotion had actually suspended Hardy.^{[157][158][159][160]} On August 20, Hardy was released from TNA following a DWI arrest that occurred earlier that same day.^[161][162]

Semi-retirement (2011-present)[link]

Hardy announced his retirement from full-time professional wrestling due to injuries on September 1, 2011.^[163] In 2012, Hardy would wrestle sporadically on the independent circuit, working with promotions such as Mid Atlantic Championship Wrestling,^[164] Pro Wrestling Syndicate^[165] and Northeast Wrestling.^[166]

Other media[link]

Hardy at an autograph signing.

In 1999, Hardy, along with his brother Jeff, appeared as an uncredited wrestler on That '70s Show episode "That Wrestling Show".^[167][168] Hardy and Jeff also appeared on Tough Enough in early 2001, talking to and wrestling the contestants.^[169] He appeared in the February 25, 2002 episode of Fear Factor competing against five other World Wrestling Federation wrestlers.^[170][171] He became the eventual winner, and won $50,000 for the American Cancer Society.^[170][171] Hardy also appeared on the October 13, 2009 episode of Scare Tactics, as a mental patient who threatens to attack the prank's victim.^[172][173]

In 2001, Hardy, Jeff and Lita appeared in Rolling Stone magazine's 2001 Sports Hall of Fame issue.^[174] In 2003, Hardy and Jeff, with the help of Michael Krugman, wrote and published their autobiography The Hardy Boyz: Exist 2 Inspire.^[175] As part of WWE, Hardy appeared in their DVD, The Hardy Boyz: Leap of Faith in 2001.^[176] On April 29, 2008, WWE released "Twist of Fate: The Matt and Jeff Hardy Story".^[177] The DVD featured footage of the brothers in OMEGA and WWE.^[177] Hardy also appears on The Hardy Show, an internet web show which features the Hardys, Shannon Moore and many of their friends.^[178]

Personal life[link]

Hardy and his ex-girlfriend, Amy "Lita" Dumas

Hardy is good friends with Marty Garner, Shannon Moore and Gregory Helms.^[179][180] Hardy was in a six year relationship with former WWE Diva Amy Dumas, known by the ring name "Lita". They first met in January 1999, at a NWA Mid-Atlantic show, but did not begin dating until a few months later.^[181] They used to share a home in North Carolina. The couple broke up when she had an affair with one of Hardy's close friends, fellow wrestler Adam "Edge" Copeland in February 2005.^[53] Hardy has stated in interviews that he and Dumas have since patched things up, and he still considers her a close friend.^[53] He also dated former WWE Diva Ashley Massaro.^[53] In February 2011, Hardy stated he was dating Reby Sky.^[182]

Controversies and legal troubles[link]

Hardy was arrested on August 20, 2011 for driving while intoxicated after crashing into a tree, and was released by TNA shortly later.^[161][183] Hardy was later also charged with reckless driving, with a hearing scheduled to take place October 11.^[184] Four days later, Hardy was rushed to an emergency room, after falling down in his house.^[185]

On August 30, Hardy posted a video on his YouTube channel, which has since been taken down by the site,^[186] implying that he was about to commit suicide: "Goodbye, World... My time here is Almost complete... I only have a few hours & minutes... I loved you all... Regardless of how you felt about me... I'll miss you all... September 23, 1974 - August 31, 2011."^[187] The video sparked 25 to 30 phone calls to 911 to check on Hardy's well being. Police checked on Hardy and confirmed that he was not planning to commit suicide,^[188] with the video apparently being a hoax by Hardy.^[189] The stunt drew much criticism; his sister-in-law Beth Britt claimed that "the f---ing joke is over. Stop trying to work the internet."^[190] and WWE commentator Jim Ross commented that the "Matt Hardy fiasco [was] totally embarrassing and inexplicable", asking for Hardy to "seek answers".^[191] Hardy later claimed on Twitter that the "YouTube Video was not in any way a suicide note.. No words such as death, suicide, kill, heaven or hell were included", and defended his actions as he "needed one last attention grabber to let the World know that Matt Hardy has re-found his true self."^[192]

On September 12, 2011, Hardy was arrested on another DWI charge, with a court date set for November 30.^[193][194] Hardy was arrested for the third time in a month on September 14, when his girlfriend Reby Sky called 911, claiming that he was "strung out on pills and needed help". Police found 20 vials of anabolic steroids, one dose of ecstasy, drug paraphernalia and $1,900 in cash after conducting a search of his home. Hardy was arrested on charges of possession with intent to sell or deliver a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance, maintaining a drug dwelling and possession of drug paraphernalia.^{[195][196][197][198]}

On September 19, Hardy announced that he was going to check himself into a WWE-sponsored rehabilitation center for the next three months.^[199][200] It was later reported that entering rehab was one of the conditions for Hardy's release from custody on his latest arrest.^[199][201] On November 19, Hardy was kicked out of the rehabilitation center, with a month left to complete the program, for failing a breathalyzer test. Following this, Hardy was arrested for violating the court order when he returned to Moore County in North Carolina, and was put in the Moore County jail on a $1.0 million bond.^[202][199] On November 29, Hardy was released from jail on the condition that he complete his court-ordered drug rehabilitation, and his bond from $1.0 million to $100,000, which Hardy posted in order to be released to rehab. If Hardy fails to complete rehab on the second try, he will be jailed again, but on a reduced bond of $250,000.^[203]

In wrestling[link]

Hardy performing a Twist of Fate on Sheamus.

Hardy performing the Ice Pick on A.J. Styles in 2011.

Hardy performing a moonsault on Rob Van Dam.

• Finishing moves
  • Twist of Fate (WWF/E) / Twist of Hate (TNA),^[204] sometimes from the top rope or the top of a ladder^[4]
  • White Light Experience (Independent circuit) – 2012–present / Ice Pick (TNA) – 2011 / Scar (Independent circuit) – 2005 (Double underhook with bodyscissors)^{[205][206][207]} – used rarely in WWE

• Signature moves
  • Corner clothesline followed by a running bulldog^[208]
  • Corner powerbomb^[209]
  • Diving clothesline, with theatrics^[210]
  • Diving elbow drop,^[211] sometimes to the back of a bent-over or kneeling opponent's head, with theatrics^[212]
  • Diving leg drop, with theatrics^[213][214]
  • Forearm smash^[215]
  • Inverted DDT^[216][217]
  • Moonsault^[218][219]
  • Northern Lights suplex^[220]
  • Ricochet^[3] (Belly to back suplex lift transitioned into an elbow drop to the opponent's midsection) – 2003
  • Russian legsweep^[215]
  • Side Effect^[3] (Wrist–lock sitout side slam)
  • Splash Mountain^[3] (Sitout crucifix powerbomb)

• Managers
  • Michael Hayes^[21]
  • Terri Runnels^[24]
  • Gangrel^[23]
  • Lita^[26]
  • Ric Flair^[152]

• Nicknames
  • "Version 1 (V1)"^[221]
  • "The Angelic Diablo"^[222][223]
  • "The Sensei of Mattitude"^[224][225]
  • "The Man Who Will Not Die"^[226]
  • "(Arguably) Everyone's Favorite Wrestler"^[227]
  • "Cold Blood"^[228]

• Entrance themes
  • "Loaded" by Zack Tempest^[229]
  • "Live for the Moment" by Monster Magnet (WWE)
  • "Rogue and Cold Blooded" by Dale Oliver (TNA)^[230]
  • "Immortal Theme" by Dale Oliver^[231]

Championships and accomplishments[link]

• National Championship Wrestling
  • NCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[3]

• New Dimension Wrestling
  • NDW Tag Team Championship (1 time)^1[232] – with Jeff Hardy

• New England Wrestling Alliance
  • NEWA Championship (1 time)^[3]

Hardy as WWE Cruiserweight Champion in 2003

Hardy as the WWE United States Champion in 2008

• New Frontier Wrestling Association
  • NFWA Championship (1 time)^[3][7]
  • NFWA Tag Team Championship (1 time)^[3] – with Venom

• NWA 2000
  • NWA 2000 Tag Team Championship (1 time)^[3] – with Jeff Hardy

• Organization of Modern Extreme Grappling Arts
  • OMEGA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[233]
  • OMEGA Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jeff Hardy^[234]

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI Feud of the Year (2005)^[235] vs. Edge and Lita
  • PWI Match of the Year (2000)^[236] with Jeff Hardy vs. The Dudley Boyz and Edge and Christian in a Triangle Ladder match at WrestleMania 2000
  • PWI Match of the Year (2001)^[236] with Jeff Hardy vs. The Dudley Boyz and Edge and Christian in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match at WrestleMania X-Seven
  • PWI Tag Team of the Year (2000)^[237] with Jeff Hardy
  • PWI ranked him #17 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2003^[238]

• World Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Entertainment
  • ECW Championship (1 time)^[239]
  • WCW Tag Team Championship (1 time)^[4] – with Jeff Hardy
  • WWF European Championship (1 time)^[32]
  • WWF Hardcore Championship (1 time)^[30]
  • WWF/World Tag Team Championship (6 times)^[240] – with Jeff Hardy
  • WWE Cruiserweight Championship (1 time)^[43]
  • WWE Tag Team Championship (1 time) ^[95] – with Montel Vontavious Porter
  • WWE United States Championship (1 time)^[107]
  • Terri Invitational Tournament^[25] – with Jeff Hardy

• Wrestling Observer Newsletter
  • Best Gimmick (2002)^[241]
  • Worst Feud of the Year (2004) with Lita vs. Kane^[242]

¹The titles have been vacant since 1999 due to the Hardy Boys signing contracts with the WWF and have been declared inactive until they defend the titles again.

Notes[link]